Leadership through laughter. Or why fun is profitable. (or at least fun...)

   There is nothing quite so therapeutic or disarming as a laugh. Some of our best ads use them, and many of our fondest memories are of a good shared laugh. But too often offices are like quiet libraries where laughter is,well, not very professional or even plain old dead. Why?

  During the course of running Omega Insurance Services into the Inc. 500 twice, I would say there were very few days that passed where we didn't all bust up laughing over something. Now given the size of the company, not everyone was always there, but it was in "our blood". The place was wired for levity. For fun. Why?

   Because a) It is free. It cost nothing to have a fun work environment. You might have to be at the end of the joke at times. If that's the greatest pain you every feel, lucky you. b) It loosens people up. This is a huge advantage. People who are not worried about their next move relax and get the job done, instead of spending an inordinate amount of time worried about their "image". c) It is infectious. People like to be with fun people. Customers feel it, prospective employees feel it. It ends up permeating the company. Why does that matter?

   It matters because all those things lead to a better bottom line. You'll make more money if people are enjoying themselves. They're not spending time complaining, their not sitting worried about their job, or some goofy gossip. They're working and enjoying themselves. Most importantly, to me at least, is that if you aren't having fun, I reckon you should examine your choice of career.

   Perhaps this is a matter of philosophy. But if you look around at the best companies, I dare say that the one's that stay on top do it with a combined commitment to excellence and fun. Even if it turns out to give you the same bottom line, isn't it more enjoyable to be in a place that's a little loose, where smiles prevail?

   It's your business or career, and your life. Why not enjoy it?


    Alphabet Success, your personal step-ladder to success.  To buy, click here. 

Appreciate the clients you have!

We work hard for new business.  But are we as appreciative of them once they have been around? Often the old are neglected in favor of the new.

This is time consuming and expensive.  Especially when the long time client says goodbye with a nice chunk of profits.

A few years ago I had my entire private banking relationship with one institution. My thinking that better to be loyal with leverage than having a variety of anemic relationships. 

They stuck me with a low balance charge on an account that I simply forgot to wrap up. I asked them to waive the fee of about $25. So, I walked with every last cent.  My estimate is that my relationship was worth AT LEAST $5,000 per year in net income to them. 

People lose loyalty when they are not valued.  There were no major demands on my part aside from avoiding an occasional fee. My credit card and deposit business was making plenty for them.

The absolute worst part? Nobody (not even the banker assigned to my account) asked why I left, no question from a manager. One person asked. The teller who paid out some small closing balances to me.

Frankly I wanted to stay.  But by the time the poor woman asked my new bank was already funded and providing great service and certainly making money from me.

Don't Ever Forget - to say thank you.