Saturday, May 14, 2011

SIX PATHS TO PRINCIPLED BUSINESS PRACTICE

San Diego Daily Transcript, May 10, 2011
SIX PATHS TO PRINCIPLED BUSINESS PRACTICE
By Laura Walcher

Don’t Surprise Anyone, Anytime, Anyhow, For Any Reason.
Do I overstate it?  No. An occasional surprise batch of chocolate chip cookies, but that’s about it.
 Here’s why:  Surprises throw people off.  Most business people strive to be on top of their game at all times.  They want to anticipate changes and problems and ready their responses and solutions.  They want to be accountable to their superiors - and their own staff; they often want to take credit for good news and diffuse blame for bad.
There’s a benefit and return for helping to make your colleagues’ jobs easier – and to help them look good.  If you can’t avoid a surprise, be ready with information that will help them prepare their next move.

The NYPD Rule of Thumb
Nobody’s always right;  nobody’s always wrong.  Everything is a “situation.”  I especially like this lesson because we’re all guilty of a) selective listening; b)taking sides;  c)jumping to conclusions; d)being too lazy to research surrounding and underlying facts and possibilities.
How often to you take a side without considering the other person’s      agenda?  How often do you rise to defend one person – only to discover later and uncomfortably that his/her own actions drew the problematic event?
Always, but always, listen  before forming – or worse,    issuing an opinion.
An advertising salesman approached one of my clients and, he told me, was treated rudely.  Without commitment but expressing sympathy, I said I’d look into it.  My client’s story changed the picture, of course.  She said he was overly aggressive, wouldn’t take “no” for an answer – and wouldn’t leave! Truth in both  stories? I thought so.   As “mediator,” I can safely say I represented each appropriately, ensuring my client’s welcome presence in the adman’s publication – and  importantly, saving their relationship for the next good buy.

Miss Manners? She’s God
At a cocktail party, a prominent  executive (“Mr. Doe”)  engaged me in conversation.  Commonly at such events, another gentleman approached.  Mr. Doe instantly turned his attention to the newcomer – blatantly not introducing me nor even acknowledging my presence.
    I was embarrassed  - to say the least. The new gentleman’s discomfort was apparent, too, and to his credit, he tried to “save” the situation, but could not for the babbling on of ol’ Doe.
    Result:  Mr. Doe was the ultimate loser, revealing himself callous and rude.  Two of us will never regard Mr. Doe with the respect we had, (and one of us will get even with him if it’s the last thing I do ...)
    Manners move many difficult situations into anecdotes and relationship-savers. Bad news, reprimands, the ”next” sales call you make to a reluctant buyer – all can be made palatable by manners, sensitivity and, please, humor.
   All Mr. Doe had to do was make a quick, simple introduction.  In one additional sentence, he could have told me, “I’m so glad to see (name) to talk about (whatever) …” and I’m absolutely certain that I would  have  understood that their discussion took precedence over our own idle chatter.  I would have quietly excused myself, no problem.
   Too basic?  Return phone calls and emails.  Say please and thank you.  Defer to age, stage in life.  Hold doors open. Acknowledge people.  Never be dismissive or impolite to anyone, but mainly, your elders.
    You get the idea.

If Really Difficult People Aren’t Worth It, Forget It
Without a doubt, you’ll have your own list of candidates.  Difficult people must offer inspiration, creativity, brilliance; they must have integrity and conviction.  They must frequently be right.  All this has to compensate for the grief and aggravation they cause you.  (No sense of humor nullifies all the above.)

