There is more meaning in what you don’t say, than what you do: Business is personal
What you say and what you don’t: It makes all the difference in the world
“Business is not personal,” is like saying egg doesn’t have yolk.
Everything is personal-because we are not automotons, we are not islands devoid of feeling: What you don’t say to someone: “Thank you,” or on-going appreciation, a degree of understanding for the pressures and difficulties your co-workers face, and most importantly applause (your hands don’t have to clap!)when they do well, says as much as what you do say.
Example: There is one fellow I am dealing with, abroad, who sends me ‘panic-emails’ ongoing-regarding his issues in the midst of his setback. Ones which, to a great degree I am trying to assist him with: Both on a personal front and on a business front: He is unable or unwilling to eke out a word of encouragement or thanks-and his excuse is that “things get lost in translation.” This fellow, I have been told is a masterful negotiator who negotiates for a living: Nothing masterful here,just panic driven, reactionary, and demeaning messages, which, after awhile, fill one with bile. What is bile? The precursor to throwing up.
Bravery, brightness, and brilliance hold their ground on the rock of steadniess through rough seas and a wink and a nod at your fellow ship-mates facing the same troubles you are.
And, if all you have to say-to telegrapgh-to communicate, is pressure driven and not motivation driven, you will soon loose your allies and cut off your legs-proverbially, left with stumps: Then you will be alone, bereft of a team, of allies, and of partners in your business journey.
The test of courage and of toughness is not in the best,bright, sunlit moments of prosperity and triumph, it is in the midst of gloom and setbacks, in that time of your quiet panic. In those moments, if you can signal to your mates, to your companions in this war against time and complacency, thanks, on-going gratitude, and a sense of shared suffering and shared hope (I’d refer you to Henry V’s Agincourt Speech) then, then you can stand with your head held high and say: “I’m a man…”
I am as at fault in this area, I am sure, as everyone else-which is perhaps why I bring it up.
Band of merry brothers…
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