We’ve all had that feeling, stuffed shoulder to shoulder at rush hour on the subway, sitting in a crowded café during our lunch break or navigating the crowded aisles shopping during the holidays. 

We can be surrounded by hundreds of people and somehow still feel disconnected and alone.  It may be strange, but we need more than proximity to feel connected to others.  There’s no reason for your customers to feel like that with your business, though. 

In fact, you should be doing everything in your power to avoid that sort of disconnect, because it’s the thing that inspires customers to give your competition a try, looking for that little something extra.

When it comes down to the simplest of terms, all of your business relationships are also personal relationships.  You should look at your business as a living entity, and you are its face.  Connecting with your customers isn’t anything complicated or esoteric, though. 

In fact, it can be as simple as taking the time to welcome customers when they enter your business, and engaging them in friendly conversation.   This simple gesture is a great first step and by chatting up your customers you can find out important business information in a casual and unobtrusive way, like what their product interests are and where you can improve your business.

If you want to be even more proactive, you actually have a lot of color printing options available to you that can help bridge the gap between your business and its clientele.  Greeting cards are an excellent way to remind customers you appreciate their continued support. 

Postcards are an excellent survey tool to find out what your customers needs are or a convenient way to reward return customers with special deals and offers.  If you’ve got a lot to say about your business and how its continued growth benefits your customers, let them know with regular newsletter printing. 

Not only will it keep them informed about the changes and what’s going on in the industry, it will help make them feel like they are part of the team.

There’s no reason for your customers to feel alone or isolated while they are in your place of business or after they’ve gone home.  Whether it’s the smile on your face or welcoming post card they pull from their mailbox, you’re efforts can make real and lasting connections for your business that will ensure continued growth and profitability.



By: Kaye Z. Marks

About the Author:

At work, and in many out-of-work scenarios, most people need to work as part of a team at some time or another. Sometimes you may wonder just what makes another team-member tick. They probably wonder just the same about you! With personality profiling you can discover how to ensure that Together Everyone Achieves More. Before looking into the relevance of profiling in teams, first a little background.

Introduction

People are different - but they are predictably different. A personality profile helps predict how someone will react in a given situation, helping you understand what motivates them - and what they’re trying to avoid. And they can understand you too. In his book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”, Dr Stephen Covey said: “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.”

In 1926 Dr William Marston, an expert in behavioural understanding and the inventor of the polygraph (lie-detector), devised a system to understand people’s personality styles. In his book “The Emotions of Normal People” he grouped people according to their active or passive tendencies, dependent upon their view of the environment. The main styles identified are:

D - Drive - “My Way” (3% of the population) I - Influence - “The Fun Way” (12% of the population) C - Compliance - “The Right Way” (16% of the population) S - Steadiness - “The Safe Way” (69% of the population)

Of course there aren’t just four styles, as everyone exhibits different levels of each of the four, resulting in an almost infinite number of combinations of the main styles. In fact a profile that showed someone as all one style would be extremely suspect. Your style, for instance, may be a combination of ‘High D’, ‘Medium I’, ‘Fairly C’ and ‘Low S’. No style is inherently ‘Good’ or ‘Bad’, all have positive features.

The aim of profiling is to identify and play to your strengths, while utilising the self-awareness of possible weaknesses. If you choose to share this knowledge with others in the team, and they’re willing for you to study their profiles, real synergy can be achieved.

For instance, in one company most of the employees were sales people - highly motivated and very personable. Everyone worked and got on well together - except that the others found Joe, the warehouseman, slow and difficult to relate to. Personality profiling showed that the salespeople were High D/I people, whereas Joe was High C/S. But armed with this knowledge the profiler asked the salespeople how often their orders were delivered incorrectly. The answer was ‘Almost never’ - at which point Joe’s slow, careful approach could be seen as a virtue and a real asset to the organisation.

Despite taking just seven minutes to complete, the personality profile derived from the combination of the different levels of each style gives an amazingly accurate profile of the subject in: How they think of themselves; How others see them; How they act under stress; Their communication preference; Greatest fears; Greatest motivators.

What is your boss’s profile? If you are the boss, what are the profiles of your subordinates? Reading their reports, with their permission, could give you a new insight into their character traits and help staff retention. Sickness at work and replacing unhappy or underperforming staff has a negative impact on profitability. Personality profiling is a low cost way to surround yourself with a synergistic group of people, performing at their best.

Knowing your own preferred style, and that of others in the team, can go a long way towards creating an environment in which Dr Covey’s recommendation to “Think Win/Win” can flourish.

1. Let’s get it right from the beginning. Recruiting staff is expensive in time and money. Personality profiling is a cost-effective way to maximise the chances of finding the right person first time. Sample interview questions are included.

