Wanted: The Job That Doesn’t Feel Like a Job by Irene Waltz

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Irene Waltz

Ever since I started in the working world, I’ve had this notion of finding my “dream job”. Even before there was any talk of work-life-balance, I was dreaming of a job that I would love so much that I would never care if it was work or free time.

Most people back then called me crazy and said that job didn’t exist if I weren’t an artist, which I am most definitely not.

Some are lucky enough to know early on what they want to do. Not me. There was so much I wanted to try, I never thought I could focus on just one thing. When I went to college, I studied languages, business & cultural studies. There was no clear career path to follow, so I had to find my own way.

Over the years, I have tried lots of things, employed on my own: managed a language school, built the Berlin office of a Swedish internet startup, taught Russian immigrants computer skills, worked as a business and financial translator, built websites with WordPress, did sales cold-calling and managed large marketing projects.

In the end, I found that I’d have to invent the job that would fit me.

Over the years, I have picked up a lot of sales and marketing skills, and that is what I’m selling today. I’m a hand-on marketer and marketing coach helping entrepreneurs win clients in new markets, especially in Germany, of course. My aim is to get things up and running and to help my clients become better marketers themselves.

I also speak about marketing, and managing workshops and seminars.

To be honest, I don’t care too much about the latest fads in marketing techniques (although I do want to know how they work). Rather, I’m interested in helping cool people who love what they do enjoy their business even more by working for clients that really get them.

To be taken with care: Advice from others

When my second son was born five years ago, my last employment had just ended. Frustrated up with the restrictions of the corporate world. I set out on my own again, this time in the marketing field. I’d been a freelance translator for a few years before that last corporate gig. This time I wanted to do it right. Build a “real” business.

I read tons of books, every scrap of advice out there on building a business. You know what: I ended up more confused than before. One book said I needed to build systems, and I spent weeks with long lists of things that I never used. Another said I had to decide if I just wanted to build a job for myself or be a “real” entrepreneur. It took me half a year to get passed this.

I always thought: If I can only define my vision and my mission, then everything will be fine, kind of build itself.

But you know what? All this heady stuff just kept me spinning my wheels, looking for answers. For years, I felt bad because I couldn’t come up with a grand, dent-in-the-universe vision like curing malaria or something like that. Yes, I have an idea about my values and what I’d like to do for people and for my family, but a huge vision? Sorry, I don’t have one.

Sometimes, the answer is right in front of you.

I was so focused on this whole passion-doing-what-you-love thing that I completely overlooked one thing: There had been someone right in front of me all this time, doing what he loved, and being very content with it.

He was a college professor for English, a man who grew up in postwar Germany. Coming from a humble family of butchers, he put himself through college with little money and lots of willpower. A very quiet man, not one of those big-shot professors with great acclaim in the academic world. He was not a rich man, but there was enough for his family, his wife and four kids, enough to support his old mother.

Sometimes you’d hear him talking in his study, proclaiming Chaucer’s Canterbury tales aloud with a funny accent. When he passed away, the little church was packed, and there were piles of cards from former students expressing their gratitude. He wasn’t famous, but for the people who knew him, he made a big difference.

That man, of course, was my father.

So I am blessed to have lived with someone who encouraged me to do what I enjoyed, to follow what made me happy; and who led by example. Only now do I realize, it’s not always the grand and loud things that are important or meaningful, but passion can be quiet as well, focused on the little details.

Doing what makes you happy

About a year ago, I found a kind of diary I must have written when I was 17 or so. It said: “I’ll just write. Writing is what makes me happy.” I had completely forgotten about this. Here I was, over 20 years later, and all the writing I did was marketing texts for other people. And a marketing blog that bored me because I filled it with stuff I thought people wanted to hear.

So I set up a fresh blog and started writing. In English, a language I had missed. (I’m German, and my business had been mostly in German lately.) It was much easier than my marketing blog. The texts just started to flow. I don’t think about pleasing anyone with it. I just write. Little observations on life and happiness. I don’t even know if anyone reads it, but it doesn’t really matter. It’s called Irene’s Notes, if you want to take a look.

And there’s another project: Last summer, I discovered the sport of triathlon. I was so enthused that I contacted a small brand of triathlon clothing just for women. And ended up writing their German blog, which is extremely fun.

The thing is, I’m not earning any money to speak of with these activities, but just doing it makes me so happy that my business life is also affected. And from the triathlon blog, I’ve attracted people to my marketing pages, as well.

