Share the Load

Someone once wrote, “A man may work from sun to sun, but a woman’s work is never done.”

I tend to agree that women get stuck with a heavy share of the load. It doesn’t need to be that way. It shouldn’t be that way.

It doesn’t hurt the men to help out around the home. So many women work outside the home these days just to help make ends meet. She deserves the respect of the male of the house by his helping out to keep things in order on the home front.

Yes. That does include fixing meals, washing dishes, scrubbing the toilet and changing diapers.

The woman is gracious enough to go out and help maintain a solvent budget. The least a man can do is help to maintain a solvent household. If there are things the man doesn’t know how to do, I’m sure the woman can help him learn.

I do not think it necessary to “keep score” of who does what, or to even necessarily have assigned chores. It can probably be done on an as needed basis, and should be spontaneous in response. That would be the most desirable method.

For so many centuries women have been victims of society and it’s traffic patterns. Now is the time to change those patterns. Helping each other in all aspects of life can be rewarding. We all have our strong and weak points. We can compliment one another and make it all happen.

It all starts with the first step.

So....What’s for dinner, eh?

Awesome Stroganoff

½ pound top sirloin cut into thin strips (may also substitute boneless/skinless chicken cut into thin strips, or ground beef)

½ C. Water

1 envelope Schilling Beef Stroganoff mix

2 C. Water

2 Tbsp. Dry cooking sherry

2 tsp. beef bouillon granules

2 cans (4 oz. Each) mushroom stems and pieces, drained

1 8 oz. Tub cream cheese

4 to 6 cups hot, cooked noodles

Simmer meat in ½ cup water in covered skillet for 5 minutes. Combine seasoning mix, water, cooking sherry, and beef granules in a separate bowl. Stir into cooking meat. Add mushrooms and continue to simmer another 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Add cream cheese. Stir and serve over hot, cooked noodles. Awesome!

Bob Curtis has been consulting individuals on interpersonal relationships for a number of years.

Meetings Productive

KEEPING MEETINGS PRODUCTIVE: Whether participants approve or disapprove of an idea, they shouldn’t be penalized or given a raise. If you start criticizing people who disapprove, then you’re only making your meetings less productive. Likewise, if you start handing out raises to everyone who agrees with you. This kind of behavior conditions participants to contributing only to win approval, rather than honestly contributing. Participants may focus more on developing ideas that meet approval, rather than generating their own creative ideas. To promote a free and creative sharing of ideas, the chairperson needs to exercise support of authority. Their role is to encourage participants to express their own ideas freely and fully.

TALKERS AND NON-TALKERS: Nearly every meeting has talkative members and quiet members. A quiet person may have an important contribution, but may feel intimated by the spontaneity of the meeting. Try to get past this by making eye contact with them while asking for a response from the group. Acknowledge a response from another member only if the quiet member gives no response. In effect, this will encourage him/her to answer the question without pinning them down.

KEEPING DOWN THE NOISE: A more difficult problem to rectify is quieting members who try to dominate meetings. Dominating people usually have immediate responses and go into endless detail if given the opportunity, while sometimes getting off the point and sidetracking the meeting. These participants are usually bright and valuable yet they can ruin a meeting if they are not stopped. You want to manage this person without alienating them. First, when you believe you understand the point being made, close the topic by saying “Thank you, I understand.” Second, avoid making eye contact with this person and/or hold up your hand as a casual stop sign. Finally, if all else fails, tape record the meeting and ask them to listen to the tape recording. This usually solves the problem.

CEO, A.E. Schwartz & Associates, Boston, MA., a comprehensive organization which offers over 40 skills based management training programs. Mr. Schwartz conducts over 150 programs annually for clients in industry, research, technology, government, Fortune 100/500 companies, and nonprofit organizations worldwide. He is often found at conferences as a key note presenter and/or facilitator. His style is fast-paced, participatory, practical, and humorous. He has authored over 65 books and products, and taught/lectured at over a dozen colleges and universities throughout the United States.

Makes a Difference

MANAGING MEETINGS--BEING PREPARED MAKES A DIFFERENCE: You can schedule all the meetings you want to, and if you are not prepared to take charge then you’re wasting your time. The time you invest planning a meeting is time well spent. The sooner you take action, the sooner you can enjoy the fruit of a productive meeting. Before you schedule a meeting, determine its purpose and necessity. Document specifically what you expect to accomplish during the meeting (including goals and objectives). A clearly written plan allows you to focus solely on the issues you need to address. Next, determine whether this purpose can be more efficiently achieved by some other means, such as a phone call, a written memo, or an informal conversation.

MANAGING MEETINGS--AGENDA: At least one week before a meeting, develop the agenda and send it to expected participants. The agenda should clearly indicate: 1. the meeting’s starting and ending time, 2. location of the meeting, 3. items (goals) to be covered and desired outcomes (objectives), 4. items listed in priority order, 5. time planned and scheduled for each item, 6. preparation expected of participants, and 7. the person responsible for presenting each item.

