There is an age-old question:

Which came first the chicken or the egg?

I don't have that answer, but I do have a similar question.

Which comes first the customer or the employee?

Tom Peter's has a recent post titled ???????? (that is really the title) about this question with some thought-provoking comments that I suggest you take a few minutes to read.

Whether we have a staff or not we must take care of those that take care of our customers. I've been around the business world and have had the joy and the tears of working for people who care about their employees. As many of you know, I worked in the corporate world before starting my own business. During my time there, the management went from individual offices to cubicle nation. My cube face the entrance so whenever my boss, Mr. L (I'll protect his identity) went to his office (he ranked non-cubicle space) he would have to pass by my cube and 3 fellow colleague's cubes before reaching his cocoon.

Well, Mr. L would walk by every morning without acknowledging my existence, which I would usually shrug off as his vagrant disregard for women in the business world. But one morning after Mr. L's pass by, my neighboring colleague, Mr. B., came into my cube. Mr. B was well known and respected in the industry and the company and was someone I looked to for guidance and business advice. He was a calm and levelheaded guy, but this morning he was visually frustrated and down. He told me he had started to track (he was very analytical) how many times Mr. L would acknowledge him as he walked by his cube.

Twenty-Seven Days

Twenty-seven days had passed without a single "hello" from Mr. L. I could not believe what I was hearing. How could a manger walk by the people who worked with him for twenty-seven days and not stop once? I could rationalize Mr. L's on-going dismissal of my existence, but not Mr. B's. We, Mr. B and I, talked for a long while about this and never really came to any resolution, but Mr. B continued to track the non-communicating manager.

What would you do in this situation? What do you do to keep your employees happy? Do you think the customer or the employee comes first?

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Image by Cyklista Dalibor at Creative Commons

Last evening I had the special pleasure of listening to four barred owls in my backyard talking to each other - varying their calls, tones and gurgles. Each would take a turn, hooting out "who cooks for you." I stood silently at the open window and listened for quite some time until they moved deeper into the woods and their sounds faded in the distance. I walked away from the window and realized I had an enormous smile on my face and my soul felt soft and at peace.

It also got me thinking....

As a entrepreneur I am guilty of what I consider "over complicating my business." I want that new product and service to be perfect before I release it to potential customers. I go over everything, time and again, to make sure every "t" is crossed and every "i" is dotted and all the while my yet unreleased product hasn't been shared with those who would really use it and smile.

Done Is Good

A friend and fellow entrepreneur Chris Reagan of Get Ahead Pro taught me "Done is Good". He explained how we biz owners can continually tweak and adjust our efforts, projects, communications forever. At some point we need to stop, be confident in what we have and let it fly.

He is right. I know my customers and my audience will let me know if any additional adjustments are needed. I will listen to their questions and comments and learn. If I'm spending all my time perfecting then I'm not sharing and my customers are not benefiting. If those owls decided to stay deep in the woods I would not have heard their beauty. They released their calls and shared with me replenishing my soul and thus, my business.

If there is anything I can leave you with in this post it is to not over perfect - people want your products and services so, let them fly.

Cheryl - thanks for your comments to last weeks post. I too love the smell of clothes dried outside.

How's Business?

I asked that question to a friend of mine who has been in business for almost 10 years now.

"Dead. If something doesn't change, this year could be a decision year for us on whether we continue."

I have to admit, I was a little shocked that they may have to consider closing their doors. But, at the same time, I know their raw material costs have gone up and with ever increasing utility and fuel costs going to support the power heads I can understand their situation.

Pick up any newspaper, magazine or on-line business site and the stories depict layoffs, home foreclosures, low consumer confidence levels, and the lowest small business confidence level in 28 years. The picture is not pretty.

Personally, I'm already worrying about my fuel costs for next winter. This worry and all worries could consume me or I could take some clear and focused actions.

The Energy Flow Letter.

Earlier this year I wrote a post about my Energy Flow letters. I wrote 4 short letters to myself that I can open throughout the year (each quarter). One letter is on one business idea I want to accomplish this year. A second letter on something I'm passionate about in relation to my business. The third letter is about my values. The fourth letter is about one realistic goal I want to achieve this year. I folded each letter and had them put into 4 blank envelopes then marked down in my planner 4 days throughout the year when I will open one of letters.

