On ethics and networking
Today I attended the Enterprise Toronto Small Business Forum at the Toronto Convention Centre. The event was of mixed interest and quality, these things always are I guess. But it was definitely worthwhile attending, particularly for the opportunities to chat to people in the same new business startup boat.
I appreciated a theme of doing business ethically that cropped up in several presentations during the day. I have lots to write on this subject, in fact I’m thinking of adding something along the lines of ‘make honesty central’ into the Hogtown Consulting mission.
But right now, when it’s been a long day and I have a a girlfriend to pay some attention to, I will just say this. The final forum I attended was by Drew Simmie, a Toronto based business coach. Drew spoke on the topic ‘it’s all selling’ and contrary to the hard sell attitude that heading might cover he was very positive about business karma and ‘doing the right thing’ as being good business as well as being its own reward.
Here’s the thought of Drew’s that particularly stuck with me, ‘nearly everyone will be a mensch* given the chance’. This was said in the context of business folks being happy and open to sharing their knowledge and contacts. That openness has definitely been my pleasant experience with people I’ve contacted to ask advice about my new business (say Rain City Studios and Neil Lee, to credit just two of many) .
Perhaps that’s Hogtown Consulting’s new slogan ‘designs websites, creates blogs and tries for menschhood’.
* Here’s Wikipedia’s definition of mensch, for the Yiddish-challenged (like me).
In Yiddish (from which the word has migrated into American English), mensch roughly means “a good person”. A mensch is a particularly good person, like “a stand-up guy,” a person with the qualities one would hope for in a dear friend or trusted colleague.