A Woman's Place is in the Home?

Growing up, there's always the ongoing debate about where a woman's place should be.  Not necessarily in my own home, but it has been discussed in the various media. In my younger days, I would not really have had a thought about it, however as I grow older and am still hearing the discussions, I thought it best to take a closer look for myself.

Now let's put a woman in a home and see how she handles it. There are a couple things that may shock you if this woman really uses her head, and the house is reasonably equipped where she can communicate with those outside the said home. I'll list them below, and have observed them on some occasions:

• She'll turn her house into an asset. In other words, she'll make the attributes of her home coupled with her skills work for her. What do I mean?
• She'll run a home office, in many instances providing off site admin support for her clients which may be a minimum of 10 paying a monthly retainer. Services like document management, drafting of documents, bookkeeping and payroll processing
• She'll provide services, which gave rise to the cottage industry, services like - clothing alterations and needle working [dress making for those outside the Caribbean], cooking meals for sale, retailing snacks and knickknacks to children and passersby from one room converted into a shop, micro-laundry services for larger establishments (small restaurants and small hotels) who would drop off and pick up, some even make confectionery which has now become much larger in terms of the business that begun at home. 
• Some would go into agriculture growing vegetables and some fruit and selling them back to restaurants, supermarkets and hotels. A few would even sell to individuals. 
• She will still rear children, engage in social activities, clean the home and its surroundings, take a course of study, say that she's tired and still dress up when it's time to go out looking nothing like the homebody she has decided to become. I say decided because many do so by choice where they can set their own terms of how they'll spend their day and what they'll do. 
• Here's a secret! Many out earn their male counterparts and keep it quiet to protect the egos of men who can't take it. 
• Some women, not all, can really make a budget work. They seem to make the household budget stretch and accomplish quite a bit. 
• I hasten to add though that not all the career paths that are chosen to work from home are of a domestic nature. Some are architects, masseuses, and other portable yet professional designations. 
• Throw a woman lemons and she'll make lemonade. That's the resilience they have. 

Men, we can learn a lot from women if we humble ourselves. Women have enabled men to experience significant success. Let's treat them more respectfully, especially since many homes were governed in a matrifocal manner within the Caribbean. 

Financial Institutions and SMEs

Many SMEs are noted for taking short cuts and often get seemingly reluctant help from institutions which are supposed to cater to them. Many SMEs do not have proper systems in place resulting in poorly kept financial records, poorly documented operations, zero succession planning, market definition is non-existent in that their client is someone who spent money with them rather than them being clear about who they are serving.

Despite these aforementioned characteristics, I still work with them to give them a fighting chance for success. This exposure has given me some measure of a perspective of their frustrations as SMEs trying to do the right thing in the realm of business.

Have you noticed the following as well:

1. When SMEs have to seek aid made available to them, they have to wade through tons of bureaucratic documentation to access the said aid, and after the frustrating process find that there is often one or two areas which exempt them from ever realizing the aid. 
2. So they need funding, instead of doing their own plans, they hire the services of a professional/series of professionals to help them obtain the financial assistance; often using funds they can ill afford. These institutions then tell them that they will issue them less funds that they have sought, though they have the supporting collateral, and they can always reapply later for any additional amounts which will require additional fees on the part of the SME. Makes one wonder why it was necessary to get the assistance of the professionals in the first place. 
3. Lots of entities are set up to provide technical assistance for SMEs but few are set up to offer the money needed and determined by the technical assistance paid for to help them realize their goals and objectives. 

I'm sure that I can go on with a longer list but will stop here on this occasion. The question is:

• Are we really willing and able to do all that we can to assist SMEs or is it really just rhetoric? 

Your views and feedback are welcomed. 