SETTING YOUR AGENDA: People usually plan an agenda backwards, placing the most important item last and the minor items first. However, you should plan the agenda the opposite way, by placing the most important item on the agenda first and the least important items last. This way, if you run out of time, you will have covered the crucial topics.

Barriers and Simplifying

The communication process can be much more difficult than a person thinks. Unfortunately, many times a presenter does not realize that their message is being lost until it is too late and they have gone through an entire meeting/lecture talking away about something that their colleagues/audience thinks is absolutely meaningless. Here are some helpful questions to ask yourself before attempting to relay a message to a large audience.

Communication barriers may be categorized as follows: Assumptions about yourself — Do I really have something to offer? Is it safe for me to offer suggestions? Do I really want to share the information? Will others really understand? How will the communication affect my self-esteem? Attitudes about the message itself — Is the information valuable? Do I see the information correctly or understand it well enough to describe it to others? Is it organized? Am I comfortable with what I am saying? Can I maintain eye contact? Sensing the receiver’s reaction — Do I become aware of whether or not the receiver is actually understanding? Or, in other words, can I “sense” from certain cues or reactions by the receiver, whether or not we are communicating? Am I aware of the receiver’s needs? interests?

Communication can easily be simplified. All you have to do is know the major causes of communication failures and detect them as they occur. Typically, people involved in communication breakdowns are either (a) utterly unaware that the communication has failed and that misunderstanding has resulted; or (b) painfully aware of a communication blockage — or complete breakdown — and frustrated by not knowing the reasons why. In either case, people are powerless to handle or remedy the problem. Remember, the expert communicator not only learns to detect communication barriers but also to anticipate them and use an appropriate remedy to overcome them.

Sales Presentation

ummer is here! It’s time to bring out your summer attire, take a vacation and reflect upon your achievements thus far this year. Look back at the past few months of your sales production . . . are you on target for all your sales goals for 2005? Are you making the sales from all your sales presentations?

You may be far ahead in some areas or behind in others. No matter what your sales production is today you certainly should have another look at what targets and goals you have developed in your game plan for 2005.

Are you using your strengths to their fullest potential? To improve your sales results, determine what has been working or not working. Then define where to concentrate your productive energies for the next two quarters in 2005 or the remainder of your compensation period.

The statistics say that 90% of the sale is made in the presentation. Many sales professionals need to be more innovative and prepare for every presentation. When planned and executed well, your presentation is the most effective method of winning more customers. The most important point of a presentation is that the objective of communication is not the transmission, but the reception. The whole preparation and content of presentation must therefore be geared to the customer with a clear objective that will specify actions or commitments you desire from the customer. Be creative and original to tailor the presentation to catch their attention and respect. Differentiate yourself from your competition.

It is difficult to overestimate the importance of careful preparation. Five minutes face to face with senior management could decide the acceptance or rejection of a proposal. With so much potentially at stake, the presenter must concentrate not only upon the facts being given, but also upon the style, pace, tone and tactics that should be used to best relate to the audience.

· Explain at the beginning of the presentation what will be covered and how long it will take so they know what to expect.

· Plan exactly how you wish to appear to them; dress appropriately for the audience.

· Rehearse your presentation. There is no substitute for practicing.

· Accentuate your gestures and vocal projection; always have great eye contact.

· A smooth presentation is the key for your customer to sense your sincerity and confidence.

· Don’t try to answer every question. They will respect you more if you get back to them with the correct answer.

There are three primary ways people learn:

Visually – people learn through reading, seeing and mental images.

Auditorily – people learn through listening and hearing.

Kinesthetically – people learn through touching and doing.

Try to find out how your customers prefer to learn. Pay attention during conversations, if they read a lot and use phrases like, “I see it,” and then they probably learn best visually, so use plenty of excellent visuals. If they use words like, “I haven’t heard that, but that sounds good to me,” they learn best auditorily, so keep the speaking dialog going at a pace and tone that they are comfortable with. If you see them holding your collateral and product they might learn best kinesthetically. Deliver your presentation primarily that way and create a well-rounded presentation that encompasses all the learning styles. For example, include visuals, have a good speaking voice, and bring samples of the product for every customer. But primarily tailor your presentation to their preferred learning style.

Although they will be trying very hard to concentrate on your presentation, your audience’s minds will inevitably stray. Your job is to do something, anything that captures their attention and makes a lasting impression upon them. You don't necessarily have to use repeated phrases, but simply make the point again and again with different explanations and in different ways. Include the audience in the presentation; ask them questions to get them involved and keep them involved. Once your presentation is over, you should try to honestly evaluate your performance. Either alone, or with the help of someone involved, decide what were the least and most successful aspects of your presentation and concentrate on those areas for your next presentation. If there’s a problem with the preparation or execution, then work on it. Practice is only productive when you make a positive effort to improve your presentations. Be committed to self-improvement to further develop your career. Be coached, or coach yourself, to constantly improve your presentations. Analyzing your strengths and building upon them is an effective method of self-coaching.