As for my marketing blog, I started one in English, too at www.irenesmarketing.com. And I started writing about things I care about. I don’t follow all the “how-to-write-great-blogposts” advice, rather, I’m finding my own style. It’s much more fun than ever before!

Trusting myself

When I turned forty last summer, I decided I would not pretend any more to be someone I was not. My company is called “Die Marketinghelfer” or “The Marketinghelpers”. Only, it’s always been just me, and it felt like I was hiding behind the name. So I’m in the process of changing it, putting myself more on the line.

Also, I made a vow never again go against my instincts or do things just because I thought someone wanted me to do them that way. Sometimes, I have to take a closer look and see if it’s just fear holding me back. Often enough, though, my gut is right, even if I can’t explain it rationally.

There is some advice I really did learn from all the business courses: Just think in little projects. Try different things. See what works. See where it gets you and go from there. Without thinking this has to be THE ONE THING.

So really, I’m back to doing what I used to do: Enjoying the adventures of life and business day by day and being open to the opportunities that arise. Who knows where this journey may lead.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Irene Waltz is a hand-on marketing & sales woman, writer, speaker, business translator, a mother of two boys, and probably Germany’s slowest triathlete. Based in Berlin, Germany, Irene helps knowledge-based businesses get clients in new markets, especially in Germany. Follow Irene on Twitter or check out her blog at http://www.irenesmarketing.com

My Story and Why It Matters by Harriet Khataba

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Harriet Khataba Her story Matters.(1)

My mother was and still is my inspiration. I don’t know many women who have 6 children, work full time, and are accountants for 3 different organizations as well as a treasurer for a church. And, a devout Christian! Where did she get the time? My mum was a “superwoman” in every way to me growing up. I was always amazed by how well she handled everything in her life. She gave me the strength to live up to her example. Luv U Mum!!!

At nineteen, I moved to England. I hated it. The weather was dreadful when compared to the sunshine and friends I left behind in Kenya. I attained my degree in Business Management and Hospitality while working in various hospitality and retail companies. This gave me a lot of experience in business as well as the confidence I needed to achieve even greater… Soon after my career in retail I chose to expand myself more.  You see, my passion is dancing. I decided to work for a dance company where I thrived in key roles for the business. After experiencing the long hours and the excessive travel, which placed me in different cities every day I began to wonder if this was the life I wanted. Part of my experience  was with organizing events. This gave me a great option to work in media so I took it.

I started organizing events, which I love, as I am a people person. Eventually I found myself at BEN TV (Ethnic Media) this is funny to admit, but I didn’t know much about the ethnic community in Britain. Coming from Africa, I was so very much unaware of an ethnic culture. Working for the company really opened my eyes to this culture. Whilst working in media, I found myself inspired by a friend about so many of the differences within societies and cultures. Having a childhood from Kenya, with my friends support, I began thinking about a documentary on FGM. I started my research into FGM and its effects on the women and communities.  With this knowledge and over time I wanted to do more. I began to see how so many lives are affected by gender indifference in ways that lead to a physical and mental frame of mind that differs from yours or mine. This is how “Her Story Matters” was born.

By creating “Her Story Matters” I am providing a platform where women can tell their story, inspire others and empower ourselves to overcome gender indifference. I soon realized that there was a huge need for women to have a unique environment that will allow for us to share our inspirations.  I feel it is important to highlight and to collect many issues women face as well. It is my hope that by providing a medium for women to express whatever challenges we face together that we will become even stronger in our passions and remove our adversities together. I see a place, with Her Story Matters, where a woman may not have suffered from the same issue, but can still offer advice from another. I see a place where a business woman who is successful will support a mother of indifference elsewhere in the world. This will inspire strength and friendships across the globe.

We are sharing stories of heroes. For me, my very own hero, she is my mum. She is my own personal hero in so many ways.  As I grew up I watched my mother work hard and make sacrifices for me. I now understand just how much my mother did to help me become who I am today. I also realize this is just a very small part of what other women and other mothers go through every day. It is my hope, from the deepest place in my heart, that with your help we will give women, from all corners of the world, a place to join and to overcome any challenge through her story. I want to hear her challenges. I want to share her goals. I want to feel her passion. I want us to share her dreams. I want Her Story to Matter.   www.herstorymatters.com

About the Author:

Harriet Khataba heralds from East Africa where she was born and raised in Kenya. Miss Khataba is educated in England in the fields of Hospitality, Retail and Fashion with qualifications in a Degree in Hospitality and Business Management. She has worked with organizations such as Merrill Lynch and Deutche Bank  as supervisor and organization management. Additionally, She has thrived in the entertainment industry as well as events in 2011. Harriet enjoys the arts as a dance instructor and she regularly organizes and acts as MC for many events. Most recently, Harriet has ventured into media working alongside with BEN TV, ethnic media, to produce youth oriented programs and promotions. And, she successfully developed a ten episode series called Trendz prior to her groundbreaking work with Her Story Matters (www.HerStoryMatters.com).

