Tom Vogel's Blog

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  • I Quit LinkedIn—Here’s Why Smart Entrepreneurs Are Leaving
    12.01.2026

    I Quit LinkedIn—Here’s Why Smart Entrepreneurs Are Leaving

    I quit LinkedIn after almost 20 years. As an entrepreneur, I had to find new ways for digital marketing, content distribution, and staying in touch with people.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • Mission, People, Organization: Why Yet Another Book on Leadership?
    08.01.2026

    Mission, People, Organization: Why Yet Another Book on Leadership?

    Our practical book on leadership puts three aspects of leadership on the same level: The mission, the people, and the organization.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Active Reserve Leadership Recommended Reading
  • Berlin Power Cut: What Entrepreneurs Should Prepare For
    05.01.2026

    Berlin Power Cut: What Entrepreneurs Should Prepare For

    Preparing your home and your family for crises is one thing, but what about preparing your business for something like the Berlin power cut?

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management Entrepreneurship
  • AI in 2026: Between Mature Technology and Bullshit Bingo
    31.12.2025

    AI in 2026: Between Mature Technology and Bullshit Bingo

    A glimpse of AI in 2026 reveals a mature technology, but still a lot of bullshit bingo. With all the bold predictions, the key skill is to stay flexible.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation
  • New Year’s Resolutions for 2026: Stay True to Your Values
    30.12.2025

    New Year’s Resolutions for 2026: Stay True to Your Values

    A wild year lies behind us. What can an ordinary entrepreneur do to succeed in 2026? The answer is simple: Stay true to your values.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Farewell Events: Modesty or One Last Show Time? My Choice Is Clear
    23.12.2025

    Farewell Events: Modesty or One Last Show Time? My Choice Is Clear

    Observations from 4 different farewell events in the Swiss Armed Forces – the commonality is modesty and camaraderie. Spot the side notes.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Active Reserve Leadership
  • What Is the Hard Side, and How Can You Win It Over to Scale Your Product?
    22.12.2025

    What Is the Hard Side, and How Can You Win It Over to Scale Your Product?

    To scale your product, you need to win over the hard side: That’s the minority of users who create disproportionate value to your product.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Recommended Reading
  • Scarcity or Abundance? How a Student Enterprise Evolved Over 20 Years
    19.12.2025

    Scarcity or Abundance? How a Student Enterprise Evolved Over 20 Years

    How the student enterprise I worked for evolved from scarcity to abundance in just one generation. No rant, no resentment, just observation.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • Be Paranoid and Talk About It: How Leaders Prepare for Adversity
    15.12.2025

    Be Paranoid and Talk About It: How Leaders Prepare for Adversity

    The best thing we can do to prepare for adversity is to talk about our paranoias. The more people hear it, the likelier they will prepare.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management
  • Power Plants and Cyber Security: Attack or Accident?
    09.12.2025

    Power Plants and Cyber Security: Attack or Accident?

    What if electricity goes out due to a cyber attack on a power plant, or even worse, a cyber accident involving a power plant?

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management
  • Blood, Sweat, and Tears: The Price You Pay for Experience
    08.12.2025

    Blood, Sweat, and Tears: The Price You Pay for Experience

    When I was younger, the word “experience” infuriated me. 20 years later, I know that blood, sweat and tears are the price of experience.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Feeling Uninspired? Adults and Kids, Put Your Mobile Phones Away
    02.12.2025

    Feeling Uninspired? Adults and Kids, Put Your Mobile Phones Away

    You should strive to see the bigger picture, not the smaller picture. Quite literally, this is an urgent call to put your mobile phone away.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation Leadership
  • Getting Drunk at a Business Event? That’s a Bad Idea
    24.11.2025

    Getting Drunk at a Business Event? That’s a Bad Idea

    I recently heard a guy talking too loudly about his air miles and about getting drunk at a business event. I bet he wasn’t an entrepreneur.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • Give Your Brain a Break: Spend Time Alone, and Just Think
    19.11.2025