“A presentation is an interactive conversation with the customer.” - Dan Collins

We believe that for any investment of sales improvement to generate a positive return, whether it is field training, classroom training, online learning, computer based, audiobooks, etc., predefined outcomes need to be articulated and then executed. So clearly define what you want to accomplish for the remainder of 2005, focusing on being more innovative and preparing for every presentation and of course, follow through and support your game plan for 2005 with sales training tools like our Sound Selling Audiobook™. Good luck goal setting, presenting and selling!

Shopping Tips

Back to School sales seem to start almost as soon as your kids leave school for the summer. For parents, these sales are one of the best ways to save money and save big. Let's take a look at some the ways for you to realize savings as you prepare to send your children off to school.

1. Sales. Yes, Back to School sales are still real bargains for parents. The national retail chains such as, WalMart, Target, Sears, JC Penney, and KMart all run sales, as well as do the "pharmacy" chains including: CVS, Walgreens, and Eckerds. The former group of stores are great places to shop for clothing and bookbags while the latter group will feature cut rate school supplies.

2. Dollar Stores. Almost every town across America has the "one dollar" stores where everything is, you guessed it, sold for one dollar. Many of these stores are hit or miss as far as what they carry or what they have available. Some items, even at a dollar, are much more expensive than those found "on sale" at regular retailers.

3. Close Outs. Your kids may protest, but the close out stores -- Odd Lots and Big Lots to name two -- will carry items your family can use. Sure, the clothing may be way out of style, but lunchboxes, pens, stationary, bookbags, and the like generally are not.

4. Hand Me Downs. Big bro or big sis may have articles of clothing or items they no longer use. If they are gently worn/used consider passing these things on to your younger kids.

5. Garage and Yard Sales. Your child's lunchbox or calculator may be found at your neighbor's sale instead of at a retailer. Expect prices to be 50-90% less than full retail.

6. Consignment Shops. Did someone say, Salvation Army? Okay, this is a bit of a stretch. Your kids will probably scream if you take them to a consignment shop, so you can go instead. More than likely what you buy will be for your personal use. Use the money saved to purchase the Nike shoes for your sophomore.

7. Tax Free Weeks. If you live in an area of high sales taxes on clothing, wait for a special "tax free week" to come around to save on purchases. New York City, for instance, is one of the cities with a tax free week. At 8.25%, this particularly high sales tax rate often causes residents to flee the city and drive to New Jersey where there is no tax on clothing. Save on gas, tolls, and time, as well as prop up your local economy by waiting for these special weeks.

There are other ways for you to save money on school supplies including shopping online or by buying in bulk. Back to School shouldn't mean back in debt provided you shop carefully and wisely.

Wetting Resources

While a doctor can be very useful in helping you deal with your child’s bedwetting, health care workers today are busier than ever and no one doctor can keep up with all the research and new information coming out each day. You may want to contact organizations such as the National Kidney Foundation or the American Academy of Pediatrics for more resources and then raise the information you find with your doctor.

You can contact some key resources about bedwetting yourself:

•The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) provides lots of useful information, and pamphlets about a variety of conditions, including bedwetting...

American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
141 Northwest Point Boulevard
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007_1098
Phone: (847) 434_4000
Fax: (847) 434_8000

Alternative address:
The American Academy of Pediatrics
Department of Federal Affairs
601 13th Street, NW
Suite 400 North
Washington, DC 20005 USA
Phone: (202) 347_8600
Fax: (202) 393_6137
Email: kidsdocs@aap.org
Web Address: http://www.aap.org

•The PottyMD is a great resource about toilet training and bedwetting. Since this groups focuses only on this problem, you are sure to get information that is pertinent to the topic. Many parents swear by this resource.

PottyMD
2216 White Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37916
Phone: 1_877_POTTYMD (768_8963)
Web Address: www.pottymd.com

•The National Kidney Foundation has recently launched a number of resources about bedwetting. Their website has lots of information and even video clips about the subject. Plus, if your child’s bedwetting is caused by a kidney problem, this group can help you get information on that issue, as well.

National Kidney Foundation
30 East 33rd St., Suite 1100
New York, NY 10016
Phone: 1_800_622_9010
Web Address: www.kidney.org

•The National Kidney and Urologic Disease Information Clearinghouse provides all sorts of information about conditions that affect the kidneys and urinary system. Not surprisingly, they have several resources just about bedwetting.

National Kidney and Urologic Disease Information Clearinghouse
3 Information Way
Bethesda, MD 20892_3580
Phone: 1_800_891_5390
Web Address: www.kidney.niddk.nih.gov

•The Bedwetting Store carries a large selection of items relating to bedwetting. If you want to know about the latest items and devices that can help your child, consult this large online selection.

The Bedwetting Store
Phone: 1_800_214_9605
Web Address: www.bedwettingstore.com

•The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry helps in distributing information about childhood psychiatry. It can be a useful resource if your child experiences undue upset because of bedwetting or if your child is experiencing secondary Enuresis caused by emotional trauma and needs treatment to overcome the problem.