Who Owes Ya’ Baby?: 
I’d love to name the best person who ever owed me money, because his incredible conscience and responsibility around the issue would showcase him as the exemplary person he is.  From the moment his finances went awry until months later when he paid in full, he called regularly, first to explain his situation, then to reassure me that he was on track (and if not, why not,).  He arranged occasional lunches with me during that time, and at each expressed his appreciation for our patience.
I recently reminded him of all this.  He said, ‘that was a difficult period for me.  I owed several people money. But the truth is, in each situation I gained a closer friend for the way I tried to deal with it.”  Today his business thrives, and it won’t surprise you to know that he undertakes every aspect of his life and business with the same sense of integrity.
   Contrast that with a successful restaurateur who stone-walled, delayed, demanded repeated detailed billings, made payments only when prompted (tho’ admitting our services were excellent!), and finally paid in full only when we threatened collections. The experience was perhaps predictable since he also whined, complained and made endless unnecessary demands.  Not only wouldn’t we work with him again, we wouldn’t patronize his restaurants, either. You can tall a lot about a person by the way he owes you.  See item #4. 

May I Introduce Your Right Hand to Your Left Hand
In my experience internal communication, the most essential of all business interaction, takes top prize as the most ignored and disdained practice, throughout all kinds of clients and all types of businesses. 
Why is that, you ask (even as you erroneously do not number yourself among the guilty)? My educated theories:
=Overconfidence.  The “I can do this myself” theory of doing business.
-Over-scheduled.  The just-too-busy to undertake another - and often substantial –communique.
-Ego-centrism.  Simply, a disrespect for the welfare, well-being and responsibilities of one’s staff and colleagues – most of whom are impacted in one way or another by company news and activities.
There is in business a monumental need for consciousness-raising in this matter.  I recall clients who didn’t tell us that a key executive had resigned; didn’t say that the company changed its name (honest!), didn’t tell their own president and CEO that they were booked on  “60 Minutes”  … and so on.  It’s endless and pervasive.
Solutions can range from implementing a system for internal communications to which every key manager and executive is privy, to regularly issuing a “Need to Know” memo in every email and meeting agenda.
We’ve all taken note, I’m certain, that our improved communications technologies have not necessarily improved our ability to communicate.  ###

Laura Walcher is Principal Public Relations Counsel to J. Walcher
Communications



Monday, May 2, 2011

CLEO, WE’ HARDLY KNEW YE’ –



By Laura Walcher
Presidio Sentinel San Diego, May 2011


   What in the world got into that woman?  Not Cleopatra; we more or less know what got into her.  But, author Stacy Schiff.  I mean, just consider the arduous task she undertook to produce Cleopatra, A Life, the tome our book club undertook with early ...um.  Zeal. (At home, wed already bought it for Joe, 12, an amazing young reader whod been studying Cleo in school. After a serious attempt,  he was polite.)

Most of us quit under l00 pages; some highly disciplined clubbers felt ethically bound to finish whatever they started.  Good upbringing!  Two were enthralled.
Stacy, frpetesake.  Nobody really knows what happened and pretty much nobody who was there knew either.  Most - maybe all - reporters of Cleopatras amazing shenanigans and sumptuous, if perilous life got their information -  at the very least, second hand. Even Plutarch, now regarded as the best source, wrote about it l00 years after it was all over.

Slogging through the wars, the Ptolemys and  Pompeys, Romans and/or Greeks, brothers bedding sisters, mothers dismembering children,  Arsinoe and Ganymedes, Auletes (OK: Cleos father), and so on. and on.... was ...  Oh! Inspiring material for limericks! Haikus! Free verse!

Evidently, the clubbers agreed:     
  
Bob Walcher:

With that Cleo you dont go amessin?
To heck with that legal succession
She killed her kid brother
Then offed yet another
In those days a minor transgression

For our book club I dutifully read
bout Cleopatra from birth until dead
But as hard as I tried
My brain felt flat fried
Should have watched the movie instead
-------------------
Mary-Rose Mueller:
    
Cleopatra was her given name
a goddess with fortune and fame.
A strong clever mind
A fortunate find
Ms. Shiff in this book did spellbind

Bill Mueller:

Cleopatra, the queen of the Nile
Was ruling that river in style!
From  Rome comes old Caesar
Falls in lust when he sees her.
And tarried in Egypt awhile ...

(Can you tell who the Schiff proponents were? )


---------------
Sheryl King:

Book Cleopatra
Turgid and speculative
Book Club required -- ugh.


