When Will You Retire From Business?

June 24, 2014 by Sue Painter 7 Comments

The day will come when you will retire from business. It might be due to health issues or from old age. After working directly with hundreds and hundreds of clients I've met very few who have considered their own retirement. It makes me crazy. I'm a … [Read more...]

Sue Painter, business consulting and coaching

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Sue Painter, business consulting and coaching

4 days ago

In just a few short days our summer adventures around Europe will be over, and we'll be on a flight back to Miami and then home. Right now we're in Windemere, England visiting some dear friends who are older and getting frail.

This trip has exposed us to about 5 different cultures, each one different. When I am put into someone else's culture I always feel like I'm trying hard to absorb their way of life, their values, their experiences. And as I was doing that in Spain about a week ago I suddenly realized that we do the same thing when we are working with our customers.

We want to know how their experiences have brought them to the place they are right now, seeking our help.
We want to know their values toward their work, and whether they will execute what is put on their calendar to accomplish.
We want to know their ways of being, so that we can perhaps craft a way for them to move forward that will work for them.
But there's one thing that I find works across all cultures, all countries, all people. That one thing is respect. Respect is the door opener. Respect is the rapport builder. Respect is the motivator, sometimes. Especially when we're working with someone who hasn't gotten a lot of respect before.

In 2003 Bill and I went on our first trip to the magical island of Bali. In Bali every single morning we saw small offerings of flowers and incense put out at the four corners of each Balinese bale (home). The Balinese wake and set offerings to their gods first thing. It is a sign of reverence and respect. (See the picture below for their morning offerings.) From that trip I learned to start my day with an offering of respect and reverence, and that's been a part of my morning meditation ever since. Respect for the earth, respect for the sun, respect for those I will meet up with in the coming day.

Before you can respect another, however, you must respect yourself. I meet many unconfident business owners who don't respect themselves, who don't charge what they are worth, who are afraid to speak up about how brilliant they are at what they do. So my challenge to you this morning is to show respect. First for yourself. Don't leave yourself out. Know what it feels like inside your bones, this respect. And then, offer it up as a gift to your customers. Respect builds relationships with customers. It builds loyalty from customers. I honestly believe that success comes from respect. Try it in large doses for yourself and your customers, and see what happens. ... See MoreSee Less

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When Will You Retire From Business?

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