Redefining Success: Ethics, Consequences and Lessons from Prison

Have you ever had one of those “ah-ha” moments when you quickly gained a greater awareness than you ever had before? I must say, that as bad as I felt in this place, prison was an intense learning lab. I didn’t know that going in, but in retrospect I am glad I took notes, because the lessons and opportunities for growth were coming at me quickly. How easy it would have been to miss those lessons.

Often folks grow weary when they hear people talk of learning through adversity. All too often we prefer life to be a smooth ride with few bumps in the road. Fortunately, I’ve experienced both and while there is joy in a calm pleasant ride, more times than not my greatest learning has been during turbulent times. The next section that follows is an excerpt from my Memoirs from Prison. In each of these one can capture a learning pearl – something that can be applied in everyday life, if only we let it.

October 5, 1995.

Buck, my roommate, and I talked for a long while last night. He is a spiritual person, doing his time, the best he can. He has five children in been in federal penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia. I'm surprised, but I like this guy, he seems to shoot straight.

Last night, Buck asked me a question. I don't recall today what it was, but I remember his response. He looked to me with a puzzled look, and said, “word?" I didn't understand, and repeated his statement with, “word?" He said, “Yeah -- word?” I must admit I didn't have a clue what he meant. Then he looked at me and said, “You just don't understand a brother do you?" And with that he walked out of the room.

I just stood there. I had no clue what just happened. Three days in prison, and we just hit a communications stumbling block. Moments later, Buck returned to the room and said,” I'll make you an offer. I'll teach you how to communicate in the hood, if you'll teach me how to talk, so I can get a job when I get out of here.” “Deal?”

At that moment, I began to understand the term -- success -- in a whole new light. I had always defined success in terms of one's possessions. But in here, we have no possessions. Success can be defined as being safe while in prison and getting out of prison safely. Buck recognized that I am a fish out of water. This is not my environment. But he is willing to help me achieve success here, if I could help him achieve success outside of prison. What an amazing opportunity that is placed before me.

Now, it’s over ten years later and that lesson still rings clear. Success in one’s life is not really measured by the “trappings” of success. Sure a big house, nice watch, expensive car, fine jewelry all are indications of abundance of resources – money. But none of them truly define success. I was, by all accounts, successful – at least that’s what everyone thought. Yet, by making unethical choices I gained a clear understanding of true success in one of the most unexpected places – prison.

Thankfully – Success – is a journey and at times, even when we don’t like it, we’re given the opportunity to find success in small ways and odd places. This gift that was given has opened many doors for me to share with others. For information on how that can benefit you or your organization or to receive my Choices ezine contact www.chuckgallagher.com or e-mail me at chuck@chuckgallagher.com. And remember you can live success – the choice is yours!
Published: 2007-01-01
Author: Chuck Gallagher
About the author or the publisher
On a crisp October day in 1995, Chuck Gallagher took 23 physical steps… opened a door… and began a new experience that was life-changing. This series of articles explores that experience and the success that followed… while involving the reader in ways that could be life-altering for them. Gallagher captures the heart of the audience in an honest way that deals with human emotion. For information on Chuck’s keynotes and workshops go to www.chuckgallagher.com or for a free ezine on Ethical Choices contact Chuck at chuck@chuckgallagher.com.
www.chuckgallagher.com

Ethics and Consequences: Lessons from Prison

Competent, educated and in prison – I would never have considered that this is where I would be some 11 years ago. But, there are consequences to every choice we make and though one might think that we can avoid the consequences – we can’t. They are unavoidable and certain. We just don’t know how or when we will face the inevitable.

As a former CPA who, through a series of choices, became a white-collar criminal, I now take the time to review my time in prison and write about that experience so that others may gain benefit from my experience. Some of us learn lessons the hard way. Yet, through sharing the experience of my incarceration, others have stated that they’ve been able to look at their choices in a different and more productive way.

While the prison experience was painful, as the following excerpt from my memoirs shows, it provided a foundation for an incredible opportunity for growth. Likewise, through the prison experience I found numerous ways to help others.

My journal dated - October 6, 1995 reads as follows:

“8:37 a.m. -- Reading this morning brought up feelings of sadness, once again. I understand I'm here to be punished, and being away from my children and the things I hold dear is punishment.

4:00 p.m. -- Its time for mail call and stand up count time. I live for this time. Being cut off from society is difficult. I hope each day that someone cares enough to send me a letter.

9:40 p.m. -- At dinner tonight I had a revelation, I need to talk to high school children and college kids, about the effects of the choices they make. 70% or more of the people here are here for drug-related crimes. It's sad to see the educational level of most of the inmates. How can anyone expect to ever break the cycle of poverty and crime, if they don't have the education to do so? I don't know my role now, but hopefully someday I can make a difference.”

Now, some eleven years later, I find that the personal growth from the prison experience provided a foundation for help to others. The revelation to speak to high school and college students has manifested through the establishment of the Choices Foundation, which provides a forum to educate young people on the effects of the choices they make.

It’s extremely powerful to see and hear how young people react to the message of choice and consequence. All too often they don’t experience the direct consequence of the choices they make. The detriment of youth is you haven’t lived long enough to see the link between choice and outcome. Likewise, many youth, other than perhaps those extremely disadvantaged, have no connection with anyone who has been incarcerated for their actions. Therefore, being exposed, in a direct way, to someone who has made unethical choices and faced the consequences, to some is profound.

All too often we find that “ethics” and “ethical choices” dominate our media through new events of what has been done wrong. In order to change our focus, we must create an awareness of what should be done right. Ethics and ethical thoughts must begin with an understanding that one cannot escape the consequences of their personal choices.

For a free report on the five most common corporate ethics violations, go to www.chuckgallagher.com.
Published: 2007-01-01
Author: Chuck Gallagher
About the author or the publisher
On a crisp October day in 1995, Chuck Gallagher took 23 physical steps… opened a door… and began a new experience that was life-changing. This series of articles explores that experience and the success that followed… while involving the reader in ways that could be life-altering for them. Gallagher captures the heart of the audience in an honest way that deals with human emotion. For information on Chuck’s keynotes and workshops go to www.chuckgallagher.com or for a free ezine on Ethical Choices contact Chuck at chuck@chuckgallagher.com.
www.chuckgallagher.com

Why One Must Avoid Submitting Plagiarized Papers To Clients

Plagiarism is the practice of claiming or implying original authorship of ( or incorporating material from), someone else’s written or creative work, in whole or in part into one’s own, without adequate acknowledgement. Plagiarism by students, professors or researchers is considered academic dishonesty, or academic fraud, and offenders are subject to academic censure.(cited from Wikipedia)

The use of internet has only resulted in e-cheating. Students, consultants, professors and researchers can easily do a cut /paste job, as there are innumerable webs from where they can download material form. Genuine form creators are therefore unaware of the potential the internet has for echeating, and such plagiarism only results in a fall in values, and mediocrity and original works may not merit the due appreciation they deserve. A classic example is the web essayworld.com where students can pick up any paper on any topic , copy , paste and submit the same.

Wherever there is work, there are clients. One of the most important parts of work, is to maintain steady relationships with clients. Beyond the importance of a client contract is the ability to deliver the goods, focus on the objectives and being original is a part of this process. Plagiarized articles or reports given to clients would only tantamount to cheating, sabotage or deception. Plagiarism is a legal issue as well, and this can complicate the client relationship manyfold.

Clients believe in judging consultants or article writers by the quality of service they receive. With many sites offering customized papers, clients may be enticed into accepting a low cost quote on the deliverable. But keep in mind, any client is bound to shun a piece of borrowed text, where someone else’s name appears on somebody else’s text. This may lead to loss of identity and ratification of a falsified deliverable. Plagiarized articles lead to a fall in quality levels, a downfall of ethics and moral values By plagiarizing the consultant or article writer has only endorsed a stolen good as genuine.

The origin of ideas comes from the human brain. While our brain is at work, original creativity stems from our environment, past experiences and novel episodes which may have occurred in our life. Being creative and original is indeed a virtue. Adopting someone else’s stance on things consciously or unconsciously , would only provide insights on what others are doing or thinking, a duplication of some sorts, or a plagiarist attitude.

Certain tips on how to complete an assignment successfully:

(i) Devote full quality time to the assignment/article.
(ii) Give oral presentations as far as possible and then document the presentation.
(iii) Conceptualise on the problem.
(iv) Add value on the article/report content through conceptualization.
(v) Subscribe to a plagiarism search service to detect plagiarism.
(vi) Implement the advice.


Published: 2007-12-13
Author: Amita Shanbag

Made in China Helps Connect Merchants Buying Countdown Timer Products

If you are a merchant looking to purchase countdown timer products, one service that can help you substantially is Made in China. Made in China is a comprehensive business to business E-commerce marketing platform that makes it extremely easy to connect with suppliers and traders in Asia and all over the world instantly. No matter what you are looking to buy, Made in China can offer you the tools and resources to help your business prosper and grow for the long run. Here are some tips on how Made in China can help your business.

