I closed my mouth and spoke to you
RUMI
In a hundred silent ways
We all speak far more than we listen.
There were many opportunities in my personal life and in my business career during which I could have been lethal just with words.
Wisdom guided my silence.
Leadership is most effective when you quietly implement a culture of mutual respect and restraint.
I have learnt this week that my time is valuable and so is the time of the people we interact with and therefore it is of great importance to understand what is the preferred way of communicating with someone.
Is it voice, email, WhatsApp, conference calls or meeting in person.
What are the preferred times to communicate.
It would be interesting to explore the best ethics of communication for each customer. This level of care can certainly create the right impression and dissolve pressure. It is called asking permission to communicate.
The level of noise and the volume of information to which we are exposed daily is extraordinary and it is only multiplying as everyone and every business wants your attention.
The second lesson is that each culture has a silent way of communicating and this can make or break a relationship.
Cultural consultants are now a major professional niche as they can save you a considerable amount of money by working with you on a project and help you understand the nuances of doing business in certain parts of the World.
In your own market it is important to get a clear brief from a client and work concisely to offer only information that is useful, relevant and accurate.
Less is more.
Your attention equals an opportunity cost as you could being doing something else so be precise and request clarity at the beginning of any conversation.
Clarity is my new favourite leadership word.
Just like a river runs through mountains, valleys, forests and deserts and gains unstoppable power by giving life to everything that it touches in its silent and sometimes not so silent journey, as it makes its way to the sea, so should we learn that most of the time we are a lot more graceful when we stay silent instead of getting lost in the noise of our voices and the voices of others.
People read your silent ways just like a river runs through it.
We are sensory creatures and our five senses collect information in the most beautiful ways.
Touch is silent and yet we feel every texture, every detail like the white lace on a bridal dress or the black granite top on a kitchen counter.
Exquisite and silent is what we see when we observe the first rays of the sun rise adorn the kitchen table laden with fresh bread, figs and cheese. Lavender twigs and olive tree garlands on each chair.
Your hands still full of flour touch your lifetime sink with the gay abandonment of a woman that takes pleasure in nurturing others.
It is quite poetic, really.
Home baking is a sacred ritual and it leaves silent footprints in the smell and taste of all those around.
Kitchen sinks are not just a product that is selected by a buyer with a mind full of numbers it is the memory making piece of alchemy where the water that came from that river that ran silently through so many miles is now a splash of pleasure on your hands.
HUNDRED SILENT WAYS ARE UNSPOKEN
TRADE ANTHOLOGY//
ANTHOLOGY OF TRADE SECRETS
Stay graceful.
TRADE ANTHOLOGY 