No answers
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Friday, 22 August 08 - 12:13 PM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in People |
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My boss at my last permanent employment (Positively Wellington Business) committed suicide last week. He was suffering from a serious illness. Depression.
It is unbelievably tragic. Even more so for his wife and children. There's so much that I could write about here, about the sadness and the futility and that even now we still seem to consider depression as a strange affliction rather than an illness like cancer that has a course of treatments and can be talked about openly. But I want to share my anger with the church. Well, why not...
At Phil's funeral (which was witty, intelligent and a little irreverent just like Phil), the Reverend stood up at the end and said:
"Phil's wife asked me yesterday to make sense of it all. Well I can't. There is no sense to be made of this. We just have to get through it one day at a time".
I'm sorry? What? I know I don't have much faith (and even less now) but frankly if the insitution of the church can give us one thing, its comfort when people die. Their ceremonies and systems can give some sort of meaning to the big issues we have to deal with. That's why most of us go to funerals, as a formal ceremony to guide the grieving process.
Whilst I can't stand the platitude: 'its Gods will', at least that's some kind of an answer, a way to make sense. Even 'he's gone to a better place'. Something, rather than that pathetic cop out. If she was unhappy about the fact he had committed suicide and felt that it was some slight on God, she should not have taken the service. If that wasn't the reason for the lack of comforting words there's no excuse. I was appalled and have written to the reverend.
Probably one of those letters I should have re-read before sending. Ah well.
Empires
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Tuesday, 19 August 08 - 08:41 AM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in People |
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Being in Italy for three weeks made me think about empires. The amazing rise (and fall) of families and communities that have had a huge impact on our lives.
I think this is the way to live. Look after your family. Check out what the Bush family does (shocking example, but you can't deny its working). Wade in and fight for them, find them jobs, take them in when they need you, have babies and pass it on. Nepotism is just a word people use who aren't in your family...!
It drives me completlely bonkers when I hear Lee's family talk about the custody difficulties their other son is having, and say 'ah well we're not getting involved'. WHAT??? they should be in all guns blazing on his behalf.
Now this is a bit of a blow for me who was quite happy not having babies thank you very much and also who lives a bloody long way from her family.
But family is not just flesh and blood. Your friends are your empire and your community can be too. Look after them, find them work, put them top of your list, and grow an empire.
I look at the richest people I know and they all have empires behind them and around them. Their family business has supported them, their father's successes have given them leverage to have successes of their own. That's fine with me. Use it, encourage it.
Charitable organisations will probably lambast me for this post. But looking after your own first, making that base strong, having succession plans in place is how you build power and success. And I make no bones about wanting both those things.
Handover
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Tuesday, 19 August 08 - 08:37 AM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in People |
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Ah well its been a while - been in Italy and England reminding ourselves why we live here 
While we were away, we got the news about Hanover finance. Unfortunately we've got money in there - put in before the hoo-haa with finance companies and due to pop out into our hands in about a month. Well, not now of course. Hey ho - had a net worth, lost a net worth..
Such an easy solution though. Directors are worth well over the $500mill their company owes. Take it all off them and give it to the people they owe. Two people reduced to square one instead of thousands. And if they've made that kind of money before they can make it again. Naive? never ;-)
Either that or maybe the government could wade in and support those people who VOLUNTARILY saved some money and didn't need to be bribed with tax credits and free lump sums.
OK now this is getting silly
The only person that loves you..
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Tuesday, 08 July 08 - 09:51 AM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in Business |
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Went to the 'Managing High Growth Ventures' workshop last week, hosted by Victoria University's Mark Ahn and with speakers from around NZ. Sadly more advisors, incubator companies and presenters in the room than high growth business people who, if they only went on one training course this year, should have made it that one.
Great snippets:
- Kill your ugly babies quickly (if your idea is a bad one, stop putting effort into it)
- The only person that loves you is your mum (get market validation from real customers not friends and family who want you to be happy and won't tell you the truth!)
- If you don't know where you're heading, any road will take you there (planning is good)
- The future belongs to right brainers (my favourite! - lawyers, accountants, coders belong to the nineties, the future is for generalists, community builders, creators and innovators)
- Less is more for successful ventures - having more 'mass' makes you less agile, active and efficient so get rid of it (mass = office politics, staff, long term contracts, permanent decisions, meetings about meetings, 10 year roadmaps. less = multitalented teams, multitaskers, open source, open culture)
Why networking works
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Wednesday, 02 July 08 - 12:24 PM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in Business |
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Just had a great example of why networking works. For all those of you struggling to get out to events and connect with new people in this cold weather particularly!
People trust you if they can link to you. Then they'll do business with you.