Made in China is one of the finest marketing platforms on the web today and boasts a membership base of over 5 million strong. While you might think of Made in China as an online manufacturer & supplier phone book, our service offers a lot more. For instance, whether you are looking to purchase countdown timer products or almost any other type of product, Made in China can help you connect fast and easily with suppliers and manufacturers in China.

In addition, Made in China goes a step further in giving you the tools, resources and information needed to search through a business’s offerings and check out a company so that you can make the right decision on whether the product or company fits your businesses needs.

Besides the ability to research businesses online, we also offer quality and current information to ensure that you have the tools available to trade efficiently. Obviously, overseas trade can be complicated- especially those new to it, however Made in China is committed to making sure that your business has the resources available to trade safely, securely and affordably. Made in China also offers a variety of premium services including trade consultancy for businesses with specific trade issues.

One way we can help merchants looking to purchase countdown timer products is to not only help them connect with suppliers or manufacturers, but give them a set of comprehensive resources to ensure that merchants do not fall into the traditional pitfalls or come face to face with obstacles that make overseas trade less productive and ultimately more expensive.

If you are a business looking to purchase countdown timer products or for that matter any item, you can join Made in China for free. This risk free offer is the perfect way to experience our service and to see if it fits your business’s needs.
Published: 2008-03-12
Author: shulei
About the author or the publisher
The height 1.75 meters male have regular facial features
www.madeinchina.com

Enjoy Your Fast “Electronic” Food

China Enter Into a Fast Food Times

In the past few years, China’s rapidly changing lifestyles and eating habits have resulted in a booming fast food industry. Chinese consumers had few fast food choices before Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) pioneered the way, expanding China market in 1987 and won a great triumph by taking its first-mover advantage. Swiftly recognizing KFC's great success in the market, others like Pizza Hut and McDonald's followed suit. As China increasingly embraces the outside world and its snack food, foreign fast food chains are kicking off a high-speed expansion in the world's biggest market. As a result, the popular American food has become a huge success story. Thus, Madeinchina.com offers a wider range of fast food with tremendous tastes and styles for those white collars and business executives who are quite busy and have less time to have dinner at desk.

Help to Make Your Food Healthier

Just like Americans, working Chinese couples enjoy dining out as a welcome break from the daily routine of home cooking. Chinese children, especially teenagers, also enjoy a weekend night out with their friends by combining their social activities of window shopping and entertainment with a visit to the nearest fast-food restaurant. When choosing, be aware of highly caloric additions such as salad dressings, cheese, sour cream, etc. Sometimes, making your choice healthier is as simple as removing the condiments. The most important thing to remember when eating out is to think of it as part of your overall healthy eating plan. Try to order wisely and if portions or big or the food is rich, consider taking some of it home for a meal the next day. Also, consider sharing entrees, appetizers or desserts with dining partners or friends. Everything in moderation is a wise guideline to follow when considering the menu at your favorite restaurant. Try to click Madeinchina.com and choose what we recommend and enjoy your convenient even healthier online dinner.

High Efficiency to Order Your Food

It is now easier than ever before to order a fast food delivery from your local takeaway because you can do it over the internet. Via (madeinchina.com/catalog/Fast-Food), you can lookup fast food whatever you like in your local area and see their entire menu online. Ordering is just a matter of clicking on what you prefer and entering your address. The order will then be sent to the fast food suppliers for delivery to you. From this website, you can order any type of fast food from burgers to kebabs, Chinese foods, pizza, Thai or Japanese chips. Have a look at what we can offer and choose what you want. Signing up at Madeinchina.com also lets you choose your preferred charity and review a past history of all your orders. You can even see your favorable food and quickly re-order them.

(Article source: http://www.madeinchina.com)

Banking Sector Consolidation and Strategies for Generating Superior Return in Nigeria.

To look into the banking sector consolidation exercise in Nigeria are to see into the future of Nigerian economy. Bank as a financial institution deals primarily in money. It constitute the financial framework of a nations economy, with the major concentration of helping to pool savings and excess liquidity from millions of individuals and firms within the country and to make them available to those who require them for various purposes.Banks in-group has commenced the integration of various processes and are to appoint consultant that will facilitate that will facilitate the integration exercise. New ideas, inventions and adjustment have to be installed in banking sector to satisfy customer’s need since they are not independent but partially dependent to meet the standard required of them. The consolidat! ion exercise in the country is also to tackle the need for customers derived banking.

It is also going to change the shape of banking in the country. They are being tested and equipped to compete with the international banking sector .it will build confidence on the mergers in that the bank’s focus will be on electronic banking and eradication of counter banking. It would also mean training bank staff to be fast and doing and adaptable in any millennium banking strategies ‘Catch them young’ is to be considered the ideology of these mergers and to open a way for Nigerian banks not to be held guilty of dropout in the international banking sector. The banking sector could be seen as survival of the fittest in this consolidation era.. Consolidation of the banking sector in Nigeria is to enable banks to compete globally and embrace innovation in their intermediation functions. Suggesting that the surviving banks would provide a final solution to funding for the productive sector of ! the economy. Banking sector believe that new investments will be attracted to the sector through consolidation and most of it might come through capital market. With the ultimatum at the last count, many banks had concluded plans or arrangement to raise capital base while others are in a race against time to beat deadline and for few who felt that they couldn’t meet up; are up and doing. Several banks are on their toes, to guard against any hideous fallout from the exercise.

Those caught napping are trying to win positions with the mega brand names that have emerged with direct and hopeful approval from the central bank (CBN) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). They are sure to be approved which signifies the end of consolidation. The primary objective of the merger is to consolidate banks equity holdings in its subsidiary and related banks toward evolving into unified banking institution that would maintain a premiership positions in the post bank. Consolidation era.! The proposed mergers are expected to eliminate the duplication of administrative and marketing effort and result in more efficient utilization of assets. The consolidation in banking sector is aimed at recognizing the effort and to attract investors into the banking sector.Financial sector reforms, especially the requirement for Nigerian banks to re-capitalize to the tune brought about consolidation in banking sector. The policy has had as much impact on the Nigerian capital market development within a period of one year, that is the ongoing banking sector consolidation exercise and there is an ample evidence that it could be the best cost effective bank consolidation programme on any country in the history of country wide banks merger and acquisition in the world.

The 25-billion minimum requirement for the banks announced by the central bank of Nigeria (CBN) are to benefit banks that survive it, in a way of holding huge public sector deposit and may ! be permitted to hold some foreign reserve deposits. Having the target of competing globally but also embrace innovation in their intermediation functions. The surviving banks are holding hope that national economy hang on them and would provide a final solution to funding for the productive sectors of the economy. Arrangement is said to be on, that there will be automation process rendition of returns by banks and others through electronics financial surveillance system, E-fass. The belief of central bank is centered or anchored on the fact that such singular and approved policy may have as much impact on the Nigeria capital market development within the intended period and beyond, the ongoing banking sector consolidation exercise that the 89 banks in Nigeria had concluded and is concluding by the deadline giving them, there is proof that it could be the best cost-effective bank consolidation programme of any country of the world. Nigeria has meant much for them with such imme! asurable policy.

Learning bank to provide an efficient means of exchange for investors and customers. Banks are to be alert to any hole that would come up as a result of not having full dependency on themselves, to be up and doing and to mastermind their business.Gladly, Nigerian banking sector is walking to restore the dignity of Nigeria economy to restore to dignity of Nigeria economy, it is going to be tough, it is going to be difficult. Adjustment has to be made, plans are to be made and implemented, factors have to be raised and put in place and more importantly the country has to face with beating of inflation and low flow of cash. It is not for bad because they are to smile with the new exercise and policy. No success is to be recorded in banking sector if the country did not pass through a little time of change like this. Economy is exercising authority over Nigeria at this consolidation exercise period.Bank constitutes !

He framework of a nations economy. They cannot be idle and at the same time meet with what is expected of them. They must seek for ways to maintain the country’s confidence in them. They must look for strategies to generate superior returns; banks must adopt under listed practical suggestions if they are to maintain the unscrappable confidence in them. Mobilization of current account is a step to be taken since current account demands that the customers deposit their money and pay some commission to the bank to enable it covers the cost of operating such an account. The mobilization, which will go a long way to initiate businessmen, industrialist and others who would want to operate with current account largely make constant withdrawal and payment. With the use of teller money can be deposited to this account both internal and external.Moreso, mobilizing customers to open and to operate with saving account will generate mon! ey for the bank. Since the bank operateswith current account largely make constant withdrawal and payment. With the use of teller money can be deposited to this account both internal and external.

More so, mobilizing customers to open and to operate with saving account will generate money for the bank. Since the bank operate with a passbook and can be operated directly by the owner, but someone else could pay in money into the account, though a popular type of account operated by many persons especially those with low income. Commercial banks should increase deposit requirements to enable hefty business operators to take interest in it and adopt it as a banking plan. The operation of banks encourages savings. They provide facilities for savings, people could save money .By performing this role they help mobilize capital which can then be lent to investors. They therefore encourage capital accumulation, which help to speed! up growth development and profit to the bank.