A For-Profit for Nonprofits: Can It Work? By Evelyn Horng

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Evelyn Horng picI have always been interested in social causes.  In college, I majored in public policy, and I interned one summer for a nonprofit that organizes done-in-a-day projects for busy people who can’t commit to long term volunteer opportunities.  I also volunteered quite a bit myself – helping to build homes for low income people, pulling out non-native vegetation (aka weeding!), sorting food at a food bank.….

My senior year in college, the obvious set in.  You just don’t make as much money working in nonprofit as you do in the for-profit world.  I envisioned the kind of life I wanted for myself, and the type of funds that would be needed to support it.  And while I never imagined a lavish lifestyle, I just didn’t want to struggle to buy a home in Silicon Valley, or worry about covering all my expenses.

So I entered the corporate world, doing a two-year stint in strategy consulting and then moving on to high tech product management, and climbing the professional ladder.  By the time the kids came around, I started re-thinking how I wanted to spend my time.  I wasn’t quite satisfied in my last job, and I was looking for more….

More personal fulfillment,
More flexible work situation,
More control over what I was doing….

So a co-worker and I started a company called Roonga (www.roonga.com).  Its original goal was to encourage people to share things with their friends and trusted groups.  In doing so, we’d encourage reuse, reduce waste, and help our communities be more sustainable.  But smaller trusted circles made it harder to get rid of things you no longer need, and people didn’t always have the things that you need in these tighter networks.  So recently, we’ve redirected Roonga to work with nonprofits, providing a platform for nonprofits to communicate in-kind needs and building an audience of followers specifically interested in hearing about these.

With the latest turn that Roonga has taken, I feel like I’ve come full circle back to where I started.  We are working with nonprofits to improve the efficiency of their in-kind donations, and to support their causes by opening up their audience.  In the process, I am learning a lot about the local causes in Silicon Valley, and I am having a great time doing this!

However, it remains to be seen whether we can build a successful for-profit company working with nonprofits.  Roonga is a for-profit company – we like the potential of allowing employees to benefit from the company’s success, and we feel it is important to reward talent at competitive for-profit rates.  And for me, I like the self-fulfillment of working for a nonprofit cause, while also still retaining the for-profit mindset.  I’d like to think that we can take the best of both worlds and meld them into Roonga – but we are only at the beginning of our journey and still have a long way to go…..  The future is ahead of us, and we’ll have to see where we end up.

In the meantime, take a look at our nonprofit beta, follow one of our local nonprofits (http://www.roonga.com/nonprofit/#california), and let me know what you think!  Email me at ehorng@roonga.com with any thoughts, suggestions, or feedback.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:  Evelyn Horng is the co-founder of Roonga, a Silicon Valley startup.  She was previously VP, Product Management, at MLSListings, Inc., and held other product management positions in various high tech companies.  She has a B.A. in Public Policy from Stanford University.  She spends most of her spare time trying to keep up with her two young sons.

Why I Started Global Tech Women and the Voices Conference by Deanna Kosaraju

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IMG_1825 Deanna

For 6 years I ran the largest physical conference for women in computing in the world called the Grace Hopper Celebration in the US and I was the conference founder for the Grace Hopper conference in India. I was often asked by thousands of technical women all over the world – places like Raleigh, Pune, and Kaula Lumpur – what I could do for them – how could I give them access to this conference and the community if they could not attend this annual event. I never had a good answer for them unless they could fly to the conference, take the time off of work, and pay the expensive travel and conference fees. It was very frustrating. About 4000 women attend Grace Hopper each year but many more thousands can’t get there.

Now there is a means to provide access, visibility and connection no matter where a technical woman lives on this planet.

Last year a new organization was launched, Global Tech Women, whose mission is to create a global network of connected, inspired and self-actualized technical women. My friend and former colleague, Jerri Barrett has joined Global Tech Women as our CMO and together we are reaching out to women around the world to create a global network of technical women, partners and organizations who share this vision.

