The Softer Side Of Business: Sincere Appreciation

By: Santi Chacon
Denver, Colorado
Business Coach

Welcome To Your Stage

Never underestimate the power of a good performance!

If you are a small business owner or small business executive, I understand that you are driven to succeed. For you every day business performance is everything. Whether you sit in a home office or a lush downtown suite, making sure that you make every day count should be your only concern.

What Do I Mean By “Performance”?

Business performance is the activity that drives revenue in your business. The way you position yourself and go about your tasks (if you expect to do it well) requires preparation, planning, strategy, and meaningful execution. For my purposes let's just consider the meaningful execution part of this scenario. Preparing, planning, and considering strategy can be done behind closed doors, but execution is something the requires you to interact with others. It is how you interact with others that makes a performance worthwhile.

People Are Always Watching

Let’s imagine just for a brief second that you are an actor on stage, because you are. I would even say you have been given a role to play. The only way toward the next act is to play your role convincingly. If it's not too presumptuous let’s also imagine that you have an audience, because you do. Even if you think it is absurd know that even if today is your very first day you will be better off thinking that you are being watched by someone who potentially invest in your company as a customer, investor, or partner. Your audience is constantly witnessing the drama that will unfold before their eyes. Will always be wrapped up and potentially mesmerized by the details of your brand. For the intents of your branding any opportunities you have to connect with stakeholders you must conduct yourself as though they held the keys to your financial future.

...and since everybody is watching you this brings us to:

Principle #4 Show Sincere Appreciation

Everybody knows how you treat your people. Do your people grunt and bear your leadership style because they can't leave very easily? You can tell if your people will resent you by the lack of meaning they have connected to you, your staff, and your company. Although a meaningful connection entails intentional planning, I will settle for displaying sincere appreciation for your people, partners, customers, and investors for now!

If your posture is always about driving revenue without acknowledgment of the personal side of your business, you are sure to have business challenges beginning with employees and customers. You can drive people only so long before they burnout and yes this means your customers too. Remember your business is a marriage, and you should treat it accordingly. My main point here is people are attracted to those who care about them and care about what they spend their hours doing. You should learn to appreciate your co-stars because they will affect your performance and eventually bottom-line more than you do. Build advocacy because in the theater of your business it takes all of us to make one of us successful!

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