Time or fixed account should also be indigenized and merited, as the best strategy the bank should adopt in raising money. money Deposited into it cannot be withdrawn. Bank previously operating with that type of account usually fix period which sometime maybe one year six months or three months as the case maybe. Before the money can be withdrawn with firsthand notice to the bank, banks can use this money to transact business with well trusted companies, individuals or businessmen which should not exceed the withdrawal months depending on the number of customers operating with the account and the money involved. Consolidated banks should act as agents of payment on behalf of their customers. Some customers have regu! lar payment to be made and to be made to.

The issue of many transfer which many indigenous or foreign expatriate banks have not adopted or yet to be adopted should go a long way to generate superior returns to the bank. The fertilized idea of this, which some banks have made available for sometime, have exposed them to foreign and local business transaction. Some of these foreign hard earned currencies, which are of greater value to our money, increase bank gain and open an opportunity for future business transaction. Also, mobilizing customers to make regular payment such as rent, insurance premium, school fees, Nigerian telecommunication (Nitel) and national electric power authority (Nepa) bills and Private Corporation. Business transaction is to be considered by banks when looking for strategies for generating superior returns. A ‘standing order’ can be left with the bank, which will make the regular payment on his behalf; the account of the customer is debit by the amount p! aid, including commission charged. Also, firms and organization can make payment to its workers through a bank.

Which suggest that the amount of the workers can be credited on a regular basis according to the amount due to them. This will attract the worker to open an account with the current bank. The federal government pay the national youth service corps(NYSC) through united Bank for Africa (UBA) suggesting that all branches of UBA will put a smile on their face hence corpers can withdraw their money through its branches nationwide. Banks can also ensure that forms are obtainable from them, for example, West African Examination Council (WAEC) National Examination Council (NECO) Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) etc. when these form are sold by the banks, they generate more income. Customers also can instruct his bank to pay his creditors. Banks should ensure that to generate superior returns they should adopt collection of cheques, bills of exchange and other ins! trument of credit on behalf of their customers if the system is to continue.

Sadly because of problems that indigenous commercial bank face like, social pressure and commitment of banking personnel that make bank give out loans and advances, which are not in line with normal banking procedure. The policy was staked because some managers adopt a liberal loan policy in order to meet the demand of their friends,’ relatives etc. it has resulted in a high incidence of bad dept when indigenous bank and commercial banks are compared with their foreign counterpart. It also opens opportunity for wealthy people to use their connections to get loans. Which sometimes are not repaid. But the above policy or reason does not rule out the idea of the consolidated banks to act a lending agent to customers. They should avoid using bank for running of charity organization for their friends, relatives or connected individuals rather they can give deposit loan to ! borrowers who have the necessary collateral security such as stock and share certificate, life insurance policy, landed property and fat pay check from other banks.

They should tactfully subject the customer to open up a direct loan. Bank demand interest on the loan taken and it is being paid additionally, the banks to generate superior returns, they should enlarge the idea of giving loan facilities to current account customers in the form of overdraft. In acting as lending agent, the commercial bank can discount bills of exchange and hold them until they mature. To reach the heart of these ones they need to update them with lending information and encourage them to consider it, as they are out to transact business with them. Banks should hang on government by lending money to them when the need for that arises by purchasing government treasury bills. They made effort by acting as an intermediary and borrowers, mobile capital and give it to those who can make effective use of it in p! roductive ventures, thereby speeding up their profit and related economic development out to maximize profit by trading in money.

For bank to increase profitability they have to attract more depositors from people by offering to pay them interest on their deposit. They deposit attracted, the more they could lend out and increase their profit. This might not be done necessarily by only money deposit; it can also be done by helping in safekeeping of their customer’s valuables. Those valuable can be in form of costly jewelry and important documents such as wills, shares certificate and educational certificates. All the banks in Nigeria have facilities for this but have for decades lack the vision. They should resurrect this idea and seek for ways to perform this function effectively. Adopting this system will create a practicable desire on the customers to pay any amount ! charged to them by the bank since the security of some of these customers are endangered. Customers assume industriousness,, devotedness and commitment of bank based on their act as referee as to the integrity and financial standing of their customer. They should try to recommend their customers to foreign firms who require indigenous business partners for carrying out their business, it also include giving financial and technical advice to their customers in matter relating to investment.

Advising their business customers operation on how best to carry out their business operation, how to raise capital for business, whether to start a new business or to expand the existing one etc. it is important in international trade and helps accelerate economic development. These actions will melt the heart of customers and they assume that the particulars bank has their interest at heart. Compensating the bank with grand customers, awareness, opening an account with them and strong recommend! ation of the bank to others will not be over emphasized to them.To avoid running the risk of being a drop out in the banking sector, and the problem of capital shortage, they should intensify help in foreign exchange transaction thereby facilitating foreign trade and travel, they do this by selling foreign currencies to importers. Ensuring that anyone who wishes to travel abroad could purchase travelers cheques from them. These enable customers and people to settle their international indebtedness bearing in mind that they face very stiff competition from foreign banks, they should try and grease their face so as to patronize indigenous businessmen who are going to prefer foreign banks with better banking facilities.

Since in Nigeria, public confidence in indigenous banks is not very high and some of them cannot attract as many deposit as foreign-owned banks, so to attract more on ! ‘high trade’ customers and to control the lion’s share of the banking business they should try to take risk required, but positive. These include helping directly in the productive sector of the economy. They can own shares in commercial, agricultural and industrial ventures or could set up business on their own. By being concerned in business and by participating in business concerns, enough capital is provided for raising the level of production in the economy by more especially on their profit. Directly too, banks can act as agents that purchase stock and shares for their customers. Selling of shares and stock to their customers on behalf on issuing houses. They therefore ease transferability of securities and help in pooling resources for investment. With joint effort of the issuing house and the issuer (bank) they ensure that staked customers are attracted in buying the shares in bulk. The money generated from selling of this stock and shares should be used in transacting bu! siness and then pay. The customers with the part of the profit generate.

As a strategy to generate superior returns consolidated bank must ensure that they made themselves important agent for carrying out government monetary policy like the use of open market operation. It constitutes buying and selling of government securities, like treasury bills and bond from and to the business organizations. Though it will lead to the fall of the amount of money left in the banks still they should act as a watchdog to know when the central banks wants more money to be in circulation. They should act fast by selling securities to the central bank and receive their payment. If the security is not stipulated or mandated or said to be shared equally, they should ensure that they buy it in bulk to enable them record higher in profit and to use the surplus money bought in business transaction, it ! increase their power as the lender and money in circulation will increase. They must also be increased bank rate during inflation. They should not be reminded to increase their own interest to record equilibrium.

Though their lending ability will come to low ebb, leading to a reduction in the amount of money in circulation and risk of inflation, still if central bank should reduce their rate it will benefit both commercial banks and the customers. Borrowing will be encouraged and money increased. But the above suggestion is given to enable the bank to adapt to any new development and employing strategies to generate superior returns. Central banks gives directions and moral suasion to commercial banks on the size and type of loan to be given to any sector and also they gives directive on weather to continue in giving loan if the sector is not responding. So, if these policies are made available to the banks, they should adhere to it to avoid running the risk of loosing the business. Suggestions like restricting lending habits or adopting a more liberal loan policy needs to be paid attention to, bearing in mind that other banks are accountable and answerable to the central bank.It haunts the motivation of every concerned individual that there is banking inefficiency resulting from a lack of skilled personnel and management. Lack of skilled personal is due partly to the general shortage of skilled manpower in West Africa and inadequate fund to pay the salaries of highly qualified personals and management.

If the personnel are not efficient, banking business in seriously handicapped. The suggested major censes is that some indigenous banks tend to have affiliation only with ethnic origin. Directly, this mental attitude affects banking operation. Some banks may choose to employ people from a geographical area, or lend money or even frown at seeing another! staff from a different region presiding over the bank and will result it to enmity. Some of these banks do not consider educational background, the person’s accessibility in the banking sector, the managerial ability of the person and even the general rule guiding the banking sector. These hampered the smooth operation of the bank, reduce the speed of bank extension and result in to low income.
Politically too, some indigenous bank tend to have political affiliation. This too affects banking operations. Political pressures sometimes make them depart from the normal banking procedures for guarantying loans.

Loans are given to these politicians; sometimes they do not meet with the requirements. Political parties most often finances their campaign with loans from these banks and when they fail they will put a hard knock on paying back to these banks. And some politicians who do not lean completely on the security of these banks, they tend to tr! ansfer the money abroad. Those banks that they feel have better facilities for modern banking business. So, for consolidated banks to meet up with these belly filled customers they must work hard to retain these customers and they can be retained by giving employment based on merit and not being tribalistic. More to that they should be careful not to give out loan to political parties who do not meet up with the requirement for giving loan. Being fast to dictating bank officials who are bent to enrich themselves by corruptly embezzling money in defrauding their customer.