2. When someone is unsure of themselves in a new environment their pattern will change in a particular way, so the profile can be used to check how someone is settling into a new role, and whether they need further support.

3. We saw, in the case of Joe, how each team-member can be valued for their specific qualities. Knowledge of individuals’ preferred style means that responsibilities can be shared in a way that best utilises talents, instead of putting round pegs into square holes.

4. When you understand a team-mate’s greatest fears, this may explain many things that remain unsaid. For instance a High C hates conflict, so their High D co-worker would be better suited to complaining about poor service from a supplier. The High D who enjoys a full and frank exchange of views, may finally realise why a High C subordinate repeatedly puts off making that phone call of complaint.

5. You will understand how to motivate team members, how they set goals for themselves and how best to support the team by making sure that all styles are represented within it. A High C team member will enjoy, and be good at, preparing detailed action plans that the High I ‘big picture’ goal-setter may neglect.

6. Team members will learn possible growth areas, particularly in communications. A High I may get a better response from others if they talk less and listen more. A High S can realise they need to be more open to change. A High D and a High C may both come to appreciate the benefits of developing personal relationships, although these two will initially exhibit very different styles.

7. Graphs in the personality profile can identify normal individuals going through a tough time - for instance stress at work or home that could be having a detrimental effect on the individual’s health or work performance. Personality profiles do not identify mental health problems, nor criminal tendencies.

8. The graphs can identify those working beyond their limits or those under-performing, possibly because they’re too wary of making a move for fear of failure. This could identify the need for further training or support. Remember, it’s often less costly to give further training to an existing staff member than to recruit afresh - with still no guarantee of having found the correct person.

9. Different styles communicate very differently. For example a high S working with a high D may withdraw in the face of the D’s direct style, thus slowing down results. When all team members are aware of every-one’s styles they can seek to modify how they communicate and at least allow for the other’s point of view, even though they are unlikely adopt it themselves. If everyone were willing, a chart could be displayed prominently to remind the team that, for instance, the steady High S personality may be intimidated by the High D’s confrontational approach, despite no offence being intended.

10. Personality profiling terminology provides a less-confrontational language for pointing out a colleague’s unhelpful behaviour. For instance, “You need to up your C today” is likely to be better received than “Don’t you ever stop and think before you act?”

When working in a team environment, a group booklet showing all possible style combinations is normally made available to each team member. Writing every team member’s names on the appropriate page will give others a detailed understanding of their co-workers. The booklet also shows how each style interacts with all the others, highlighting ways to improve interaction.

Obviously this knowledge could be used exploitatively, but that is counter-productive to building good teams and has no place in the ethical use of personality profiling. No worker should be compelled to reveal their information to the others, but if those who are willing to participate allow an objector to see their own reports, it’s often the case that objections melt away.

Have you guessed what your style is? I guessed mine, before completing the questionnaire, and I was completely wrong. However, I have to confess that, as I read the report, I could see that I was deceiving myself, and in fact the analysis knew me better than I did. I wanted badly to be a High D - direct, dominant and demanding, instead I was a High C - compliant, contemplative and careful.

At first I was disappointed, but the point of personality profiling is to highlight strengths. Don’t be fooled into think that C and S styles are weak - they’re not. They are ‘Completers’ - i.e. those with a reputation for pressing on and getting things done.

The more of my own report I read, the more I realised that characteristics I was lukewarm about in myself are actually strengths I can use to move forward in a way that won’t make me feel threatened and I now know (and recognise from the past) the pitfalls I need to avoid.



By: anonymous

About the Author:

Whenever women or men feel stressed out they usually blame their partners for it. A sudden outburst is not the way to deal with any stressful situation. It has been shown that whenever partners feel pressure arising at work places, or socio economic fronts. They try unleashing themselves at their partners. This is the most dangerous way one can ruin their relationship. Lack of communication and sudden outbursts can leave both the partners uncomfortable.

Before you jump to any conclusions or say mean stuff in a fight. Take a stroll outside or have a glass of water. Do not just say things that you will regret later on. Make sure you sit down and analyze why you are stressed and what the major causes are. I am most certain you will be able to discover what is bothering you, rather than you picking a fight with your partner.

In a fight or in a post fight, the bitterness remains, it is hard to get back to the normal situation. Make sure you talk your self to remain calm, and not lose your cool.

Discussing with your partner is always a great way to solve your stress reasons. You can sit down have a cup of herbal tea, which will calm you down and just talk. Sometimes all we need is a good talk, by the person we love. Stress surrounds us in all types of forms, so make sure you do not ruin your personal relationships and create a bigger havoc.

In order to get rid of your stress, divert your attention and do something which relaxes you. This could be a trip to a nearby mall, eating out, watching t.v talking to an old friend. Do anything which will make you feel pumped up.