We are holding a global virtual conference on International Women’s Day – March 8 2013 called Voices. We are starting in New Zealand at 10am and working our way around the world holding sessions from women in every region to talk about technology, topics of interest to the technical women’s community and to offer ideas and best practices on a regional, national and international level on how we can encourage more women in technology and inspire the women in this community.

www.globaltechwomen.com

Since this is a new conference we are all working together with friends, partners and sponsors to find regional, national and international representatives who can discuss the latest technologies, articulate the challenges of being a technical woman, what has been done to resolve barriers, and who is involved in these conversations. We are asking women around the world to attend and to add their voice to the conversation making us all accessible and visible.

I am asking for your support, to help build a conference and a community for all of us, anywhere.  How can you help? Register for the conference, invite your friends, post Voices on social media, celebrate International Women’s Day with us and be part of the direction for this organization. Make it your own.

This is an opportunity for every woman in technology, with your support, to have access to relevant information, which in many parts of the world is difficult, providing community, inspiration and to create possibilities for connection and collaboration.

This is just the beginning of something entirely new.

I am excited about the possibilities and I hope you are too. Will you help?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts,

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Deanna Kosaraju started Global Tech Women because she believes no matter what corner of the globe you live, you deserve access to the latest technical information, inspiration and local and global support to help you achieve your definition of success both personally and professionally. Prior to starting this new initiative Deanna was the Vice President of Programs at the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology (ABI). Deanna ran ABIs flagship program, the Grace Hopper Celebration for Women in Computing North America from 2006 through November 2011  and took the Anita Borg Institute internationally as founder of a technical women’s community and Grace Hopper Celebration Conference for Women in Computing in India.

Why Trust is Good, But Money up Front is Better by Natascha Thomson

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Natascha w Hat 2012_12_13I am currently trying to take a client to small claims court. This is much more complicated than I envisioned.  And the outcome is uncertain. But let me begin at the start, so you can avoid my mistakes.

The Honeymoon Phase
Like probably most new business owners, I entered into my marketing consulting practice with trust and naiveté.

There are a lot of administrative things to figure out: how much to charge a client, legal contracts, templates, billing etc.  And then there is also the part where you define your mission and, in my case, place much faith in the human race, because you believe in integrity and honesty.

Reality
I was very lucky with my first few clients who I all knew personally before I started working with them. They all paid on time.

Then a client came as a referral from an old colleague. The rule of thumb is that referrals from people you know are good referrals. But my gut feeling was to turn the project down, as I had little rapport with the client, but I told myself that I had to build my business and could not afford to say no.

What they did not tell you at St. Mary’s Business School….
I don’t want to disclose any details of my work with this client other than that I got positive feedback along the way and we both considered the project outcome a success. The final words were “the check is in the mail”.

After the check did not arrive, an agonizing period started where the client admitted to be unable to pay, asking me to put him on a payment plan. It was very upsetting.

My wake up call came after talking to my accountant and self-employed friends: it turned out that almost everybody I knew had lost money to non-paying clients (this was a very long trail on Facebook). Trying to collect the money can take so much time, effort, and money – and there are no guarantees for success- that many people just write the owed money off. Ouch!

After receiving this feedback, I accepted the client’s payment plan and received the first payment; already a few days late. That was the last payment I received.

The Odds
Unfortunately, after reminding the delinquent client one more time, I see no other avenue but to go to small claims court:

  • If I can figure out where to file the claim (if I get it wrong, case is dismissed)
  • If I can serve the defendant the court notice (somebody else but me has to do this in person and I have to pay; it means one has to track down the person)
  • If I win the case
  • If I can actually collect my money (after I win)

Lesson Learned
The lesson I have learned is to always ask for enough money up front to cover myself until “pay day”.

What I mean by that is, cover yourself (at a minimum) up to the time your first payment is due. Example: you bill every 30 days and your client has 30 days to pay you.  Ask for enough money in advance to cover you for 60 days of work. If the check does not arrive on day 60, you can stop the project but haven’t made a loss. Of course, they could not pay you in the future but at this point, you have at least established some trust.

Having said that, it seems common to ask for anything from a minimum of 20% to 40% (sometimes even more) up front, especially if you charge on a project basis.

If the client refuses: walk way!
To be continued…

ABOUT the AUTHOR: Natascha Thomson is the Owner & Founder of MarketingXLerator – a B2B Social Media Marketing Consultancy – with a focus on using social media to connect people for business impact. She is also a co-author of the book 42 Rules for B2B Social Media Marketing.