Ken King:

Cleopatra the Greek had some style
She was also a master of guile
Jules and Tony were horny
Cleo's lair proved so thorny
That the Romans went too far in de-Nile

----------------

Phyllis Weeks-Daniel:

There was murder and warfare and lust,
in the end Alexandria went bust.
Romans Caesar and Marc
provide the whole story arc.
Really,  Schiff's Cleopatra's no must.*

Bonus Haiku:

Read Cleopatra
Fascinating yet so dry
An editor please
-----------------

OK: its my column, so I get the last word:

The T. M. I. problem is this,
For Cleo, there wasnt much bliss.
We were drowning in pages
Of wars, warts and rages -
Not a second of strife did we miss.

But who really knows what is true?
You think that Ms. Schiff has a clue?
She gathered some stuff(ing)
And may not be bluff (ing)
But mostly, I hope she wont sue ... ! xxx

FRANCO SARTO DESIGNS HIS SHOES WITH HEART, PASSION


May, 2011
San Diego Presidio Sentinel
By Laura Walcher

Franco Sarto appears at Nordstrom’s on a nearly-sunny Saturday morning, brimming with cheerfulness and bursting with energy.  It’s already easy to see the passion that accompanies his singular shoe designs.   The ladies have begun to browse  through his collections, so we whisk away quickly for a brief talk.

Mssr. Sarto is from Dolo, Italy, a small town outside of Venice.  As a young man, he moved to Stra - Italy’s shoe-design “center,” where he began his career, taking along technical expertise from his work as a teenage cobbler, and combining it with his passion for design, which has been called,  “One part sophistication and one part wit.”
Unlike shoe designer Christian Louboutin, who says, he “hates the whole concept of comfort!,” comfort for Sarto is foremost in his footwear designs  - and for that, we women are grateful. 

We talked: 
LW: My daughter, Jean  - a very savvy shopper -  says Franco Sarto shoes are  a perfect combination of style, comfort and price! How do you balance all of those elements so successfully?
FS:. Experience! Where I grew up, we had a culture ... we walked, walked, walked!  It’s not surprising that the region is famous for shoes!  And, starting so young -  14 years old! - to work as a shoe cobbler, gave me an understanding of the kind of construction women need for
comfort - and beauty. 

LW.  What kind of woman do you design for? Who is she in your mind's eye?
FS: She’s normally a young woman - probably a teen - and she’s a woman of about 50; then, every woman in - between.  So many of my shoes are ones that both the daughter and her mother can enjoy.

LW:  A friend of mine who skews older than that demographic, recently bought your retro leather wedge, the one with a leather knot,  in black, navy, white, and gold! 
FS:  That’s a wonderful woman, young at heart, in spirit, in fashion!

LW:  What are the trends you see on the horizon; If you could offer only one piece of fashion advice for this spring/summer, what would it be?
FS:  The platform and the wedge will be most important!
We plan more fabric, and patterns.  Our materials can be stone washed; they’ll stay fresh and beautiful.  Heels are certainly important.  We stay to 30-60 centimeters in our line.  Essentially, my Spring designs are centered around two major directions: easy elegance and urban vintage.    Yet, having said all that, comfort is still paramount.

LW:  Are there particular styles you intend to showcase:
FS:  I have four favorites:  Our ‘New Twist’ sandal with a braided leather detail, in ‘gladiator’ style;  a style inspired by 1970’s, one called ‘Tangerine Dream,’ - they’re bohemian chic! For pure classic, our ‘New Neutral’ ivory sandal, with a very casual canvas wedge, is ‘basic’ and versatile.  We  call it ‘Natural Heights.’

LW:  What inspires you? Does your family help?
FS:  Ah, everything around us! I don’t know about my family - my daughter, who is in her 30’s, wears the shoes
that I bring home! I am drawn to the easygoing and elegant style of women  in the chic European resorts on the Italian coasts and the South of France—Capri, Milano Marittima, St. Tropez, Nices and Cannes...  Yet cosmopolitan capitals like New York, London and Milan,  also inspire me to design for the urban woman.   

