We have seen Conrad Black, Martha Stewart, Enron, Tyco, and countless others in the headlines as their career or business is examined to see “what went wrong?” Newspaper headlines scream about insider trading, companies cooking their books, and other scandals involving business executives at mostly major corporations. Even today, many are questioning the ethics of lenders and investors in the sub-prime market as people are losing their homes to foreclosure and investors are losing their money through direct or indirect involvement. Why was money lent to people who could not afford payments when normal market rates would come into effect? Why would lenders package these loans without identifying the inherent risk of them to the purchasers?

Scandals such as these tarnish the reputations of business in general, including the small business owner. Investors perceive higher risk, customers are more wary, and the financial industry gets reluctant to extend credit. In spite of this, many small-business owners think a written code of ethics unnecessary. There are even more home businesses that would not believe that a code of ethics is necessary for them. This assumption is simply false. There is a huge benefit to having a written code of ethics for the small business including your home business.

A code of ethics will identify to suppliers, customers, contractors, and employees what behavior is up to standard and what is not. We will come across ethics violators in the normal course of business and we must stand firm to our code of ethics and avoid dealing with these people.

A written code of ethics identifies those basics that you consider essential in operating a business of integrity and character. Communicating this on your website and other informational material will give you an advantage in the marketplace. If you live by it, you will have the added benefit of being able to sleep at night.

A useful code of ethics will have some basic ingredients such as adherence to applicable laws, conflicts of interest to avoid, sexual or other harassment, workplace safety, environmental concerns, industry rules, regulations and practice as well as accuracy of financial information. Be careful however, as one culture or society’s norms may not be the same as yours. For example, some locales require that “special inducements” be paid in order to obtain or carry on business. Or it may be that oppression against people exists where the business will occur. What will the rules be around this? The code of ethics should address these issues.

The code of ethics must fit with the personality, values, and mission of the particular small business. As confusing as it may sound, ethics are a very personal thing. For example, one person may think it unethical (at least to that person) to sell a product of questionable value, while another will say that the determination of value is made by the buyer and to withhold the good from sale would be unethical. (This example assumes that no fraud or misrepresentation occurred.) It will help if you can include your stakeholders in developing appropriate pieces of your code of ethics, thereby gaining a second opinion.

In the examples stated above, a code of ethics was in place, but they were ignored, not understood, or the people involved justified their transgressions as being “in the greater good”. So simply having a code of ethics is not enough. Post your code of ethics, and set up a reporting system that could include accepting anonymous reports. While you don’t want to encourage a culture of “tattle-tales”, stakeholders will need a way to inform someone about any ethics violations they may see. Most important is to show others that you live by the code of ethics yourself. Living by a set of high values will garner trust and confidence in the business and you. They will be then willing to discuss areas of concern with you.

Failing to act on ethics violations will disable even the best intentioned of your efforts just as failing to announce and endorse your code of ethics to your stakeholders renders it practically meaningless. When formulating your code of ethics policy, specify what consequences go with lapses and breaches. Your leadership skills will be tested as you strive to holding people to ethical conduct. But it is worth the peace of mind.

Mark Styranka is the owner this website. He writes on a variety of topics but primarily relating to money making secrets for the stay at home business. To learn more about how you can work & stay at home, Markalso recommends that you visit this website too

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Tags: code, ethic, ethical, business, administration

“Being an entrepreneur was never easy. Starting a business up from scratch is one of the most difficult and complex things to do. If anyone ever told you that it was easy, then that person is wrong. But now, a lot of would be entrepreneurs are looking at a much safer and hassle free option of buying an established business. The reasons for this are many. It reduces the hassles, the anguish and the pain by leaps and bounds, getting finance is easier etc. But buying a business is also an equally challenging task. If you go wrong, then very soon you will have made a huge financial mess. You need to ask a few questions to yourself to ascertain whether the business that you are about to buy is right for you.

You as the new owner

Besides the finance, there is a lot more at stake when you buy a new business. Your reputation for one, your ability to run the new business and your working capabilities are all at risk in starting a new venture. When you buy the new business, you need to understand that the focus of the business shifts completely upon you. You need to be qualified both technically as well as in terms of experience to run the business effectively. A business can be really stressful as you might have to deal with difficult employees, uncertainty, adversity and lastly, loss. The faster you are able to gauge your expertise, the easier it will become for you to determine whether the new business is right for you.

Background check

This is one of the most important steps in securing a good and strong business. You need to conduct a complete background check of the business that you are about to takeover. Does the business have a positive cash flow? Valuing the business is a part of this background check. A business valuation analyst will be able to help you determine the actual value of the company. The valuation of the analyst is based on experience and professional standards. The analyst does not take the financial details of the company into consideration.

Finding the right business

The Merger and Acquisition firm will help you to find the right business for you. These guys are intermediates or middlemen. They can be categorized into several categories based on the kind of business transactions that they can handle. For example, a broker can handle a business transaction for companies with sales under $5 million. The broker would nevertheless love to handle the transaction for a company with sales exceeding $20 million but neither do they have the competency nor the expertise to do the same. So when you seek the services of a M&A firm, make sure that you choose the right one based on their expertise.

Planning

A proper plan in place will let you complete the entire acquisition deal in no time at all. If you run an aggressive plan, then it should not take more than three months for the complete acquisition to go through. So sketch out the plan and execute it in proper order.

William King is the director of French Wholesalers & France Wholesale Suppliers Directory, Wholesale Trade Offers & Wholesalers Dropshipping Supplies & Products, and Dubai Property & UAE Property & Dubai Real Estate Properties. He has 18 years of experience in the marketing and trading industries and has been helping retailers and startups with their product sourcing, promotion, marketing and supply chain requirements.

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Tags: ethics, ethical, business, training, course

Changes in Corporation Attitudes

In the past, it has been very easy to get caught up purely in a business’s profitability and financial performance. This influence has been brought on by people and shareholders as they expect ever increasing returns on their hard earned investment dollars.

Having recently attended the Australian Institute of Company Directors CDC Course, we were given examples of companies that desire to achieve more than profit. Interestingly, these included businesses that dealt with products such as petroleum and fast food.This additional desire is based on the theory that by being good corporate citizens, companies will be more attractive to deal with and profitability could be even more enhanced which would ultimately lead to an improvement in their share prices.

What is the Triple Bottom Line?

Traditionally, the notion of the “triple bottom line” approach is a way of assessing and comparing large public companies only.But initially, let’s ask ourselves, what is Triple Bottom Line?

Well, the first “bottom” line is usually looking at how a company’s finances are going.The second “bottom line” is the company’s environmental record.The third “bottom line” is the company’s social record.

Whilst many small businesses quite rightly need to ensure they are profitable, isn’t it possible that it would be good to adopt the “triple bottom line” approach to our own businesses and reap the benefits accordingly particularly in regional communities? In fact, it is quite ironic that many small regional businesses do this (perhaps without realising it) and the large public companies are finally registering that this is a good thing and hence following suit.

Don’t Fake it!

Many of us should have as part of our culture and values, honesty and integrity. This cannot be faked and eventually, those businesses that try to fake it, are caught out.How can the second and third bottom lines be measured? This can be quite difficult when assessing your business your desire to achieve measurable standards other than profitability. However, this is a challenge worth persisting with.

What is the Community/Public Looking For?

Many communities and the public are looking for higher standards from business before they will deal with them.For example, people will buy products from businesses they trust in and in which they have confidence. They will feel good in doing so. Also, employees work better when associated with businesses in which they feel pride. They have less interest in their work if they are working for businesses they are embarrassed to admit to their relatives and friends that they work for. An ethical business has high morale.

Act Now!

As part of your overall business strategy, you may wish to consider how your business contributes to your community. You might set participation rates in charity/community events each year involving principals and staff or set aside sponsorship dollars per annum and allocate them across a broad section of the community. It may be to have a policy to deal with local business wherever possible (subject to reasonable parameters involving competitiveness, service etc). You may also wish to have a culture that is environmentally responsible within your workplace and promote this to your staff and clients.

By sitting down and quantifying not just your annual profit and budget targets but also, how you would like your business to make the world a better place, you may find you receive additional benefits and profitability you hadn’t expected in the first place.Big business is finally realising this – small business should never underestimate it.

More information on this article can be found here and also at this site.

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Tags: marketing, ethics, ethical, competition, compete

“I don’t get it. Why do so many people hate Walmart? I’m actually a big fan of Walmart. They offer some of the most competitive prices for nearly… everything! Walmart is the single biggest employer in the United States. It employees well over 1 million workers, and gives them the option to opt into a health care program. Wal-Mart pays an average full-time hourly worker of $10.11 an hour, according to independent expert statistical analysis*. That’s nearly double federal minimum wage of $5.15 an hour. Let’s analyze Walmart a bit further by looking at the usual complaints and responding to them.

Complaint: Walmart drives out competition! They’re evil!
My Response: Walmart beats the competition. They offer the same product at a cheaper price. That means they are more efficient then their competitors. Since when was being successful a crime? Let’s look at a scenario. Let’s pretend YOU made a new website. Let’s say your new website competes with Google. Your new website is amazingly efficient, user friendly, and always gets the best search results. You start making millions of dollars. Your new website is absolutely phenomenal. Whenever someone searches something, they always find exactly what they’re looking for. You managed to do this because you spent countless months developing your new search engine. Your new website also gets praise from the entire country for being such a resourceful website. However, due to the result of your new success, you managed to bankrupt both Google and Yahoo by offering cheaper rates. Did you do anything wrong? Absolutely not! You created a BETTER product then your competitors, and in result, they had to close down, because they couldn’t adapt to their new competition. This is exactly what Walmart did. They created an extremely efficient method of getting products and putting them on the shelf at low costs.