Well, the date rolled around to open my first letter. What was funny was I could not remember the specifics of what I had written in the letters. I picked one and opened it up, it was my Goal letter. One thing I wrote really hit home:

"2008 is your year, continue on your path, embrace the goodness."

The letter prompted me to think about my past patrons, my current ones and you the readers and how this economic state may be affecting all of our businesses. We are small business owners, good people working hard to bring quality products and services to folks. So what can be done to help us all stay on course as we get bombarded with torpedoes?

1. Help our Customers. Give our customers a hug. Our customers are no doubt tightening their belts and their purchasing decisions are being made based on balancing their spending on their needs and wants. A little extra help to understand our products and services will help them with their decisions. We can do this through a variety of ways from education, sampling, communications and increased service - a simple smile goes a long way.

2. Connections. If our business is connected to associations like NHMade, WBC, or NOFA, to name a few lets increase our involvement in them. Attend the meetings and workshops and take advantage of the marketing opportunities they offer.

3. Reach Out and Support. Reach out to other small business owners and lets introduce ourselves or reconnect with ones we haven't spoken to in awhile. Help support each other by learning what we all do so we can help spread the messages about each other.

This third bullet leads me to you. I want to thank you for reading this blog and I want to help spread your message. So, I am offering to highlight your business in a future post. All you need to do is simply contact me, we will set a time to speak and I'll highlight your business on a future post.

P.S. - A big thank you to Rebecca for her comments on my last post.

Jonathan Mann created a fun like ditty about drinking organic wine.

Take a LOOK

This leads me to a great question for you all?

Do you think because a business says it's green it really is?

OR

Is it just jumping on the bandwagon to increase its sales?

I am going to do something different with this post. Share with you a short story that is based on a real-life business situation I have worked on with a customer. Because my customers are confidential I am changing the name, product and value, but the situation remains very real for many entrepreneurs-that of how "authentic" to be.

Brian is an artist whose gift is brought into the world as a glass blower. He started glass blowing 15 years ago after visiting a shop while on vacation with his family in Vermont. He found the skill of glass blowing challenging and intriguing so he located a place to take lessons near his home in Western Massachusetts and began mastering his techniques.

During college he discovered Druidism and began exploring the beliefs and practices of this spirituality. He studied, practiced and joined others in nature and druidism. Before beginning any piece he sets his intentions for the piece with a ritual. Here in lays his dilemma of whether to express his authenticity to his customers.

Brian's business is 3 years old and he has moved his art from a part-time business to full-time. He currently markets his work through various art and local exhibits and events, at a few local shops and via his website. He has a growing customer base and is developing a small following who enjoy his creations. The majority of his customers are women with a medium disposable income.

Brian's work sells itself, but he wants to connect more with his customers and tell the story behind the creation. Brian has been hesitant to really open up with his ritual and how he blends his beliefs and practices into his creations.

My question for you is whether you think he should be forthcoming or not. What do you think? How authentic should he be? Is there a risk?

I want to thank the folks that contacted me about the last post, I'm glad you're going to read the book.

Image by Cheryl A. Smith

When I was growing up I wanted to emulate my brother's ability to do Algebra with ease. I was good at Algebra and enjoyed it, but I had to work really, REALLY, hard. I would do all homework assignments, do every extra credit offered, take extra math help classes, you name it and I would utilize every opportunity I had to strengthen my Algebra skills. All the while, my brother was cruising along enrolled in the advanced classes and achieving status in Mr. Kelley's classroom-the quintessential teacher.

My brother's natural ability to comprehend arithmetic trumped my ability, but please don't let him know I'm admitting it after all these years because he'll be sure to make up for the lost time to crow like a rooster at me.

Do You Become Diaz or Dempsey?

Whether it's arithmetic, arts, or technology each of us has a variety of strengths, talents and gifts that come naturally to us. When we bring our focus to the strengths we enjoy doing and incorporate them into our business amazing outcomes will naturally unfold.

When we are doing something we truly love and is our gift we become attractive. I don't mean physically attractive like Cameron Diaz or Patrick Dempsey. I mean alluring, fascinating and captivating, people want to be with us because we have something they need or want whether it is from their own curiosity or because they see and feel a bit part of themselves in us, our products or services.

