What mothers teach us about business
When I was growing up, my mother was CEO of a chamber of commerce that served five communities around my hometown. I was frequently roped into volunteering in the chamber office, at networking functions, and so on. As a result, I was very comfortable mingling with business people at networking events by the time I was 12. So when I talk about what I learned about business from my mother, I’m not speaking in poetic abstractions.
But even in those poetic abstractions, there’s a lot of sound business wisdom. Even outside of a traditional business environment, motherly advice never steers us wrong.
Play nice with others. The workplace is so much easier to enjoy when you like the people you work with. At the very least, when people show each other basic respect, collaboration gets easier, resources free up, and good things happen.
Do your homework. Whether it’s preparing notes for a meeting so you don’t waste anyone’s time, reading a report someone has asked you to read, or writing a report to document the knowledge you’ve gained in a project, making a little effort to do what people need from you is still appreciated.
Share. The wisdom goes that the best managers pass down credit and soak up blame. If you’ve ever been lucky enough to work for a manager who lives by this credo, you know how much it can free you up to do your best and most creative work, unafraid of a reasonable amount of failure.
Work it out. Conflicts arise in every workplace, and those who can confront others directly in a non-threatening way to come to resolution are going to come out ahead of those who can’t or won’t.
On the other hand, some motherly advice makes more sense flipped on its head:
Play with matches Be prepared to take risks. While risk takers are more likely to get burnt, they are also more likely to reap great rewards. Volunteer for projects that are outside your comfort zone or experience. Don’t hold back your opinion or point of view, stay in the arena. Just because “we’ve always done things this way” is not a reason to avoid approaching business challenges in a creative manner.
(via Management-Issues)
What about you? What advice did your mother give you that you carry with you in business to this day?
Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there, and thanks for teaching us to be better people.
Great post. I think number one is the most important, “Play nice with others!”