Complaint: Walmart strong-arms its suppliers for the lowest possible prices.
My Response: Why should Walmart pay the same price for a TV as Joe’s electronics? Walmart purchases 1,000,000 TVs at once, while Joe’s electronics purchases 5. The truth is that suppliers love Walmart. (source below). Why wouldn’t they? When you talk about transactions, you have to understand basic economics. Whenever a transaction occurs, both parties always benefit. If that wasn’t the case, the transaction would not have occurred. Lets look at the most basic example. When I purchase a gallon of milk for $2 at 7-Eleven, I clearly want the milk more then I want the 2$. The 7-Eleven clearly wants my 2$ instead of the gallon of milk. Whenever Walmart needs to restock, they contact their suppliers and negotiate a price. If both parties agree, the order is fulfilled. If the supplier cannot agree on a price with Walmart, the supplier has the option to decline. Walmart will then seek a different supplier to get the order filled. If no supplier will fulfill Walmart’s order, Walmart will most likely raise its offer and try to negotiate once again with its suppliers. Is this penny pinching method evil? Of course not! Walmart is trying to get the best deal possible. Since when was that ever a despicable act? A consumer usually checks the price on higher tag items at multiple retailers before making a purchase, why shouldn’t Walmart do the same thing?

Complaint: Walmart is a monopoly!
My Response: Walmart is not a monopoly. Anyone can compete with Walmart. If you want to talk about monopolies, take a look the United States Postal Service or PSEG. If you compete with the Postal Service on non urgent first class mail you will get locked up. You won’t get locked up for competing with Walmart. Walmart currently has fewer than 10% market share for retail in the United States. Hewlett Packard (HP) currently has a 16.9% worldwide market share in the personal computer market, why aren’t they labeled a monopoly? Intuit, the maker of QuickBooks, has a 73.9% of the accounting software market, and they aren’t criticized nearly as much as Walmart is. Where do the complaints really come from? The consumers? No way! Walmart serves over 100 million customers each week. They wouldn’t keep coming back if their experience wasn’t satisfactory.

Original Article is here.
Visit us, and learn more about Libertarian politics! Learn about Capitalism, and why small government works!

Some of Walmart’s Achievements / Awards:

2007: Guangdong 10-Year Outstanding Chain Supermarket

2006: Most Satisfactory Supplier in Shenzhen

2006: China Retail Industry’s Top Employer

2006: Top Multinational Company in Asia

2006: Academician-Recognized Best Employers in China

2005: Best Companies to Work for in China

2005: Employers of the Year in China

Visit the Website

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Tags: marketing, ethics, ethical, competition, compete

“I don’t get it. Why do so many people hate Walmart? I’m actually a big fan of Walmart. They offer some of the most competitive prices for nearly… everything! Walmart is the single biggest employer in the United States. It employees well over 1 million workers, and gives them the option to opt into a health care program. Wal-Mart pays an average full-time hourly worker of $10.11 an hour, according to independent expert statistical analysis*. That’s nearly double federal minimum wage of $5.15 an hour. Let’s analyze Walmart a bit further by looking at the usual complaints and responding to them.

Complaint: Walmart drives out competition! They’re evil!
My Response: Walmart beats the competition. They offer the same product at a cheaper price. That means they are more efficient then their competitors. Since when was being successful a crime? Let’s look at a scenario. Let’s pretend YOU made a new website. Let’s say your new website competes with Google. Your new website is amazingly efficient, user friendly, and always gets the best search results. You start making millions of dollars. Your new website is absolutely phenomenal. Whenever someone searches something, they always find exactly what they’re looking for. You managed to do this because you spent countless months developing your new search engine. Your new website also gets praise from the entire country for being such a resourceful website. However, due to the result of your new success, you managed to bankrupt both Google and Yahoo by offering cheaper rates. Did you do anything wrong? Absolutely not! You created a BETTER product then your competitors, and in result, they had to close down, because they couldn’t adapt to their new competition. This is exactly what Walmart did. They created an extremely efficient method of getting products and putting them on the shelf at low costs.

Complaint: Walmart strong-arms its suppliers for the lowest possible prices.
My Response: Why should Walmart pay the same price for a TV as Joe’s electronics? Walmart purchases 1,000,000 TVs at once, while Joe’s electronics purchases 5. The truth is that suppliers love Walmart. (source below). Why wouldn’t they? When you talk about transactions, you have to understand basic economics. Whenever a transaction occurs, both parties always benefit. If that wasn’t the case, the transaction would not have occurred. Lets look at the most basic example. When I purchase a gallon of milk for $2 at 7-Eleven, I clearly want the milk more then I want the 2$. The 7-Eleven clearly wants my 2$ instead of the gallon of milk. Whenever Walmart needs to restock, they contact their suppliers and negotiate a price. If both parties agree, the order is fulfilled. If the supplier cannot agree on a price with Walmart, the supplier has the option to decline. Walmart will then seek a different supplier to get the order filled. If no supplier will fulfill Walmart’s order, Walmart will most likely raise its offer and try to negotiate once again with its suppliers. Is this penny pinching method evil? Of course not! Walmart is trying to get the best deal possible. Since when was that ever a despicable act? A consumer usually checks the price on higher tag items at multiple retailers before making a purchase, why shouldn’t Walmart do the same thing?

Complaint: Walmart is a monopoly!
My Response: Walmart is not a monopoly. Anyone can compete with Walmart. If you want to talk about monopolies, take a look the United States Postal Service or PSEG. If you compete with the Postal Service on non urgent first class mail you will get locked up. You won’t get locked up for competing with Walmart. Walmart currently has fewer than 10% market share for retail in the United States. Hewlett Packard (HP) currently has a 16.9% worldwide market share in the personal computer market, why aren’t they labeled a monopoly? Intuit, the maker of QuickBooks, has a 73.9% of the accounting software market, and they aren’t criticized nearly as much as Walmart is. Where do the complaints really come from? The consumers? No way! Walmart serves over 100 million customers each week. They wouldn’t keep coming back if their experience wasn’t satisfactory.

Original Article is here.
Visit us, and learn more about Libertarian politics! Learn about Capitalism, and why small government works!

Some of Walmart’s Achievements / Awards:

2007: Guangdong 10-Year Outstanding Chain Supermarket

2006: Most Satisfactory Supplier in Shenzhen

2006: China Retail Industry’s Top Employer

2006: Top Multinational Company in Asia

2006: Academician-Recognized Best Employers in China

2005: Best Companies to Work for in China

2005: Employers of the Year in China

Visit the Website

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Tags: marketing, ethics, ethical, competition, compete

Do you believe that child labor is wrong? Do you believe that children should be in school as compared to a shop making clothes that people wear? If you answered yes, to both of these, you are not alone. There are many educational institutions nationwide within our country whom have a “Sweat free Policy” with their curriculum materials as well as certain apparel. These particular institutions have adapted a “Code of Conduct for the Manufacturer of Apparel”. The apparel industry has been exposed to rampant worker abuse. A man by the name of Andrew Ross reported back in 1997 the following, “The textile and apparel industries are a showcase of horrors for the labor abuses sanctioned by the global free trade economy, where child labor, wage slavery, and employer cruelty are legion.” ~ NO SWEAT: Fashion, free trade, and the rights of garment workers, Andrew Ross, editor, 1997.

The following is some examples of apparel made in sweatshops: Sports uniforms (This includes gym uniforms); school uniforms; shoes, athletic shoes or sneakers; sweatshirts, caps, and other imprinted clothing with school’s logos; academic regalia; lab coats and staff uniforms.

What is a sweatshop? A sweatshop is a workplace which consists of systematic violations of one or more of the fundamental workers’ rights have been violated according to international law and site-of-production laws and regulations. The rights include:

Workers receiving a fair wage and benefits; Children not being subjected to working conditions that could harm them physically, psychologically, or intellectual development; Freedom from excessive work hours and forced labor, freedom from physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, and protection of workplace health and safety hazards.

A code of conduct is utilized to hold companies accountable. Most companies of today have adapted their own “Code Of Conduct”, unfortunately, company codes are often inadequate to protect the workers.

The following is a list of CEO’s and their compensation for year 1998, do keep in mind all of these CEO’s are employed by companies whom do indeed utilize sweat shops.

Millard Drexler, GAP $660 million

Michael Eisner, Disney $177 million

Floyd Hall, Kmart $ 23 million

Phil Knight, Nike $ 3 million

Paul Charron, Liz Clairborne $7 million

David Glass $ 40 million

The following are samples of starvation wages around the world.

Guatemala 37 cents an hour

El Salvador 60 cents an hour

Nicaragua 23 cents an hour

Honduras 43 cents an hour

Haiti 30 cents an hour

Mexico 50 cents an hour

China 28 cents an hour

Indonesia 20 cents an hour

Burma 4 cents an hour

Bangladesh 13-20 cents an hour

These wages are called “starvation wages”. I use to be one of those people that constantly stated that our economy can not be compared to other countries, I was innocently stating this believing that what US Companies were paying workers within these countries were fair wages within their economies, but after viewing the evidence of what the company CEO’s are making and knowing that in countries such as El Salvador as well as others, these families are not making enough to even raise their families, I have definitely sustained a change of heart.

I do feel our own economy needs a serious face lift, but why can we not be humane about it? I feel that consumers have more power than they even know. I feel that consumers should hold corporations accountable to respect the rights of workers, but not only as workers, but as human beings and they need to be paid a “living” wage, not a “starvation” wage.

I do not feel we should boycott these corporations, for why should we? We enjoy their products, the reality here is that we enjoy purchasing these items, besides, boycotting these corporations would only hurt jobs in developing countries. I support jobs for developing countries, but I feel that consumers should want the people of those countries to have jobs with dignity and fair wages. I believe the CEO’s of these huge corporations could spare some money to ensure the people whom are indeed aiding in their wealth can work with dignity and support their families, and if the CEO’s refuse? The consumers should demand fair wages. What if these children were our own children? Our own families? This places a different perspective on things for every child performing these tasks is someone’s son/daughter or someone’s mother/father. This truly places a realistic perspective on this most often ignored epidemic.

