One of the masters of sales and relationship building is the late Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Inc., the cosmetics powerhouse.

She built a successful business that stands stronger and prouder each year with an average growth of about 28% per annum. So what can we learn from this wonderful businesswoman?

First off, take a moment to consider one of her famous quotes:

“I have learned to imagine an invisible sign around each person’s neck that says, ‘Make me feel important!”.

To me, this is a powerful message… if I think about all of my relationships, whether they be business or personal (although the line is pretty blurry), the strongest ones are either where somebody has made me feel important, or vice versa.

My business is all about relationships… maintaining existing ones and building new ones. In fact, I’d even go as far as saying that I’m in the relationship business. I know that without the strength of my relationships, my businesses would not be as strong as they are.

Of course I’m not suggesting that my relationships are perfect… nobody can really make that claim. But I do know that I work as hard as I can to maintain and strengthen them. I know I can do better, and I see the benefits almost immediately when I focus on any one. But that’s just it… its a constant job, one that needs love and attention all the time.

So what are you doing to build and strengthen your relationships? Who are you making feel important? Has anybody ever made you feel important? Think about the last time you were made to feel important, how nice that felt, and exactly what the other person did. Now, think about how you can turn that around and try that today. Let me know what you think. Good luck.

To learn more about Mary Kay, check out what the American National Business Hall of Fame has to say about her.

One of the most important lessons in life is learning how to treat others. Everybody knows the ‘Golden Rule’ but how many actually follow it?

The other day I read a quote from Thomas Stemberg, the founder of Staples Inc. where he said:

“Treat people right and they will eat nails for you.”

Of course we wouldn’t want our peeps to be eating nails, but I think the point is pretty clear.

In one of my companies, we’re going through the typical growing pains of building the business, attracting good talent, creating a good corporate culture, etc. But one thingI’ve found is that we get back from our people in proportion to what we put in. Sure, there’s a few that put in more and go beyond the call of duty, but there’s also a bunch that just do what they’re asked.

But even those people tend to perform better when we engage them and make them feel like a part of the team. We give them projects that excite them and also help them learn/grow, while benefiting the company.

In every aspect of my life, both personal and business, I have found that the best way to get what you want, is to try and give others what they want. Only through this approach of sharing and helping, can we all become better and reach our individual goals.

I’ve noticed there are still companies out there that round employee’s time (punches, swipes, whatever you want to call it).

I think, back in the day, it was considered a ‘feature’ of a good time capture system so that employer’s would no longer have to pay people for time not worked. And I agree with this concept… nobody should get paid for time they did not work. If an employee shows up 5 or 10 minutes late for their shift, then their pay should be representative of this.

But the flip side is also true. If an employee shows up 5 or 10 minutes early and actually starts working, their pay should be representative of this. Many organizations round this up to the scheduled start time and chalk it up to the notion of “I didn’t ask her to come in early and start early so why should I pay her?”. While in theory this might sound appropriate, it somehow gets lost in practice.

I know that this type of ‘rule’ was implemented generally to prevent people from abusing the system and coming in early only to pick their nose on their employer’s dime. As an employer, I certainly know this frustration and agree that its not fair. But once again, I come back to the point that not paying an employee for time they have worked, is not fair either.

As employers, we need to come up with a scheme that is fair and equitable for both sides. And I guarantee if we don’t, the courts will devise a mechanism that will be onerous, punitive and cumbersome. And that’s advice you can take to the bank!