One of the things I’ve learned in being in business is to expect the unexpected–the kind of thing that never crosses your fevered mind while you’re sipping a latte in the bank drive-through line. I’ve met people who had a great business idea and should have been rich, but weren’t. I’ve met people who stunned me with how little they knew about being in business, and by how much success they’d...

I’d heard about this service quite a while ago, but, traveling down the road looking for a phone number, I thought I’d give it a try. The service, 1-800-free411 (1-800-373-3411), is offered just like it says: free. Call from a land line, you pay zero. Call from a cellphone and you just have your regular airtime charges to deal with — a far cry from the buck or two you can pay for just one regular 411 call. How can they...