Listen to Life

It’s challenging enough for most of us to do more with less at work as we’re all forced to do in this economy. But when Eeyore Vampires—negative people—invade, the dark shadows take over. How do you deal with Eeyore Vampires at work?

At times we allow the negative noise of the flat economy to drown out any positive, on-key music in our businesses. Soon the negative noise has an effect on you. What’s a business owner to do?

Over lunch, an entrepreneur talked with me about “financial terror.” Not knowing if there would be enough to support his family woke him up at 3AM for several nights. He asked “How do you deal with it?”

My grandparents told me stories about how hard making a living was during the Great Depression. As I researched high-achieving business professionals for my book, Work Positive in a Negative World, a different picture of the Great Depression emerged.

The PAC-12 Commissioner Larry Scott said "we are going to focus solely on our great assets, strong heritage, and bright future in front of us.” There’s a lesson here for all of our businesses.