to your SELF?

Those who talked to themselves were once considered out of step with reality, and those who out-loud answered their own questions were thought to be in urgent need of psychoanalysis… or a straitjacket.. perhaps even a lobotomy, like in the gruesome 1450s in England. But today? You’re in luck!

Judge-and-jury assessments like this obviously don’t include entrepreneurs. After all, you probably talk to yourself at least hourly, and carry a lifetime reputation for being crazy. I mean, how else could you still be good enough to be in business in this staggering leaderless economy?

When you decide to become an entrepreneur,

you necessarily choose to also become your

own (often lonesome) sounding board.  

You should know, by the way, I’m not trying to put a damper on your rants and raves and ongoing mutterings. Those activities, in fact, can be stress-reducing in and of themselves, and serve the purpose of clearing your head — something like a wet retriever shaking off water while standing on your foot! (Had that experience, eh?)

What I am suggesting is that you add to your self-talk repertoire, a bunch of other self-oriented and self-focused actions — like trusting your SELF and appreciating your SELF and recognizing your SELF-uniqueness.

Yeah, but that borders on being selfish, doesn’t it? And don’t we all know that selfish behavior is not a good thing for society, our planet, our personal long-term value? Absolutely. But I’m not speaking of self-aggrandizement. I am addressing the basic life and business success need — to be oriented toward one’s SELF.

Calling it selfish or not doesn’t matter. It’s what your purpose and intentions are all about that really count. When we can be oriented toward our selves in our thoughts and actions, we can be –among other things– more aware of the needs of others, and how we might best be able to help meet or fill those needs in addition to our own.

Selfishness in this respect also tips our internal scales in favor of a more improved, more productive and balanced state of mental and emotional health.

The more we appreciate and value our SELVES and our uniqueness’s, the more we tend to respect the uniqueness’s of others, and the more effective we can become at improving our pathways toward self-sufficiency, self-determination, and the all-important life quality that traditional schools fail to teach: self-esteem.

So the thin line to walk is being able to keep humility and let go of egotism while nurturing self-respect and fostering self-development through increased self-awareness. A high-wire act? If you choose to make it difficult on your self, it is… and it will be. But the choice is yours. And NOW is the time to act! Good luck!

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Hal@Businessworks.US   302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

 “I”…INTEGRITY 

“Integrity is

doing the right thing

even when no one is watching.”

-  C.S. Lewis

A person of integrity. Everyone wants the label, but few ever earn it. What’s the roadblock? Human nature. It’s in our bones that when push comes to shove in times of trouble, and having integrity implies being generous — we tend instead to recoil and become selfish.

Integrity means keeping your promises. It means standing up for what you believe in no matter the cost. It suggests honorable behavior in the face of temptation to be dishonorable. What kinds of behavior constitute “dishonorable”? Surely, you can think of examples. Here are a few:

• A business owner who consistently sells used or outdated products or services as new
• An investor seeking 70% ownership in a business startup venture for cash infusion that represents just a dollar-value fraction of the entrepreneur’s confirmed and already contributed sweat equity.
• A professional practice partner recruited under the guise of promised freedom to function in her area of specialization who is back-seated into generalist tasks through a contractual loophole.
• A business partner who accepts responsibility for operations, but then instead spends fulltime efforts in sales which he knows nothing about.
• The boss who repeatedly gets in the face of irate customers, rather than simply satisfying customer requests –even unreasonable ones.
• The verbally-agreed-to partnership that’s thrown to the wind when one of the founders is introduced (by the discounted partner) to a money source . . . and the money source himself, who clearly places no value on the relationship or the investment opportunity.
• Successful business owner refusal to provide growth opportunities for entry-level employees because increasing their responsibilities will force increased compensation packages.

The Dash To Integrity

Being selfish, as in greedy and being unnecessarily protective, is not the same as being self-ish as in “oriented toward one’s self,” which is a positive direction for personal growth.

Being tuned in to what makes you tick is the most effective tool available on the planet for having a better sense of how to deal most productively and most happily with others.

In fact, being self-ish is a direct road to integrity.

 Odd, isn’t it that a dash between “self” and “ish”

can make such a dramatic difference?

