Author Archive
The Power of Three
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Jane K. Stimmler, contributing Women on Business writer
When I learned of the President’s choice for the next Supreme Court Justice a few weeks ago, it hit me immediately – this would be the third woman on the Court. “Three” is the number of women needed to make an impact, according to several research studies. Three shifts the dynamics of corporate boards when it is reached and creates a more “mainstream” feel to the gender balance of a small group. So it causes me to wonder – what dynamic might be changed with three women on the Court for the first time? Would this 3 of 9 ratio change the way we view the Supreme Court – or our perception of women and power?
Marcia Greenberg, head of the National Women’s Law Center, summed it up by saying, “…with two women on the Supreme Court…they are seen as exceptions to the rule.” She added that the potential addition of Elena Kagan would “move toward the day when it’s accepted that women are just as likely as men to be on the Supreme Court.”
Or anyplace else!
Corporate Exec or Entrepreneur – Which is Better?
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Jane K. Stimmler, contributing Women on Business writer
If you are an entrepreneur, you’ve probably experienced the look of envy on the faces of people in the corporate workforce when they find out you run your own business. They are likely thinking things like “wow, if it’s a beautiful day, you can just take the afternoon off” or “you’re so lucky you don’t have to put up with that annoying Division head.” And yes, there are many benefits to “being your own boss.”
My career began in the corporate world. After a number of years of climbing (and slipping on) the corporate ladder, I followed my entrepreneurial husband into his year-old marketing consulting business. This family “merger” was due to a set of circumstances – not a plan. In fact, though I had been happily ensconced in my corporate job, fate intervened during an economic downturn (no, not the most recent one) and presented a great opportunity for the company I was with at the time to become my client. I quickly found another client and never looked back.
Review – Brother Laser Printer with Duplex
Posted by: | Comments
Many months ago, I was sent a new Brother HL-5370DW Laser Printer with Wireless Networking and Duplex
I don’t publish product reviews often on Women on Business unless I think a product could truly be useful and helpful to readers. The reason I agreed to test the Brother printer was because of its ability to print 2-sided printouts. I thought this could be a huge benefit to small business owners and entrepreneurs who waste money printing on only one side of every sheet of paper that they print.
I’m an author, so I print a lot! Not only does printing on 2-sides of a sheet of paper help to save money on ink and paper, but it also makes me feel a bit less guilty killing so many trees for that paper. Now, onto the review…
I’m very happy with the Brother HL-5370DW printer. Here is what I like about it:
- It’s easy to set up.
- It prints quickly (up to 32 pages per minute according to the documentation).
- It prints up to 1200 x 1200 dpi resolution.
- It can be hooked up wirelessly to multiple computers.
Why is the Pipeline in Peril?
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Jane K. Stimmler, contributing Women on Business writer
We all know those dismal and annoying stats about women in business – we’re about half the workforce but only 3% of Fortune 500 CEOs, 15% of board of directors, and 13% of executive officers. It’s also true that women are making great strides and graduating with about half of the advance professional degrees, and that the “middle management” workforce is brimming with women. So, one would think that the future looks bright for more women at the top levels of business. That is, until they read the recent Catalyst report, “The Promise of Future Leadership: A Research Program on Highly Talented Employees in the Pipeline.”
Catalyst surveyed nearly 10,000 alumni who graduated from MBA programs internationally between 1996 and 2007 and found that “Among this highly talented group, women lag men in advancement and compensation from their very first professional jobs and are less satisfied with their careers overall.”
Surprised? I was, and wanted to give some thought to why this would be so. Here are some reasons I believe women aren’t making more progress:
Mary Bennett Joins the Women on Business Writing Team
Posted by: | CommentsPlease join me in welcoming Mary Bennett to the Women on Business writing team.
Mary has over twenty five years of experience in the accounting and consulting industry. Seventeen years of this experience has been with Crowe Horwath LLP, a top ten accounting and consulting firm. For ten years of her career Mary served as a partner at Crowe. Mary’s roles have included Practice Leadership, Market Development, Business Development, Client Service, and Organizational Development. Areas of technical expertise include Enterprise Risk Management, Internal Audit, Leadership Development, Inclusiveness Programs, and Women’s Leadership Initiatives.
Mary has recently founded MLBennett Consulting and is working with professional services firms and other organizations in Organizational Development. Services include Succession Planning, Leadership Development, Women’s Leadership Initiatives, Inclusiveness, Career/Life and Work/Life Programming, Strategic Capability Development and Executive Coaching.
Look for Mary’s posts to appear on Women on Business on Mondays!
Being an Entrepreneur – How I Fight Against the Conformist in Me
Posted by: | CommentsGuest post by Rebecca Tervo (learn more about Rebecca at the end of this post)
I fell in love with a vampire and have become intrigued by vampire stories…No, this is not another book review or blog entry about vampires.
I became a fan of author Stephenie Meyer after being “forced” to read the wildly popular “Twilight” series because my 10 year old daughter wanted to read it. I had to read it before she did (because of my own policy). Turns out, I absolutely fell head over heels for Edward and the whole vampire love story….as weird as that may be.