Another step the consolidated banks in Nigeria should take is the creation of money by commercial banks involving the multiple expansions of bank credits. Following the assumption in the process of credit creation like acting as a unit lf a bank should be independent work! ing on its own cannot create money, unless it is monopoly and which sometimes are practically impossible with the nature of economic development in Nigerian banking sector. If the bank stands to maintain independent, it will loose money to other banks. More to that, the law requires commercial banks to keep only a fractional part of the amount of money deposited with them as reserves. If they were required to keep 100% of the amount deposited with them as reserves there would be nothing to lend out and it would be impossible to make money with this idea The total amount of money created enticingly depend on the legal reserves requirements. The lower the reserve requirement, the greater the amount that can be created. With these processes there must be no leakages in the process of credit creation. All money borrowed from one bank is deposited in another bank.

So, money rotates and when it rotates in all the banks they gain, in order words generate superior returns. The issue still! revolves on the willingness of people to take loans and advances. Because if there are many people who are willing to borrow and have met the necessary requirement, the ability of banks to create money will be high. But if there are few people who want to take loans, credit creation will be low. But for the high taking of loan and low taking of loan, all depends on the bank. If they have the idea of generating superior returns they will look to it that these ones are sorted out and implant in them on why they need loan to fast forward their business.Banks should seek to be competitive with foreign and indigenous banks. Building and maintaining a competitive spirit in banking sector will speed up the profit growth of the bank. Seeking to establish business with the help of marketing department who should be dedicated and promising staff who have the interest of the bank at heart not! those that will bent on seeking for a selfish gain. Going into the job market and seeking the heart of these resourceful customers will enhance the generating of superior returns. With the modern system of banking that includes electronics banking system, banks should seek to open websites.

Websites contribute to 70 percent advertisement of bank. People can read their profiles, profits, loss, budgets and returns to know their stability. It also helps in the fastness of the business. Issuing of value cards, credit card and other cards also enhance the proficiency of a bank. Money can be faxed or downloaded once a payment is made from other banks with the help of this system.They should seek to be approved agent of money gram, which is believed to be the fastest, and safest way to send money worldwide. Today, banking customers has changed and they want bank to change too. They exp! ect to do business on their own terms, when where and how they please. They also expect to have simultaneous, single view access to all their account during just one telephone call or website visit, requiring that they should ask for access card to be provided to them. Banks should ensure that these cards are made available to customers at their expense, thereby selling the price for the card.

In Nigeria, E-point financial services - a sector specific customer relationship management (CRM) system. Consolidated banks can now move into integrated and secure online, wireless and electronics customer’s services swiftly and simply. More to that, banks can proactively identify sales opportunities when talking to customers through immediate access to prefigures complimentary product line. For consolidated banks to generate superior return still, they must work in the hole of possible loss of customers by being effective on strategies to be enhanced by the systems ability profile and work to! target competitor business.Customers appreciate banks consideration in the area of delivery. The banks ability to make particular delivery channels a part of product or service offerings, which can be priced accordingly. The fact that customers seek to get a seamless, cost effective service no matter, which way they choose to get business - whether via contact centers, private arrangement, intermediaries or even mobile text messaging. At the same time intensify significant cost savings through the product ability to segment and respond appropriately to different levels of customers value. Other important product ease and speed of implementation.

Like the use and application of CRM and OFX processes to support common banking services or process like payment of bills, transfers, balance enquiries and statement request. The above systems are designed to open up the banking enterpris! e by supporting banking industry standard message code. These products are constructed with the ability to deliver vastly enhanced cross and up selling powers, to control and minimize attribution, and give new muscle to customers claw back activities, these will make a huge difference to banking efficiency and profitability.Just as importantly customers will welcome personnel, single view banking experience the banks will give them through this new invented services. It allows customers to have a near door tailored services to their individual needs and ability to do that in real and due time. Customers should not be viewed on regard as name and number on an account. Rather as value and cared customers whom banks should embrace as and built profitable lifetime customers. Similarly, the interbank rate paid in the interbank market when banks borr! ow from and lend to one another in order to adjust their liquidity position.

Calling to the attention of co-consolidators, instead of looking for external help would go a long way to restore the hope of not loosing but making profit from the money borrowed or lend.In the least conferences, seminars and training are regularly organized by Nigerian economic sector. Bank should seek to send delegates to those gathering both national and international. Not to be forgotten is regular publishing of their profiles in national’s diaries. These increased customer’s trust and actions on them.

Finally, it has meant must good for Nigerians in banking sector consolidation. At least, Nigerians are to enjoy improvement in banking sector as other sectors in Nigeria are doing. Wit the consolidations bank are prepared to fend for themselves and to be more dedicated and efficient. Learned out processes will be carried out now as a way to get things! done. Banks use to work on these strategies to generate superior returns. It is no exaggeration if we say that Nigeria is ascending on high economic calling, with this policy.
Published: 2008-08-23
Author: emmanuel ugokwe

A Starting Kit for Business Ethics

When Shoshana Zuboff wondered last month how the insurance industry carries on when so many customers have lost faith in it, I had no idea my worst fears would be confirmed so soon. The short answer is that some of them cheat. That's how companies can remain profitable while being despised and mistrusted by so many customers. This was captured piquantly by Vinay Saqi, a Morgan Stanley insurance analyst, who noted insurance companies have had "a difficult time making money when the game is rigged in their favor. We're concerned they won't fare well in a truly competitive environment."


Among the wealth of wrongdoing in this still unfolding story, one fact looms over the rest: Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of grown-ups knew about an array of fraudulent practices and failed to shout, "Wrong!" Instead, many regulators, independent watchdogs, brokers, executives in both the retail and commercial sectors, benefits consultants, and investment advisers joined together in a parallel moral universe. Collusion and conformity -- "it's not wrong because everyone is doing it" -- is accepted. Obedience -- "it's not wrong because they told me to do it" -- is okay. Opportunism -- "it's only wrong if I get caught" -- is encouraged. And, of course, narcissism -- "it's not wrong if it's good for us" -- is celebrated


This isn't something that will just blow over, even if the insurance industry somehow cleans up its act. As a result of the widespread acceptance of wrong as normal, suspicion now blooms in every encounter. Our children are already on guard. They know that marketing is intended to manipulate their desires, to sell them stuff that pleases while it poisons. Parents try to create a buffer for their kids, but parents can't stand alone; it really does take a village. And our village is being continually degraded by fresh onslaughts of wrong masquerading as normal. Worse, the same parents who are under siege pick up a briefcase, go to work, and participate in it as if they weren't its victims. Who takes the biggest hit when the ship goes down? Ask the 3,000 people tossed overboard by Marsh & McLennan Cos. after the ship's officers got caught drilling holes in the hull, or anyone whose pension was overinvested in Marsh Mac stock


So what's a village to do? For one thing, we've got to stop relying solely on the rare Eliot Spitzers of the world to carry the entire burden of our social conscience and try to effect change. We all have to share that burden.


The traditional inventory of resources isn't encouraging. As consumers, we're supposed to have spending power. We can withhold our cash from competitors that violate our values and interests. But this isn't effective in an economy where most of the companies in an industry are equally bad (as appears to be the case in the insurance industry).


As employees, we can withhold our talents, labor, and commitment. But without the backup of collective action, we risk being individual martyrs, facing as narrow a range of employment choices as there is for consumption.

Clearly, we need to invent new mechanisms and cultivate new resources for developing and asserting our individual moral authority. Here's a starter kit.


Initiate an online bulletin board to evaluate your own organization and its values in action. Use it to question standard practices, encourage discussion and debate of moral dilemmas, or even expose wrongdoing. Bulletin boards have been used within the eBay community to effectively influence its management. Build on those practices and take them to a new level.

Published: 2006-06-05
Author: trupti modi
About the author or the publisher
i am since 18 year in publication field and writing article on various subject like women,health,politics and many more.
Intresing articles are the art of mine.

Satyam Computers Floated on Lies for Seven Years

He was cooking his company’s books with a generous dash of lies to make the figures attractive. The portion of lies was getting larger and larger every year. It went on for seven years garnering several awards for the cook and the company along the way.

The lies, however, became too “fat” to contain at the end of the third quarter of the seventh year. The monster of the untruth had grown into $ 1 billion fraud, the first mega-scam of India’s IT space, with a global impact.

Left with no choice, cook B Ramalinga Raju, who happened to be the CEO and co-founder chairman of the company, Satyam Computers Services Ltd, decided to tell the truth or rather the untruth. On January 7, 2009, the e-mail he sent to his colleagues, saying that the company books contained non-existent assets and under-rated liabilities, was made public shocking people and markets across the world.

Besides the mayhem in Indian markets, a sudden uncertainty loomed large over 53,000 employees of the company. Within a couple of days job portals reported more than 25,000 applications from Satyam employees.

