Every now and then you'll run into folks in business, whether they're employers, vendors, customers, colleagues, or contractors, who just tick you off.I don't mean you'll come across one every two or three years. I mean you'll encounter a statistical stack of them, they'll pile on you all at once, and you'll wonder why.
"Is it me?" you'll wonder, if you're a liberal sort, who doesn't mind a little introspection and self-criticism."Am I doing something differently?" you might inquire, only to reply, "No, I'm more or less the same.".So, why now; and why you?.
I agree with some Zen practitioners who say we run into people who push us to our edge because that's where the lessons come from.They don't happen when we're in a cozy cocoon.Exploring our discomfort can tell us a lot about who we are, and specifically, what we're resisting.
For example, I was finishing my Ph.D. at one school, and teaching at another, where I had spent four years on the part-time faculty. A top-rated professor, I assumed I would be offered a permanent, full-time position or at worst, I would keep my temporary assignment.But the chair of the department told me he was kicking me out of the nest.
It was time I made my way in the world, and so I did just that, securing the best job in the country at the time, with the help of his positive recommendation.Although it wasn't clear to me at the time, I had reached my limit, my edge as a conventional teacher, and I needed to confirm this by moving up as far as I could go. By reaching a higher perch, I could see farther, and appreciate how far I had come, and how far I still needed to go.
I needed to upgrade, to be challenged and respond, and feel satisfied with my college teaching career by securing a tenure-track position, before I could make the leap into consulting.The flack that you're getting from people in business or anywhere is telling you something that you just won't understand if you stay cozy, where you are.So, appreciate the message beneath the discomfort and spread your wings!.
.Dr. Gary S.Goodman, President of www.Customersatisfaction.com, is a popular keynote speaker, management consultant, and seminar leader and the best-selling author of 12 books, including Reach Out & Sell Someone®, You Can Sell Anything By Telephone! and Monitoring, Measuring & Managing Customer Service, and the audio program, "The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable," published by Nightingale-Conant. He is a frequent guest on radio and television, worldwide.
A Ph.D. from USC's Annenberg School, a Loyola lawyer, and an MBA from the Peter F. Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University, Gary offers programs through UCLA Extension and numerous universities, trade associations, and other organizations in the United States and abroad. He holds the rank of Shodan, 1st Degree Black Belt in Kenpo Karate.
He is headquartered in Glendale, California, and he can be reached at (818) 243-7338 or at: gary@customersatisfaction.com.
By: Dr. Gary S. Goodman