LW:  Howard Chenfeld, my brother-in-law, was a shoe buyer, and whenever we were out, his attention was always riveted by women’s feet - and the shoes they were wearing!
FS:  Ohh!  It’s like a disease!  I go instantly - from face -  to shoes!  Here’s how it goes:  Shoes.  Hairstyle.  Purse.  That’s it!  ###






























                   
                 
                   
















Company Information
         May, 2011

603

FRANCO SARTO DESIGNS HIS SHOES WITH HEART, PASSION
By Laura Walcher


Franco Sarto appears at Nordstrom’s on a nearly-sunny Saturday morning, brimming with cheerfulness and bursting with energy.  It’s already easy to see the passion that acoompanies his singular shoe designs.   The ladies have begun to browse  through his collections, so we whisk away quickly for a brief talk.
   Mssr. Sarto is from Dolo, Italy, a small town outside of Venice.  As a young man, he moved to Stra - Italy’s
shoe-design “center,” where he began his career, taking along technical expertise from his work as a teenage cobbler, and combining it with his passion for design, which has been called,  “One part sophistication and one part wit.”
   Unlike shoe designer Christian Louboutin, who says, he “hates the whole concept of comfort!,” comfort for Sarto is foremost in his footwear designs  - and for that, we women are grateful. 
   We talked: 


LW: My daughter, Jean  - a very savvy shopper -  says Franco Sarto shoes are  a perfect combination of style, comfort and price! How do you balance all of those elements so successfully?
   FS:. Experience! Where I grew up, we had a culture ... we walked, walked, walked!  It’s not surprising that the region is famous for shoes!  And, starting so young - 
14 years old! - to work as a shoe cobbler, gave me an
understanding of the kind of construction women need for
comfort - and beauty. 

LW.  What kind of woman do you design for? Who is she in your mind's eye?
   FS: She’s normally a young woman - probably a teen - and she’s a woman of about 50; then, every woman in - between.  So many of my shoes are ones that both the daughter and her mother can enjoy.

LW:  A friend of mine who skews older than that demographic, recently bought your retro leather wedge, the one with a leather knot,  in black, navy, white, and gold!
   FS:  That’s a wonderful woman, young at heart, in spirit, in fashion!

 
LW:  What are the trends you see on the horizon; If you could offer only one piece of fashion advice for this spring/summer, what would it be?
   FS:  The platform and the wedge will be most important!
We plan more fabric, and patterns.  Our materials can be stone washed; they’ll stay fresh and beautiful.
   Heels are certainly important.  We stay to 30-60 centimeters in our line.
   Essentially, my Spring designs are centered around two major directions: easy elegance and urban vintage.    Yet, having said all that, comfort is still paramount.

LW:  Are there particular styles you intend to showcase:
   FS:  I have four favorites:  Our ‘New Twist’ sandal with a braided leather detail, in ‘gladiator’ style;  a style inspired by 1970’s, one called ‘Tangerine Dream,’ - they’re bohemian chic! For pure classic, our ‘New Neutral’ ivory sandal, with a very casual canvas wedge, is ‘basic’ and versatile.  We  call it ‘Natural
Heights.’

LW:  What inspires you? Does your family help?
   FS:  Ah, everything around us! I don’t know about my family - my daughter, who is in her 30’s, wears the shoes
that I bring home!
    I am drawn to the easygoing and elegant style of women  in the chic European resorts on the Italian coasts and the South of France—Capri, Milano Marittima, St. Tropez, Nices and Cannes...  Yet cosmopolitan capitals like New York, London and Milan,  also inspire me to design for the urban woman.   


LW:  Howard Chenfeld, my brother-in-law, was a shoe buyer, and whenever we were out, his attention was always riveted by women’s feet - and the shoes they were wearing!
   FS:  Ohh!  It’s like a disease!  I go instantly - from face -  to shoes!  Here’s how it goes:  Shoes.  Hairstyle.  Purse.  That’s it!  ###






























                   
                 
                   
















Company Inf