Huh? Well, Simone, who I share an office with, has been on a networking drive in the past few months. Not because she has an insatiable urge to talk (ah, er, well....) but because she wants to grow her business. It's working. Yesterday she talked with a client who's committed to a small piece of work, with the potential for more. As they explored that client's business Simone could demonstrate that she was connected to her client's financial advisor and board member. Now that client knows she's real, she's got a reputation to protect with people that this client trusts - Simone is trusted by default. And therefore can be trusted to do business with.
Nice to have a tangible reason why being connected gets you business.
Being reliable
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Friday, 20 June 08 - 09:34 AM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in People |
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I talk about the art of networking quite a bit on here because its something I love to do, and without blowing ye olde trumpete too hard, am fairly darn good at it. Recently I've noticed that, getting busier and busier, I've had to stay focussed on avoiding what can bring a networker crashing down: unreliability.
Something I was told very early on was that a great networker needs to be reliable. Your network needs to know you're around, accessible and that you deliver. This is because they rely on you to connect them to the right people at the right time, and if you're not visible and actively out and about, that's pretty hard to do.
Reliability means: turning up for appointments when you say you will. God I hate it when people are 45 minutes late, actually even 10 minutes late - without a good reason it just says 'you're not worth it'.
Reliability means: a consistent presence. Find a couple of events, meetings, committees, groups, clubs that you can go to regularly and regularly go. Easy eh.
Reliability means: delivering on your promises. Which means of course don't over promise - especially if you're a bit of a head girl like me: "Oh, is no-one volunteering? Guess I'll do it then, no worries" or if you have control freak syndrome (hey that's not me honest): "It won't get done unless I do it". A long list of promises means a long time getting them done. Make sure you can do it or your reputation for being a great networker will be eroded as your reputation for being flaky takes over.
Hmm, seems like the next post needs to be on the art of saying no. Better practice 
New business mag for Wellington launches soon
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Friday, 20 June 08 - 09:30 AM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in Buzz |
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Been a busy few weeks hence the blog silence, very bad form I know. Still plenty of news to fill the gap - particularly excited about the launch of In-Business in a week or so - a busines magazine by Wellingtonians for Wellingtonians. Tim Collins is the entrepreneur behind it and is another expat that's just fallen for this awesome city and wants to tell its stories.
Check out the column from Frances and I - Sects in the City - where we review quite candidly the best and worst networking opportunities around town. All feedback even rotten tomatoes gratefully received...
Annual subscription is something daft like $65 so well worth it.
Why haven't people got it yet?
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Wednesday, 28 May 08 - 04:00 PM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in People |
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Just come back from the gym (great class, great instructors, great music, bloody awful shower gel smells like hair remover.....) So mostly good...
..What absolutely appalled me though was the number of women in the changing rooms with bags full of animal tested products. Dove, Nivea, Sunsilk, Lancome, Maybelline, Garnier etc etc - are there still that many people in this day and age who can live with testing cosmetic products on animals? And just blindly buy their favourite brand that will make them gorgeous just like that model on TV without thinking about the cruelty? I just can't believe it. I thought that the cosmetic testing argument had been held, and won years ago. It's not a price issue either, the cheapest and nicest shampoo in Pak n Save is also not tested on animals. It's the only one though.
Come on fellow females sort it out. There's no excuse.
PS I'd be delighted if someone points out that the ones I've listed above are actually cruelty free. They're not on the BUAV list though.
Sky boat
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Monday, 26 May 08 - 08:17 AM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in Boat adventures |
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Just think this picture is awesome
A person not a woman
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Thursday, 22 May 08 - 02:23 PM (GMT +12:00) By Marie-Claire Andrews in Business |
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I had an email this week from someone asking how I was going in a contract I've taken up - and whilst he probably didn't mean to, it was worded in a way that made me feel very small and girly and that he wouldn't have sent it if I was a man. So I was a bit affronted and stopped only by the skin of my teeth from sending back a reply along the lines of "well, tee hee, i'm hanging on by my g-string but luckily got some good blokes around who are keeping me on the straight and narrow, and since investing in the boob implant definitely getting more attention and i think the lap dance at the next event will have them rocking up in droves..." 
This week though, I also went to the Wellington Chamber of Commerce' 'Women in Business' networking event - 25 women, yup in business, listening to a presentation from, er, a woman in business.
Now here's my difficulty. On the one hand I enjoy those networking sessions, women are easier to network with and the atmosphere is much more about personal development than commercial connections. On the other hand I hate having my gender drawn attention to in business, overtly or subconsciously - its so 1980s.
Can't have it both ways so think I'm going to have to give up the Women's networking and take my place as a person at Non-Gender-Specific People In Business events.
... More items are available in my News Archive
