How our dogs can teach us the secrets of business success
Man's best friend can tell us a lot about how we should do business. Here are my top 10 tips to give you paws for thought.
1. Stay cheerful. A positive attitude can take you a long, long way. A dog is rarely unhappy, and never for long. And no-one wants to do business with a miseryguts.
2. Greetings are important. When did your dog ever not give you a welcome? Take a moment to say hello to your colleagues. Don't send emails without salutations and sign-offs. Showing people that you recognize them also demonstrates that you value them.
3. Be supportive. If a family member was having a bad day, your dog would keep an eye on them, not be in their face, and maybe give a friendly nuzzle. A good boss should be the same (with any nuzzling strictly metaphorical, of course).
4. Don't dwell on things. If you're criticised, take it on board and try and learn from it, but don't brood on it. A dog wouldn't.
5. Be consistent. Good or bad (and it's mostly good) you always know what to expect from your dog on any given occasion. So should your colleagues. There's nothing worse for employees than having to constantly adjust to their boss's moods.
6. Stay loyal. There's no-one more faithful than a dog. And remember, loyalty is a two-way street. Too often, staff will show loyalty to their employer only for it to go unrewarded in any way.
7. Be willing to learn. Dogs can not only be taught, they positively love to learn. And even an old dog can pick up a new trick or two. The day you think you know everything in your line of work is the day you're riding for a fall.
8. Stay hungry. A dog is always in the market if there's food around. By the same token, you should always be ready to sniff out a tasty business opportunity. Okay, you may want to be a bit discerning than the average dog, but the point is that you should always be alert to what might come your way.
9. Handle the competition correctly. Check out your rivals but stay friendly unless a line is crossed. Even then, don't bite when a growl is sufficient.
10. Persistence pays off. Ever seen a dog give up halfway when digging for a bone? In the same vein, don't do any work tasks half-heartedly.
So there you are. If you want to be successful in business, take a few tips from the family pet. Now, if I could just get my dog to do my tax return...
© Peter Wise
Peter Wise is a freelance copywriter in London. As well as SEO copywriting for improving Google ranking he also writes ads, direct mail, brochures, newsletter articles and press releases. More details are at Ideaswise Freelance Copywriting Services
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