EditorialsBy Matt Bud, Chairman, The FENG

Some dumb ideas actually work

From our daily member newsletter on October 5, 2017

Back at the beginning of time itself when my good friend Ed Devlin was running what was to become The FENG, he invited me to join. (I don’t know what he was thinking.) Seeing the networking opportunity for my own job search, I immediately offered to act as social chairman for our small gathering of senior financial executives and bring a membership directory to every meeting for distribution. (It wasn’t all that hard as there were only 15-20 of us.) As the meetings I attended became more than a person could count on one hand, I had the occasion to speak with Ed about how to increase our membership. We had both experienced the committee review method and found it [ Read more… ]

Making small talk

From our daily member newsletter on September 21, 2017

I have never considered myself a social butterfly, but I guess for many of us financial types it is difficult to start a conversation with someone we don’t know. If you give a little thought to conversations you have had over your life with people not known to you, you will fondly remember the favorite topic most of those discussions began with was the weather. (As you know, everyone talks about the weather but no one does anything about it, but I digress.) If weather isn’t the chosen topic, traffic, sports (How about those Yankees?) will all suffice. Religion and politics are generally not good ideas for conversation openers with strangers. I suppose the reason that one might start out [ Read more… ]

People don’t go there anymore

From our daily member newsletter on September 20, 2017

Yogi Berra has been known to have said some pretty amusing things. One of my favorites is: “People don’t go there anymore, it’s too crowded.” We all know what Yogi means by all the things he is claimed to have said and it tends to bring a smile to our face, or at least to mine. But, with this particular one, the reverse is also true. If everyone thinks that no one is going to show up, or that a meeting is not going to be well attended, they simply won’t go. And, presto, the meeting isn’t well attended. A self-fulfilling prophesy. Some of our chapters have a reputation for energizing meetings. Some chapters seem to have trouble getting that [ Read more… ]

The fall networking season

From our daily member newsletter on September 6, 2017

As you all know, Labor Day marks the unofficial end of the season we call summer. So much for lazy days at the beach and relaxing vacations. It is time to get back to work. If you are “between assignments” it is also the unofficial beginning of the fall networking season. Yes, I know that there will be football games on TV, but it is also the season of getting out and about, making new friends and hopefully finding a source of income. (We used to call them jobs, but I don’t want to get carried away with myself.) While it is probably best that you didn’t call anyone on Tuesday and even maybe today, tomorrow is a good day [ Read more… ]

Networking and holiday weekends

From our daily member newsletter on August 31, 2017

Tonight’s editorial will be short, but hopefully important. How can I say this? Holiday weekends are great networking events. Consider you will likely be with family and friends who actually care about you. If you are currently between assignments, you will have to initiate the conversation. Everyone will assume that you are in a sensitive mood and they will be afraid to bring it up. So, you have to bring it up. A great story to begin a positive conversation about your search is to let them know you are a member of the largest networking group of senior financial officers in the entire world! (There we go being modest again.) Share a story with them about how a member [ Read more… ]

Precision in your communications

From our daily member newsletter on April 30, 2017

Perhaps it all started with the telegraph. (Hey, they were charging by the word.) Or, was it the CB radio? Somewhere along the line we have all come to believe that brevity, even when not entirely correct, is somehow okay. Today’s communication formats such as the various smart phones don’t lend themselves to being complete or correct. There is even an available statement you can add to your outgoing messages from these devices that highlights the fact that it wasn’t sent from a regular computer. (I guess the expectation is that folks on the receiving end will therefore be more forgiving.) I won’t even get into Twitter. (140 characters is really constraining.) It is sad, really, that we allow these [ Read more… ]

Sharing our knowledge

From our daily member newsletter on April 23, 2017

From time to time, I write an editorial that generates very thoughtful responses from our members. I hope that all of you appreciate those individuals who write in as much as I do. It is an important part of The FENG, that we each take the time to share our knowledge with one another on topics large and small. There are so many ways to share our knowledge. If you are bashful and not interested in communicating with a large audience, there are local meetings and those weekly new member listings where you can pick up the phone and TAKE THE TIME to share what you have learned with one individual at a time. That is as important as writing [ Read more… ]

Stress reduction in networking

From our daily member newsletter on April 19, 2017

I suppose it is hard to believe, but those on the receiving of networking calls actually experience more stress than you do. Yes, I know that picking up that 400 pound phone isn’t easy, but neither is responding to phone calls from those who have been trained in the NFL approach to networking. (That’s where someone tackles you and won’t let you up until you give them 3 names.) Is it any wonder that your phone call or visit can strike fear in their hearts? The stress comes from the fear of disappointing you and/or disappointing the friend who sent you their way by appearing not to be able to help you. If you want the process to work as [ Read more… ]

Thanksgiving!

From our daily member newsletter on November 20, 2007

I hope that all members of The FENG are off on Thursday (and hopefully Friday, Saturday and Sunday) and that you are planning to spend time with family and/or friends or both. These times of celebration are important in so many ways.   They are, of course, reminders of times gone by. Some good times. Some bad times. Some in between times.   First and foremost, I hope you use this first long weekend of the fall/winter season to recharge your batteries. Summer is over. The vacations we took are a distant memory. So, think of this as a mini-vacation.   If you are active in your search or thinking of looking, don’t miss the opportunity this holiday represents to [ Read more… ]

Starting A Consulting Company-Emotional Intelligence & Walt Disney

From our daily member newsletter on November 13, 2007

From Jerry Mills, Founder & CEO of B2B CFO®, Jerry writes:   Matt Bud was kind enough to publish an article I wrote named Emotional Intelligence, on October 18, 2007. I want to thank the dozens of FENG members that wrote emails regarding the article. The emails came from as far away as Germany. Many of the comments were similar to the following:   “Thank you so much for forwarding your article on emotional intelligence. It came at a time when I needed it the most and am very grateful for the reminder. Normally I can overcome the negative and get back to the positive, but I was having a harder time with it this week. The frustration of job [ Read more… ]

Dream a little dream

From our daily member newsletter on November 7, 2007

Up until the age of 46 I didn’t spend a single day unemployed. From the time I got out of the Army in 1971 until 1991 I only changed jobs twice. It doesn’t give you a lot of time to think about your career or to consider that you might be doing other things.   During the two years I was out of work I did a lot of thinking and I tried a lot of different things.   I suppose if I had found a job immediately my life would not be what it is today. I would venture to say it is better than it might have otherwise been despite the “years from heck”. As you know, all [ Read more… ]

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