For those of you whom are truly passionate about this issue, I have included some links that will educate you on this topic as well as direct you to organizations whom are striving to end “starvation wages”.

Please visit this site

Also this site

For businesses to reach financial stability, good morale and client satisfaction, corporate ethics must be a guiding policy for all involved.

Have you ever heard of the old saying “with friends like that, who needs enemies”? That is just the case where employees, managers or others working in a business are jeopardizing corporate ethics. Many corporations entrust great confidential, important issues and financial responsibilities to employees that could destroy not only their business, but also their customers. If the employees of a business are not ethical and loyal the results can be devastating.

Corporate ethics has come to the surface over the past several years with many fraudulent transactions. When managers are skimming off the top or conducting unethical actions with shareholders, customers or other employees it is sometimes difficult to detect. Others such as employees may keep quite about what they know for fear of losing their job or worse. In the past it has been so bad that those practicing the criminal or unethical behavior have threatened to hurt the employee if they speak up. Of course there is a “whistle blowers” law for protection, but law enforcement can not with them 24/7. Many of these people have families and fear not only for themselves, but also their families.

The business itself can suffer from the loss of clients/customers, financial issues and risk having to shut down operations when employees lack corporate ethics. Theft is not the only problem or behavior that can risk the businesses stability either. The treatment of clients/customers, their personal information and business dealings can also cause detriment to the business. That is the exact reason that many corporations have been implementing ethics training for all employees. There are many companies and individuals that will work on sight to teach employees and managers how to remain ethical, report violations and not fear in doing so. These topics may seem black or white, but they are often not that easy. There are several different issues that are commonly feared by those blowing the whistle. This person that they are “telling” on may be a family member, friend or boss and that can make the decision that much harder.

Corporation’s should make sure that they have a clear cut policy about reporting illegal or unethical activity. It is important that employees understand that by doing the right thing that they will not be sold out or punished for protecting the business. Low level employees are not the only ones that jeopardize corporate ethics, and the corporation should keep that in mind. This can be handled by requiring all employees to undergo ethics training and having a reporting system for them all, not only lower level employees. There should always be a second in command that employees can bypass their immediate supervisor to ensure they always have someone to report to. That way there is less of a chance of an employee remaining quite.

Jones Wright owns and operates Corporate Ethics.

The word “ethics” comes from the Greek word “ethos” meaning conduct, customs or character. Ethics addresses the implementation of concepts such as responsibility, right and wrong and the application of moral ideals to practical human activities. Ethical analysis will address the constraints of moral standards and legal requirements and the consequences of actions. The output of such analysis is the determining of principles and protocols, the development of individual and group responsibilities and the verification of the outcome of the implementation of such a framework. Individual countries, cultures and business organisations will determine distinct codes of ethical behaviour. Individual organisations therefore need to determine and develop their ethical strategy and the scope of such strategy may include the following:

1. Criminal behaviour and the need to operate within the legal framework. The strategy may include awareness training for individuals and teams so that employees understand the legal constraints on the business and the responsibilities this places on individuals;

2. Human values and personal behaviour. Ethical policy needs to define at a strategic and human resources level how people are expected to behave both internally within the business and also in their interactions with suppliers, customers and competitors and the development of business relationships;

3. Behaviour in business. Ethical policy should address how all corporate activities are undertaken, monitored and verified to ensure that they comply with legal guidelines and ethical standards. Ethical strategy should also include a review of potential ethical business risks and how these can be mitigated.

So what is your organisation’s ethical strategy and does it stand up to scrutiny?

Visit this site to know more.

Integrity is generally agreed to be a vital quality in a leader. It’s usually defined in terms of honesty and adhering strongly to an ethical code. However, when applied to non-human areas such as a body of data, or an ecosystem, something that has ‘integrity’ is ‘intact’, ‘whole’, or ‘not tampered with’. This was in fact the original meaning of the word (from the Latin meaning ‘untouched’).

Integrity therefore came to mean ‘ethically sound’ by metaphorical extension. As so often with metaphors applied to human subjective experience, we can discover something useful when we take the metaphor literally.

Consider a person who is grappling with an inner conflict. It may be that two of their most important values are in conflict, or that they cannot choose between alternatives that seem to be equally tempting (or equally scary). Because memory, learning and behaviour are influenced by emotional states, it could even be that what they believe and how they act change significantly depending on how they are feeling.

Can a person who has significant unresolved internal conflicts be a good leader? It’s doubtful. Such a person would find it hard to make decisions and stick to them, because whichever alternative they choose would leave part of themselves unsatisfied. In addition, when you feel ambivalent about your own decisions, it is hard to defend them against criticism.

So unresolved internal conflicts do not make for good leadership. They lead to indecision, inconsistency, and an inability to stick to your guns – none of which are desirable characteristics in a leader. In order to build the sound internal foundation (also known as “character”) which is necessary for leadership, you need to identify your own values and resolve any values conflicts that you uncover.

Being clear about your own values and acting in line with them also means that you will be perceived as “walking your talk” – the key element in leading by example.

The most important thing to remember about emotional intelligence as it applies to leadership is that self-awareness is the foundation on which all the other ‘competencies’ of emotional intelligence are based. If you are not aware of your own emotions, it’s impossible to manage them and hard to understand the emotions of others; in turn, self-management and empathy are prerequisites for being able to handle and inspire emotions in other people.

For a splendid fictional example of how low self-awareness impacts on leadership, see any episode of the hit TV series “The Office” or the nearly-as-good American remake, “The Office: An American Workplace”.

Andy Smith is an Emotional Intelligence consultant and NLP Trainer based in Manchester, UK. His website contains many free articles and downloads.

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Tags: ethical, management, power, financial, resource

“Recently one of my acquaintances jokingly said, “”I would love to have to pay taxes on a million dollars, because that means I would have a million dollars.”" This acquaintance, like so many other individuals in the world want millions of dollars without the stewardship that people who earn a million dollars have. Why do you think the lottery is so popular? It is a misconception that people think winning the lottery will make them happy. In order to win that kind of money, you must be lucky. So, they go throughout there life hoping and dreaming for the big score that will give them there millions which will give them there key to happiness. This is a great fallacy. Recently I learned that when someone in Florida wins the lottery, they also win sessions with a therapist. Why, because they don’t know how to handle large amounts of money. The Lotteries found that people who won, often found themselves in worse conditions a few months after winning the lottery than before they won. Why weren’t these lottery winners able to handle these large amounts of money? Because they acquired it without stewardship.

The way to true wealth is increasing ones stewardship in order to increase one’s wealth. Many people think that Donald Trump is so lucky because he was born into a rich family and that is the reason he is rich. Those people are right, but for the wrong reasons. People think Trump is lucky because of his inheritance from his father. This is not so, because as you may know, Trump at one point was more into debt than most people ever think they could be. At Trump’s low point he was out walking the streets with his then wife and pointed to a bum on the street and said, “”See that bum, he is a billion dollars richer than we are.”" So, any inheritance that Trump got from his father was null and void at that point. What Trump was blessed to get from his father was the knowledge of stewardship. Trump took responsibility for his debts, met with the bankers that he owed so much and began digging his way out of a very large hole. Because Trump was willing to take stewardship for his actions and increase that stewardship he is again worth billions instead of owing billions.

Though few of us will be in the same situation as Trump, the principle is the same. If we want to increase our wealth we need to increase our stewardship. How do we increase our stewardship? By fulfilling our current responsibilities more fully. In your business or professions, what areas can you be more efficient? In what areas can you provide more value for your already existing clients and/or associates, without thought of return? In what areas can you provide more value for any individual in your life?

Increasing your stewardship isn’t just in professional areas. As you increase your stewardship in your family, church and neighborhood you will be blessed with more stewardship in all areas. This will increase your wealth. This increase in stewardship shows that you are willing to handle what you are given. As you are willing to handle what you have you will be given more. You can’t gain true wealth without first being willling to show stewardship of what you already have. Why would anyone give you more responsibility if you are unwilling to show responsibility for what you do have? With increased responsibility comes increased wealth.

Lets look at Bill Gates. Who has more employee problems, you or Gates? Who has more management problems, you or Gates? Who has more computer problems, you or Gates? Who gets less sleep at night, you or Gates? Who has bigger liabilities, you or Gates? Who has more debts, you or Gates? And finally, who has more money, you or Gates. Gates has increased his stewardship and his ability to manage his finance to the point where he, like Trump, is worth billions. Do you think Gates and Trump could have gotten to where they are without increasing their stewardship by showing that they are willing to be responsible for more and more? No, Gates and Trump have shown incredible amounts of stewardship. They have been rewarded with increased wealth.

Christopher Anderson wants to share his success as a business owner with others who desire to own their own business. He also believes that the economy is stronger with more business owners, and as a result, He is focused on helping business owners succeed. Visit this site.

Thomas Paine once said, “Character is much easier kept than recovered.” This dovetails with being prepared for an emergency. Planning to keep a reputation can help the organization avoid suffering a devastating loss. When the plan laid out in advance is to admit any faults and err on the side of honesty, the credibility of what is admitted will garner more respect than when an attempt to back-pedal is made.

Anticipation

How can management and decision makers control a crisis? The answer is simple. A crisis cannot be controlled, but the consequences of the crisis can be managed, mitigated and/or prevented. The first order of business is to know and understand the hazards that threaten the “”business.”" An effective organization must conduct a hazard vulnerability analysis that ranks threats. Dealing with threats against organizational character must be one of the threats considered.

Many disaster preparedness programs consider the traditional natural and manmade hazards, but a class of hazard often overlooked is related to business continuity, especially public relations. Public relations incidents raise concerns, and if not handled properly, can elevate to the level of a crisis. If the crisis grows large enough, it can threaten the very existence of an organization.

