THOUGHTS ON:
Relationships By Chuck Morris
“I speak to everyone the same way, whether he is the garbage man or the President of the University.” ~Albert Einstein
stances that challenge you. Join Rotary or Kinsmen or the Lions Club as this will enable you to witness relationships on an entirely different level. Don’t be afraid to speak about topics that are of interest to you and maybe to your audience.
Good relationships cause us to be suc-
the equipment included. A couple of our
cessful in our everyday life and certainly
buildings were delayed somewhat, but
in our business life. The better the rela-
everything did get shipped.
tionship, the better the results you may
So how do you get there? Listen.
achieve at whatever it is you are trying to
Watch. Ask. Learn. Practice. If you can
accomplish.
follow those simple rules, it will come to
After years of building relationships
you. It takes patience and it takes years
with others, those with whom I have
to develop properly. You will see some
worked or done business, I have seen
change after a short period of time but
the benefits. Whether it is a more har-
the biggest benefit to you will appear
monious personal life or during business
down the road. The easiest way to do it
transactions, people tend to listen and
is to make it part of your everyday life.
work with you to help you accomplish
Simple, right? Not for some. For those of
your goals.
you well on the way and seeing tangible
Case in point: recently we had a couple of projects that were nearing
results, there is something you can do to help others.
completion and we still had not received
It is beneficial to take people under
products from our vendors after waiting
your wings and coach/mentor them on
many, many weeks. The summer produc-
how to build relationships. Many really
tion for those companies always ramp up
do not know how to deal with certain sit-
as many organizations (school districts in
uations and oftentimes, find themselves
this case) order materials that must be in
in a bit of a pit, struggling to climb back
place for school opening come Septem-
out. Periodically they may be too ag-
ber. We were ready to ship, and still no
gressive in their approach or unsure how
product.
to respond when they are faced with a
Take the challenge! Even introverts can improve.
“In many ways, effective communication begins with mutual respect, communication that inspires, and encourages others to do their best.” ~ Zig Ziglar Part of relationship-building is the fact you need to first understand yourself and know your shortcomings; then attempt to address them in an open and honest fashion – to yourself. Once you figure out how to do that, you are on your way. Nurture what you are building. Don’t let a bad day interfere with your progress. Remember, if you come across as angry or with an uncaring demeanour, all your work will suffer. It’s sort of like credibility, where it takes years to build
I sent out a request to some of my
perceived affront from the person they
and in a fit of foolishness, 10 seconds to
former colleagues, asking if they might
are dealing with. Coaching and mentor-
destroy it!
have what we were waiting for and if so,
ing takes time but it works and it allows
Words are some of the most powerful
could I acquire them. We will replace the
you to learn too, as the person you are
tools you have. Use them wisely and with
inventory once our pieces arrived. I was
helping learns from you. You will see
thought. Think back on that sage advice
humbled by the response. I had numer-
things in a different light and perhaps
you received years ago and pull on some
ous people respond, willing to help. I
that will allow a better understanding of
of your past experiences to develop the
was able to utilize that help and the end
certain aspects of what is going on.
best approach while continuing to build
result was that we were able to ship with 26
Ops Talk • Fall 2014
Expose yourself to different circum-
those relationships. b