Having a blissful relationship with your partner can be a great way to maintain your well being. So make sure you do not say or do things that you wouldn’t be happy about. Learn to have a control over your anger spurs and try communicating rather then fighting.



By: Lara Lee

About the Author:

It happens to a majority of us that all of a sudden, we feel that our relationship with our partner has entered a rut. Far from feeling about our relationship the way we first did when we met each other, we often start questioning our relationship. In today’s busy world, where making time for each other is extremely tough, relationships are bound to fall by the wayside if they are not nurtured continuously. If you feel your relationship has entered an unexciting patch, then analyze it closely and remember what attracted you to your partner. If the same things that left you happy and breathless at the beginning of your dating period still hold, but are now lost somewhere as you lead your separate lives, then picking up some dating secrets or a dating ebook from the internet can give it a new lease of life.

There are a number of relationship experts who are offering dating advice to men and women based upon years of experience in the form of dating ebooks that often cost a fraction of what a single hour long counseling session with these experts would cost a couple. By picking up an ebook, you not only manage to keep your personal relationship private but also get to know genuine, realistic solutions for solving the problems in your relationship.

Another advantage of picking up your dating secrets off a dating ebook is that dating couples generally do not go in for counseling. Only those who are seriously committed or married do. By getting advice about dating and reviving your relationship from an ebook instead of asking your partner to join you for counseling, you save yourself from putting a lot of unnecessary pressure on your partner, which can be detrimental to an already failing relationship.

Dating ebooks and membership sites that provide dating advice to women and men have become one of the most highly sold information products on the internet because couples all over the world are looking for a way of bringing back the “zing” into a relationship.

With relationship experts offering honest to goodness, workable solutions to get the romance back into your relationship, these dating ebooks have acted as life savers for millions of relationships all over the world.

One of the best ebooks providing dating advice for men on the internet today is The Quickstart Guide to Dating Women. The ebook provides simple solutions for getting romance back into a relationship like doing small things for your partner, being imaginative, looking good and being honest. At the same time, it also tackles serious relationship issues and provides solutions based upon male and female psychology and years of relationship research.

So if you want to know about basic dating secrets, how to bring back the romance into your relationship, get your ex back or find a new partner, then all you need to do is check out The Quickstart Guide to Dating Women and very soon, you will find yourself happily in love. The best part about the book is that it comes with a money back guarantee, so by buying a copy, you have nothing to lose but the “poor relationship” phase of your life.



By: Colin Egbert

About the Author:

If you think being steady and uniform in your behavior, will keep your woman happy, think again. By being unvarying and regular, you are merely telling her how good a husband and a father you might be! Now that is definitely a premature signal, during your dating days, because you are truly giving the wrong signal at the wrong time. To invoke intensity and fervor in your relationship, secret lies in being unpredictable. Never let the cat out of the bag, as to your true intentions. Because normal is boring, in dating terms.

Here are some purposeful confusing signals:

• Be a wizard with numbers - narrate her cell number beginning backwards! Ensure she knows your numbers too. But surprise surprise! Pretend to have forgotten her contact details, ask for it again.

• Act distant and unapproachable on a date. Look through her at times, without being rude or impolite. Pretend your mind is somewhere else.

• Women love to be surprised. Appear suddenly at places and times, when she least expects you. Give a bear hug, kiss her, when she is least prepared, and then move on to do something else completely different.

• Compliment her on her dress that day, only to change your opinion later. Basic idea is to appear inconsistent.

• Sometimes do things which she least expects you to do. Like going for a kid film together or dining at a restaurant, which she did not even know existed. Outbid her assumptions at every step.

Such conflicting and inconsistent behavioral traits stimulate a woman, and display your erratic and mercurial temperament. But let’s not do this too frequently, or she might get the impression that you are some sort of loony that she has landed up with. Act a little mad, but not totally mad. So that you emerge as an otherwise dependable and trustworthy companion.

The secret behind creating magic in any dating relationship is generating a healthy blend of contradictions. Acting close as well as distant, being decisive as well as vacillating, getting romantic and suddenly playing aloof, all goes to create those magical moments, we all yearn for.

Playing hide and seek so to speak, will help you not only attract women but keep them consistently attracted. The best example that comes to my mind is a tight-rope walker in a circus arena. He is extremely careful on that rope while walking, neither too fast nor too slow, because either way he falls down. If you watch closely he appears inconsistent while walking, but look closer, there is a method in his madness.

Similarly, if you have tried to walk with a cup of hot coffee brimming up to the edges, you try and adjust your pace, to prevent it from splashing over your arm. You do not walk at a uniform pace; you keep adjusting it all the way till you reach your destination. Your inconsistency in the dating game, acts very much the same way, keeping the cup of passion full, without any spillage, till you reach your determined goal.



By: Joshua Goh

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