Crisis Response Begins With an Admission

The most critical part of crisis response is admitting that you are, in fact, in the midst of a crisis. It is only at this point that the consequences of a crisis can be managed. Following a predetermined action plan and set of organizational morals can guide the response. A public information campaign addressing the situation and describing what the organization is doing to rectify the problem is activated, and a trained public information officer addresses media and public concerns.

How To Be Seen As Responsive

* Be proactive in the approach, viewing the problem from the eyes of the consumer.

* Do not try to utilize the science of the issue to prove a point.

* Do not use the engineering aspect to explain that a repeat of the event is not possible or is incredibly remote.

* Do not try to utilize the facts as your defense.

* Remember that the public does not want to hear about the science, the engineering — or, at times, even the facts. The public wants to hear that you understand their concerns and that the organization sees the issue from their perspective.

Managing and Maintaining Character

Management of character is easy when your organization has chosen in advance to do the right thing. Warren Buffet once said, “”First, state clearly that you do not know all the facts. Then state the facts that you do know. One’s objective should be to get it right, get it quick, get it out, and get it over. You see, your problem won’t improve with age.”"

Preparing for a crisis allows the “”if-then”" thought process to occur in advance of an issue. Decisions can be made in advance, not under duress. Preparing to have an open and honest response to a public relations crisis in advance of an onslaught of reporters and public scrutiny (when your legal counsel is attempting to persuade you to limit your liability exposure) will prevent senior management from being led astray.

Waiting until the disaster occurs puts forces upon decision makers that may change their perception of reality. “”Groupthink is a mode of thinking within a cohesive group that is engaged in by people who so strongly seek consensus that there is no realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action,”" stated Michael C. LeMay in Public Administration: Clashing Values in the Administration of Public Policy. “”A drive for consensus at all cost completely suppresses dissent.”"

Crises easily can become a groupthink phenomenon. With prior planning and decision making, you can avoid having your values go sideways during the crisis. Follow the advice of Warren Buffet by engaging in public transparency that will save the organization time as well as its reputation. It’s easy when the direction has already been established from the executive level to “”do the right thing.”"

Conclusion

All aspects of a successful emergency response are contingent upon planning. A successful outcome is achieved by doing the right thing at all turns, not solely attempting to protect the organization from legal liability. Organizational character can be maintained if advanced planning and training ensures that all parties understand the organization’s policy is to be open and honest. This will maintain the integrity of the organization, ensuring that organizational character is valued and protected.

Author Bio

Mr. Reilly is the President of Emergency Solutions Ltd. His credentials include Certified Emergency Manager from the International Association of Emergency Managers, Certified Business Continuity Professional from DRI International, and he is a Master’s Degree candidate in Public Administration.

Mr. Reilly can be reached through his company’s website.

Visit the website to see how he and his associates can help you prepare you business, school, or hospital for a disaster.

(c) 2007 Daniel J. Reilly. All rights reserved.

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Tags: ethical, management, power, financial, resource

“You have probably been raised with the idea that to win, you always have to compete with others. For example, to be the winner in a running race, you have to beat the rest. However, there is a better and healthier way to win: winning without competing.

Let me demonstrate this better and healthier way of winning for you. Image we have a chocolate cake, shared by four people. The fairest way for these four people to eat the cake is to cut the cake into four equal pieces. Now, you happen to like this cake and you want to have some more. In other words, you want to WIN some more cake. Now, if you go with the traditional method of winning, you will have to take another piece from another person. This is winning by competing. However, there is a better way to win if you want to have more cake. You just need to bake a bigger cake, so everyone can have bigger pieces. Everyone is a winner. You do not need to compete with anyone. Nor do you have to take away anything from anyone. This is winning without competing.

Apply this method to a business. If you operate a business in America and you feel that the market is saturated. The only way for you to win a bigger market share seems to be competing with your competitors in America. Now, think about winning without competing! Why don’t you take your business global and attract all the customers on this planet to your American business world. In this way, every business has a bigger market share.

Even in the example of a running race mentioned above, you can win without competing. For all the racers to win, all they have to do is to set a target for themselves to achieve before the race. Even if they do not become the fastest runner in the race, they still can be winners if they have achieved their own target.
So whenever you feel competition is too tough to win, remember You Can Win Anything Without Competing.

Vinh Nguyen is a free spirit writer. He is passionate about what motivates people. He believes that everyone has only one goal in life – TO BE HAPPY and everyone deserves to be happy. The challenge for you is to decide what makes you happy.

Visit his is favourite Website.

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Tags: ethical, ethics, business, training, competing

“Most people and most businesses are devoted to doing the right thing. They are trying to deal with their customers, their vendors, their community, the environment, their investors and lenders all in a fair and ethical manner. If that’s true how come all we ever hear about are the Enrons and Adelphias? And how come TV shows, movies and literature always depict business as a dog-eat-dog world?

With many years as a journalist and marketing communications practitioner behind me, I see a simple answer to this paradox. Good news is not news. Drama about good guys is not as interesting as the scoundrels. Occasionally there’s someone like George Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life who comes out on top. But even that took divine intervention.

The truth is most folks are out there doing what they can to do the right thing even though they are not at all sure they are in the majority. Make no mistake; there are those who cut corners everywhere. And we have all been tempted to cover up our mistakes for one reason or another. But the vast majority are trying to take the high road.

Take heart. There is a new movement afoot to spread the news that following the highest ethical standards is the best route to higher profits. The evidence is mounting that those companies that follow an Ethical Business Model make more money that those that choose less savory alternatives.

Think about it, it makes sense. As my daddy used to say, “Wouldn’t you rather do business with an honest business?” Wouldn’t you rather do business where the employees look forward to coming to work every day? Wouldn’t you rather do business with a company that helps out in the local community? That treats the environment like a fine watch. Of course you would. Sure you have to make money, but that comes naturally when you do the right thing.

It can pay off big time. The companies that follow this path stand to make many times the profits enjoyed by those who don’t. Does doing the right thing insure success? Of course not. You still have to work hard, and you have to be lucky. But all things being equal on those counts, you will make a lot more money by doing the right thing.

In my new book, Play Nice, Make Money, I trace the history of companies built on this principle from the 1700s right up to this year. I use history and current case studies on both good guys and bad guys. And I show solid research to back up my position.

Join the revolution, recognize that we are a majority. Stand up for what you know to be right and what you believe in. Living the ethical life is a lot more fun and everyone needs to understand that, especially young people entering the business world. The rewards are many, and one of them may be financial.

Bill McKibben is the author of Play Nice, Make Money Check it out here. He is the Senior Partner, Ethics Practice, of the Great Lakes Group.

“Any business, and more specifically, the communication industry, is set up with the major goal of earning money. Although earning money is everyones utmost desire, earning it at the cost of ruining others is not acceptable. The main aim of advertisement is to increase the popularity of a product so as to ensure its maximum sale. However, the advertiser and ad creator should ensure that an advertisement should not lead to any disaster. In fact, advertisements should always be based on certain ethics.

Advertisements that help to corrupt anyones morals are unethical. For example, it has been observed that many children are affected by superheroes advertisements, as viewed by them on television. Such advertisements take them into a world of fantasy, and they may actually try to emulate these superheroes. In this process, they may sometimes even injure themselves. Advertisement creators and even their sponsors should keep in mind that such advertisements, which affect the minds of people in a negative manner, are unethical, and are a bane for society. The destruction of one’s property is bearable, as it can be regained. However, once a persons mind is affected in a negative manner, it may cause untold and irreparable damage to the way one may think. Therefore, all advertisements, especially television advertisements, should follow certain ethics.

The advertiser and ad creator must consider the fact that advertisements are a means of mass communication. For example, if some extremely violent or provocative advertisement is telecast, it can affect the masses. Such an advertisement may have serious repercussions and the advertiser and ad creator may be legally penalized for it. Therefore, they must keep in mind that advertisements should not be created just for the purpose of earning money, but also have to follow certain ethics.

Another aspect to be considered is that advertisements should not hurt the religious sentiments of any community. Any such advertisement may cause riots, and will be therefore unethical. Earning money should not be the sole aim.

Disorienting the minds of minors through advertisements is an offense, and therefore, the advertiser and ad creator must always ensure that an advertisement should not negatively affect the tender minds of children, as their mind is very sensitive and is easily affected. An advertisement may take them into a world of dreams. Therefore, if an advertisement causes the viewers to injure them, the advertiser and ad creator company may have to face legal proceedings and penalized.

At times, a catchy ad compels a consumer to buy a product. But during the use of the product, it is found that the product is not worth the money paid to purchase it. In such situations, the product manufacturer, and in consequence, the ad creator and advertiser might have to suffer from the loss of reputation. And if circumstances become more unfavorable, the entire stock might stagnate in the manufacturers godown, unsold. Therefore, advertisements should be based on the ethic of truthfulness. Advertisements must project reality. A little bit of fancy and creativity in ads is ok, but making them absolutely out of the world might land its creator in trouble. The advertiser must follow these ethics in ads to ensure that they enhance the awareness, fame, and popularity of the product, rather than bringing upon the advertiser, controversies and legal suits.

Gary A Milke owns and operates this site Corporate Ethics

“A recent article by John Stancavage in the Tulsa World business section entitled Staying Focused at Work focused on a report released by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce which revealed that over half the companies surveyed for the report were “having difficulty finding people with a good work ethic or who can do their job without letting personal issues interfere.” Even very basic skills were lacking, such as showing up on time, staying on task and adapting to change. Creating other problems, are the employees who are always having one crisis or another that keeps them from getting to work on time or that distracts them after they arrive. All of these things impact productivity and since employee productivity is credited with helping the United States remain competitive in the global market and there are fewer candidates for every job, it’s an important issue to address.