Top Ten Rules for Leadership: Top Ten Tips for Sharing Your Stories by Linda Holroyd

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85_Todd_R-_color_284_Linda_HolroydEvery leader has seen and felt this, the desire to share a story in response to a query from another – the look and sound of ‘oh good, a s-t-o-r-y’ from eager eyes and ears crosses all ages, genders, and cultures. And the leader feels the pull, the urgency of the problem, situation or scenario, reflects on why it may be more relevant than the immediate need, contemplates what he or she may share that might be helpful (or who might be more supportive and experienced to address the need), the consequences – good and bad – of doing the sharing, and dives in to tell the tale.

If you buy into the benefits for you and others around you, have seen the growth and benefits and rewards appear before your eyes, and if you’d like to do more story-telling, consider some of the Top Ten guidelines below.

 Reflect On Why There’s a Need, and Why Now

1.     When someone approaches you and values your input and advice, ask yourself who is this person, what does she/he know about me and my background, why is she/he approaching me now, am I the right person to support this person, and if so, do I have a tale to tell?

2.     Be generous with your time, but only if you think through #1 above, and it makes sense to share with this person, and others they will touch. Think that it’s just as much for your own benefit than it is for theirs, and even when it’s not, it’s a task worth doing, an investment worth making.

Make It Feel Real, But Not Personal

3.     Your story must be heart-felt, hard-earned, relevant, and personal, even if it did not happen directly to you.

4.     Bring your story alive with your non-verbal clues from inflections to gestures, from phrasing to idioms, while being sensitive to the needs of your audience.

Connect the Dots, Without Hitting Them Over the Head

5.     Everyone hates a know-it-all, especially if the speaker doesn’t know it all. Remember this especially when you’re sharing a tale. Nobody wants to be preached to, especially by a know-it-all wannabe! (Not that I’m referring to *you* specifically, or anyone else you know.)

6.     The best leadership tales help listeners connect the dots between disparate, previously unconnected people, ideas, things. They address the in-your-face issue of today, and generalize to anticipated, expected or desired opportunities of tomorrow. So walk the right balance between helping listeners make the connections and spelling out what the lessons-learned should be, as the best listeners will see far beyond where you think it could go, and could benefit the story-teller in ways unimaginable.

Be Humble and Even Self-Deprecating When Sharing Your Tale

7.     We connect with people who are successful *and* human. Someone is reaching out to you out of respect for who and what you are, and think that you have something to share with them. If you are humble, and share your humanness, rather than pointing to your credentials (which is unnecessary in their eyes), they would be more likely to be responsive to your tale.

8.     In fact, when you collect a series of tales-to-tell, start with times that you’ve been at your worst. The tales will be the most engaging, humorous *and* healing for you.

Offer Follow-Up and Resources and Support

9.     You’ve told a tale. It has sunk in. The other is joyous, pleased, energetic. But don’t stop there. Be there for her or him to follow up and support their journey, from the immediate need, to the path well beyond that.

10.  Share resources beyond yourself who could address themes, concerns, networks, and other anticipated interests of the listener, so that your gift keeps on giving, and you’re less likely to be the only avenue of support.

Make a new year’s resolution, a gift to yourself. Tell a tale to someone who needs one, ask for a tale from someone you respect, to address a need that keeps coming back!

ABOUT the AUTHOR:
Linda Holroyd is the CEO of FountainBlue, a Marketing and Strategy Adviser Company for many Tech Companies.

The FountainBlue’s monthly top-ten rules of leadership article is designed to guide Linda’s clients, entrepreneurial tech companies and the community in general on leadership best practices for themselves, and for their teams and organizations. Launched in December 2012, the questions and stories raised and the advice given has been mentioned before to individual members, and compiled and gathered to benefit the larger community. This month’s top-ten-leadership rules are on ‘The Top Ten Tips for Sharing Your Stores’.

She invites your questions about your marketing and leadership successes and challenges.  Please E-mail her at info@FountainBlue.biz if you have your suggestions on her marketing and leadership topics.  You might want to ask for her help with your own marketing or leadership opportunities or questions.

You can follow on her Scoops http://www.scoop.it/ageofpersonalization.
Tweets http://www.twitter.com/@lindaholroyd
Facebook posts http://www.facebook.com/linda.holroyd,
FountainBlue group on LinkedIn http://www.tinyurl.com/fountainblue.

