Perhaps it's because of women's hard won reputation as excellent multitaskers. Or perhaps its because we all panic that if we don't put in our two cents instantly, we'll be ignored. But whatever the reason, too many of us have gotten into the nasty habit of being "overly responsive." As soon as our Blackberrys vibrate or we hear the ping of a new email arriving in our … [Read more...]
The Plight of the Pleaser
In graduate school I was in an experiment to see what happens when emotionally laden words are presented to you. The question was “can just one word make a difference in how you react?” I’ll give you the answer straight up, one that I guess you already intuitively know. The answer is “Yes! Words, even simple words, not linked together in a sentence can cause us to shake and … [Read more...]
Without Walls
Honoring the 20th Anniversary of the Berlin Wall tumbling down reminded me of the children’s nursery rhyme-- “Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall Humpty Dumpty had a great fall All the king’s horses and all the king’s men Couldn’t put Humpty together again” Curious verse; so here is my interpretation. When we fall and perhaps feel … [Read more...]
Breaking the Stereotype Code: Do Women Really Talk Too Much?
We have come a long way since we won the right to vote in 1921. In just about 90 years we are no longer barefoot and pregnant. We can go anywhere on the planet with or without a man at our side. We can be called “Ms.” To our men’s “Mr.” and the word spinster has become archaic. (What would be a name for an elder man who did not marry?) We're finally becoming more equal in our … [Read more...]
Your Product or Service: How to Price it Right
I've always believed that you must price your particular product or service at a level that provides value for others at a price they're willing to pay. There are two parts of a price tag: one is the actual sale price of the item. The other is the value that the purchaser finds in buying that item. The actual sales price is just a number. However, the item is essentially … [Read more...]
How Much Help is Enough?
There is a pivot point we all need to find between being too caring or too cold when employees have personal issues. Women, hard-wired to be compassionate and consider others first, often get stuck in the caring rather than cold region. Here is an example: Roberta, a valued administrative assistant who does great work and is dedicated to her company had … [Read more...]
Busting Stereotypes
Every once in a while I meet a woman who has quietly taken stereotypes, looked them in the eye and with a quick flick of the wrist lobbed them into the discard pile. Rosie Saez a Senior V.P. of H.R. at Wachovia Bank is a stereotype buster. She has been in the world of banking for over 20 years and has participated in helping change this mainly male dominated world over … [Read more...]
Drupal, Joomla, WordPress, or Custom Content Management?
Having built over 250 websites in the last ten years, I have a good sense of what tools would be a good fit for a particular project. If you're thinking of building a website for your own business, you'll want to identify some key needs around the following: 1) your budget -- how much can you realistically spend 2) your timeline to get the website up -- when do you need a … [Read more...]
Be Smart About Jumping In
Post by Jand K. Stimmler, contributing Women On Business writer Recently I read an article entitled “On Court’s First Day, Sotomayor Jumps In” which referred to Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s first day on the Supreme Court. The article went on to say that the Justice “displayed no reticence on the first day of her first term on the court…(she) asked many questions and made as many … [Read more...]
Women and Men: Is Partnership Really Possible?
This is such an exciting time of pattern busting. By that I mean the old ways are falling fast and furious. We are no longer willing to shove bad behavior under the rug. We are questioning old ways and questing for new ways. I believe the most fascinating and long overdue microscope is now being put more strongly on male-female relationships in a way that is neither … [Read more...]