“It’s not just staff members who have trouble staying on task,” writes Stancavage. “Managers do, too, although often for different reasons. A recent survey by New Hampshire-based NFI Research found that 67 percent of senior executives complained that e-mail distracts them from their core jobs. Other problems included personal interruptions (31 percent) and changing priorities (30 percent).”

I guess I’ve officially gotten old because I found myself thinking “back in my day” when I read this. I applied for my first job as a waitress in our local, small-town restaurant when I was fifteen and a half years old. Thelma, the restaurant manager who hired me, said she really wasn’t supposed to hire anyone under 16 but that we’d just keep quiet about that. She knew my family and figured I’d be a good hire because I’d have a good work ethic — and she was right. I stayed in that job throughout high school, working on weekends and through the summers until I went to college.

The work ethic that Thelma was so sure I possessed was one I learned from my parents. It included getting to the restaurant about 15 minutes before my shift started so that when my shift actually began, I’d be ready to go to work. That didn’t allow for over-sleeping after a late night out with friends. It meant putting in a full day’s work which included finding other things that needed to be done when I wasn’t busy serving customers. Things like filling the salt and pepper shakers, cleaning off tables and counters, sweeping and even, occasionally, helping wash dishes. I was expected to keep up in a fast-paced environment, while maintaining a positive, friendly attitude and sense of humor. Honesty not only applied to the handling of money and supplies but also to taking no more than my two 15-minute breaks and one 30-minute meal break during my shift. Any personal problems I might be experiencing were left at home and when I got to work, I was expected to focus only on work. I didn’t give my work ethic a second thought. That was just the way it was. Being on my feet for most of an eight-hour shift was tiring but I was happy to have a job, earning my own money, buying my own car and becoming more self-sufficient.

Maybe today’s workplace is much more complicated than my workplace of many years ago, but I believe the same principles should apply regarding having a good work ethic. People should still show up to work on time, do a good day’s work, not take advantage of their employer, be honest, and leave their problems at home. What’s so hard about that? If I could do those things before I was old enough to have a driver’s license then I believe we should expect adults in today’s workplace to do the same.

Sondra Whitt is a founding partner of Purpose Unlimited, whose purpose is to transform lives, leaders and organizations through the power of purpose. She has a masters degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology and consults, coaches, writes and speaks on personal and organizational development. She specializes in problems in the workplace, communication, team-building, selection, and finding and living your purpose in life.

My Biology teacher way back in my secondary years said that the world is like a jungle and that our system is like a food web where everybody’s connected to each other. Her explanation is catchy and from that day on, I understood how the discussion of biology, specifically that of food chain works.

I take food chain thoughts on a different perspective though. Now that everybody’s working to get paid and survive in this competitive business world, I realized that to be a part of that food web or food chain, you have to be a major contributor as well– I scratch your back and you scratch mine. Fair and simple right?

But what makes this system really difficult is when there are others among us who are taking advantage over the others. You see, being advantageous in an unwarranted way is different from being advantageous because you’re deserving for such recognition. Again, if we are to imagine that this world is a jungle, how would you feel if you’re being attacked by a sly wild beast because you’re caught off guard while you’re alone? Realize that wild beasts have their unique hunting ways and most of the preys are caught without them noticing it because they’re caught off guard. You’ll be caught when you’re at your weakest moment.

Same holds true in the business or corporate world. If you’re weak and give in to your weakness, you’ll be eaten alive. And unless you want to survive the system, you’ll have to be extremely smart in counterattacking your opponents. So what’s your next step? I’ve got 3:

1. Show off that strong personality

Sly individuals may attack you when you’re vulnerable so why waste a painful experience being taken advantaged at if you can adopt a strong personality?

2. Never be alone

This is a tested fact. If you’re alone, self-doubts plus temptation will trick you. Who’s your opponent? You, yourself and you alone. So when you’re alone, lacks self-conviction, you can easily fall under a personality trap. So take time to socialize, you’ll be thankful.

3. Develop self-reliance

As someone who wants to survive in this business world, self-reliance is your best weapon. Learn how to fare, how to deal with other people. Hold back that vulnerability and improve on your subtle but strong resilience to be knocked down.

So never be afraid to be right, to be a credible person in this world. Others may not be pleased but again, you’ll have a sound sleep if you know exactly what you’re doing and you know your reasons why you’re in your position in the first place.

Mina Togonon is a Journalism graduate, someone who’s most willing to learn, adopt and would love to share her opinions and talents for development. She writes out of passion in her personal blog 24 Hour Paradigm, she teaches out of commitment and she lives in a society where women are garnering status and power…silently but getting stronger everyday.

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Tags: ethical, work, issues, behaviour, practice

“Summer Scams are the topic of discussion these days. The following information is provided by the San Diego Better Business Bureau and is very good reading! Just when you think you’ve heard them all, another scam strikes. It pays to keep on top of them and for that reason, I’ve devoted this to current scams.

Starting with Number 10:

* TRAVEL: You get a brochure or coupon saying that you could stay at a beach resort (or similar) at an unbelievable price, such as a 7-day stay for $199.

* HOME IMPROVEMENT: They knock on your door, saying things like “”We’re in the neighborhood and noticed your trees need trimming.”" Or worse yet, you may be informed that they have ‘extra’ materials left over from a roofing job and for a Killer Deal, they will fix your obviously degraded roof.

* CANDY: Children come to your home, saying that they need to sell candy so that they can win a trip to Disneyland. This is a very old cash-raising scheme where someone hires the kids in a neighborhood and makes these promises to them. Hoodlums can make a lot of money making empty promises to children.

* SLAM & CRAM: Telephone thieves don’t even have the courage to come to your door! Your Long Distance Provider can be changed without you knowing (Phone Slamming) when they call you and ask a simple question. They then claim that you authorized the changes during that phone call.

They can also add services to your account (Cramming) which is just as illegal. To find out who your Long Distance Provider is, call this phone number: 1-700-555-4141

* INTERNET FRAUD: Ahh, the Chain Letter. These days, it does not come in the Postal Mail…that’s too expensive! It will come via Email instead. You will get offers for everything from new Stocks to buy, to making some body part bigger, to Vitamins and Supplements. Incredible deals! All you need to do is send them money and these products come right to your door or your computer desktop. It’s easy!

* INVESTMENTS: They offer you Guaranteed Returns! All you need to do is BUY TODAY!

* FOREIGN LOTTO: “”All you need to do”" is send them the Sales Tax on your winnings! You have already won! WOW! What a crock that is! If you fall for this one, you certainly are not reading the newspapers or watching TV. By the way, did you know that even if you did win a foreign lottery or some such sweepstakes, you still could never collect? It’s against the law to participate in these things!

* Charity: Somebody else’s distress causes scam artists to knock on your door. Hurricane victims, wildfire, floods, you name it. Scammers come to your door asking for donations. There is a very big RED FLAG here though; when they ask for cash. Yes, they are brazen enough to ask you to give them cash, no checks are allowed.

* WORK AT HOME: You’ve seen the ads, no doubt. You can work from your own home in your pajamas if you want. And you can make thousands of dollars a week PART TIME! Envelope Stuffing, hanging signs on trees, assembling kits. You name it, the scam artists will pay you to do it. Yea, right…

* IDENTITY THEFT: This is the top of the BBB list of current fraud complaints. Buy a shredder. Use it! Don’t throw ANYTHING away that has sensitive information displayed. The more vigilant you are the better. Remember that it’s YOUR identity that you are protecting! You cannot be careful enough.

They also are advising us to get regular credit reports on ourselves. If you learn how to read one there is a lot of data there. Protect yourself!

San Diego PC

News July, 2007

Top Ten Scams of Summer

visit this site

Richard Maybury says it best — “Can you name one person in all the thousands of years of human history who rose to the top in politics by being honest?” As one political scandal dies down, don’t be surprised when another pops up.

Maybury also quotes one of the most brilliant and infamous books in history: The Prince, by Niccolo Machiavelli. Maybury points out that it is oftentimes misquoted, but never seen for what it really is – the truth “about the inherent nature and behavior of government that few are willing to face.”

This is the way it has been throughout the 10,000 years of human history. So why are we shocked every time a leader, a politician or a man of the cloth, lets us down? Fifty years ago, good guys wore white cowboy hats and bad guys wore black cowboy hats. It seemed to be a simpler time with simpler choices. But today, life has gotten more complex and that complexity is reflected in our current leadership. Integrity, honesty and ethics have become a fuzzy line between what you see and what you actually get.

Maybury goes on – “One of my favorite chapters in The Prince is number 15, in which Machiavelli lists the characteristics generally thought to be desirable in a political leader: generosity, compassion, faithfulness, courage, purity, flexibility, religiousness, and others. He explains that the leader must fake these virtues but cannot actually have them, because they would ruin him.”

So the next time you think a particular politician is there to save you, remember, it’s just show business.

Yet, not everyone is so easily corrupted. Just give some people the choice between leadership with perks, and leadership with both perks and power and watch what happens. Some put in these roles thrive, while others become corrupted. But, make no mistake about it, certain professions are made up of the hubristic and corrupt, and there is nothing we can do about it. When people let their lower animalistic nature run wild, there is no more control. As I said before, when one scandal dies down, be prepared for the next. It’s the nature of politics.

But how does this affect leadership in general? At the political level it is one thing, at the corporate level, another. How would you handle a scandalous problem as an executive? Here are three suggestions to help get you back on track and save face.

1) Admit Your Mistakes (as Honestly and as Truthfully as You Can).

Being on the board of directors for K2 Design years ago was thrilling, but it was also a tough lesson in revealing to the public the right information at the right time. Yet at times, being unable to share it right away can leave one with a sense of frustration, especially when the news is groundbreaking and positive. But what happens when the news is negative and shareholders equity is at stake?