Truth is that when we can be more focused on HOW we choose certain behaviors, we can then be more focused on improving ourselves by improving our own behaviors, which better equips us as leaders to more positively impact other’s behaviors.

It may be worth the reminder, by the way, that all of these actions build character and integrity.

All these actions are also choices. So the place to start or re-start yourself on the path to higher integrity –for yourself and your business– is to recognize that you can take initiative at the drop of a hat, or iPad. Simply make more choices in favor of integrity, and know that you are free to make those choices beginning this second! 

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Hal@Businessworks.US    302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

 “H”…HUMOR

What’s “funny” to you may not be to others… imagine that!  So we who run our own small businesses (or small pieces of big businesses) might do well to be reminded that “Hey, didja hear the one about the the guy with the parrot . . .?”  may not be the best kind of opening with a disgruntled employee, angry supplier, or irate customer.

In fact, the parrot joke (or any joke!) is probably not a great thing to share with anyone who’s come to you with wrinkled brow, mouth turned down, hands balled into fists, or who’s (defensive) folded arms are noticeable only second to being glared at over the tops of their glasses. Others do not always understand or accept what you mean.  

So, to make the best of things, smiling and laughing your way through it all is not always in your best business or personal interests, or those of the other individual or group you’re dealing with. The solution? Observe carefully and think twice, before opening your “funny story” mouth once.

Pretend for a moment that you are standing in line at a customer service center counter. You are holding a product you had saved up for and cheerfully purchased in time to enhance the upcoming weekend visit (your first) with your fiance’s parents. You know they would be impressed.

Yet when you went to put the thing together, parts were missing, directions were not in English, and the major component was cracked.

Here you stand, patiently quiet but shifting your feet as you try to decide if you should put the thing down on the floor or keep holding it. Each of the three people ahead of you takes 15 minutes to tell their 10-second story. As you stoop to pick up the damaged goods, which you thankfully decided to plant between your feet, guess what?  [Are you breathing?]

The customer service rep, who never noticed you anyway, apparently decided it was as good a time as any to leave, putting a “Gone To Lunch” sign on the counter and, in one quick whirl, disappear out the swinging door. You and the four others behind you stand there dumbfounded. The five of you start jabbering.

The manager notices the commotion, and strides up to the annoyed gathering with a smile and big greeting, followed by:

“You guys [3 of the 4 are women] remind me of the time when my uncle Louie went to the local pistol range [2 of the 4 had large peace-symbol jewelry showing] and the instructor asked Louie if he’d be using his gun , ha-ha-ha-ha, to shoot him for having to take his lunch hour at that very moment, ha-ha-ha-ha. You’ll have to return later.”  

[Ha-Ha-Ha-HA-HA-HA!]

You can imagine –as radio’s beloved Paul Harvey used to say– the rest of the story. This contrived incident may seem amusing from a distance, but trying to be funny at the wrong time in the wrong place with the wrong people will almost definitely succeed at making a bad situation worse.

Humor, real humor that turns on smiles and laughs comes from the heart and the guts, not an aspirin bottle. It is not a quick fix. It is an honest flowing response delivered in good judgement to those who have provided some clue that indicates they will appreciate your offering. Good humor is a gift. Real gifts are never forced.

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Hal@Businessworks.US    302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

 “G”…GRATITUDE

How much is enough? How much is too much? I cannot recall a time or circumstance –ever– in my life when a sincere “Thank You” provoked trouble or, more importantly, failed to prompt a smile or increased cooperation or an enhanced reputation, or more courtesy in return. Can you? Think hard. Be honest. Thank you.

So, small business owners learn early on, by instinct, that every customer needs to be thanked with every purchase. But how often do we remember to offer thanks to our employees, partners, investors, referrers, suppliers, lenders, visiting sales reps, the cleaning and delivery people, outside consultants, the communities your business serve? 

Really. How often?Considering that sincere “Thank You’s” motivate people, if your answer to “How Often?” is a period of time any longer than a matter of hours, it’s not enough. 

Okay, so you always say “Thank You!” That’s great! CONGRATULATIONS! You are ahead of the pack. Now you need to ask yourself how sincere you are (REALLY!) when you offer your gratitude. Do you, in other words, look someone in the eye when you thank her or him? Do you shake hands or pat backs?

