Thanks to my granddaughter, Evelyn, I’m no longer struggling with what I think my 2018 blogs should be about. We were sitting around this weekend and I read 2 different style blogs that I had yet to post. The first one was all about me and my opinion. During this reading of the blog, my granddaughter said, “Wow, you sure do love yourself.” Of course, I called her a dirty word for being so precocious (though I love that about her) but I listened to her point objectively, and she was right. I sounded full of myself and realized I was just playing it safe by only talking about me.
The next blog I read to her made me nervous. It recounted the week at Flag And Banner. It was about the usual break downs and eventual breakthroughs that happens routinely when you are running a small business. These stories almost always involve my co-workers aka employees. This is not as safe a topic because my blog is available for anyone to read and, though the names are changed, you never know how another person is going to feel about being in your story line.
In this second reading was problem solving, a part of my daily life (which I complain about though secretly love). Evelyn loved this blog! She said, “I like that one better. It is more like your radio show, Up In Your Business, where your style is to let your guest talk and you merely guide the conversation. Think of your employees as your guests and you guide the business conversation.” Out of the mouths of babes! I know you don’t think she said that, but she really did. I told you she was precocious.
Well, I just love this idea. It is not as safe, but it is interesting and educational. It lets my readers in to the trenches of running a small business, which is a balancing act of individual egos (including mine) and doing what is right for the company.
So in my January 15th blog when I wrote “I am not going to play it safe this year,” it turns out that that doesn’t mean what I first thought it to mean; cursing and expounding on my not so mainstream opinions. Instead, it’s evolved to mean, I am going to blog every week about my diverse job, which more times than not will have a story that includes my hard-working employees and the issues that come up when, everyone is trying hard, and everyone is human.