Speaking too soon can destroy a company and ruin shareholders trust. So pick your battles, and in most cases, take the blame and resign. Unfortunately, someone has to clean up your mess, and getting out of the way will expedite the process.

On the other hand, telling the whole truth up front and attempting to make things right may be what the doctor ordered to reestablishing your credibility as well as your company’s. Who knows, you might even be forgiven. Turnaround specialists are masters at telling the truth, taking action and getting corporate profitability back on track. Take a page from their handbook and follow it.

Don’t bury the truth. That serves no one but you. Schedule that press conference and come clean…today. Jack Welch, when he was at GE, mastered the delivery of bad news while balancing future potential. Study the masters.

2) Make Real Effort to Change Your Behavior

On the road to regaining trust, try actually changing your behavior. Just look at how many celebrities sign up for rehab. It is so effective that courtroom judges grant leniency when someone admits they have a problem with substance abuse and voluntarily checks themselves in. Changing your dysfunctional activities goes a very long way to regaining trust. Time may reveal duplicity on your part, but consider your immediate actions. They are the ones that show up in the history books.

Want to have an impact? Take a good look as to why you got into hot water in the first place. Are you greedy? Do you feel you’re above everyone around you? Are you duplicitous by nature, assuming that everyone is the same? Is your behavior something that requires you to sneak around? If so, try not to wait until the public discovers your faux pas during the evening news. Get help now. If the press has reason to put you under a microscope, your reaction early on will be the one you are judged by.

And do us all a favor, don’t fake it. Show up and do the work. You’re not fooling anyone but yourself.

One thing that seems to be missing from our society these days is a sense of shame. You may not know this, but there is right and wrong behavior.

And last but not least…

3) Time May Be Your Only Ally

In a relationship, time will make things fester, but in the corporate world where trust has been destroyed and investors’ actions are hinging on the next press conference, time is the only sure-fire strategy that will help put the events behind you.

Former Presidents Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton were able to put their pasts behind them because their legacy far outweighed their transgressions. Give it time. Eventually you’ll look like the comeback kid. Who knows, maybe even a certain New York Governor will be able to return to some sort of public office someday.

Unfortunately, time may be all you have. Here are just a few samplings of companies that have successfully and unsuccessfully put the past behind them:

Volkswagen took over 25 years for global consumers to forget that their biggest spokesperson was Adolph Hitler. They made a huge comeback in the 60′s by introducing the VW Beetle to the Hippy Generation.

In Bhopal, India, during the early morning of December 3, 1984, a Union Carbide subsidiary pesticide plant explosion released 40 tons of methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas into the air. The resulting deaths numbered over 3,000, but testimonies later on from doctors who provided medical assistance during the tragedy claim that over 15,000 was the real number.

Today, Union Carbide (now owned by Dow), is attempting to put the past behind them with a feel-good ad campaign. They introduce us to an element missing from the organic chemistry chart: Hu. It stands for the Human element and we are bombarded with eco-friendly scenes of people — the driving force behind everything.

The Union Carbide website explains away their past by placing the blame on every possibility except Union Carbide. Lawyer-speak is inauthentic and stands out like a sore thumb on their site. Some things should never be forgotten. It’s all a little creepy when you remember the past and the events of Bhopal.

Ironically Union Carbide is owned by Dow, the makers of Agent Orange.

Bear Sterns was showing signs of over extension a year ago. Who were they protecting? Not shareholders, who entrusted them with their money that’s for sure.

In these turbulent times learn to be honorable and incorruptible. Then stand by your management style. Make changes to yourself and to your organization not because it affects the bottom line, but because it is the right thing to do.

Your staff will follow you anywhere so long as you have integrity, fairness and a vision. Without your people, you wouldn’t be a leader. One can’t exist without the other. But, avoid Machiavelli’s suggestion that you should fake these qualities – who wants to follow an executive who’s faking it? And believe me, people know.

Thanks again for reading,

Brad Szollose

May I recommend?:

Richard Maybury’s newsletter – The Early Warning Report, check the site

This is a one of a kind newsletter that focuses on geopolitics, history and investment advice. I also recommend his books, especially these 5 in his Uncle Eric series: Whatever Happened To Penny Candy?, The Money Mystery, Whatever Happened To Justice, Ancient Rome: How It Affects You Today, and The Thousand Year War in The Mideast: How It Affects You Today.

For Richard Maybury’s books go to this link

Maybury has the unique distinction of being the ONLY newsletter with a 98% renewal rate. My wife and I enjoy reading it. His books and newsletter will help you understand how the United States got to where it is today financially, politically and morally.

Sign up for Maybury’s work now before you vote in the next election and before your nest egg is gone.

Former Dot Com IPO Boomer Brad Szollose, is an award winning leadership strategist, author and professional speaker who shows executives and entrepreneurs how to operate in the Information Age.

For more info, click here

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Tags: ethical, issues, legal, politics, public

Much is written about business ethics especially with the fall of Enron to the compensation for CEOs. With the presidential campaign in full swing, we as citizens and business leaders have the opportunity to see ethics being or not being consistently display by those in leadership roles.

The recent misspeaks by Senator Clinton and Senator Obama are such examples. These incidents really show that ethics should be consistent and should not be given the standard wink and a nod.

When those in positions of authority fail to be ethical, then this undermines how people perceive them and their ability to lead or manage change. This failure to be ethical can be viewed by these individuals much like a wink and a nod. Well, you know that I know this is not true (wink), but let’s agree to let this one pass (nod).

Senator Clinton’s recent remarks about the sniper fire truly demonstrate that those in authority, leadership roles, whether government or business believe that they have the right to misspeak, not get caught and not be held accountable. She is not alone in this belief and joins the ranks of all the other executives who have been caught and have, in many cases, paid for the consequences of their actions.

Some are surprised that even though Senator Clinton’s mis-speak was actually her third time recounting this particular event in error (documented by film footage) that she had not been taken to task publicly when she mis-spoke the first time. Whether she was given a pass because of her positive relationship with the broadcast media or because of other factors remains unclear. What is clear is that the truth did eventually surface. How she handled this is what requires our focus. The truth always wins out, sometimes it just takes years instead of minutes.

The old adage “Of what tangled webs we weave, when we plan to deceive” is clearly reflected in these most recent incidents of poor business ethics. One lie turned into another lie and eventually the truth won.

Why people fear telling the truth, I do not know. Alfred Adler once said:

“A lie would have not sense unless the truth were felt as dangerous.”

When we are ethical and consistently tell the truth, we do not have to fear lies because we do not have to remember what we did or did not say.

Being ethical is not about what you do whether it is running a company or running for an elected office or running your own personal life. Ethics is about who you are, your core values and those non-negotiable behaviors that you demonstrate day in and day out. For in today’s society especially with the technology available such as camera phones, not being ethical will eventually be displayed to the entire world.

Is your leadership contributing to poor work ethics? Take this FREE leadership audit to help you identify your leadership skills.

Are you looking for some additional business coaching training services to develop a high performance organization and culture? Why not visit business coaching training gym that is designed to help you build a better business.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith with locations near Chicago & Indianapolis helps organizations through business coaching training services to return to the purpose of business that being building ravings fans while increasing productivity and profitability.

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Tags: business, corporate, ethical, issues, training

1. Being Organized

There are so many ways to keep organized in your business. First thing you need to do is clear your desk! Working in a clutter will slow you down especially if you are constantly looking for something you are missing. After you clean off your desk, take an organizer for your papers, even if it’s an inbox, and put your papers in there neatly. Take all your office supplies and put them in your drawer neatly. There you have it, the top of your desk! Since we are working virtual, our main concern for being organized is our computers. I have my companies (I have two) in separate folders. In those folders, I have folders like:

- Client Projects

- Confidentiality Agreements

- Invoicing

- Newsletters

- Articles

- Website Updates

Now, your folders might be completely different and you might not like having about 10 folders but it works for me. If I am looking for something for a client, I just go to my clients’ folder and there everything is in their individual folder. There are endless ideas to being organized!

2. Being Able

Being able means showing your intelligence and talent to your clients. This will improve your business and show you are efficient if you are one step ahead of your client at all times. They will appreciate your ability to ‘read their mind’ and it shows that you have been doing your job all along!

3. Are you good at your job?

It’s simple. Your clients will be able to ‘figure you out’ in the first month of having you as their virtual assistant. If you are good at what you do and prove that to them, you are being efficient for their business. Being good at your job includes:

- Looking into problems on your own and realising that its okay to ask for help too!

- Answering their questions without hesitation.

- Staying focused on your work.

- Completing tasks before the due date.

- Making sure the work is done right.

Like organizational skills, the list can be endless and it ranges on the type of you work you do.

Looking forward to sharing many successes with you!

Trina Lamarche

Efficient VA

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website? You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:

Trina Lamarche (Efficient VA) started her virtual career three years ago by helping launch and setup Business Services, ETC, a virtual assistance firm. After two years working for other people, she realized what she really wanted to do; become an owner of her very own virtual assistance business. In the past year, she has been working part-time as a ‘Virtual Assistant’s Assistant’ (a term she coined while working on client work one evening.) Always the overachiever, she decided to open a second virtual assistance company, Efficient Virtual Assistant (EVA), working directly with clients.

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Tags: ethical, management, power, financial, resource

Business ethics are always in the news from research specific to work ethics to headlines about the criminal leadership behavior of C-Level executives. Yet, government leaders many of whom raise the loudest voices about the lying behavior of C-Level executives by demanding one hearing after another have a different attitude when one or several of their own lies.

First, I do not understand why we as self-leaders in business, education and government have a problem with the word lie. Instead, many are taken to be politically correct and talk about “mis-speaking, mis-representation of the truth, mis-calculation” the list of spin seems to grow every year.

