Do We Really Have To PUSH Women On To Boards?

When I first arrived in this country several years ago, I struggled to find anyone who would hire me in a senior management capacity. I found this puzzling since I have two degrees, two professional designations and very solid work experience with recognised international brands. The MAIN reason I was given by organisations was that I “lacked Australian work experience”. I found this reason to be puzzling. 

We live in a world where there are few global trading boundaries. Every business is susceptible to the threat of losing customers to internet-based businesses (which in many cases sell the same products for less) and we need to think outside of the square to compete and maintain market share. Read the rest…

Contributed by Rhondalynn Korolak .   Rhondalynn believes that each one of us has the potential and ability to SEE, DO and HAVE anything we set our minds to! From humble beginnings and despite formidable obstacles, to success as a leader, writer and entrepreneur, she as learned what it takes to succeed in business (and in life). She is a fully qualified lawyer, chartered accountant, clinical hypnotherapist and Master of NLP and is considered a leading expert at business acceleration, the power of influence and mental toughness. She is the author of “On The Shoulders of Giants” and “Financial Foreplay” and is featured regularly on Today Tonight, A Current Affair, Sunday Life magazine, Sydney Morning Herald, 3AW, The Leader newspapers, JoyFM and many North American radio shows and publications.

Rhondalynn Korolak has written 7 article(s) for us.

Visit http://www.imagineeringunlimited.com

When is “I Don’t Know” The Right Answer?

Lily Allen may not be an authority on business, but she hit the nail on the head with her honest, irreverent spin on a timeless mystery - “how to know what to do when you have no idea and you’re not prepared”.  In her platinum selling song, she sings:

I don’t know what’s right and what’s real anymore
And I don’t know how I’m meant to feel anymore
When do you think it will all become clear?

Everyone knows that we have been conditioned NOT to admit that we don’t know all of the right answers.  Even though we know it’s not true, our teachers, bosses, politicians and even the media have modelled this ‘fake it until you make it’ mentality.  Since the mind doesn’t know the difference between a real or imagined event, acting ‘as if’ seems like the logical solution to temporary uncertainty, or does it? Read the rest…

Diversity: The old Merit vs Quotas argument

Over the week-end you may have read about the KPMG report that was commissioned to review the role of the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency. The report is currently being considered by the Federal Government. One of the recommendations seems to have grabbed attention – it’s the one about workplaces being encouraged to have a voluntary 40 percent female representation at all levels within a three to five year period or wear a penalty. Read the rest…

’9 Ways to Make Your Meetings Productive and Profitable’

Guest Contributor: Lorraine Pirihi

Some time ago I facilitated a VIP Planning Day for a small accounting practice. During the course of the day we reviewed the progress they had made since  the Planning Day we had the year before. As we were reflecting on their achievements before planning the future, one of the partners made the comment on how crucial their weekly meetings were. Read the rest…

Babes are likely to be out of the budget

This week-end the Government will receive the Productivity Commission’s recommendations on Maternity Leave. It appears that after all the carry-on about this idea it’s not going to even get a look-in as part of the May Budget.

It seems the Nation is not in an economic position to implement it – well the Government had heaps of time to think about accommodating this one before giving away $12 billion of the surplus to many people who don’t actually need it. Maternity Leave payments would have achieved the same outcome – women spending money in retail outlets in preparation for the birth of their baby. It’s not rocket science. And in anycase wasn’t the Government funding for the recommendations of the Commission going to be mostly funded by a revamp of the current Baby Bonus package?  Read the rest…

Retrenchment or Financial Loss – Help!

The only consistency at the moment seems to be upheaval and change. Women are relaying to me about their unexpected job losses, business closures and the effect the sudden down turn in trade is having on them both business wise and personally.

For many the increased emotional strain and constant fear of what the future holds is almost too much. It’s during these times that the networks we build become our only safety net.  For those facing change it’s really important to remain confident and know that there are people who care about you personally and what’s happening in your corner. Just talking through how you’re feeling about changes happening in your life can be helpful.

But last week across my desk came a great resource that I thought was worth a mention. It’s a user-friendly booklet produced by Beyond Blue in response to the current economic downturn - ‘Taking Care of Yourself After Retrenchment or Financial Loss’. The book is FREE but more importantly it’s an excellent tool for helping women dust off, pick up the pieces and move on to bigger and better things. Share your knowledge of the book with others.

Lynette Palmen AM, Founder and Managing Director, Women’s Network Australia speaks to, for and about women and their business issues.

Business: Some days aren’t as good as others

Ever had one of those days where you’ve thought that you just can’t put a foot right? Customers and clients only making contact with you to complain about what you have done wrong? The way to move past these days is to simply handle them for what they are and never take anyone’s anger on board or allow them to disempower you. I have always found that when in comes to complaints it is not so much about fixing the actual complaint as it is about about how you handle the situation. After all we are all human which means we’re not perfect and that includes the customer or client who’s doing the complaining – and they know it.

I enjoyed Valerie Khoo’s spin on the subject in her blog in The Age this week. Have a read and you’ll pick up some handy tips for those days when you wonder why you even bothered getting out of bed.

Lynette Palmen AM is the Founder and Managing Director of Women’s Network Australia W: www.womensnetwork.com.au  Lynette speaks across the nation to, for and about women in business.