MAJOR GOSSIP, LOOSE LIPS,

(& BIZ TLK TXT MSGS)

ROCK FOUNDATIONS

The heading above is not a code. It is what it is. Misdirected and misunderstood and miscommunicated talk ruins companies. It rocks the business foundation like an earthquake. Some survive. Many don’t.

Small business failures are blamed on as many reasons as there are small business, yet every single one of them reduces itself to poor management.

Go ahead and accuse under-capitalization, faulty equipment, incompetent staffing, ineffective marketing, convoluted financing, the rotten economy, and your mother-in-law, but the truth will out:

The true culprit, inevitably, is  poor management!

And heaven knows the failure rates alone walk with a heavy foot. As fuzzy as the attempts to grasp accurate figures, it is commonly accepted that only two-thirds of all small business startups survive the first two years and fewer than 50% survive to become four-year-olds!

If you’ve got some startup ideas,

you may want to read that statement again

. . . and the next one!

Toss in that on the average a business startup will not likely break even financially (if it survives long enough) until year six, and it’s often quoted by the inept SBA that nine out of eleven new businesses fail in the first ten years! It’s no wonder that those among the weak-willed tend to flock toward cushy government jobs.

One of the leading indicators of poor management is poor people leadership, which translates to poor communications, which translates to that whole “Loose Lips Sink Ships” expression — too many people talking too much too indiscretely to too many others, both inside and outside the company.

And the rapid onset of text messaging has both

amplified the risks and raised the stakes.

When employees are unhappy, they talk. Unhappy employee talk creates waves of negativity, which can ultimately build to tsunami proportions. The business goes down and the owner throws up his or her hands proclaiming some vague reason. But, in the end, it’s poor management.

Savvy business leaders know that it’s not always money issues that harbor employee resentment. They know that happy employees are people who are challenged and who are given responsibility.

Happy employees are people who naturally seek fair compensation, but who will –more often than you might imagine– settle for frequent (and genuine) praise and small, frequent expressions of gratitude. And happy employees don’t indulge themselves in orange-alert-level chatter. They don’t host or entertain gossip.

When employees like their jobs, they also talk. And that talk is positive. It cultivates sales, community respect, and more employee positiveness. So, there’s some kind of choice here?

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Hal@Businessworks.US

 “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance!” [Thomas Jefferson]

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals. God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Those who underscore

their trustworthiness– 

are probably dishonest!

I get tired of having people raise my skeptical right eyebrow with the distracting words they use (and sometimes the distracting ways they deliver them), instead of giving me cause to pay attention.

Am I alone here, or do you ever experience the same thing? What is it, do you think, that they think they are communicating?

I recently heard a top executive start out five (5) sentences with, “To be perfectly honest with you, I . . .” which, of course, gave me cause to pause, and doubt everything that followed. I recall scores of discussions with ineffective sales people who peppered “Trust me . . .” into every few sentences. [Shurrrre I will!] 

Rarely, methinks, doth Shakespeare haveth any consequence of business value, but “The lady doth protest too much, methinks” (from Shakespeare ‘s Hamlet, Act III, scene II), doth come to mind.

Okay, okay, enough doth! C’mon, people, trust me when I tell you that all of us carry little deal-killer phrases around in our pockets. We keep these pet phrases well-oiled and ready to drag out onto the front lines whenever the going gets tough.

When does this happen? When we get paranoid and start thinking a credibility erosion is taking place — especially in dealing with key customers, key suppliers, key investors and lenders, and, generally, anyone up the ladder. . . any ladder, real or perceived.

The nervousness sets in, breathing and heart rate quicken (usually accompanied by thoughts like: I don’t want to lose this opportunity; Let me underscore my honesty.)

So, now, on the brink of losing, the person re-groups and blurts out:

“You can believe me when I tell you that . . .”

BAM! DEAD DEAL!

Worse than that, of course, is when phrases like this become habitual or routine expressions. There are just so many times you can hear, “Now, here’s the truth, I . . .” before you start thinking: “Hmmm, is she lying all the other times she speaks, and is only truthful when she asserts that she is?” 

“Are you kidding me?”

“No. I’m gonna be honest with you . . .”

The alarm: DINGDINGDINGDINGDING!

(So, let’s see, if this statement that he says is an honest one is,in fact, an honest one, what about all the other statements? They were all dishonest?)

Most of this is processed in our unconscious minds, so it’s a bit difficult to catch ourselves without getting some trusted help. If there’s no one you can trust, let me be truthful with you and suggest that a good old-fashioned tape recorder can accomplish the job.

Just talk to someone and record yourself. Besides the shock of hearing how many er’s and um’s tumble out, pick up on the assurances of trust and honesty. Does it work? You’d better believe it! Really. Honestly. No kidding. Serious.

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Your FREE subscription: Posts RSS Feed

Hal@Businessworks.US or 302.933.0116

 “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance!” [Thomas Jefferson]

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals. God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!