    Give Your Brain a Break: Spend Time Alone, and Just Think

    After an intense period of effort, you need rest. Just like giving your body a rest regularly, don’t forget to give your brain a break.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • Hacking a Satellite? More Common Than You Think
    18.11.2025

    Hacking a Satellite? More Common Than You Think

    You will be surprised to learn where I heard about how to hack a satellite. Spoiler: This group also taught me a ton of other things.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Active Reserve Leadership
  • How to Reduce Complexity to Maximize Effects
    17.11.2025

    How to Reduce Complexity to Maximize Effects

    Do you want to reduce complexity? Here is a real-life example from an IT systems landscape discussion on why less is more.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Martec’s Law: How to Keep Up With Technological Change
    12.11.2025

    Martec’s Law: How to Keep Up With Technological Change

    Digital transformation is a marathon, not a sprint. Martec’s Law explains the reasons for this, and what you can do to stay relevant.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation Leadership
  • What if Your Bank Goes Bust? A Preparation Guide for Entrepreneurs
    11.11.2025

    What if Your Bank Goes Bust? A Preparation Guide for Entrepreneurs

    The possibility that your bank goes bust is more likely than you might think. Remember Silicon Valley Bank? Check out if you are prepared.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management Entrepreneurship
  • Should Entrepreneurs Be Proactive or Keep Calm? The Answer Is: Both
    10.11.2025

    Should Entrepreneurs Be Proactive or Keep Calm? The Answer Is: Both

    Do you want to seize the moment but not freak out unnecessarily? Then you have to learn to be proactive and keep calm at the same time.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Can You Manage a Pandemic Using AI? A Thought Experiment
    04.11.2025

    Can You Manage a Pandemic Using AI? A Thought Experiment

    A thought experiment for entrepreneurs based on our experience with COVID-19, teleporting it into a world of technology and multiple crises

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management
  • In Tough Times, You Have to Leave Your Ego at the Door
    03.11.2025

    In Tough Times, You Have to Leave Your Ego at the Door

    The good times are over. Do we still have room for egos, office politics and power games? As a leader, you should leave your ego at the door.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Active Reserve Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • What if OpenAI Stopped Operating? A Thought Experiment
    28.10.2025

    What if OpenAI Stopped Operating? A Thought Experiment

    Humans are good at getting used to comfortable situations, but they are bad at planning for adversity. “What if” is the central question.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management Digital Transformation
  • Zero Inbox: How to Do It, and How Not to Do It
    27.10.2025

    Zero Inbox: How to Do It, and How Not to Do It

    Glaring into somebody’s laptop screen is not what I normally do. But I was triggered by a “zero inbox” sticker, and I saw anything but. Recently, I sat in a meeting next to someone who had a sticker on the laptop screen saying “zero inbox”.…

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Leadership
  • Why Most People Fail When Crises Hit – And How to Win in Crisis
    20.10.2025

    Why Most People Fail When Crises Hit – And How to Win in Crisis

    Are you struggling with where to start your crisis preparations? You’re not alone. Download my thoughts on how to win in crisis for free.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management
  • What My Father Never Saw: 20 Years of Tech That Changed Everything
    17.10.2025

    What My Father Never Saw: 20 Years of Tech That Changed Everything

    Imagine you died 20 years ago and were thrown back into the world of work today. A thought experiment about tech that changed everything.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation
  • Kids at Work: Why I Took My 13-Year-Old Daughter to a Trade Show
    10.10.2025

    Kids at Work: Why I Took My 13-Year-Old Daughter to a Trade Show

    Kids best understand what work is about when you have your kids at work. At a trade show, my daughter learned lessons school never teaches.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • How to Avoid a Dysfunctional Board in a Startup
    06.10.2025

    How to Avoid a Dysfunctional Board in a Startup

    A dysfunctional board can limit your startup’s freedom of action. But dysfunctionality isn’t felt every day, but only in important matters.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • A Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI Bullshit Bingo
    03.10.2025

    A Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI Bullshit Bingo

    AI bullshit bingo is everywhere, but this article is really about leadership and management in the age of AI, not AI itself.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Reading the Cyber Commanders’ Handbook: Lessons for Entrepreneurs
    29.09.2025