The fourth largest IT Company

Satyam Computers Services Ltd is the fourth largest IT services provider of India. Armed with an MBA from Ohio University, Raju co-founded the company 21 years ago. With the help of an abundant state patronage, Raju’s empire expanded into eight companies, including real estate and infra structure companies in his sons’ names.

Headquartered at the India’s southern city of Hyderabad, Satyam operates from more than 65 countries including the USA, the UK, the Middle East, Japan, Singapore and Australia. The company has business with more than 700 global clients including Fortune 500 companies such as Nestle, General Electric and Ford Motors.

Awards galore

The lies apart, Ramalinga Raju picked up several awards along his “spectacular” journey that include: the 2008 Golden Peacock Global Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance by World Council for Corporate Governance, of the UK and the Asia Business Leader Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2007 by Ernst & Young.

Ironically, Satyam's internal audit team, which apparently did not do a good job all these years, was awarded the Recognition of Commitment award by the Institute of Internal Auditors, USA in 2006.

Jail for the richest

Incidentally, “Satyam” means “truth” in Sanskrit. But Ramalinga Raju believed that he did not need to live by his company’s name.

However, Raju’s scant regard for “truth” has been emphatically rejected by his destiny. One of the ten richest Indians, a few days ago with his $1.3 billion fortune, he had to share a prison cell with 40 other inmates when he landed in jail eventually, two days after he sent the fateful e-mail.
Published: 2009-01-12
Author: Susheela Hegde
About the author or the publisher
Have been writing and editing for over six years. Have worked with a newspaper as sub-editor in India and as an online news writer for a US online news agency. Being a practitioner of new age spirituality, I am interested in writing on that subject, including mind and personal development. I can, however, write on any subject by referencing web sources.

Employee Motivation Techniques and Nonchalance Attitude Reinforcement in Public Administration

Employee motivation has become a critical issue for most public administration managers whose foremost function is to achieve high level employee performance and productivity. It’s pertinent that public administration entities employ the most effective motivational techniques while considering that different motivational techniques work for different employees. Thus this paper will attempt to analyze the sufficiency of financial based rewards such as bonuses, commissions as well as job promotions to motivate public administration employees. Besides, the paper will evaluate how ethics influence the application of financial rewards in public administration entities as opposed to private companies, how the role of organized labor influence employees compensation and benefits in the public sector and an overview of how existing reward systems in Administration and in this paper U.S Government public administration effectively reinforces an attitude of nonchalance.

Just like other employees, public administration employees are motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. Therefore, for any reward system to be effective it must incorporate both sources of motivation especially given that all reward systems are designed to attract, retain and motivate workers.
Financial-based rewards such as bonuses, commissions as well as Job promotions form a significant component of the reward system, although there are other factors that motivate employees and influence their overall level of performance. In fact according to numerous studies conducted among public employees, the results indicated that among those surveyed, financial rewards was not the most motivating factor (Perry et al, 2006). The study also established that among public administration managers, financial results have a de-motivating effect among employees (Srivastava, 2001). Public administration entities are emphasizing on quality improvement teams and commitment building programs as opposed to financial incentives. A research conducted by the University of Texas in 2005 established that financial incentives (bonuses and commissions) make up less than 5% of the U.S public administration employees’ compensation (Stajkovic, 2003). The U.S private sector on the contrary is encouraging financial incentives through implementation of pay-for-performance plans that encourage alternative reward systems. Therefore unlike public sector organizations, private sector organizations are increasingly adopting alternative reward systems in order to boost their competitiveness both locally and internationally. As a result, private companies are emphasizing on the need for cost cutting, corporate restructuring while at the same time boosting employee performance. Public organizations aren’t as profit driven as private enterprises, and therefore prefer using bonuses as their key financial-based reward technique as opposed to commissions. On the contrary, private entities emphasize on pay-for-performance reward system. Nonetheless, regardless of the reward system selected by either public or private organizations the selected system must incorporate both financial-based and other alternative reward systems for it to be effective.

Employees in both public and private entities can be motivated through job promotions and lateral moves. Job promotions represent long term rewards that duly recognize employees’ professional growth, expertise, and capacity to take up new roles. Job promotions are usually tied to salary increases, whereby the increase must be within a 5% range of the worker’s current salary while those earning less than $25,000 base salary can receive an increment of up to $1,250 (Clemmer, 2004). Furthermore, the new salary increment must fall within the approved salary range for the position. Moreover, employees must complete a 90-day probationary period following the promotion.

Supervisors perform pertinent functions of developing and motivating their employees. The greatest challenge faced by public administration managers is the lack of flexibility in the public administration to reward employee performance using financial-based rewards. This is particularly because public institutions often operate on tight budgetary allocations and lack proper financial-based reward structures. Thus bonuses and commissions are used by private entities to reward employees with exemplary performance. In addition, job promotions are used to reward employees who due to their professional excellence, contribute immensely to the organizational development. On the contrary, public officers find it difficult to use job promotions to reward workers due to bureaucracy and cronyism that is inherent in public organizations. Additionally, managers and supervisors in public administration positions find it difficult to financially reward best performers due to public ethics Act and other existing legislations whose provisions restrict financial rewards. It has therefore become common practice for public administration supervisors to use other alternative reward systems rather than financial-based reward systems.

In conclusion, the use of employee motivation techniques and specifically financial-based rewards such as bonuses, commissions and job promotions in public administration entities works differently for professional workers and low level contingent workers. These differences arise primarily due to their diversity in terms of needs, perceptions of desirable rewards and abilities. In fact, different motivational theories have attempted to explain how these differences affect employees’ motivation from different perspectives. Therefore public administration managers ought to employ different approaches to motivate these two groups. Therefore, as a result of these differences, public administration employees can be motivated using different techniques other than financial-based rewards such as on-job challenges, provision of work autonomy as well as providing performance feedbacks to motivate professional workers. To effectively motivate low level workers, dependent workers, techniques such as pay increase, permanent employment status after certain time on the job and opportunities for professional development.

References

1. Accel-Team.com (2004), Employee motivation, the organizational environment and productivity.
2. DeMatteo, J. S., Eby, L. T., & Sundstrom, E. (1998). Team-based rewards: current empirical evidence and directions for future research. Research in Organizational Behavior, 20, 141-183.
3. Diener, E., & Biswas-Diener, R. (2002). Will money increase subjective well-being? a literature review and guide to needed research. Social Indicators Research, 57, 119-169.
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6. Jenkins, Jr, G. D., Mitra, A., Gupta, N., & Shaw, J. D. (1998). Are financial incentives related to performance? A meta-analytic review of empirical research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 777-787.
7. Kasser, T. (2002). The high price of materialism. Massachusetts: MIT Press
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12. Perry, J. L., Mesch, D., & Paarlberg, L. (2006). Motivating employees in a new governance era: the performance paradigm revisited. Public Administration Review, 66, 505-514. (Accessed on September 6th, 2008 at spanet.org/scriptcontent/custom/staticcontent/t2pdownloads/PerryArticle.pdf
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20. Bolchover, D. (2005) The Living Dead: Switched Off, Zoned Out - The Shocking Truth About Office Life. Oxford, Capstone Publishing Limited.
21. 'Merrily on High' - 28th December 2006 article from People Management magazine from the Chartered Institution of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
Published: 2009-10-02
Author: Sapard Vincent-de Paul Mozes Tshimankinda N. KALALA
About the author or the publisher
-International Counsel & LAW SOCIETY OF UPPER CANADA and Ghana (Barrister - Solicitor)
-BA, BS, MA, LLB, LLD, MBA & PhD
President-Founder of NPPPC in D R Congo
www.npppc.org

Sales Ethics

He was brilliant. Polished. An asset for the company he represented. In less than an hour, he worked up the crowd to fever pitch. Hundreds of people lined up to sign up for the next step—which involved a no-cost, eight-hour financial investment training day.

He was also an author. He told his story of how he met a man who invited him to several investment meetings. And those meetings changed his life forever.

He became wealthy from practicing those investment strategies. He turned from amateur to pro. He had finally arrived. And now he wanted to teach those same strategies to investors.

He made the audience laugh, repeat "yes" for the umpteenth time, and put everyone at ease with his low-pressure persuasion techniques. He was even crawling on the floor to illustrate a point. There's no doubt he graduated Sales Mastery with honors.

But the crowning moment was when he invited four investment newbies to take the stage. He showed them how easy it was to make money whether the market was going up or down. He had them bobbing their heads the entire time. This provided the social proof people needed to participate in the next step.

But many knew better...

I spoke with Ashley, a graphic designer who signed up because Carmen, her realtor mom, wanted to check out the training. Ashley was suspicious of the sales pitch and she wanted to protect her mom from these cleverly disguised sales wolves. I hope Ashley doesn't lower her guard either.

Because once they get you into their training room, they will hit you with a variety of persuasion techniques to scramble your radar. They will make you feel like you have an IQ of a slug for not investing in their program. Don't forget to take prescription strength "stubborn" pills with you on that day.

