Keeping track of your competition and the state of your industry is an integral part of operating any business. Traditionally, that information has been termed "market intelligence." In recent years, the practice of collecting market intelligence has expanded to include analytics that can help you improve your business model and projections. Market intelligence can help you understand your market better to run a more profitable business.

External communications can be tricky. There are a lot of moving parts, and you’re not always clued into everything going on with your client. Sometimes, this means you’ll need to have a tough conversation or two to get you and your client back on the same page.

Exceptional leadership creates an exceptional business — motivates a team to move in a focused and coordinated way to reach a common goal. Doing this effectively, however requires decisiveness, purpose and foresight. It’s a true challenge to lead in a way that promotes admiration and respect.

Storytelling in business settings is about creating fit: that between story and audience. You might have what you think is the world’s greatest story, but most audience members of a certain type may disagree. Conversely, you could have what you deem to be a mundane, uninspiring story, but it may resonate deeply with some audiences. So part of your job as a leader is to think through the critical components of your story—plot, emotional quality, takeaway—and align those with what you know about your target audiences. Here are four truths to guide you through that process.