Helping “Scrappy Women” Achieve Their Dreams by Kimberly Wiefling

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chicken

As a woman studying chemistry and physics at Wright State University in the early 1980s, gender bias was somewhat of an unknown to Kimberly Wiefling.

“I was treated with so much dignity and respect and included equally and fairly, I never even perceived that there was a gender issue,” she said.

Wiefling would face a completely different reality following her 1984 graduation from Wright State.

In graduate school and the high-tech world of Silicon Valley, Wiefling quickly realized that women were not always welcome at the table. It’s a blemish on corporate America she still sees today.

“I know from research that companies that have higher participation rates of women in their leadership and senior executive ranks make more money. There’s really a financial benefit to companies that do include more women, and yet, there’s still a bias,” Wiefling explained. “My intention is to help eliminate that bias. Let’s have women participating and contributing equally.”

After spending 10 years at Hewlett Packard followed by a few turns at several startup companies, Wiefling founded her own company, Wiefling Consulting, in 2001. Today, business is booming, with much of it coming from Japan, where Wiefling travels almost monthly to advise Japanese companies on global leadership and management.

In addition to her consulting business, Wiefling is the author of two out of the five guides in her Scrappy About series of books, including Scrappy Project Management and Scrappy Women in Business: Living Proof that Bending the Rules Isn’t Breaking the Law.

Wiefling co-wrote Scrappy Women in Business with 11 of her “scrappy gal pals” to describe their real-life experiences as women in the world of business. It also inspired the name for a scholarship Wiefling has established at Wright State the Scrappy Women Scholarship Fund.

The granddaughter of a coalminer and daughter of a welder, Wiefling was determined to achieve a college degree despite her lack of financial means. Following her high school graduation, Wiefling entered the military so she could attend college on the GI Bill. Scholarships also helped pay for her education.

Wiefling hopes the Scrappy Women Scholarship Fund will help women from similar backgrounds who may think a college education is out of their reach.

“I’d like to make that possible for some woman who comes from that kind of scrappy, hardworking family,” she said.

The scholarship is also a means for Wiefling to give back.

“None of us made it to where we are today without help,” she said. “We got here through the help and generosity of many other people. It’s our responsibility to continue that flow of generosity.”

Wiefling was initially surprised to find out that it only takes a small financial commitment to establish a scholarship. To fully fund the scholarship, she has made a bequest in her will where a percentage of her estate will come to the university. Wiefling, however, has already endowed the fund with current gifts so she can provide one scholarship a year to a worthy student.

“No matter how much you have, you can always share something with people who don’t have as much,” Wiefling explained. “What brings real happiness is not the money or the wealth itself, but the ability to share it with other people.”

ABOUT the AUTHOR:
Kimberly Wiefling is the founder of Wiefling Consulting, LLC, a scrappy enterprise enabling individuals, teams and organizations to achieve results that seem out of reach or nearly impossible through leadership and project management excellence. Vigorously scrappy, she reemerged, consulting on leadership and project management worldwide – from Armenia, to Tokyo, to the Silicon Valley. Kimberly is the executive editor of The Scrappy Guides®, a regular contributor to the “Project Connections” newsletter, (70,000+ subscribers weekly), and her radio show, “The Scrappy Dialogues®”, airs occasionally on www.wiefling.com, and she is the lead blogger at www.SVProjectManagement.net.

 

My Ongoing Journey

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Natascha w Hat 2012_12_13

I subscribe to the belief that life is a journey, not a destination.

Born and raised in Germany, I came to Silicon Valley in the 90s to work as an intern at HP in Palo Alto.

Coming from a country where your career progression is often tied to time worked at the company and possibly your age, I was mesmerized by the seemingly endless opportunities and energy of the dot.com boom.
Fast forward fifteen plus years, and I am the owner and founder of MarketingXLerator, a social media marketing consultancy.

Sounds picture perfect, doesn’t it?

Have you heard people tell their life story in a way that sounds as if they carefully planned each event to lead them to where they are today? You just know they picked out the best bits and aligned them to make the story sound linear.

Well, life is not like that for most people.  I’ve been trying to find my calling or passion all my life, and I am still looking. Is running my own business what really fulfills me? Can any job fulfill me for the long run?

Along my road, there have been many bumps.  Externally, I appear to be very confident and outgoing, but internally I can’t shake off that impostor feeling. I hear from many other women that they can relate.

