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Copyright or Trademark Infringement
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If you create anything worthwhile, you'll find others ready to appropriate it as their own. This includes names, products, services—you name it.  Attorneys will advise you to protect your intellectual property, because if you are lax, you could lose the rights to your own material. The letter below was sent to a company who had chosen a product name remarkably similar to our own.  CareerLab®  is a federally-registered trademark. The offenders backed down immediately.  

In another case, a software company stole a software version of my book, "200 Letters for Job Hunters," and began selling it in Office Depot and other major retail outlets. We sued, and the offending company paid us a $50,000 cash settlement.


January 3, 20-

Martin Boswell, President
The Executive Career Consultancy
385 South University Boulevard, Suite 4500
Los Angeles, California 90013

Re: CAREERLAB -- U.S. Trademark Registration 1,522,059

Gentlemen:

Our law firm represents CareerLab, Ltd., of Lone Tree, Colorado.  We have been asked to contact you concerning your use of the mark "CareerCab" in association with an interactive CD-ROM designed to assist job seekers.  Enclosed is a copy of U.S. Trademark Registration No. 1,522,059, issued on January 24, 1989, to our client for the mark "CareerLab." As stated on this certificate, our client has extensively used this mark in providing advice and consultation to individuals as to career decisions and directions since 1985. 

In light of the directly competitive nature of your company's business, your use of the mark "CareerCab" constitutes a clear infringement of our client's trademark rights.  We demand that you immediately cease and desist from any further use of the "CareerCab" mark and provide a complete accounting of all past sales of the "CareerCab" CD-ROM.

Please be advised that our client is prepared to take any steps necessary to protect its trademark rights in this matter.   We request your written response by January 14, 20-.

    Very truly yours,
    Goldblatt and Voertrekker  

    Rodney Goldblatt

pc: CareerLab Ltd.
Enclosure  

Certified Mail
Return Receipt Requested

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William S. Frank, M.A., President/CEO
25 Reasons I love consulting.
by William S. Frank
  1. Brand. You are your own brand, and you can define it any way you want. For many years, I provided outplacement to the ex-employees of Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield service corporation. When departing employees left the company, they didn't request outplacement in their severance package. They said, "I want Bill Frank."
  2. Demand. The world will always be full of terrible problems that need solving.
  3. White Hat. I can be a helper and get paid for it.
  4. Pay. I can be paid to do things I'd gladly do for nothing.
  5. Variety. Every day is different.
  6. Happiness. At this stage of my career, I only work for people I respect and care about. If a client micromanages me or is otherwise no fun, I complete the assignment and replace them.
  7. Talent. I'm using 110% of my talents and stretching myself to the max.
  8. Change. I can change my focus any day I want. If you're a McDonald's franchisee, you don't say, "Hey, I've got this great idea for a meatball sandwich—let's try it out today." In consulting you can adjust your focus hour-by-hour, as long as your clients still understand and appreciate what you do.
  9. Income. No one else would pay me as much as I pay myself.
  10. FUN. I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing.
  11. Retirement. I can write and consult as long as I am physically and mentally capable. Peter Drucker worked into his 90s, and when asked which book was his best, he said: "My next one."
  12. Job Security. Although clients come and go, no one can come into my office and say, "Pack up your stuff . . . You don't work here anymore." In 29 years, I've only had one employer: ME.
  13. Travel. I don't have to travel unless I decide to. I travel if it's both FUN and profitable—or at least FUN.
  14. Commute. I live five minutes from my office, a corner office in an upscale six-story tower. In winter, I leave a heated garage at home and drive to an underground heated garage at work. There's seldom time to hear even one song on the radio.
  15. Vacation. Consulting is more fun than vacation (except on Wailea Beach in Maui).
  16. Friends. I have developed hundreds of close acquaintances and several lifetime friends.
  17. Time. I can work as much or as little as I like: four-hour days or 18-hour days. (Of course, my income will reflect that.)
  18. Employees. I can work with employees, subcontractors, partners, or alone—I've done it all.
  19. Passive Income. I've developed several products that provide "mailbox money." I earn while I'm sleeping.
  20. Ethics. I've never had to violate my values or personal code of ethics. I've never had to lie, purposely deceive or harm others, or promise things I can't deliver. I go to bed with a clear conscience. That doesn't mean there's never any conflict. But the conflict is conducted according to generally accepted business practices.
  21. Virtual. My career is fairly portable. With the Internet, e-mail, cell phone, and FedEx, I can work nationally, even internationally from my office—or anywhere in the world.
  22. Purpose. I make a difference in peoples' lives every day. I see it in their faces, hear it in their voices, and read it in their thank-yous.
  23. Experience. Every painful or joyful life experience makes me a better consultant. So does every person I meet or book I read. Grey hair can be good in consulting.
  24. Structure. I have to work very hard, and the clients expect superb results—but I get to structure my days, weeks, months, and years.
  25. Boss. Most of the time, I love my boss.
As I was posting these letters online, I realized I want to communicate my love for consulting. It's just a great business. The single letters, taken together, may create a picture of enjoyment, but in a burst of creativity I listed some of the reasons consulting is such a good fit for me—and perhaps for you, too. They are not prioritized; this is just how they came out.