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Brought to you by the Business Center at New Covenant Campus
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 Letter from the Executive Director Pamela Rich Wheeler
Moving at the Speed of Relationships
One of our staff members, Melissa Stewart, periodically quotes a saying from one of her pastors, Pastor Ray Barnard, "We Move at the Speed of our Relationships". This is a strong statement when you talk about doing business. I connect it with good business etiquette skills in the areas of behavior and building character and increasing your network.
In the book "Click", George Fraser has Ten Truths for Connecting with People. Two are "Make peace not war with words - belief and confidence" and "Nuture your relationships - they are the core of your success." I wanted to focus on this area because of some recent experiences I have had with clientele demonstrating both negative and positive etiquette.
Etiquette is about being comfortable with people and making them comfortable around you. I hated as a little girl being told authoritatively by my grandmother, who is now 86 (with a better memory than me) to get up from my seat on the Septa bus and let an adult sit down. I can hear it now. As fustrating as it was, I realize now that my grandmother was shaping the beginning of what would prove to be my strong acumen for being polite, embracing self control and maintaining strong business alliances. In addition to teaching me to be polite, my grandmother as well as my grandfather and mother are sticklers for returning calls, good table manners, sending thank you notes, treating family, friends, and colleagues with integrity, paying bills on time and being on time. I would have to say that most of these practices I have adopted, while some are still a work in progress.
The Business Center never wants a client to be perceived as disrespectful or abrasive because a second chance in business negotiations is not always granted. To address issues of business etiquette The Business Center will be offering two new First Friday Seminars entitled "Business Etiquette and Negotiating Skills" and "Good Credit Strategies". After the techniques are learned you will then be ready to implement and apply thenm at our First Friday Seminars that focus on effective networking, "Constant Contacts", "Doing Business Locally, Statewide and Internationally" and "Meet the Press" (see page 10).
Given the state of the economy, it is even more important to be at your best game and nuture relationships in a positive way. Additionally, with all the lay-offs there is a lot of opportunity being created for entrepreneurship, which is still the driving force fo the economy. Many potentially worthwhile and profitable deals are being made at the table of good manners, credibility, and respectability.
As we approach the Ten Year Anniversary for The Business Center for Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise, we look forward to building strong relationships with you now and in the future. Also, we hope you will come and celebrate with us on November 20th (see page 9).
Pamela Rich-Wheeler, MBA
Executive Director
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The Business Center
7500 Germantown Avenue
Elders Hall, Suite 113
Philadelphia, PA 19119Phone: (215) 247-2473
Fax: (215) 247-2477
Email: info@thebizctr.com |
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