Author Archive
Do You Think They Listened?
This is a scene I captured outside the college where I taught a class recently. It caught my attention because I saw the sign, then watched the entire gaggle of geese waddle purposefully into the pond.
Do you think they listened to the warning?
Or is it that they could not read the sign?
(The sign says "NO SWIMMING OR ICE SKATING".)
Think about this the next time you write something and wonder why people do not pay heed to what you write. Is it that what you write is at a level that is above your audience's heads? Do you use words or terms that are unfamiliar to your readers? Is your message clearly stated in your writing? Or have you considered that your audience may be unable to read the written message?
Consider that your target readers are a diverse audience, and that "diversity" includes "silent" issues such as reading ability or visual impairment. And you wonder how I got all this from geese swimming in a pond on a beautiful fall day!!!
High Income People Share Their Successes
As I sorted through long-past issues of my local newspaper I came across a column with the headline, "Pass the Wisdom", by Vickie Elmer. The advice given in the column, while dated, still applies today. Highlights of the column include:
- Three quarters of high income people say they shared their wisdom within the past week. A similar number say they received sage thoughts.
- More than half of 1000 people, ages 25-to-35, with incomes of $80,000 or more, said they share wisdom "very often" or "somewhat often". (Braun Research)
- The wisdom of others very much contributes to high-earners' success. Listening to wisdom helps boost incomes, and high earners who share their insights regularly enjoy more success.
- The best places for sharing sage advice are the office, over dinner, and over coffee.
I read the book "Go Giver" about a year ago and the authors (Bob Burg & John David Mann) suggest that the more we give, the more we receive. I see relevance in the column and the book's advice in that we tweet, blog, have mastermind groups, and otherwise share our wisdom and success strategies with others. Why else do we "friend" people and "connect" with resources that provide places to give and receive useful and insightful content that contributes to our success?
Find a medium for sharing YOUR wisdom and see what good nuggets come back to you in return.
Dress Code and Entrepreneurs…Necessary?
A post at VentureBeat, by Michael McKean ("5 Challenges Entrepreneurs Never Expect") notes:
Lesson learned: Laying down a few ground rules for attire doesn’t make you uncool, just more professional.
Michael K. McKean is the CEO and Director of New Product Development for the Knowland Group, a provider of business development solutions for the global hospitality industry; a board member of the Washington D.C. chapter of the Entrepreneur’s Organization (EO); a regular contributor to Hotel News Now, Hotel Business Review, and Hotel Interactive. Where Mr. McKean is based has something to do with his outlook on business and attire, yet his advice does apply "beyond the Beltway" (outside of Washington, DC) in business, in general.
A commenter to his post stated, "Your comments on dress code are nonsense. Have you seen SV recently? Dress-codes are anathema to many talented people – particularly engineers. Dress code is only appropriate when people are customer-facing. I'd be very concerned if my employees were measurably more effective when they tucked their shirts in."
My thought is that work environments where customer contact is rare may find personal expression in clothing to be quite appropriate. My "however" in this is that rarely is a workplace completely absent of customer contact. Potential clients or investors may seek to tour a workplace to see with whom they are planning to do business. While creativity may not be enhanced just because shirts are tucked in, if a business seeks to project an image worthy of large investment dollars or contracts, that image is reinforced by employees' appearance. "Casual" does not have to mean sloppy, just as "professional" does not have to mean suit-and-tie. A code that consists of "polo shirts or similar collared shirts; clean jeans with no holes and patches or similar khakis or pants; blouses or other upper garments that fully cover suggestive areas (for women); closed-toed shoes" is professional for creative environments.
What is sometimes missed in dress code interpretation is that how we dress and look directly impacts how we feel and perform. When we know we look good, we have an attitude that is different from when we just "slum it". Likewise, when we know we look professional, we are more prone to act professionally. A creative environment is a business.
Women Business Leaders of 2010: Gazette of Business & Politics
Sylvia is listed in the Gazette of Business and Politics' 2010 Women Business Leaders publication. See page #9.
Distracted by Half the Conversation
Ever heard of encountering a "halfalogue"? That is what hearing half of a conversation is called. When you are in a public setting and someone is on their cell phone, or when you are in an office and someone is on the telephone a cubicle away, you experience a halfalogue. You only hear half of the dialog taking place.
Cornell University conducted a study to determine how distracted we tend to get from cell phone conversations.
Apparently we get quite distracted! While we only hear half of the conversation, that is exactly why we find it difficult to concentrate on our own tasks. Our minds subconsciously want to know what is being said in the other half of the conversation, and not being able to hear the other half makes us want to know even more.
The study presented undergraduates at Cornell with three scenarios – (1) two-person dialogues, (2) single-person monologues, and (3) people on telephones. When undergrads exposed to these scenarios tried to perform tasks, they did the worse when they encountered the halfalogue scenarios.