I eagerly awaited her next book once I had finished the series. Would it be another vampire love story? Turns out, it’s not. “The Host” is Meyer’s latest read. It’s based on the story of two minds/souls living in one body. A very interesting concept, since only one can be in control of the body at a time. As you can imagine, these minds are in a conundrum. How does one dominate? How long can they actually live in the same body and agree on goals and how to achieve them? I haven’t finished reading it yet, so I can’t give you the answer.
I have two minds fighting for dominance…
However, as I’m reading, I’m reminded about the two sides that live inside of me. I call these the ‘achiever’ and the ‘conformist’. I bet you’ve experienced this to some degree. Especially if you are trying to enter the unknown, trying to start a business, or taking a leap of faith to do something new with your life.
When I started my business, the achiever was extremely dominant. My achiever side had huge plans, ideas, and motivation to start a business where I could do the work I love, work with the clients I like, and have time flexibility for my family.
Now that I’ve been in business for about 2 years, I’ve realized that once in a while the conformist rears its head and tries to hold the achiever back. Just like in “The Host”, the achiever and conformist are jockeying for dominance.
See if any of these typical conversations happen in your head:
I can’t do that!
Conformist: I don’t have any actual people I can talk to in my community that are doing what I’m attempting to do. There’s no logical proof that it can be done!
Achiever: Anything is possible! I bet no one had ever flown an airplane before the Wright brothers came along….just start doing something.
Stay with the Positive
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Jane K. Stimmler, contributing Women on Business writer
Sometimes I’m certain there are two of me. There’s the self-assured woman who feels good about herself and her abilities. But there’s also that anxious gal who questions every decision she makes and becomes a quivering mass of uncertainty when she walks into a room full of people. The better me is strong and positive – the other me, not so much. Many women have disclosed that they find it’s sometimes a struggle to maintain their confidence as they navigate the business world. In fact, there are some very real physiological reasons why negative thoughts take over.
An article by Rick Hanson, Ph.D. talks about underlying physical brain structures and processes, and concludes this way:
“The innate neurological circuitry of your mind poses a very real challenge: positive stimuli tend to roll through it while negative stimuli get flagged and captured and deferred to. But you can consciously override those tendencies in simple and effective ways each day, by focusing on positive experiences, valuing them, and helping them sink in.”
So, based on simple biology, we actually have to do some work to stay positive and override our negative feelings. Here are some ways I suggest that can work to maintain positive energy.
Greet Like a Ginsu – Part Two
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Frances Cole Jones, contributing Women On Business writer
If you missed Part One of this post, you can read it here — Greet Like a Ginsu – Part One.
In my last post I talked about ensuring your physical space is clean and welcoming. It’s also important to be very clear with the people manning these areas about personal items displayed, dress code, hold music, and how they answer the phones and/or greet visitors. Herewith, then, my list of do’s and don’ts:
- With regard to personal items, family photographs, calendars, etc. are fine. Stuffed animals, miniature garden gnomes, and birthday cards with headlines along the lines of “Yo, bitch,” are not.
- Scantily clad co-workers in any area of the office are distracting. Scantily clad reception staff leaves visitors wondering what your business might be a front for.
- A warm hello when visitors arrive is appreciated. If the receptionist is on the phone, s/he should be directed to acknowledge visitors’ arrival with a smile and eye contact. Instead of having them hold one finger in the to indicate your need to wait—far too reminiscent of grade school admonishment in my mind—I recommend having them interrupt their phone conversation to say, “I’ll be right with you.”
Greet Like a Ginsu – Part One
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Frances Cole Jones, contributing Women On Business writer
Did you know it took over 600 hours to think up, agree upon, and refine the first ten seconds of the original Ginsu infomercial? (“In Japan, the hand can be used like a knife…”) The image – a hand karate chopping a tomato – was so arresting—weird enough to make the person with the remote stop flipping channels and say, ‘What the heck is THAT?’— that it went on to become one of the most successful ads of all time.
But while we’ve all heard we’re judged on the first ten seconds of any interaction, how many of us have put even one hundred hours into the impressions others get when they walk into our office, or business’s reception area? With this in mind, here are a few suggestions for ways to make these spaces warm and inviting:
Let’s begin by taking as a given reception areas need to be clean and pleasantly lit—no “airplane bathroom lighting” i.e. unflattering from every angle. After this, other considerations in play include:
- While I want them to be clean, I prefer they don’t smell of either disinfectant or floral/woodsy/citrus air freshener. Proper ventilation is a must.
How Far Will You Go for Networking?
Posted by: | CommentsPost by Jane K. Stimmler, contributing Women on Business writer
We will probably all agree that networking is highly beneficial to our careers for many reasons. We can gain valuable information, become known, develop relationships, acquire business leads and find opportunities for personal and professional growth. So, getting to know people both inside and outside your organization can be both productive and rewarding. As positive as it is, women often lament having to spend the time on networking activities because it takes away from “regular” work – as well as family time and social activities. And now, to make matters more confusing, the avenues for networking have expanded greatly.
With all the social networking sites, we now find ourselves with increased networking opportunities – and we can be at it 24/7 if we want to. This plethora of options can be viewed as a problem – or perhaps, an opportunity. I believe you have to look at all of the possibilities, scrutinize your schedule and consider your likes and dislikes. Once you honestly look at the issues, you can make some decisions about what might work for you, and then give it a try.