Why can we not be forthcoming and identify a lie as exactly as a lie? Then identify someone who lies as a liar? Why are so many so fearful of calling a lie exactly what it is a lie? Most people know what a lie is that being the opposite of the truth. And why do we still view these individuals who speak lies as leaders who display great leadership skills?

Back in the late 1980′s, my local school superintendent used the phrase a “mis-representation of the truth” to explain a lie. This was before all the political ramifications specific to the tenures of the latest two Presidents of the United States and those currently running for President. Bottom line – he was attempting to cover up a lie.

Webster defines a lie “to make a statement or statements that one knows to be false especially with the intent to deceive.” The second definition states “to give a false impression.”

Regardless if it is a C-Level executive leader or an elected government official, everyone should be held to the same standards or business ethics that these individuals demands of others. Too often, many have the attitudes of “wink and nod” and “do as I say and not as I do.”

If we want to build a business workplace environment that consistently demonstrates high business ethics, then we need to accept the definition for what a lie is as well. We cannot as the old expression goes “have our cake and eat it too.”

Edmund Burke understood how lies transform themselves into mis-representations of the truth when he said: “All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men (and women) to do nothing.”

Now is the time for good people to stop being fearful of political correctness and call lies exactly what they are lies. And to call people who speak lies, liars. Until we take those actions, evil (and a lie is evil) will continue to prevail. And this spin results an under performing workplace culture where productivity to profitability suffers.

Is your leadership contributing to poor work ethics? Take this FREE leadership audit to help you identify your leadership skills.

Are you looking for some additional business coaching training services to develop a high performance organization and culture? Why not visit business coaching training gym that is designed to help you build a better business.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith with locations near Chicago & Indianapolis helps organizations through business coaching training services to return to the purpose of business that being building ravings fans while increasing productivity and profitability.

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Tags: behaviour, ethical, issues, practice, work

“Not a day goes by that we aren’t involved in some type of conversation about current corporate shenanigans. The media are consumed by corporate wrongdoings and dinner party conversation eventually turns to who’s the latest to be investigated. While many conversations revolve around ethics and morality in the business world, I suggest there’s another perspective – spirituality, rather, the lack of spirituality. And the current crisis not only concerns corporate executives, but those who coach them as well-there needs to be a focus on integrity and authenticity at both ends of the coaching equation.

SPIRITUALITY, NOT MORALS OR ETHICS.

For me, it’s all about spirituality. The commotion about what’s happening in the corporate arena is about “”spirituality”", not about ethics or morality. Why? Morality is often connected with issues of right and wrong and eventually is based on social traditions or consensus that vary from culture to culture. At the end of the day, morality becomes subjective and judgmental and separates one from another.

In addition, ethics is a code of values that translates “”morality”" into daily living, i.e., doing and being. It “”defines”" right and wrong, how we relate to others, how we conduct business and how one behaves in general, most often leading to judgments, win-lose, right-wrong, mind games and ego-based stuff.

Spirituality is non-judgmental and non-separating. Spirituality is unchanging, so there’s no debate, right-wrong, me vs. you, what spirituality is and isn’t. At the end of the day, we all know what it means to live from the place of our soul and hearts. For those who come from a spiritual place, there are no labels and definitions and spirituality is a way of being that is common to all of humanity, needs no descriptions, definitions, etc.

So, at the end of the day, the “”moral”" is not spiritual and for much the same reason, neither is the “”ethical.”"

The spiritual is that which allows me to be non-judgmental, and to serve as a witness, observer and watcher. The spiritual is not “”mind”", is not “”information”" is not “”knowledge”", not quantifiable DOs and DON’Ts . It is way, way beyond that. So, while the “”moralist”" and the “”ethicist”" spends countless hours and enormous energy “”debating”" the rights and wrongs of the corporate world, in their heads, intellectual stuff, one who practices spirituality just notices, e.g., “”That’s interesting.”" “”Hmmm, is that so?”" without any ethical or moral judgment, i.e., right-wrong, good-bad.

EGO AND MIND; WHO’S RIGHT, WHO’S WRONG

With a ground in spirituality one is not engaged in endless ego-based and mind-based “”discussions”" about corporate morality and ethics (read: “”I need to be right; so you are wrong.”" “”I win the argument so you lose.”" “”My labels and categories and information are right, so your labels, and categories and information are incorrect.”" I, I, I – ego, judgmental and comparative mind.

Genuine spirituality does not judge, plain and simple. True spirituality comes from one’s inner Self, one’s essence, with an integrity, honesty, sincerity and self-responsibility that drives one’s thoughts and actions. Such spirituality manifests patterns and behaviors that are common in all of life. Spirituality is an essential essence of human nature, a nature which is all to often clouded, diminished and distorted during the course of our upbringing.

So, what often happens is that we grow up less aware of our in-depth spiritual understanding of events, and operate more from an outer-world-driven subjective and judgmental “”moralist”" or “”ethicist”" mindset based on information and mental models that are stored in our brains over the course of time. The essence of who we really are, our True Self, becomes muddied as we grow up, and “”my ethics and morals”" are then developed based on mental models, beliefs and thoughts that emanate from our parents, schools, churches, synagogues, television, advertising, friends, Reality TV etc.

The downside is that I come to believe that MY mental models, MY beliefs and assumptions and images of the world, MY ethics and My morals are Truth (my Truth and thus, the Truth for everyone else as well).

One who is grounded in genuine spiritual understanding is not engaged in such ego-based stuff.

WHY WE ARGUE INSTEAD OF OBSERVE

Because so many of us identify with our ego minds, i.e., I AM what I know; I AM my information; I AM my mind; I AM my knowledge and, of course, I AM right, one often has trouble accepting and entertaining someone else’s perspective. Consciously or subconsciously, one feels forced to view another’s “”perspective”" more as a “”position”", one point on a continuum, or one end of a polarity, which then forces oneself to be engaged in a “”right-wrong”", ego-mind, conflict, because one identifies not with one’s inner core or essence where there is no polarity, but with one’s outer personality and ego-mind which need labels, categories and right-wrong analogs to give one one’s (false) sense of self and identity.

Spirituality, on the other hand, surfaces as simply witnessing another’s perspective and generates no need or desire to “”fight the good fight”", to be right. No ego; no mental drama. Just reading, listening, watching, and moving on, noticing, observing, witnessing with a “”beginner’s mind.”"

CORPORATE STATE OF AFFAIRS AND LESSONS

So, grounded in spirituality, one witnesses and observes what is happening in today’s corporate environment from an interesting perspective. Spirituality allows one to know and understand that when the Universe wants someone to learn a lesson, be it one person, a family, a team, a corporation, and one refuses, then the Universe will deliver a rather hard “”slap on the face”" as a wake-up call. For the individual, this often occurs in the form of a divorce, an accident, death, loss of a job, bankruptcy, etc.

For the corporation, it can mean total demise. Practicing spirituality, a “”spiritual observer”" sees what is happening in the corporate world and rather than excoriate the CEO, CFO, etc., based on ego-driven mental models and beliefs about good-bad, right wrong, asks a larger question: What’s the lesson/learning here for me (not for you, not for “”them,”" but FOR ME)?

Thus a spiritual perspective can tutor the executive, and those who coach the executive, in the following ways:

1. Spirituality is an inherent need of human nature. And with a single focus on spirituality comes healing (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual and creative). Without a focus on spirituality, we become spectators, bystanders who feel good about pointing fingers, judging others, analyzing others, prescribing for others, but not being self-responsibility for the betterment of people. This “”feel-good-type-conversation”" or perspective permeates the talk shows, Internet chats, water-cooler conversations and dinner gatherings. We hear lots of talk about “”them.”" We allow little or no time for an honest evaluation of “”me”" (as it’s too scary, too sensitive …). There’s lots of talk about the corporate folk, but few take the self-responsibility to “”show up”" in integrity and be honest and sincere in our dealings with people in our office, at our own home, at play, right here, right now.

2. On a macro level, in this country, to say the least, systems are breaking down. Education, health, environment, and corporate. No surprise. Coming from a perspective of spirituality, for me, this is as it should be. Shocked but not surprised. Why?

Folks have not gotten it on a micro level – as individuals seeped in a culture of excess, greed, toys, materialism, self-medication and the need to acquire – creating a culture of greed, corruption, dishonesty. Often, when we don’t “”get it”" on an individual level, the Universe gives us a larger slap on the face, on a larger level. Thus, the demise of larger systems – currently, the corporate arena.

3. It’s crucial to ask the question, “”How am I comporting myself on a daily basis?”" Again, lots of “”discussion,”" mind stuff, information, but how many of us “”walk the talk”" when it comes to acting with honesty, sincerity and self-responsibility at work – right here and right now, in the past hour, the past day, the past week?

4. It’s crucial to ask, “”Am I showing up and acting with honesty, sincerity and integrity, according to my inner essence, my True Self, in alignment with my inner core values right here, right now in my workplace environment?

5. The tug on our collective (corporate/business) sleeves urges us to reconsider what we value, to evaluate how so, so much of our life, our faux joy, our faux happiness, our well-being, our health, our identity, our self-image (who we take our self to be), and our ego is tied up in money, wealth, the “”packaging”", and the externals. “”Why do I have such an inextricable attachment to money, that I can be close to ruin (mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually and creatively) because of money and what it represent?”".

6. Finally, it’s crucial to ask one’s self some tough question, when it comes to how many of us, self-righteously, pontificate about the current corporate state of affairs. “”Am I being hypocritical, a phony, fraudulent, inauthentic, insincere, dishonest in my own everyday affairs?”" For example, consider the following situations, without judgment, and then ask, “”How can I tug on my own sleeve about my integrity and authenticity?”" “”How am I doing in my own everyday life with respect to coming from my essence, my spiritual side, my inner source and core values when I relate to others?”"