So now I know why I am more distracted by other people talking on telephones than I am when I hear full conversations or solo lectures. My subconscious is nosy!
Appropriate Attire Guideline Set By Customers?
The Washington Post article by Zach Goldfarb – "SEC Employees Win Battle to Dress Casual" (2010-09-04) notes that the Securities and Exchange Commission's field employees won a "formal business attire not required in the field" battle with top officials.
The SEC requires formal business attire at its headquarters. However, under its new attire guidelines, an SEC examiner can now dress to the same standard as his or her customer, which might be more casual than formal business attire. Since undergoing an examination is threatening and scary enough in and of itself, having the examiner dressed in a way that could be interpreted as intimidating does little to put one at ease. Considering this, SEC's examiners pushed to relax their dress code when they conduct such exams (if their client has a more-relaxed dress code).
Would a similar practice work for your professional environment? Why, or why not?
Would You Award This Grant? (Case Study 20100929A)
We're about communication, interpersonal skills, and the professional behaviors that position us for success. Clients and colleagues send us communications that they encounter as examples of related situations. This is an actual letter one of our financial institution clients received. The letter was intended for the CEO of the organization. Spelling, punctuation, and formatting is exactly as received. Names are omitted for confidentiality.
Your case study question: Would you award a grant to this individual?
Why? Why not? Discussion?
Hello [Name], you do not know me but maybe you know of me. My name is [Sender's Name] and I work with your [personal connection identified] at [Name of Organization]. Also, I am a member of [Organization Name]. I've been a member now about 5 years and I love your [financial institution]. [Financial institution] has helped me out many of times and I've very thankful of that. I'm having a little financial problem right now that I was wondering if you could help me. I have 3 loans right now with [Financial Institution] and I was wondering you can get my payments on hold for about 6 months to and year. That extra money with help me out A LOT. You see, I'm recently married and I have my first child on the way and me by having a child that is exactly what I need to change my life in many ways. I'm a leader, I was born to be a leader and with my financial problems I can't led my family in the right direction. I'm trying and trying but as soon as pay something, something else pops up. I'm tired of my wife paying for everything. I am the man of the house and it's time for me to start acting like the man of house. I know you are the CEO and you may not have the power to help me out but I would grateful if you could do what can do. If the loan extension isn't possible, I would like to see if I qualify for Grant. The Grant I'm asking for between $10,000 to $15,000. We could call it a Life Changing Grant. Thank you for listening to me and I hope I hear from you. Thanks
Please feel free to use this in an education or other learning situation.
Destructive Comments
Dr. Marshall Goldsmith, in a video blog I watched today, spoke on how to avoid making destructive comments as a leader or manager. I contend that his advice applies to giving and receiving feedback in any situation, not just in business or as a manager.
He suggests that when you think you are about to be "up front and honest" with someone, ask yourself four questions: "Will the comment I'm about to make…
- Help the company?
- Help our customer?
- Help the person I'm talking to?
- Help the person I'm talking about?
If your answer is "no" to these questions, reconsider making the comment.
Watch the full video blog on how to avoid making destructive comments, here.
Maddeningly Detracting Phrases (Part 1 of Many Such Posts)
Consider the number of phrases you hear – and use – that take away from your message when you speak and write. I heard myself say "positively wonderful" to a client this morning. Do you know of something that is wonderful that is not positive? Here are some more phrases that come to mind right away:
- Positively wonderful (already noted this one).
- For those of you who don't know me, my name is… (What is my name for those of you who DO know me?)
- Without further ado… (By the way, I have "further ado"s available for sale if you are without them.)
- Awfully annoying (Just like these phrases! What is annoying without being awful in the first place?)
- To be truthful… (So, you are usually NOT truthful?)
- In all honesty… (Ditto the above.)
- Now, don't get mad, but… (Doesn't that preface get your blood boiling even BEFORE you hear what follows the "but…"?)'
OK you word-masters! (In true Star Trek and military vernacular, "masters" applies to men AND women.) What phrases do YOU find maddeningly detracting? How's "maddeningly detracting" for another phrase?
More Than A Degree, You Need Skills (Validated)
Ah, how the Wall Street Journal validates that which I espouse in all my programs, books, blog posts, and more!
The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Job Outlook 2010 survey lists the following skills as those that employers seek:
- Communication Skills
- Analytical Skills
- Teamwork Skills
- Technical Skills
- Strong Work Ethic
I highlighted them in green because they are where the money is. (Poor grammar; rich advice.)
This is an update to their previous job outlook survey that I referenced in a previous post. It's great to see that the skills sets are STILL sought.
Read the full Wall Street Journal article here – "Graduate With Skills, Not Just A Degree".