Wednesday, August 20, 2008
How We Do Business
Women need to ask themselves "how are we conducting business?" Are we acting professionally or are we simply extending our home-life and life-styles into the business environment?
I try to deliver more business to women entrepreneurs who have earned it. A token example is the decision to use the Chair Massage while waiting for my car to be serviced. I admired the young lady’s marketing creativity: contracting with the larger firm to be able to position herself at a high-traffic location where customers might have time, money and a proclivity to purchase her services. Good business decisions earn customers’ attention.
I’ve also given business to web-site developers, editors, lawyers, and accountants – all of the female persuasion. When they deliver the goods -– according to our agreements or understanding -– it’s a positive business experience.
But, when I get stalled and put off or ignored for days on end by a woman business person who puts her business clients low on her priorities, then I get concerned. That’s when the proverbial rubber meets the road. That is the test of a true business person -– female or male.
I do not like to hear the litany of excuses about her needing to go shopping for the kids going back to school. I don’t want to hear about all of the other clients or commitments that the person has chosen to place ahead of my business. I am not interested in hearing about all of her "work-family balancing act" because -– as sure as anything -– she is not interested in hearing about the host of challenges that I am addressing, silently and successfully.
Or perhaps she is a public employee, charged with approving my license or contract or service request. Why does she believe I have any interest in hearing her litany of:
The backlog of unaddressed business decisions she has failed to process,
The layers of administrative incompetence which she accepts as her workplace, or
All of the causes and cases for which she is responsible?
Just because she is a women does not mean that others -– who are attempting to get their job done -– have any desire to listen to, to share, her Soap Opera, her Tale of Woe, Her Sharing of Misery with another woman.
Nike has just come out with a new ad campaign which they say is "just for women." The new slogan is: "Here I Am!" It is supposed to help women boost their egos as a first step toward heightening their willingness to compete.
Maybe more women in business should have listened to Nike’s older and wiser slogan,
"Just Do It.!"
It works for me.
I try to deliver more business to women entrepreneurs who have earned it. A token example is the decision to use the Chair Massage while waiting for my car to be serviced. I admired the young lady’s marketing creativity: contracting with the larger firm to be able to position herself at a high-traffic location where customers might have time, money and a proclivity to purchase her services. Good business decisions earn customers’ attention.
I’ve also given business to web-site developers, editors, lawyers, and accountants – all of the female persuasion. When they deliver the goods -– according to our agreements or understanding -– it’s a positive business experience.
But, when I get stalled and put off or ignored for days on end by a woman business person who puts her business clients low on her priorities, then I get concerned. That’s when the proverbial rubber meets the road. That is the test of a true business person -– female or male.
I do not like to hear the litany of excuses about her needing to go shopping for the kids going back to school. I don’t want to hear about all of the other clients or commitments that the person has chosen to place ahead of my business. I am not interested in hearing about all of her "work-family balancing act" because -– as sure as anything -– she is not interested in hearing about the host of challenges that I am addressing, silently and successfully.
Or perhaps she is a public employee, charged with approving my license or contract or service request. Why does she believe I have any interest in hearing her litany of:
Just because she is a women does not mean that others -– who are attempting to get their job done -– have any desire to listen to, to share, her Soap Opera, her Tale of Woe, Her Sharing of Misery with another woman.
Nike has just come out with a new ad campaign which they say is "just for women." The new slogan is: "Here I Am!" It is supposed to help women boost their egos as a first step toward heightening their willingness to compete.
Maybe more women in business should have listened to Nike’s older and wiser slogan,
"Just Do It.!"
It works for me.
# posted by ChampionBoards.com @ 2:31 PM 