Consider:

Scenario 1: Lunchtime during a busy day. It’s 1:30. I go shopping and am running late. I cut into the checkout line, pay the cashier, not listening to her greeting, and dismissing her, bump into folks on the way to the parking lot, drive out cutting someone off, run a red light and make a right turn at the sign that says “”no right turn between 1:00 and 3:00 pm”" so that I can get back to my office and engage in a conversation about the “”morals and ethics”" of corporate America.

Scenario 2: Friday evening. Out to have drinks with some of the team. Spend lots of time being sarcastic to, and verbally abusing, some of the younger teammates (with what I call my “”wit”" and fine sense of humor in a “”just for the fun of it”" or “”only kidding”" context) so I can appear smart and witty, while criticizing some of the staff behind their back, with the excuse that I’m just letting off steam after a hard week of work while, at the same time, presenting my “”noble, moral and ethical”" opinions about how to clean up corporate America.

Scenario 3: Wednesday morning 6:00 am. I’m at the gym with a buddy and rather than work out, we spend forty-five minutes watching the “”babes”" in their aerobics class and making lewd, sexist comments interspersed in our conversation about what’s “”wrong”" with corporate America.

Scenario 4: Tuesday night after dinner I watch TV and some cable talk shows, which I “”steal”" through a “”black box”", resting and relaxing while watching a program on how CEOs are stealing from their companies.

Scenario 5: Friday lunch – I drive to lunch, make suggestive comments to the waitress, gorge myself with too much food, have one Vodka too many and speed back to work, endangering my self and others, so I can have a few minutes to get on the Internet and read how corporate folks are being irresponsible.

Scenario 6: Wednesday morning. I wake up late and am angry and take it out on my spouse and children, feeling every bit a victim, and behaving downright mean and nasty, while I think how the CEO being interviewed on TV this morning should be more “”humane.”"

The point? It’s not about “”them.”" It’s about me. At the end of the day, as a spiritual witness, observer, watcher, I am aware that if I take care of my spiritual self, and the next person does the same, and the next, the cataclysms that we witness will no longer rule the day. It all starts with tough questions and starts with me, right here, right now.

Spending precious time and psychic energy in moral and ethical conversations about “”them”" won’t do it.

So, for me, this is the $10 (spiritual) question. How am I allowing my soul to manifest right here, right now? How am I regarding my fellow employee, colleague, spouse, child, neighbor, stranger, right here, right now, this minute, today?

What’s driving my do-ings and be-ings? My soul? Or my ego-driven self-images and limiting beliefs that are often tied to the past (resulting in anger, resentment, abuse, frustration, control, defensiveness, blaming, greed, pride, jealousy, argument…) or the future (fear, worry, tension, stress and anxiety)?

How much of this day, so far, have I spent analyzing, judging, and criticizing the actions, thoughts, beliefs and deeds of others (i.e., corporate folks, and others), as compared to looking inward to grow my own soul and manifest right action, right thought, and right understanding–right here, right now?

So, the challenge is for me to watch, observe and witness my self in every moment, be present and in the now, and tug on my own sleeve, rather than play at being judge and jury, being concerned with what’s happening in the corporate arena (which allows me, at the end of the day, to be no more than a spectator trying to believe that I am effecting change).

Either “”I”" walk the talk, or I don’t. It’s about me, not “”them.”"

As Gandhi said, “”If you want to see change, be the change.”" Corporate and business change begins with each of us, the executive and the executive and coach, – right here, right now. This is what spirituality is really, really, really all about.

(c) 2007, Peter G. Vajda, Ph.D. and SpiritHeart. All rights in all media reserved.

You may reprint this article as long as the article is printed in its entirety, including the author’s information.

—ABOUT THE AUTHOR—

Peter G. Vajda, Ph.D, C.P.C. is a founding partner of SpiritHeart, an Atlanta-based company that supports conscious living through coaching, counseling and facilitating. With a practice based on the dynamic intersection of mind, body, emotion and spirit – that is, Essential Well BE-ing – Peter’s approach focuses on personal, business, relational and spiritual coaching. He is a professional speaker and published author. For more information visit this him here.

Ethics in advertising is a serious subject. First and foremost, advertisers must sell the product or service that they represent. On the other hand, however, advertising agents and companies must also be truthful and ethical in their portrayals and not deceive their consumers. These two demands create a tension that is heightened for controversial products or audience demographics, such as tobacco, alcohol, condoms, pharmaceutics, and children.

Tobacco, a legal but lethal product, creates an especially tricky dilemma for advertisers. Likewise, alcohol forms controversial campaigns for many agencies. Some companies handle the dilemma by refusing to do ad work for either group or by offering free services to health or cause-related groups like Mothers against Drunk Driving. However, sticky situations cannot be avoided by simply shunning the industry. What if the makers of a certain cigarette brand also manufacture cat food, which the agency has been asked to represent?

Condoms are another source of tough choices in the world of advertising. Many television channels refuse to show condom commercials. Product demonstration is critical in advertisements for condoms and some agencies evade the ethical issue of premarital sex by only displaying people with wedding bands. This choice introduces another moral question because the main market for condoms is non-married people. The Creative Director of Trojan Condoms captures this issue by asking “do you show the real truth and take the consequences?”

Pharmaceutical products also generate more ethical issues. Advertisements for new medicines are helpful because they inform consumers of up and coming treatments and solutions for medical problems. However, pharmaceutical companies only promote their biggest money makers. This choice fails to provide patients with alternative solutions, which can often times be more effective and cheaper. Downplaying harmful side-effects is another grey area in advertising medicine.

In terms of audience dilemmas, children form the most contentious demographic. Is product branding at an early age a correct moral decision? What does it mean to see kids today requesting cell phones and toys by brand name rather than wanting to hang out with their friends or play outside? What products are considered proper to market to children? In commercials aimed at kids, what types of behaviors should be modeled?

As you can tell, the world of advertising contains many grey areas of ethical choices. By choosing to actively evaluate situations such as these, advertising agents can strengthen their moral compass. This helps advertisers to make the best decisions, both for the company they advertise for and society in general.

If you are interested in learning more, this business website can help.

Joseph Devine

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Tags: ethical, dilemmas, issues, cases, business

Food security is a complex issue and there are arguments in favour of both market and regulatory mechanisms to ensure access, availability and affordability for all. Policy in developed countries has historically centred on issues such as self-sufficiency and support of home production. Whilst this has resulted in food availability, it has not focused on affordability especially where these policies have been financed by general taxation. Indeed individuals vary greatly in their ability to make autonomous decisions with regard to food and nutritional choices.

Globalization of food supply chains has provided benefits in terms of increased calories per capita, but it has not addressed nutritional security. It could be argued that malnutrition in terms of both under and over-nutrition has shown an alarming positive correlation, if not actual cause and effect, with increased food availability in terms of calories per capita. There is a recognized nutritional transition in developed and developing countries towards a more sedentary lifestyle and a change in diet towards animal source foods and this transition will impact on natural resource availability in terms of land requirements and water use.

Nutritional food security needs to address the following:

• the development of water policy and/or virtual water trade especially for countries that lack the national ability to provide for their population needs in terms of both food and nutritional security;

• the impact of global supply chains on malnutrition i.e. both under and over-nutrition;

• the factors that impact on personal and group autonomy including low income, low education, family eating habits, knowledge or access to health and nutritional information and availability of food options; and

• the reduction of food waste at household and supply chain levels.
As the human population continues to rise this will provide an increasing challenge to policy makers, governments and food supply chains as they seek to meet both nutritional and calorific needs.

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Louise Manning – EzineArticles Expert Author

Tags: healthcare, ethical, nursing, medical, care

Ed Mirvish leaves a legacy that is the footstep of a giant. A legacy we can all be proud of because Mr. Mirvish not only achieved great success and prosperity, innovated positive change, infused Toronto with economic, social and cultural vitality; he also retained that powerful spark of humility, humanity, and a love for his fellow man that is clearly the footstep of a giant.

Maybe it is time for those of us who have achieved the prosperity that creates financial freedom, and those who have not, to ask ourselves what kind of foot print we want to leave behind.

The footprint of a giant is not measured by the size of his bank account, nor by the trophies, awards or material accoutrements of success. The footprint of a giant is measured by his or her ability to leave a legacy that continues to touch the hearts and minds of others.

A legacy that speaks of servant leadership, a legacy that reflects the ability to make a positive difference in the world in which we live, and in the lives of the people we lead, love and serve. Building the footprint of a giant is the work of a life time, it cannot be built solely upon our unprecedented access to knowledge, information, technology, or the skills and competencies we have developed. The footprint of a giant is born of the faith, hope, courage, humility and relentless moral strength and timeless values that create the passionate purpose, desire and ability to make a positive different in the lives of others.

Faith gives one the spiritual power that guides our best thoughts and actions. Hope allows us to embrace gratitude and to build resiliency. Courage gives us the ability to live in alignment with our highest values. Humility allows us to realize that life is a gift, and that minimizing the human dignity or potential of another human being does not give us power, rather it makes us powerless to realize the true purpose of our creed.

In a world of increasing chaos, discord, violence and upheaval it is the men and women from the C suite to the warehouse, from the most revered professions to the humblest of occupations who can decide that they want to make their foot print, the foot print of a giant, or to support the giants among us. Both are equally important, both are critical.

We cannot all become the change we seek, but we can be inspired and motivated by the footprints of giants like Ed Mirvish. We can be inspired to help build and sustain the footprints of the visible and less visible giants whose faith, courage, hope, humility, leadership can help us embrace an evolution of self that will take us past what is, so that we can create what can be in our lives, our communities, our workplaces, our society and our world.

Described by clients as a coach, confidant, sounding board, crisis manager and success guide, Irene Becker is the Chief Success Officer of Just Coach It, a professional coaching firm dedicated to helping smart, fast, forward thinkers build the new currency of success in their lives, their leadership and their work. visit this site.