My life strategy has been to push past the fear. I think that fear is normal and challenges are normal, the skill is how to deal with them in a productive manner.

Lately I’ve been reading a lot of Buddhist philosophy, which encourages us to live in the moment, slow down, get to know ourselves, and accept who we are; the ultimate challenge.

My relationship to Silicon Valley has changed.  If I enjoyed the fast-paced and go-getter mindset in the past, I now look for more meaning in my work and for connection. I struggle with the “always-on” expectation and the culture that sometimes seems to put business success ahead of humanity.

For at least the last four years I have experimented to create a better work-life balance for myself while attempting to do stimulating work at the same time.  Frankly, I am not sure it is possible.

In one job, I reduced my work hours to a four-day-week.  I learned that it was just not the right job for me, no matter how many hours.  Then I became a contractor for 3-days-a-week to have more time to teach yoga and start my own business.  I found working a 3-day-week extremely challenging, as it is not the pace at which business moves. It is difficult to be given responsibility when you work part time and many people did not take me seriously.

My current stage is that I work full time in my own businesses. My hope was to reduce my hours to enjoy other parts of life while helping clients use social media to meet their goals – but, especially working in social media (such an ad hoc culture) -I have been unable to make that a reality (yet).

Good lessons I have learned so far are that I am never as good alone as in a team. I’ve built my own professional support network and have colleagues that I can bounce ideas off on.  And it feels great to be able to make independent decisions based on my personal values.

Where will the journey take me next? I don’t know.

I think the key is to figure out how I define meaning and then execute towards that.

A book I co-authored “42 Rules for B2B Social Media Marketing” was just published and after working on it all year, it’s a good feeling. We are donating all proceeds to the Khan Academy (matched by our publisher), and I see meaning in providing a resource that can hopefully help others do a better job.

ABOUT the AUTHOR: Natascha Thomson is the Owner & Founder of MarketingXLerator – a B2B Social Media Marketing Consultancy – with a focus on using social media to connect people for business impact. She is also a co-author of the book 42 Rules for B2B Social Media Marketing.

 

LOST IN TRANSLATION – WORKING WITH GLOBAL TEAMS

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At a recent panel discussion I moderated on the topic, A Business Case for Diversity, the panel discussed the importance of the strategic value that global teams offer, and the challenges that business leaders face as they strive to leverage technology and communication platforms to conduct business globally. Clearly, we can acknowledge the upside of working in global teams – as our local U.S. team sleeps at night, there could be a global team working diligently elsewhere in their normal business hours, maximizing productivity literally round the clock. However, managing and working with global teams present geographic, logistical, linguistic, as well as cultural and diversity considerations. Within the diversity aspect, the role that women play in global teams can vary from culture to culture; as a business leader, you have an opportunity to draw participation from women on your global team. Being unaware of communication, cultural and other nuances could challenge team relationships and project execution. It is essential to have in place a strategy that builds cultural and other diversity awareness, builds understanding and collaboration through team building, and builds communication and active listening methods to avoid confusion and conflict.

Consider the following best practices:

1. Make global teams on both sides aware of the overall objectives, the scope of the project and deliverables. Make all sides aware of the process and the desired results. Further, why is working globally essential to the project’s success, and is this purpose clear to your local and global teams? How will your global team positively impact the organization’s success and how will you communicate this benefit to all teams?

2. Understand labor and employment laws in your global team’s country. Your company’s Human Resources and Legal departments may be able to assist in building this awareness. By educating yourself on any labor and employment factors, you can identify potential legal risks.

3. Wherever possible, bring the teams physically together. If this is not feasible, at least ensure that your local U.S. project leader visits your global team. Learning about the offshore work environment can help transition global team interaction as well as identify any potential project limitations. Conversely, if members of your global team are able to visit, be sensitive to any logistical, cultural and dietary concerns.

4. Be flexible to working with your global team’s time zone. Your willingness to meet the other team half-way on logistical grounds helps establish your good faith. However, be aware that a subordinate contractual relationship between global teams can sometimes establish who accommodates whose time zone.

5. Begin the project by building cultural awareness. Educate each side about respective cultures, traditions and holidays. Kickoff with a global team building activity using video conferencing or a Skype call. Find ways to discover and exchange fun facts about each person through virtual games. Talk about hobbies, holidays and other personal interests to find common ground. Encourage women team members to share as women from some cultures may tend to be quieter, particularly in mixed gender settings. Team members with shared common interests can be encouraged to follow up to further strengthen their relationships. Consider having women from the local U.S. team proactively reach out to their women peers in the global team; or, if there are no women on the local U.S. team, leverage your position as business or project leader to reach out.

