Interpersonal Business

Using a friend’s loss-of-job experience – he was a casualty of management’s jealousy over his success while the corporation as a whole was failing – the feelings, anxieties, and path to a successful and fulfilling resolution are discussed in three phases. Phase One’s most devastating emotion is “finding blame,” because it wastes creative potential in finding a solution to the problem. Phase Two involves getting past thinking of our employment as how we are defined by society, then having confidence in “our own advice.” Phase Three comes in accepting reality, then rebuilding by charting the future and sticking to the game plan.

Assume that the customer is always “right,” unless they are misguided or misinformed. We must be prepared to “inform” them of our value, in addition to price. Relationships rule American Business; bank on it and promote it. Those that are misguided need your “leadership” and clarification. Provide a public service!?!

This fundamental separates “the haves” from the “have-nots.” Have we lost the value of the handshake and face value relationships in American Business? Excuses of any kind are a manipulative approach to poor performance. As managers, we must state very clear expectations. And yes, we must hold others fully accountable!

It is time to inventory your “soft assets,” your business relationships. Review the 80/20 theory and its impact on all your performing assets. What is the cost of holding on to underperforming assets? Are you prepared to “close out” your “obsolete” inventory? We must often cut our losses quickly.