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Business Rule #2:
Know When to Shut Up
September 16, 2004
(PAGE 2 of 2)
So I bring a few financiers in to take a look around the place to let them see for themselves how the spaces are coming along. I showed them the improved floor plans and the new fixtures—and who was it, out of everyone there, who wouldn't stop talking? Not one of the bigwig power players have you. One insolent little male secretary who used every chance he got, to speak up on topics he plainly knew nothing about—just like Jennifer Crisafulli in the boardroom. He insisted on chiming in when he hadn’t the slightest clue about real estate, architecture, or construction. He kept asking a barrage of unnecessary questions like Pamela Day at the ice cream plant. He was asking me, “How does the wiring go into the walls?”, “How soon will the drywall be up?”, and my personal favorite, “Is it safe to be in here?”
Everyone in the room could plainly see how utterly annoyed I was getting. Mind you, I’m not a tyrant. I don’t enjoy knocking people in any way, but what really gets me is that this guy is working for maybe $30,000 a year at best and I had personally written out more than his whole year's salary in checks that morning. This young man went on to describe the merits and pitfalls of the site—the good things, the bad things, the pros, the cons—on and on and on, he went, sparing no detail. He must have talked for ten minutes
straight before I interrupted him.
“Where do you see yourself five years from now?”
I asked.
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To my sheer and utter surprise, he said, “Real estate investments.” Everyone in the room broke out in laughter, save for the executive accompanying him. I had to ask what he thought of someone like me owning the types of properties that I do. He stared at me. I asked if he had learned anything about structures and construction that morning. He just looked at me and said, very quietly, “no.”
If he had only been listening instead of talking he could have learned a great deal that day. Current and future executives who read this column take heed: listen more than you speak. Stop yourself from saying, “I think…” because if you really did think, you wouldn’t be wasting your time trying to get everyone else to listen to you and what you think. You would have stayed quiet long enough to listen up and hear something that you could have used to your advantage. Everyone wants to be the boss, but no one wants to do what it takes to be a great leader.
Before adjourning for the week, I would like you to know that I really do write this column in the hope that some of you will take my advice seriously and start your own companies. Don’t let anything stand in the way of your attaining your goals. If you want to do it, go for it. I want you to succeed. I want you to live the high life. As a matter of fact, if anyone here makes his first million by listening to my advice, I will invite you to Chicago to enjoy a glass of champagne with me. We’ll dine at one of my favorite restaurants, Avenues, inside the Peninsula Hotel. Then maybe you can tell me, you don’t like my tie.
Until next time,
LaVelle Ward
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If he had only been listening instead of talking he could have learned a great deal that day.