Inspiration, Serenity, Knowledge

We will inspire people without even knowing it. My brother was an inspiration to me to work towards my potential with Algebra.

When we focus on certain strengths we become even stronger and since we are enjoying it we find serenity through the enjoyment. Even in my own Algebra example, I truly enjoyed determining which equation to use in solving the problem. It brought me a sense of enjoyment and calmness in understanding the subject matter and how it all worked.

Finally, as we become stronger in our talents we will ultimately pass-on your knowledge to others. I found as I developed my Algebra skills classmates would come to me requesting help. I think teaching is one of the most fulfilling services I can do with my business and my life.

When we put our talents to work we shape not only our own future, but also the future of our patrons in a very positive manner.

What are some of your strengths and how are you using them to shape the future?

Imagine by Dave Hogg via Creative Commons license.

Big thanks to Cheryl for the comment on my last post. I really enjoy the comments!

I'm not asking about a social or environmental cause your business donates proceeds to annually. I'm asking about how is your business supporting the energy and strength of the human connection.

After spending the last few weeks working on the protection of citizens rights here in my townspeople and visiting beautiful protected land in a neighboring town I stood back for a few moments today and reflected.

I thought to myself "here are groups of diverse people coming together, many having never met before, and sitting down at a potluck or on the living room floor to work on a cause. A cause that is not directly about them, but one that does affect them and their future generations."

What are the common denominators of these groups (in no certain order)?

Open communication and discussion,

Connecting to a higher or larger issue,

Facing challenges that can seem unattainable at times,

Believing in change and making a positive impact,

Treating each other with respect,

Utilizing individual strengths in the group while working as a team.

I am always amazed when I sit in these moments of reflection. I reflect on the individual voices in the group, watching the interactions, listening to wisdom and experience from different generations, genders, political and religious beliefs, hearing the various values formed from birth to death, seeing people smiling, laughing, touching and helping one another with no strings attached. I have learned so much from every one of them.

During this reflection, I looked at how can I take these amazing experiences and apply them in my business. I can take the connecting of positive energy and strength that flows from people and integrate it naturally into my business. How I connect to the passionate energy that flows from my customers, suppliers, partners and supporters lies in three key ways:

Actively listening,

Genuinely respecting,

Openly communicating.

It is in moments of reflection that help remind me when I am in a state of overwhelm, self-doubt, negativism and knee-deep in challenges of business life that these keys and common denominators are the strength of the human connection. Human connection is the strength of a business.

It is an exciting time around New Hampshire, the energy is flowing strong because it is a new year and we are at the final finale of the Presidential Primary. The energy level is high and anticipation is almost nerve-racking.

I thought about how I could put this New Year excitement into my business. So, I've decided to write 4 short letters to myself that I can open throughout the year (each quarter). Writing a letter to myself is something I learned while attending the Saltwater Institute. I challenge you to do the same.

I'm writing one letter on one business idea I want to accomplish this year. It may be a strategic alliance I want to establish with someone, a new product or service I want to develop, or a workbook I want to begin offering. In the letter I'll explain the idea, what I'm doing and how it is going over the course of the year.

The second letter will be on something I'm passionate about in relation to my business. What is it that brings me satisfaction and joy. I'll explain in the letter why it brings me joy and how, when and where I have it in my life.

The third letter is about my values. I'll explain what brings me the greatest sense of meaning and why and how those values were instilled in me and how I bring them into my business.

The fourth letter is about one realistic goal I want to achieve this year. This is a specific goal that I can measure in time, dollars, resources or profitability. It may be sales, customers, products, website hits, blog subscribers as a few examples. I'll write about what I do to achieve the goal, how it makes me feel working towards the goal and what the outcome will be.

I'll fold each letter and give them to someone to put into 4 blank envelopes so I do not know which letter is in which envelope. I'll mark down in my planner 4 days throughout the year when I will open one of the letters to myself.

Try this yourself and lets keep our energy flowing through the year. I'll keep you posted on this Energy Flow when I open the letters and I'd love to here from you all.

Image by allegra via Flickr at Creative Commons license.