Customer Service used to be just Service

On occasion I have the opportunity to wonder about a few things that years of experience have granted me the privilege. One that comes to mind was Service; where did it go? Why was it so lacking nowadays, and who's this new Customer Service that though qualified academically does little when compared to the natural capabilities of Service? Here are a few thoughts about what I mean:

• Nowadays we get hospitality degrees and designations of varying sorts, yet seem unable remember encounters of those we've met in the last week. Despite the various devices, communication and other sorts, we seem incapable of remembering little details of our customers. How come that those of the older era who didn't have the tech aids and were able to remember the names of people, families, their likes, and some favorite activities? The older era didn't count the time they were with a client. Service was not given in exchange for something, only as a means of helping another feel more comfortable in a more inviting atmosphere. The result was higher value in the minds of the customer. 
• Attitudes that have developed by the work force that they only seem to seek support when their jobs are threatened are archaic; we have a responsibility to people! Regardless if whether they are seen as customers or fellow workers just to name a few. People are important! 
• Have we forgotten the "magic" words? [good morning, good evening, please, thank you] 
• There's also the rising trend of people having to refer to their sexual preference to determine their ability to work. I mean who really cares who you sleep with? The real question is can you do your job?! This coming out business, is really no one else's business but your own. Keep it there! It's not a badge of honor about your level of competency on your job. 
• Pay attention to detail - serving beverages and food in a sloppy manner in a huge NO! A lot of marketing dollars can be saved when you take the opportunity to serve people that you have in your presence well. If you're superior, they will return for a repeat experience. 
• A sour face, with the attitude of people accepting you as you are is tantamount to suicide. You really can't seriously expect to be mean, rude, and all the other adjectives that I can't publish; and then expect people to want to do business with you. 8 hours per day is a third of a lifetime, shouldn't it be enjoyable? Man has but a short time to live. 
• Let's look at no only enhancing customer service, but enhancing service. We would find that not only do we please others, but we can be quite pleasant to be around. The result can be in more people wanting to be in your company and doing business with you. 

Have a wonderful day folks! Let's look at the totality of the service we offer - regardless of where we work and live. 

Dun Wuk [Vagrant Life Rule]

This is going to be the lament of some people over the next couple of months. Charley was no exception. He ran a business and tried to do everything by the book and yet was feeling overwhelmed. No matter what he did, he just didn't seem to win. All the obstacles seemed to be stacked against him. What did Charley experience?

• Non paying clients. No matter how much the clients came with an emergency and begged him to do the work; offering at times to pay significantly more than necessary to get the work done. The unified problem was that once the work was done, so what the interest in paying. 
• Excessive taxation. Like PAYE [pay as you earn - based on what you earned], PFWYE [penalized for what you earn - an incremental tax], NYSI [Now you see it - for social security], VAST [ Value Added Still Taxing - computed on the value of the inputs], Property Taxes and Road Taxes; coupled with the recently Environmental tax - yes you pay to be living in a taxing environment. If a calculation was done, we - the working class, would probably get to keep 3 cents of every dollar. Then there's a CESS on gas so that you must cease driving and catch public transportation as you can't afford to drive in an already expensive environment. 
• Policy on how government can raise revenue to do its work is not only based on taxation, but the information used to set these taxes are based on the ridiculous things like what the populous spend their money on - rims, hair extensions, money spent on beautification. There are NO incentives to establish a business. It hardly makes sense to work as an employee since you are basically penalized for working. 

Charley has decided that he dun wuk. [No more working for Charley]; he's going to become a vagrant. Why? 

• There's no tax on begged revenues - standard nor incremental
• Risks are low and rent is free
• Food can be made available if you like what's on the free menus. 
• There's no burden on society since your society changes as you move around
• You don't have to maintain books, since no one thinks you are capable of doing so.
• Through all the changing scenes of life is more than a hymn. It's a way of life. 

So long Charley, and best of luck with your decision!

Too much Stress....will never stop our SUCCESS!

We live in the islands of the Caribbean - a place where people come to relax and recoup.  Yet there's an alarming reality of the people who actually live here.  We're too stressed!

What do I mean?

Let's break it down into groups of people living in the Caribbean. You will realize that though we live here, it can only be classified as an existence; bearing little resemblance to what others envisage as the lifestyles we experience.

There's something about the islands, that people of other lands would classify us as rich. Yet we don't see ourselves that way. Is it that we take too much for granted? Too many of us don't know how to swim. We only know the route to and from work. We don't get to visit our family, and nowadays don't even know the younger and older members of the family.

The islands are expensive. Living in the islands requires money and know how. If you have little money, you better have know how, since these skills are necessary to eke out a livelihood. We have to pay at least twice as much to be on par with those in other countries; and this goes for goods and services.

