Actions Speak
“Actions speak louder than words” is a mantra that I firmly believe in in the business world. We judge people by their behaviour whether in a business or private setting.
If we see someone being aggressive and forthright in a business setting, we tend to assume that’s what they’re always like. Period. From personal experience, I find I tend to adopt different personalities depending on the situation, and just to confuse things, the same situation at different times may see different personalities. As they say, “it depends.”
So knowing this about myself, do I make allowances for others? Sadly, at times, no. Do they make them for me? Some may, some may not, others almost certainly don’t (a bit like me). Ask several people what they think about person X and don't be surprised if you get several different answers as everyone may have had different experiences.
Whether we like it or not, people will judge us by what we do. For me, if someone says they’ll do something, I expect them to do it. I know that things may delay them, and if this is the case, as long as they let me know, that’s fine. Life doesn't always happen the way we expect it to (but don’t let the time management experts hear you say that).
Our reputation in the business world is what will sustain us. If we’re known for being reliable, punctual in delivery and delivering on-budget, we’ll always have contracts. If the opposite holds true, what’s the likely result?
I’ve seen certain individuals who consistently show themselves unreliable in a private setting, and yet seem to be successful in business. There may be an inconsistency between their “business persona” and their “private persona”. For them, the business is what counts, whereas private life is where they loosen up and relax.
Do we have different personae, or are we be consistent? Which works for us?
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My websiteprovides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Leadership, Strategy, Teamwork
posted by William Martin @ 08:53
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