Tag Archives: Business

Acting Like A Man In The Workplace

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by Anja Uitdehaag

“I don’t mind living in a man’s world as long as I can be a woman in it.” – Marilyn Monroe

Women leaders need to learn to manage without injecting gender into it. We’re all different! Being different from men (or other women) isn’t something to change or hide. Get over the idea that men and women are complete opposites, that we can never be similar.

There are times in the business world when we (and I mean: men and women) should be competitive or confrontational and there are times when we should seek compromise, cooperation and listen to our emotions. Most situations call for a blend of all of the above and most men and women have the ability to be all of these things. Continue reading →

Lindsay’s In Business: Hanging in the Universe

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by Lindsay Uittenbogaard

All sorts of ideas, old and new came up during that phase of excitement and discomfort:

What about an app that provides more detailed user ratings on local services than the usual ‘5 stars’, so that people wanting a prompt and tidy DIY guy (rather than the cheapest one), or a reflexology-based pedicure (rather than just great nails) can find exactly what they’re looking for?

What about helping Line Managers with team communications: a notorious requirement coming out of most employee surveys that never quite gets the attention it needs?

What about an art website with pre-set titles based on feelings, like frustration, excitement, anger? Artists could upload works created for those titles; they could be shared on social media with people liking the ones they most identify with, then judged, sold, merchandised…?

What about a home PA by-the-hour service? Imagine all those busy, dual income parents who would love to get a bit of help with running errands, searching for holidays, sitters for houses/pets/children, even getting presents for nieces and nephews – they’d want to call just a single number. Continue reading →

Deborah A. Bailey, “Think Like an Entrepreneur: Transforming Your Career and Taking Charge of Your Life”

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Reviewed by Femflection

Deborah A. Bailey is a sought after expert to discuss entrepreneurial and workplace issues. After over twenty years in the corporate world, Deborah graduated from Coach U and transitioned into entrepreneurship. She’s the author of of several novels and non-fiction books, in addition to a short story collection, a speaker and the host of “Women Entrepreneurs – The Secrets of Success,” an internet radio talk show where she provides candid discussions with today’s top entrepreneurs, authors and industry experts. Continue reading →

Situation 21: OVERCOMING MISTAKES

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Lately some (small) things went wrong at work. It upsets Femsy and she has difficulty overcoming these mistakes.

 (Click on the pictures to see them in full size) Continue reading →

Lindsay’s In Business: Running

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by Lindsay Uittenbogaard

I’d run my own business before.  In fact, it was the first thing I did when I finished University. I started the UK’s first city-to-city car pool agency for students in 1992.  Crazy actually.  No concept awareness, no funding, no experience, no internet (but we did get a fax machine – woo!) I loved the novelty and the challenge of it. But after 4 years, 17,000 members, EU funding, 7 voluntary staff and sponsorship from Vauxhall Motors – at 10 pounds membership a year, it just wasn’t viable. I was exhausted and oh so disappointed.

After that, I went from small-business marketing in Australia, to a general management position in Scotland, and then someone said, “Hey, I need someone for a communications consultancy job in the Netherlands and you could be that person!” So off I went to start work at Shell in 2001. As I set out on what was to be a fascinating whole new life, I started discovering what large organizations were really about. Continue reading →

Lindsay’s In Business: The Starting Point

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by Lindsay Uittenbogaard

So I’m finally sitting in a meeting room with my boss. I hadn’t been able to talk with her for a few weeks now (which was getting pretty frustrating), so what I wanted to get out of the discussion had been changing quite a bit. She waits for me to take the lead. I decide to take a meta-level approach.

“I’m glad we have chance to talk. It feels like we’ve been… kind of … at odds with each other,” I confessed. “Maybe it’s me – I’m so keen to see progress and push forward in a ‘dynamic’ way that when the brakes go on, it’s difficult to understand. Then, at the same time, it seems you’re holding things back to prioritise ‘excellence’ in our work. Should we be rethinking those values together?” Continue reading →

Malcolm Gladwell, “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference”

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Reviewed by Femflection

Malcolm Timothy Gladwell, (born September 3, 1963) is an English-born Canadian journalist, bestselling author, and speaker. He has been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1996. He has written five books and all of them were on The New York Times Best Seller list. Gladwell’s books and articles often deal with the unexpected implications of research in the social sciences and make frequent and extended use of academic work, particularly in the areas of sociology, psychology, and social psychology. Gladwell was appointed to the Order of Canada on June 30, 2011. Continue reading →

When Office Politics Are At Odds With Your Personal Values

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by River Ho Rathore

Just yesterday, I came across a Harvard Business Review article titled “Great Leaders Embrace Office Politics”. Written by Michael Wenderoth, the article describes how, in the real world, our success is determined less by merit and more by perceptions and political skills. Michael’s writing is pragmatic and draws insights from top executives’ actual experiences, even his own. It also reminded me of the many warnings I have received about playing the office politics game. “It is there in every office. You cannot eliminate it, so you might as well play it,”  a number of colleagues, relatives and friends have told me so over the years. Continue reading →

Everything isn’t about you

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Elsa – Frozen

When something upsetting happens at work, a woman is more likely to take it personally than her male counterpart.

Most advice given for handling such a situation would be “It’s just business, don’t take it personally.”

For a long time this kind of advice used to make me even angrier. Not to take things personally? It was personal!

Today? – Though I’m far from being fully detached, I’ve come a long way compared to where I once was.

There’s nothing like growing up in a large competitive family and a global career in a male dominated environment to teach you how to not take things personally.

When you take things personally you give others more power over you than they ever should be allowed to have. You are allowing someone to question what you feel, believe and who you are. It keeps you tied to someone else and can even make you feel like a victim.

The biggest benefits of not taking things personally are self-awareness, self worth and clarity.

Knowing and truly feeling that only you can dictate whether or not you’re on track or whether or not you’re successful is a reward in and of it self.

As Eleanor Roosevelt said, “No one can make you feel inferior without your permission.”

Anja Uitdehaag

Self Confidence: More Important Than You Think!

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by Mine Batiyel

How do I define art? Art is a language and like any other language it is a vehicle of communication i.e. self-expression of ideas and most inner/deep feelings. Language is an important aspect of any culture and cultures tend by nature to limit one’s freedom in one way or another. Here is where art comes in – it provides freedom of expression without any limitation or boundaries and provides ample opportunity for imagination and creativity. It is hence highly therapeutic.

However, like in business life, in art we also go through the same ups and downs, the good days and the bad days, disappointing end results and great ones. The good old “competencies” of the business life will either ensure you pull through or you give up. Continue reading →