And my colleague, Dana, didn't approve of the fact that she was being sold. She was skeptical from the start of the presentation. She never cracked a smile during the entire talk. She may have been half-fuming. (Or half-envious.)

But let's be real...

Salespeople have to make a living. Selling is their job. The economy becomes stagnant when nothing gets sold. I hope you agree that selling is a good thing.

Yet people don't like to be sold. They like to buy, but not be sold. Buying puts us in control. We own that power. We lose that power position when we're being sold.

So the speaker did a great job. He racked up hundreds of people into the next phase. He'll receive a nice bonus for his persuasive presentation.

Yet the question remains: If you could—should you?

If you could bottle fountain water to sell to unsuspecting supermarkets: should you?

If you could pay off the FDA to market your medicine: should you?

If you could pressure people with their last dollar to invest into your program: should you?

If you could sell company secrets to competitors: should you?

If your boss commanded you to lie to consumers: should you?

If you answered "yes" and can sleep well at night, then you are lower than the slime on the bottom of my shoe. You may dress in business attire on the outside, but the inner person is polluted with soot. Despite the media coverage that white collar criminals get incarcerated to Club Fed: You should hold yourself to a higher standard.

Besides it's hard to become stealth with unethical conduct. Your inner circle of friends and closest allies notice what you do. Especially in a hi-tech society where everything is traceable.

But if you decide to burn people anyway—the Universe always has a way of settling these accounts. Eastern philosophers call it karma. Western ministers label it "reaping what you sow." And enlightened people name it the Law of Cause and Effect.

So why would anyone corrupt themselves for a buck?

Avoid the scandals, fines and embarrassment. Do the right thing always. And leave a legacy of integrity, accountability and upstanding character for generations to admire and model.

Own Up and It won't Explode

It seems that, almost every day, some politician, talk-show host, high-visibility CEO, athlete, or celebrity says something or is caught doing something that is embarrassing, damages their reputation, or can even end a career. I could easily name the names here of people who have found themselves in these difficult circumstances in the past few months but I'd quickly run out of my allotted space for this column and it wouldn't serve any positive purpose. In most cases the problem gets worse, usually much worse, when the person attempts to deny the allegations. When that happens, and the cover-up is discovered, it really hits the proverbial fan. Self-preservation is human nature and, for many people, a natural “damage control” defense is to deny, offer a smoke-screen, point a finger elsewhere, or otherwise try to squirm out of a difficult situation, but inevitably that evading activity seems to explode the issue into much larger and more dangerous proportions.

Things rarely explode when the person takes a more courageous stance. Instead of a cover-up they offer the acceptance of responsibility, issue a sincere apology, and work to make amends. While this does not defuse all situations, it usually lessens negative outcomes if the damaged party is satisfied enough not to pursue it to the ends of the earth.

There is a lesson here for the local, small business having to deal with a disgruntled customer or employee who, typically, feels the need to vent anger. Realizing that the deed was done and that good “damage control” can minimize negative impact, defuse an irate person and get things back to normal without the situation exploding into a media event.

I recently ordered a customized product but when it came I found it was the wrong color. I called, prepared for an unpleasant experience yet I was shocked when the person pleasantly said, “Thanks for bringing this to my attention.” I almost dropped the phone!

They immediately remade the item, delivering it in two days. They didn't deny, cover up, point fingers, or squirm. They handled the situation in the best possible manner and it didn't explode. I'll be back.

Hand Out Warm Glows

Do you remember how you felt after your last interaction with another person either on the phone or face to face? That person - it could have been a customer, a colleague, a salesperson, a friend or even a member of your family. Did they make you feel good, uplifted and more positive, did they leave you feeling neutral or did they make you feel down and more negative.

Unfortunately, most of us have grown up in a negative culture where it's much easier to tell people what they did wrong rather than praising them when they succeed. Research in the United States found that 65% of employees received no recognition for good work in the past year. Similar research in other countries of the world shows comparable results.

Other research has shown that the number one reason people leave their job and customers take their business elsewhere is that they don't feel appreciated. (And if you think about it - many people leave their partners for the very same reason)

If customer's leave an interaction with you or one of your team feeling better than they did before, then they're much more likely to come back, recommend you to other people and spend more with you.

If one of your team feels better after an interaction with you then they're much more likely to pass that feeling onto a customer. "The way you treat your staff is the way they'll treat your customers" - Karl Albrecht

Give five positive comments to one negative comment to the other people in your life and you'll have - more happy customers - a workplace that's more productive and more fun - more friends - better relationships and a healthier, happier and longer life.

Remember - "Hand out warm glows, not dampeners."

Firing Someone - Does it have to be painful, for them and you?

The need to write this article came about through the recent experience of two of my friends. Both had been fired. One for supposed poor performance (although she had never been counselled and at the time was in fact on sick leave) and one because the start up facility she was employed by, suddenly closed down. Both were senior managers. Both were loyal, hardworking employees but are now very angry and taking legal action against their former employers. Why are they so angry? One could say it's because they have lost their jobs and this would be quite understandable. However, the main action that has triggered their anger and catapulted them down the legal pathway (in both cases), was that they were informed of their dismissals by emails. Yes, that's right by email! They were never given the courtesy of a face to face discussion.

Many managers, when faced with the challenge of firing someone, forget, or are unaware of the emotions that are experienced by the person being fired. Nor are they aware of the behaviour that most often results from these emotions. It has been well documented that the death of a loved one, a marriage or long term relationship breakup and the loss of one's job, have an equal and similar impact on one's emotions. Think for a moment about the loss of one of your dear relatives or friends through death - how did you feel? That's exactly the same feeling that people have when they suddenly and unexpectedly lose their jobs.

The psychologists tell us that there are 5 stages that people go through in this “grief cycle” - Shock, Resistance (often manifested as anger), Acceptance (of the current situation), Exploration (of new opportunities), Commitment (to a new future). Can any of these emotions be managed via email?

I can well recall the first time as a manager I had to fire someone. It was for poor performance and I was scared. I did not sleep the night before wondering what I would say and what would be her reaction. I carried out the interview in the morning with great fear and trepidation. I was not sure how the interview went, but was relieved when it was over and then took a break for lunch, but was unable to eat. I did not know about the “5 stages” at the time, I only knew that I had to do the right thing by the organisation and by the employee. I arrived back from my break to find a box of chocolates on my desk with a very nice note from the employee saying how much she appreciated my courtesy and kindness. I guess, intuitively I must have got something right.

Now, from years of experience, I know two things about firing someone:

1. Firstly, the person at all times must maintain his or her self esteem. This is one of the most basic and important needs that all people have (emailing someone, or even worse as I heard since starting this article, texting, sends a clear message that they are not worthy of a face to face discussion)

2. Secondly, it is vitally important to realise that all people will go through the five stages of the grief cycle (quite often at different paces) and as a manager, it is our role and responsibility to help them progress through these stages, particularly the first two that are likely to occur when they are still with us.

How do you do this? Well, in my usual style when writing an article such as this, I did my web research. Sad to say there was not much there. Under “firing someone” there seemed to be a plethora of articles about the legal requirements and many about the steps to take. For example, one article suggested the following steps: Give warning, Document, Document, Document! Time it right, Prepare the paperwork, Don't go it alone (ensure you have someone from HR there), Ensure privacy, Be brief, Watch your tone, Seek feedback, Give a good send-off. Few of these steps would address the 5 stages of grief. Many could probably be done by email with the same impact and result! If these steps were followed, I wonder what “feedback” the manager would receive - would there in fact be a “Good send-off”?

I'm not suggesting that we don't have to address some of these. For example, you must cover all of the documentary and legal responsibilities pertinent to your country and organisation's requirements. But keep in mind that the fired employee is first and foremost a person just like you with feelings and emotions that must be managed.

Here are some suggestions (assuming of course that you have fulfilled all the other requirements) for the next time that you have to fire someone:

• Before taking any action, ask yourself: “How would I feel if my boss came to me today and said - you're fired!” Write down a list of words that describe your feelings.

• If you were in the situation of being fired, how would you like your boss to handle it? What would you like him/her to do and to say? Jot down some of your thoughts.

• Now write down a list of the words that best describe your feelings about having to fire someone. Review all the words you have scribbled down so far and pick out the two or three strongest. Also keep in mind how you would like to be handled in similar circumstances.

• Script the start of the conversation using the two or three words you have discovered. e.g. “This is really difficult for me. I feel apprehensive and worried that I won't get it right.”

• The next part of your opening script will depend on the circumstances. For example in a “lay off” situation, it might go something like; “I have been advised that I have to terminate the employment of a number of people. I am really sad to say that your name is on that list”. Or, for a non performance issue, it could be something like; “We have discussed my expectations about your performance and unfortunately they are still not being met. It now really saddens me (or whatever your feelings are) that I will have to terminate your employment”.

• Be careful. You can only script the opening few lines, but they are important because they set the scene for the entire interview.

