Family Ties How your relationships at home can help (or hurt) your business.

If you're having trouble relating to your colleagues, someobjective self-analysis may reveal that you have a similar problemin your relationships with your spouse or children. In particular,says Annmarie Neal, a senior consultant in the Denver office ofmanagement consulting firm RHR International, how you control yourchildren may mirror how you exert control over your employees.Because behavior tends to be consistent across settings, Neal sayspaying attention to how you function both at and away from work canhelp you uncover problems and even help you become a betterboss.

"The closer the family dynamics are to the business, themore important it is to pay attention to those issues," Nealsays. "In a large company, the boundaries are a lot clearerbecause the processes and structures of the business keep thoseboundaries intact. In smaller organizations, family dynamicsinevitably emerge because we're not clear on our businessboundaries."

Neal suggests using the following questions to identify yourstrengths and potential problem areas. In addition to answering thequestions yourself, solicit feedback from your family members andco-workers.

• How is your management style similar to and different from yourparenting style?

• How are your work relationships similar to and different fromyour sibling relationships?

• How is the role you play in your family similar to anddifferent from roles you play in peer groups at work?

• Do your bad habits play themselves out at work as well as athome?

• Do you react toward people at work in ways you don'tunderstand? If so, do these people remind you of any familymembers?

Often, the process of identifying and articulating a problemwill also provide the solution. If it doesn't, you may want toconsider seeing a counselor with expertise in workplace issues. Ifyour actions don't seem to be doing much good in eitherenvironment, start practicing new behaviors at home, where youlikely feel safer; when you're ready, you can transfer them toyour workplace.

Wanted: CEO

It may be your company, but that doesn't mean you have torun it.

The title on Phyllis Jordan's business card reads"Director of Marketing"--and that's just the way thefounder of PJ's Coffee & Tea Co. in New Orleans wantsit.

Twenty years after she opened her first store, Jordan decided tohire a CEO, a position she'd held from the beginning. "Themost immediate impetus was my former director of marketing leaving.At that point, I realized that was the job I really wanted,"she explains. "But there was no way I could do it and maintainmy role as CEO."

She also realized her rapidly growing company needed a level ofexecutive ability she didn't have. "I have lots ofambition for the company. I want it to grow and grow well,"she says. "Given the competitive environment we're in,I'm probably not the right person [for the job ofCEO]."

Now she has someone else running the company on a daily basis,doing the tasks she doesn't particularly like, while she'sfree to focus on what she enjoys and does well. She's retainedher position as chairman of the board and taken over the marketingposition. She meets formally with the CEO once a month, but theycommunicate on a casual basis several times a day. Sales are up,systems are being streamlined, and Jordan has never beenhappier.

Jordan says the key to successfully hiring a CEO is to findsomeone you trust. "You have to be able to give them theauthority to do their jobs," she says, "then you have tohold them accountable for their success or failure."

Smart Cookies Still Crumble

The five mistakes CEOs make.

You must be a pretty good leader--after all, you're thefounder and owner of a successful business. But that doesn'tmean you're not susceptible to temptations that can affect yourability to run your company. Patrick Lencioni, author of TheFive Temptations of a CEO (Jossey-Bass) and president of TheTable Group, an Emeryville, California, management consulting firm,explains the temptations CEOs face and how to deal with them:

1. Making status more important than results.Sometimes it's easier to be content with where you are than tofocus on the future. Lencioni advises, "Explicitly andpublicly state the results necessary for you to call yourselfsuccessful. Once you put them out there, it will be hard to slipback into a subjective, status-oriented attitude."

2.Valuing your popularity with employees more thantheir accountability. In many organizations, especially smallcompanies, the staff becomes the owner's primary social outlet."You're the CEO, and you hire people you like. You workall the time, so you don't really have a chance to meet people,and your employees become your default friends," Lencionisays. Then when it comes time to hold them accountable, youhesitate." The solution, he says, is to develop strongrelationships outside of work, so you don't depend too heavilyon the friendships you develop at work.

3. Putting off timely decisions to wait for moreinformation. "Analytical executives do this,"Lencioni says. "Every time they're faced with a toughchoice, they say `Let's get more data.'" The resultsof putting off decisions can often be more damaging than makingdecisions with less-than-complete information. Lencioni suggestsgiving yourself clear, public deadlines for making keydecisions--and then forcing yourself to meet those deadlines.

4. Preserving harmony rather than welcoming productiveconflict. "A lot of executives don't like to watchtheir people argue and get passionate about things," Lencioninotes. "But you want people to care about the business likeit's their own, so [if it's constructive], don't stiflethem when they start to feel passionate and have discord."

5. Avoiding vulnerability rather than earning trust. CEOsoften believe they'll lose credibility if employees feel toocomfortable challenging them, but Lencioni says just the oppositeis true. "The greatest leaders in the world are trusted bytheir people because they've seen them at their weakest,"he says. "Expose yourself to situations where you'reclearly not the expert or power broker. Attend meetings or takepart in organizations where you're not the leader."

To Err Is Human...

But to try something new is seldom a mistake.

When testing new products or entering new markets, mistakes areinevitable. But that's not necessarily a bad thing, says JeffRaim, a business coach and president of Empowered Management Inc.in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. "Mistakes are an absolutelynecessary part of being successful," he contends. "Whatyou want to do, if you're going to try something new, is tomake sure you can cover the downside risk. The upside will takecare of itself."

Raim offers this example: Say you want to invest in a new pieceof equipment. You calculate the cost of buying and operating it,and estimate the additional profits you expect it to generate. Ifthe profits are more than the costs, making the purchase seems likea wise move. But what happens if you're wrong and for whateverreason--changes in the market, problems with manufacturing anddistribution, or any of a number of other situations--theanticipated revenue is not as great as you thought it would be?"You have to know in advance what you're going to do ifyour expectations aren't realized," says Raims. "Ifyou can still handle the cost of the equipment, then you'll beable to move forward with your plans without being distracted byfear."

And what if you can't handle the downside of whatever it isyou want to try? Raim suggests looking for alternatives. "Tryit on a [smaller] scale, one where you can handle the consequences.Instead of buying the piece of equipment, consider leasing it orfinding a subcontractor that will actually perform the service foryou. You may pay a higher per-unit cost, giving you less grossprofit, but you don't have the downside risk if it doesn'twork."

The key is not to let fear of mistakes hold you back from beinginnovative, Raim says. "If you can't cover the downsidewith your initial plan," he says, "then find another wayto do it. There's always another way."

Contact Sources

Empowered Management Inc., (800) 437-0764, http://www.spiritcoach.com

PJ's Coffee & Tea Co., (504) 486-2827, http://www.pjscoffee.com

RHR International, 1700 Broadway, #1110, Denver, CO80290, (303) 839-1130