Or . . . do you just keep right on working, and keep your head down, like having to look up and smile and take 3 seconds out of your life is an inconvenient interruption? Do you keep talking on the phone or keep texting or emailing while tossing a half-hearted ”Thanks” over your shoulder.

How do you feel

when others treat YOU

so nonchalantly?

In the end, “G” for GRATITUDE comes back full circle to “A” for AUTHENTICITY because token expressions of appreciation mean that the actions or words that earned a “Thank You” were considered routine, not special, and worthy of just a tiny, off-the-cuff mention. (No, don’t go rush off the deep end with smothering hugs and kisses!)

There is much to be said for following “The Golden Rule” in business . . . of “doing unto others what you would want others to do unto you,” and there may be no better place to apply it than with each of those with whom you come into daily contact.

The more you offer sincere gratefulness — thanking others and meaning it — the greater the odds you will see positive responses be triggered. Why? Because of what you already know: what goes around comes around!

If you don’t already, try thanking the restaurant waitress AND  the water server AND the table clearer with as sincere a smile and expression of thanks as you would give an angel investor who walks in and plunks down a no-strings-attached $250,000 check as an investment in your business. Go ahead. Try it. What’s to lose?

People notice and people talk. And, not to motivate, but simply to be conscious of: You might be amazed at being remembered by the water server, who could turn out to be related to a partner or lender or top client. “Hey!” (they used to say in NY Lottery advertising) ”Y’never know!”

Say it.

Mean it.

Say it again.

It can never be too much.

Thank you.    

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Hal@Businessworks.US   302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

 “F”…FANTASYLAND

If you’ll surf this site with Search window keywords like “Family” and “family business”  you’ll get plenty of solid input on small business topics in the “F” category, except probably “Finance,” I don’t pretend to know much about that except to offer entrepreneur reminders to not bet the ranch or give away the store… so, instead I’ve opted for some thoughts about that happy place that diverts us from the real world. I call it “Fantasyland.” Take it or leave it:

~~~~~~~

N O W  is

the only time.

The past is over.

It cannot be changed.

The future hasn’t come yet,

and may never arrive anyway.

~~~~~~~

Our “here-and-now” present moments are all we really have to work with, live in, enjoy, control, and make a difference with in our lives and in our businesses.

Using the past productively from our present-moment mindset can be rewarding and –in many cases– necessary. Recalling a pleasant experience, for example, can be physically relaxing, enjoyable, and neurologically soothing in our present moment, especially a present moment filled with extra stress.

Oh, and where would detectives and accountants, historians, scientists and lawyers be without being able to rely heavily on events and records of the past in their present life’s work?

BUT, when thinking about the past gets to a point of dwelling, those thoughts threaten our very well-being, and often impair the well-being of others around us. We can get ourselves (and our businesses) in trouble.

[Examples: the 50-year-old who constantly re-lives his high school championship game touchdown; the 60-year-old woman who recounts her childhood poverty or illnesses to everyone she meets; the family locked into day-to-day sadness over a child's tragic death 15 years ago.]

Circumstances like those put us at risk; they block the road to mental, emotional, and physical health. We all go through bad times. Being able to be productive and rise above them is a measure of personal strength and courage.

It is always easier to escape to fantasyland,

but –realistically– not always wiser.

The trick is to stay “tuned-in” to where you are and what you’re doing at any given moment, as much as you possibly can, every minute and hour of the day. Your reading of the top of this post, for example, is already in the past!. And be aware that all of this applies equally to future stuff as well.

Just as dwelling unproductively on the past wastes time and energy, so too does worrying about the future. We all need to plan, but when plans turn to worry, we are also headed off to fantasyland. Creative professionals visit fantasyland intentionally for inspiration, but then return to reality to apply the fantasy experience.

Business owners can rarely afford that luxury –and risk– of getting lost in reveries, hopes, dreams, and wishes. Solution: Save up for a vacation and go somewhere that minimizes contact with reality. In other words, it’s a good thing to periodically get it out of your system. Then, when you get back: Get back, really!

Prolonged stays in fantasyland can earn prolonged stays in the loony bin, or the log-term wearing of a straight jacket, not to mention big-time bankruptcy of both your business and your brain. Happy reality!

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Hal@Businessworks.US   302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!