March 2020
Strategies for Success Newsletter March 2020 Issue 171
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Published by Emily Huling Selling Strategies
www.sellingstrategies.com
Copyright 2020 Emily Huling. All rights reserved.
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In this March 2020 issue:
- Thoughts from the Road
- Thoughts from the Office
- Josmo’s Cafe
- Stay Energized
- Emily Live
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- Thoughts from the Road
Got empathy?
I was on a very short flight from Houston to Austin hoping to catch a brief nap. That was not to be. Even before the young woman sat down beside me in the DMS (dreaded middle seat), I could feel her positive energy and kindness. With a big smile, Maram introduced herself as a healthcare professional and an advocate for empathy. “In fact,” she said, “my friends call me the empathy princess.” (#empathyprincess)
Maram pulled a button from her bag and gifted it to me. It says EMPATHY – Embracing Mindful Possibilities Allowing Trusting Heartful Yielding. We chatted throughout the flight. On her Twitter feed @MaramMPH, she has posted thoughtful reminders not just for the healthcare field. The key to empathy is allowing ourselves to be vulnerable. Reach out to people because asking someone how they are doing is priceless during hardships. Always be mindful and put yourself in people’s shoes. If we are too focused on ourselves, what room do we have for empathy?
Maram had one request of me when we said our goodbyes. “Empathy. Pass it on.”
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- Thoughts from the Office
Parting ways
My client, an agency owner I’ll call James, called me with a dilemma. He had an employee who repeatedly was not meeting performance and production expectations even after many conversations and coaching. James knew nothing was going to change and he needed to take action. However, it was complicated. They were longtime friends and traveled in the same social circles. James asked if I could help him figure out how to sever the business relationship and remain friends.
Fortunately, the agency has a strong culture with written vision, mission, and value statements. I told James that having those documents to refer to along with specifics of the employee’s actual results would help de-personalize the conversation. James should keep the conversation focused on the agency goals and the strategies and actions needed by all employees to achieve them. After stating this, I recommended to James that he be quiet and give the employee time to respond.
That is what James did. James told me he was surprised by the employee’s response. His friend thanked him for taking the initiative to end his employment! He told James, “I didn’t want to let you down. I’ve been trying to make it work, but this isn’t for me. I didn’t have the courage to tell you.”
Moral of the story 1. A company benefits from clarity and transparency on its vision and goals. It sets the foundation of performance expectations to more easily deal with issues that run contrary.
Moral of the story 2. Accept that ending relationships is part of life. To help navigate changes that need to happen, read the book by Dr. Henry Cloud titled Necessary Endings or watch his terrific 47-minute video on the topic. Dr. Cloud’s approach and advice will help better understand why making tough decisions is crucial and provide guidance to act decisively and responsibly.
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- Josmo’s Café
Add me to the list of people you know who follow gluten-free eating. It’s a diet that’s easy to follow these days with both ready-made food choices and gluten-free ingredients. This recipe for Gluten-free Cheesecake was a huge hit with our guests. In fact, we all decided the crust was even better using the gluten-free graham crackers! Enjoy!
Check out the story of how Josmo’s Café came into being and dozens of other Josmo’s Cafe recipes on our website.
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- Stay Energized
Our Energizer Minute podcast for the month of March is Spring Forward.
Follow me on Twitter @EmilyHuling to read my weekday Energizer Moments.
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- Emily Live
- WSIA Underwriting Summit – Palm Desert, CA – February 29-March 4, 2020
- Agency Management CIC, Wichita, KS – March 17-18, 2020
- Agency Management CIC, Charlotte, NC – May 13-14, 2020
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Selling Strategies: Strategies for Success Newsletter is published by Emily Huling Selling Strategies. For further information, contact emily@sellingstrategies.com.
© 2020 Emily Huling Selling Strategies All rights reserved.