6. Get to know your teams’ behavioral styles. Using personality tests such as Myers Briggs can identify any possible conflicting behavioral styles. Consider having a communication workshop to help your teams be better equipped at handling any differences. When necessary, remind women team members that you seek participation from all members.

7. Foster good multicultural communication best practices.

(a) Educate yourself and local U.S. team members in basic greetings in the global team’s native language. Most can easily learn common phrases such as “Please”, “Thank You”, “You’re welcome”, and “Goodbye”. Cultural differences may be diffused simply by showing people from other cultures that you are willing to understand them and communicate in their language. In fact, your willingness to stumble over foreign phrases may help lift any language or cultural barriers from non-native English speakers as they communicate in English as a foreign language.

(b) Speak English slowly as non-native English speakers may have difficulty following fast English speech. Use standard, grammatically correct English – avoid idiomatic or colloquial phrases that have origins in local U.S. popular culture. This is of utmost importance as people from other countries may be unaware of idiomatic expressions that have no cultural reference elsewhere. Avoid using phrases such as: “meeting minutes”, “wild goose chase”, “stay tuned”, “hold on”, “foot in the mouth”, “knee jerk reaction” and the like.

8. Use meeting facilitation best practices. Email detailed meeting agendas and important points prior to a meeting as this provides an opportunity for your global team members to digest the discussion topics in written form. Most non-native English speakers are stronger in written rather than oral communication so a written preface presents an advance opportunity to prepare for a meeting. After a meeting, send out detailed meeting notes to summarize the discussion and indicate action items, deliverables and persons responsible for deliverables. Additionally, consider providing follow up opportunities such as using online discussion boards to make communication and interaction easier for your teams.

9. A final women-oriented best practice: when conducting meetings, call on your women team members to elicit their participation. Some women may not speak up unless called upon, so use your empowerment as a business or project leader to build open communication across genders.

Global teams, when managed effectively, can prove to be a significant competitive advantage. Following global communication and other remote project management best practices ensures your success in working with global teams, and enables these interactions to become profitable business opportunities for your company.

ABOUT the AUTHOR: Radhika Emens is CEO and Founder of Tanjah Partners, a global marketing consultancy focused on helping companies bridge global markets. Radhika is a global marketing strategist who enjoys working on and solving business problems. She has worked in companies of various sizes and industries, and as an entrepreneur. She has a diverse background in developing marketing programs, and looks for ways to cross-pollinate ideas, systems and critical thinking processes across industries. She has an MBA from Chapman University, CA and an B.A. from Bryn Mawr College, PA. Born in India and raised in Morocco, she speaks 8 languages, and is passionate about all things global.

A Big Risk That Paid Off Big

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I’m a concert buff, surfer, and self-proclaimed adventurist. While attending college I had one of my biggest adventures when I worked as a receptionist for a private investment banking firm engaged in mergers and acquisitions, where we provided our clients with national registered agent services. One day, I came into the office and it had been emptied out! It turns out the people I worked with had been involved with some unsavory activities and had suddenly fled the country.  Fortunately by this time I had become familiar with the national registered agent services we offered our clients, and knew that they could be easily provided. There were very few companies that offered affordable packages to small businesses. I saw an opportunity, and I saw a solution!
Even though I was only 17 years old, I founded my own company, InCorp.  using my university scholarship money to fund my first direct mail campaign. This was a huge risk, but now, we are a company of over 65 employees and 100,000 clients worldwide. Since then I have founded two more companies, a business entity formation service, MyLLC, and, most recently, DocRun.
My aim is to lower the barrier of entry to the small business market for entrepreneurs by providing them with access to attorney-level legal documents using DocRun’s  adaptive software solution. In addition to being a serial entrepreneur, I’m a small business writer. I had the privilege of writing “Limited Liability Companies for Dummies” for John Wiley and sons. I am also an active public speaker and small business consultant.
Risking my university scholarship was a big decision, but as Ghandi once said, we must “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
– Jennifer Reuting, CEO and Founder of DocRun, I am a small businesses and corporate structuring expert, as well as a serial entrepreneur. I founded InCorp.com, the third-largest registered agent service provider in the U.S., and MyLLC.com, a business entity-formation
service.
Author: Jennifer Reuting