    Reading the Cyber Commanders’ Handbook: Lessons for Entrepreneurs

    My summer reading of the Cyber Commanders’ Handbook revealed insights on resilience, risk, and robustness that every entrepreneur can use.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Crisis Management Entrepreneurship Recommended Reading
  • Don’t Trust the Time Management Gurus
    23.09.2025

    Don’t Trust the Time Management Gurus

    No single time management technique will work for every scenario. And no single time management technique will survive your entire career.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • The Compliance Trap: Stop Pretending Your Team Read the PDFs
    22.09.2025

    The Compliance Trap: Stop Pretending Your Team Read the PDFs

    Compliance isn’t about documents in inboxes—it’s about clarity, proof, and making regulations work in real life.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation Entrepreneurship
  • Why Incorporating a Company in Switzerland Feels Like the Stone Age
    16.09.2025

    Why Incorporating a Company in Switzerland Feels Like the Stone Age

    Incorporating a company in Switzerland feels outdated, slow, and costly. Why we should be inspired by progressive countries such as Estonia

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • Sick Leave Uncovered: The Costs You See and the Benefits You Don’t
    15.09.2025

    Sick Leave Uncovered: The Costs You See and the Benefits You Don’t

    Sick leave exposes the tension between finance and solidarity. But supporting your colleagues in tough times pays off more than you think.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Bigger Isn’t Always Better: Finding Your Growth Projection Style
    09.09.2025

    Bigger Isn’t Always Better: Finding Your Growth Projection Style

    Are you an entrepreneur who believes bigger is always better? Or are you more cautious? The good news is that there is more than one road to success.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship
  • Why “It’ll Be Done Tomorrow” Never Works Out
    08.09.2025

    Why “It’ll Be Done Tomorrow” Never Works Out

    For both simple and complicated tasks, “It’ll be done tomorrow” never works out. Dependencies and different perspectives are to blame.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Read and Sign on Steroids: How to Make Compliance Smarter
    03.09.2025

    Read and Sign on Steroids: How to Make Compliance Smarter

    Read and sign is not compliance. But it’s a start. In the end, it means keeping teams updated, meeting regulations, and impressing auditors.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation Entrepreneurship
  • Compliance Overreaction: How Common Sense Gets Lost in Corporate Gift Rules
    01.09.2025

    Compliance Overreaction: How Common Sense Gets Lost in Corporate Gift Rules

    Compliance overreaction is killing common sense in corporate gift-giving. Here is an example how rules meant to prevent bribery harm relations

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Features That Save Users from Themselves: The Unsung Heroes of Software
    26.08.2025

    Features That Save Users from Themselves: The Unsung Heroes of Software

    Here are some real-life examples of features that save users from themselves. They prevent chaos and keep your product frustration-free.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Digital Transformation Entrepreneurship
  • The Anchor I Return to When Entrepreneurship Gets Messy
    25.08.2025

    The Anchor I Return to When Entrepreneurship Gets Messy

    You need a fallback when entrepreneurship gets messy. Mine rests on four pillars: Fearlessness, commitment, decision-making, and simplicity.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
  • Fast and Flexible Problem Solving with the OODA Loop
    21.08.2025

    Fast and Flexible Problem Solving with the OODA Loop

    Tired of endless problem discussions? Use the OODA loop to solve problems fast and always move forward. It works in all walks of life.

    Written by

    Tom Vogel

    Entrepreneurship Leadership
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About Me

Growing a company in uncertain times is like running a marathon — it demands grit, strategy, and resilience.

As a tech entrepreneur, active reserve officer, and father of three, I share practical insights and write about entrepreneurship, leadership, and crisis management — no AI bullshit, no promos, just my thoughts in plain text.

When I’m not solving problems, I recharge and find inspiration in the breathtaking mountains around Zermatt.

Do you like this perspective? Here is how you can get more:
📌 Sign up to read from me every Friday — just my thoughts in plain text.
📌 ​Go deeper with my eBooks​ — practical guides for tough times.

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