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Thriving in any Economy
Zig Ziglar
Since childhood, which for me occurred during the Depression, I've
noticed that many people are unable to thrive even in the best of
times, while others thrive even in the worst of times. The reason is
that, in most cases, the thrivers understand that what happens "out
there" is not nearly as important as what happens in their own
thinking. There is not a great deal that an individual can do about
the national economy, but there is much each of us can do about our
personal economy. With this in mind, let's look at some factors that
give all of us a chance to thrive, regardless of the economy.
First, we need to recognize and accept the fact that the employer and the employee are literally on the same team with the same objective: Each wants to be profitable in what he or she does. Starting with the employer, Samuel Gompers many years ago made the statement that the first responsibility of a business is to make a profit. He reasoned that if there were no profit, business would go bankrupt and every employee would be negatively affected financially and socially.
Clarence Francis, a businessman, said, "You can buy a man's time, you can buy his physical presence at a given place. You can even buy a measured number of his skilled muscular motions per hour. But you cannot buy enthusiasm, you cannot buy loyalty, you cannot buy devotion of hearts, minds or souls. You must earn these."
Question: How do you earn these things? The answer is to understand that according to the Department of Labor, 46 percent of the people who voluntarily leave their jobs do so because they do not feel respected and/or appreciated. When employers show employees respect and express appreciation on a regular basis, loyalty, commitment and enthusiasm all prevail in that person.
The late Cavett Robert said there are over three billion people who go to bed hungry every night, but there are over four billion people who go to bed hungry every night for a word of love, appreciation and respect. The message is clear: Nice people say complimentary things to producers who really do a good job (the compliment must be sincere). It has been said many times that people work for more than a raise -- they work for praise. The most effective and least expensive motivation going is recognition with a simple "thank you."
The employee then needs to understand that the prime reason he or she was hired was because the boss or owner expected to make a profit on that individual's efforts. In short, if the employee does not produce more than he or she costs, it is a losing investment for the employer. No business loaded with non-producers is going to thrive. Each individual who does not pull his or her own weight leaves that part of the load to be carried by other employees. It's one thing for this to happen occasionally, but on a regular basis, it spells disaster for the company.
Despite all the testing currently being done, something like over 70 percent of employees who lose their jobs do so because although their individual qualities, experiences and abilities were good, their ability to get along with co-workers was not good. Personality does play a part. With this in mind, it behooves the boss to keep a close eye on how a person fits into the organization. And it certainly is in the best interests of the employee to develop human relations skills that enable them to fit in with others. The result is a productive team, and a profitable one, in most cases. This means each individual will thrive regardless of what happens to the economy.
This is the gist of thriving in any economy. It's wrapped up in smart, hard work, loyalty, commitment and responsibility on the parts of both the employee and the employer.
To find out more about Zig Ziglar and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. Subscribe to Zig Ziglar's free e-mail newsletter through info@zigziglar.com.
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Copyright 2009 Creators Syndicate Inc.
This news arrived on: 10/12/2009
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Posted Comments:
10-16-2009 19:07
Me. wrote:
Triving in any Economy
You noted in this article, that praise was worth more than a raise, which i agree with. You also noted that a notable reason for why employees terminate is due to a lack of "team play"...getting along with associates. Frankly, that issue belongs squarely with the managers and supervisors of those people. I manage more than 500 staff, and the key to their engagement is their bosses. Not them. Even the most introverted can be engaged to find a way to "belong".
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