• It is most likely that during the remainder of the interview, the employee will travel backward and forwards between “shock” and “resistance”. Give your reasons for the termination clearly and succinctly, but do not get into a discussion about justifying yours (or your employer's) reasons. Doing so will keep the employee fixed in either of the first two stages and will not help them to progress. Only sincere listening and clear questioning (not reasoning) will help the employee progress to the acceptance stage.

One factor that is often overlooked when firing someone, is that the way it is done can have as much impact (positive or negative) on the people who remain. They will be watching (and will invariably get a first hand report from their colleague) about how well or otherwise the process was managed. The people who remain in the organisation, and whom I assume you want to keep, get a good look at both the manager's and the organisation's real people management skills when under the stress of firing someone. They'll most certainly ask “Could this happen to me?”

Copyright © 2006 The National Learning Institute

The Vibration Of Success

Most people, when they think of success, generally envision setting a goal and doing certain activities to achieve that goal. In other words, a series of external actions that will lead them to success. However, success does not always result directly from performing certain actions, and when it doesn't, we may be puzzled as to why we didn't achieve the goal. Did we do something wrong? Should we have taken different actions? Was the goal too far fetched?

The truth is that success is first an inside job before it can be a result on the outside. For optimum success, therefore, we need to take on the Vibration of Success. What does that mean? Vibration is energy, and the energy you hold in your thoughts and feelings on the inside attracts to you like results on the outside. If you hold an inner vibration of lack and loss, you'll attract lack and loss in your physical world. Therefore, if you raise up your vibrational energy to one of abundance and success, you'll attract that in your life—in all areas. That is, if you think positively, and hold positive thoughts and expectations about the outcome of your goal, you are not only more likely to achieve that goal, but to attract it to you.

When you notice your mind veering off course, or focusing on the negative, gently tell yourself to come back to the positive focus. If you find obstacles or distractions in your path, focus on finding solutions—get support, call a coach, just take action! Some tools you can use to stay positive and in the vibration of success include affirmations, visualization, meditation, reading books, listening to CDs, attending seminars and working with a coach.

Science has shown everything is energy, including the material world. When you focus your thoughts on what you want to achieve or create, that energy attracts those results to you. Your inner thoughts, self-talk, feelings, and overall attitude create an energy that acts as a magnet to bring into your life material results that match the energy of your inner world. So it is crucial that you become aware of your internal energy field. What are you saying to yourself? Is your mind organized or unfocused? Are you clear about your goals or are you doubtful? Do you know why you want what you want or have you taken on other people's desires as your own?

This is a universal law that works for everyone: that which you focus on you attract to you. The easiest way to attract what you want—success—is to focus on the positive outcome and not on obstacles, distractions or failure. You've heard the expression: Be careful what you wish for—you may just get it! Well that shouldn't be a warning, but a promise. For if you hold high vibrations of what you truly want, and stay clear, positive, and focused in your thoughts, self-talk, and feelings—you just may get what you want. The Vibration of Success will attract to you all the success you want.

How Values Make or Break Your Business

Do you know the number one reason people leave their jobs? It's not because of money or the company dress policy. It's not because they did not get the corner office or because they were passed over for that much-deserved promotion.

Most people who jump ship do so because they just cannot stay one moment longer at their place of work and honor their own deeply held business or career values at the same time.

People might be able to happily get by with less money, but they cannot work for long in a situation that violates a deeply held core value.

What are Values?

The word values is tossed around a lot, but what are values?

Values go beyond beliefs. They are the core philosophies we hold sacred. People often report feeling as though they were born with these values.

Every individual has a core set of personal values he or she brings to work; every business has a core set of business values. The optimum business situation is when these sets of personal and business values overlap, blend and morph into what I call shared values.

Whether you are consciously aware of them or not,your personal values constitute your ideals, and shape your being - indeed they are your being. And whether you are in alignment with them or not-whether you own or work in a business that reflects them or not they affect your every thought, word and action.

I am the best example of how values- or rather a conflict in personal and business value-helped to shape my behavior and decision-making. I sold my thriving business, not because it was a failure- financially speaking, it was wildly successful- but because I was not able to keep that business and honor my own value of personal freedom. The nature of the business demanded too much time and dedication. Once I realized this, no amount of money could make me stay.

Sometimes values are in conflict, but the stronger value always wins out.

I have a friend who was teaching in a toxic (for her) school situation. When she was hired for the job she was thrilled to get any public school teaching job, no matter the school or philosophy. She did not think about whether or not this school was a good "fit" for her value-wise.

She learned the hard way about the importance of shared values.

Without really realizing it at the time, my friend held two values: a strong work ethic that included always delivering her very best, and professional freedom to be innovative in her delivery of her best.

From the get-go my friend was scrutinized frequently and expected to adhere to rigid planning and assessment tools. While other teachers would welcome such structure, my friend found it stifling.

To avoid the pain of poor performance assessments, and to adhere to her value of performance excellence, she tried to conform to the school's expectations and squeeze in some innovative teaching where she could.

Still, she grew increasingly unhappy because in conforming, she was forced to sacrifice her freedom to "plan creative activities in the classroom without getting caught" thus making her feel sneaky violating yet another one of her dearly held values, namely honesty.

The result of all this value-clashing? Her performance and self-esteem plummeted. By year's end, much as she loved teaching, she had no choice but to pack up her books and bulletin boards and hand in her resignation. But, there was an upside to all of this.

When she scheduled new job interviews, my friend was quick to ask about school procedures and policies. No longer willing to sacrifice her value of freedom for any teaching position, she came from a position of strength.

Eventually, my friend landed a new teaching job with lots of freedom built in. She felt a renewed sense of passion for her profession, and learned a valuable lesson on the value of seeking shared values in the workplace.

So, how does this information about values in the workplace impact you?

Well, let's pretend you're scouting for a new job. Like my friend, you'd be wise to come to any interview knowing your own values and then asking questions to see if your prospective employer's values, and those of the business you are considering joining, are in line with yours. For example, if you know you value time with family, you might ask about the company's flextime policy; if you value professional freedom, you might ask about the company's review and evaluation process.

If you take a job whose values are in conflict with yours, you are asking for trouble.

Conversely, if you are the employer interviewing prospective workers, you want to be clear on your own values, your business' values and the expectations that grow out of those. Then as you interview employee candidates, you can ask particular questions crafted to discover whether or not each candidate's values align with yours and those of your company.

Avoid direct (DUH!) questions, such as, "Do you value respect and hard work" Instead, ask your candidate to indirectly reveal his or her values by telling you about three people he or she most admires and why. Since we most often admire in others the positive traits and qualities we hold sacred in ourselves, you will gain some insight into each candidate's core values. You can then attract to your business those people whose values are most in alignment with yours and those of your business.

If you are a business owner, your business values are your company's invisible CEOs. Whether you realize it or not, your values help manage every aspect of your business. They guide your decisions; they help determine if your business is viable and valuable. When you create a business that is in alignment with your values-and when you bring people on board who are in harmony with those values-your business has the best chance of meeting your personal and financial goals.

How closely your business is aligned with your own values, and how closely your employees' values follow suit, determines the degree to which your business will fly or flop on all fronts. A strong sense of shared values allows you to initiate meaningful actions based on mutual agreement instead of spending all your time managing the fallout caused by not honoring them.

One last example . . .

In my company I insisted that every individual-vendors, employees, customers- treat each other with same courtesy and respect with which they would treat a guest in their home.During the hiring process, I always spoke about my company's values. I was always looking for that "respect value". Our motto was "People first!" I honed in on this value before exploring any technical expertise or skill the candidate brought to the table.

Without this shared value, our working relationship would have been doomed from day one. With the respect piece missing, we would not be happy with their performance and attitude, and they would not be happy trying to fit in with us.

The payoff for consistently knowing and acting from this and other shared values was that we enjoyed long term relationships with employees, vendors, clients and customers that stretched 25 years or more. We had corporate contracts that lasted 15 and 20 years, a time period unheard of in the contract dining services industry. Try using this value based approach next time you bring someone on your team.

Gratitude: The Secret of the Rich

What do you do right after someone refers a new client to you? How do you handle gifts from satisfied customers? What do you say after receiving a compliment? And how many times do you get invited for cocktails?

What? You say you've never received any of these in your life. You don't believe in Santa Clause or the Tooth Fairy. And people are too busy thinking about themselves to pay any attention to you.

What's up with that?

In today's "me, myself and I" society we tend to forget there are people who do nice things for us. It could be the gentleman opening the entrance door, the maid who does more than expected cleaning our house, or the prominent socialite inviting us for brunch. They thought enough about us to go the extra step. Wouldn't it be rewarding to let them know that we appreciate them?

I'm on Sondra Thiederman's website. I've never met her. She speaks on diversity in the workplace. I really enjoyed her article and had to let her know:

"Enjoyed you article, Imus in Us. You walk your talk. Appreciate your
honesty. We all could learn to become better human beings."