This constant hustle to survive is taking its toll on island life. Too much time at work, often in sedentary roles, is contributing to the increase in non-communicable diseases - diabetes, hypertension, to name a few. The high costs of living mean that we now have more month than money - a very real situation for many people living in the Caribbean. Apart from working in a job, one often has to have a sideline business - making items for sale, growing food stuff inclusive of livestock, or having a skill such as cutting hair, trimming hedges, making craft, making clothes, and the list can go on.

Despite the sea breezes, the coconut water, the rum, flying fish and other Caribbean goodies - when others come here to work; they quickly realize one thing - We Work Hard for What We Want! Though things are touch economically, we still want to experience what it's like on the side of the wealthy and will work to buy accessories for our cars, hair, bodies, homes and experiences. Life is short and we want the best!

Stress...bring it on. It will never defeat someone from the islands! We are born to succeed! We are winners!

Can you build a team?

Nowadays, it seems that everyone wants to be an entrepreneur. It doesn't help that governments seem to be fuelling this trend in order to justify their employment statistics either. What's happening though is that entrepreneurs don't want to work with others in many instances since they want to be the boss and not be accountable to anyone else. It's a recipe for disaster and failure.

There's a need for accountability, and that doesn't mean giving up control; though it may mean you don't exercise full ownership any longer. Here are some of the common thoughts being touted by many entrepreneurs - in raw unpolished form:

• They want the investors money but not their input; so the investor should put their money in and just disappear until it's near repayment time. 
• Staff don't need to be paid well, their work is not that valuable as running a business. Who gets the headaches at night trying to keep this business afloat?
• Customer better take what we're offering since the research shows they're getting a deal. No one else offers this product/service at this kind of price and value. Is this really how you wish to treat a customer? They may not complain....
• Look we have people who'd figure out the details. Who's the visionary here? That word, visionary, irks me personally. They always want to pull one over on everyone they meet. Personally I seldom wish to deal with anyone who has such a title. 

You get the idea. No one recognizes that to truly succeed you have to work in teams. Though the information's there, very few look to see that the successful entities have learnt the value of team and how to work with the skills and strengths of their various team members. 

No successful entity really does so without understanding the importance of having skill with people. Can you provide the following?

1. Clear direction 
2. Sound communication 
3. Create positive environments 
4. Be helpful without making others feel weak or useless
5. Empower others to utilize their skills and abilities 
6. A solutions oriented environment that solves virtually all problems because of clarity of focus

The list can go on but the message is clear. To succeed you have to be able to build teams. Too many still tout the cliched if you want it done well do it yourself type of thinking. 

The result is stress! 

Can you build teams with accountabilities in place? Are you willing to be accountable as well? If you're willing to learn team building then there are solutions available that will help you in realizing the success that you require. 

Here's what you can do. Read the books for yourself, take a course, hire a professional; all the while understanding that the process will be as quick or slow as you determine. In the realm of your plans, what time do you have realistically? In the scope of things, time can be even more valuable than money; so be careful how you invest your time. 

One thing is certain, whatever your decision, you can determine if you want fragmented dribblings of results or if you wish to really experience that feeling of loving it when a plan comes together. 

Take stock and revamp

When you're doing business for any length of time, it's easy for some things to fall through cracks. What do I mean?

• You deviate from your planned/established procedures
• Damaging behaviours creep in, especially when taken for granted that it's a one off experience 
• Your systems are not really systems, only an ad hoc set of behaviours clumped together 

What do you do?

• You will feel overwhelmed
• You will experience the frustration of not truly making progress 
• Stress levels will increase in all facets of your life - you get the picture 

STOP AND TAKE STOCK

• Examine what you're doing and the results you're getting 
• Identify where changes need to be made; get help if you need to
• Make the changes, and then evaluate to see if they're working 

Here's what you'll find

• You may become more organized achieving more in less time
• Your stress levels will decline
• You will feel more in control of what you're doing and what you wish to achieve 
• Ever so slight, you'll start to experience some successes 
• Stopping and taking stock often enough will even result in your becoming a bigger success than you've ever been

Don't take my word for it. Try it for yourselves. You owe it to yourselves, your family, and your business; whatever it may be. Begin to take steps today to improve the quality of your living.