Sondra replies:

"Tommy: Your kind e-mail was such a lovely way to end the week. Thanks for
the words of support. We all just have to do the best we can."

Wow, I made her week with four short sentences. Amazing. We all have that power within us to brighten up someone's life. And it doesn't have to cost a lot of money. What people really want on a deeper level is to feel important and appreciated.

One afternoon, I'm at a wealthy socialite's home for a potluck. Her back yard butts up against a golf course. She is an avid bridge player and once played adjacent to both Bill Gates and Warren Buffet's table.

Someone was making a speech in the patio. She instinctively checks if she's blocking anyone's view and moves aside. She's thinking about others first. What a kind and gracious gesture. The party was a huge success because she made it so.

Afterwards, I was compelled to send her a thank you card. I made sure to do it first thing in the morning. Wouldn't she be surprised to receive a card from someone she just met the previous day?

I'm suggesting these little acts of gratitude do matter. They speak volumes about you. People don't forget your appreciation.

Now if you are grateful and reply with kind acts, will people always appreciate them? I'm afraid not. Usually it may not be their entire fault. I believe most of us receive so little appreciation growing up we don't quite know how to respond.

But the majority of times people will light up with a smile. And maybe reciprocate with a kind gesture or warm words. It's this spirit of giving and holding people, even strangers, in high regard that reveals your inner-character.

So if a motorist lets you into the flow of traffic, give him a thank-you wave. If someone baked chocolate chip cookies for your sick child, give her a hug. If a crew was painting your house, invite them inside for lunch. You'll see that a little gratitude can go a long way to brighten up someone's day.

How to Get Debt Collectors Off Your Back Permanently

Debt collectors are liars, cheaters, etc... They take advantage of every loophole possible and even break the law. They have been featured on almost every news program from CNN to 60 Minutes. There are laws in place to contain their harassment and collection efforts and to make this process more civil, but most figure the risk of getting caught is minimal and that the rewards of endlessly harassing and fleecing victims is far greater. We now have the power to take back our lives, stop them in their tracks and sue them for more than they are trying to collect.

First, lets start with what is actually owed and how most collection agencies work. Usually a unpaid debt is either sold or turned over to a collection agency. 95% or more of these debts are credit cards, store cards, gas cards, etc... These debts are then tiered according to age of debt, amount, credit, job history, etc... Generally most debts are bought for pennies on the dollar. Recent debt may go for $.15 to $.25 on the dollar whereas old debt that has had numerous collection attempts goes for $.05 or less and debt that is beyond the statues of limitations for the state the debtor resides in goes for less than $.01. So, for instance if you owed $10000.00 on a credit card, the debt collection agency paid at most $2500.00, but probably paid less than $1500 for it. Now, what's interesting is that they will call and write you stating that you now owe $14000.00 or so stating that it has accrued interest and various questionable fees. This is all profit if you were dumb enough to pay that. A fair settlement would be $1700.00 or less. So, the point here is that you don't ever owe what they are trying to collect from you - it is always far, far less.

Secondly, lets give you some more ammunition - The 1977 FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act) gives you rights the debt collectors won't tell you about. If you don't want to hear from them again, its easy. Just write them a letter stating that you wish they cease all contact with you (make sure you put in the letter that - P.S. This letter is in no way an acknowledgement of the above listed debt(s) - that way they cannot even attempt to try and re-age your debt (add another 7years of collection and reporting to further harass). Send the letter registered return receipt requested mail and keep your proof of receipt. If they contact you after this for any reason other than to tell you they are either dropping the issue or taking it to court (99.99% won't go to court as it costs them more money and their odds of getting anything are almost zero - even with a judgement) then you can sue them for each occurrence for $1,000. People win these suits every day - most settle out of court for a lot more than the original debt (just look this up on the internet under small claims court). You also have the right to question the debt and have the debt collector provide proof. Many debt collection agencies are being sued by many debtors for their failure to provide proof. Just look up Asset Acceptance on the internet - they are one of the biggest abusers of this federal law with thousands of outstanding lawsuits for harassing debt collection practices.

So, now you know how to stop debt collection agencies in their tracks. You know how to get relief - sue them! If enough people sue them things will change. Also use your state and local resources. State Attorney generals go after debt collection agencies that routinely break the law, Consumer protection agencies (the Better Business Bureau, etc...), the Federal Trade Commission goes after the worst abusers, and, of course, your state department of insurance and finance (whom actually licenses these agencies rto operate in your state). You state department of finance and insurance, or similar, has the power to fine, punish and even banish the debt collection agency from your state. Every state requires a debt collection agency to be licensed and put up a large financial bond (around $50,000) to operate in your state. Call these folks if you are having problems with a debt collection agency - they will get immediate results in your favor. Don't threaten the collection agency that you have these rights - use them. Bring the collection agency to its knees if they are violating your rights.

The other problem is are these bills, debts even correct? Many hospitals, doctors, etc... have no ethics and will purposely double or even triple bill patients without insurance because they know they can get away with it. If you have a question about your bill demand a itemized bill and have this professionally examined. This will reveal things like overcharging ($100 tissue boxes, 1000 percent markup on medicines, etc...) We entrust these hospitals and doctors with our lives and then they screw us by double billing or worse. Right now there is no government policing on hospitals. Many times a debt collector will actually make up a debt or illegally pass one on to you from someone else (Asset Acceptance has been sued for this many times). Do not assume that you owe any debt and take them to task. If you do owe it, pay it, but pay the least amount possible, and pay it on your terms. If they break the law - make them pay!

If you have a problem with a bill make it known to your state politicians. If enough people do this things will change. Write to your local newspaper, tell a friend, do a press release. Tell others of their rights. Cigarette boxes come with warnings - shouldn't debt collectors and debt collection agencies with their high propensity to skirt the law also come with mandatory warnings? The more the word gets out, the better the odds something will be done about it.

Ethics in business emails

One of the latest marketing medium is the internet. And with it comes email marketing. Due to the usual informality of emails, many messages break normal ethics rules. They should not be, especially in business emails.

Take careful note of the following:

1. Don't capitalize all letters--they're the equivalent of shouting.

2. Always check spelling and grammar. You're insulting your reader by sending thrash.

3. Always put a subject.

4. Don't attach huge files -- pictures, documents, etc.--that take forever to download. Remember, there are people who still use dial-up accounts, slow connection DSLs, etc.

What Kind of Content Model Fits Your Infopreneur Dreams?

Ethics and values matter in business. Even the information business. Maybe this sounds like hocus-pocus, but I believe it is critical to your success or failure as an information marketer.

There's a lot of confusion and controversy about fair, ethical use of articles and other forms of content on the Internet - particularly content that you haven't created yourself.

Broadly, in content marketing (just as in life itself) there are two categories of people:

* those who exploit a situation

* those who make the world a better place

Now, I'm not getting into a debate or discourse on which is better, holier or more 'right'. Which path you opt to tread is entirely your choice - and might depend upon factors I don't know and cannot imagine. Just understand there are 2 paths.

Those who exploit the prevailing content marketing scenario are focussed on one thing - and that alone. They want to get high ranking on search engines for competitive keywords (ones that offer multiple quick ways to make money from visitors) and drive floods of traffic to their sites... never mind how they do it.

And there are many tactics to achieve this end - using scripts and software, innovatively mixed together, to throw up 'junk content sites' that often make very little sense, look ugly or repulsive (on purpose) and are geared to doing one thing well - getting visitors to click on income producing links that are placed on these websites.

This approach is profitable. There are many folks who were banking 5-figure checks every month based with this strategy.

There's a downside. These sites may not last for long in search engines. The owners will always be scrambling to stay ahead of the game - and should not mind if they lose the cash-generating high traffic magnets overnight. Just build some more.

If this sounds like working for money, you're right. It is. Don't confuse this with a real 'infopreneur business'.

Sure, you'll make money - maybe a lot of it. But you don't have a sustained process to acquire clients, make repeat sales to them, build a list, and achieve steady growth across a longer time frame.

The other category of people are the ones who 'make the Internet a better place' - and do this by adding valuable content to the Web.

While this is a harder path to tread, in the longer term it is more sustainable and can be scaled up over time. There's some hard work involved while things get going, but after a while it can be organized to be 'set and forget' simple.

That's the difference. With this strategy, in the end the result is a high quality, content-rich website. A useful online resource many people visit over and over again because it truly adds value to their lives in some way. A place people tell other people to go for quality information and support. A portal that search engines will find and reward, sooner or later. A website that could become an authority on the niche topic it is built around.

This kind of site will easily be able to create a sense of online community amongst users, nurture a loyal following and have staying power. And this can become the kernel for a business built around that theme.

Which model do you want to follow?

As I said before, it's your choice to make. Both are lucrative models. Both need some work. Both have some significant operational and strategic differences. Most important, they are philosophically distinct.

And your choice of one over the other is a reflection of your own attitude and approach towards your online infopreneur business.

Just make sure you're clear about which kind you're going after, as much of what you'll do will be determined by this decision.