Business Lessons I Learned from My Mother

My mother was Miss Romagna, her name is Anna Laura. I wanted to have her purple blue eyes and ready smile. She has the welcoming spirit of a woman always ahead of the times and comfortable in her own skin.

In addition to being a mother of three (all girls), she has had multiple careers -- in accounting, sales, public office, and geriatric care; some overlapping for years.

Mother really gets communications -- the listening part especially -- the organization of work along with the care of the individual.  Whether she negotiated credit rates or the recovery of the elderly, she made significant contributions to the health and sustainability of the relationships she helped create.

While she was busy building a customer base for the advertising agency she helped get off the ground -- her book of business was in the order of several million Euros -- she never forgot to lend a hand in our projects. In fact, I owe it to her if I completed many a course work in University.

To this day, mother remains the Chairman of my Personal Board and my very best friend and confidant. Here are three of the lessons I learned from mother that helped me in business:

• Always leave a place and person in a better condition than you found them in -- a deceivingly simple thought that can have great ramifications. It means you show up, contribute, and remain present to what is asked of you in the moment. I've found myself wiping the water splash around a sink at an airport while thinking about this. Or stopping to chat with someone who needs to be heard even if I'm in a hurry. As a manager, this means learning to draw out the skill and talent people already have.
• Tell them the truth -- if a program is not going to work, don't sell it to them. Shift your focus from making the buck in the short term to building the relationship for the long term. In a team environment, be honest and kind at the same time. As a manager, this means having frank conversations with your people. There is no need to be brutal when honest.
• Stay positive -- no matter the circumstances and people, always find a way to express your energy in a way that includes and accepts. Creative people focus on the problem and challenge with an eye to finding a solution -- often this is where innovation brews. Using time and effort to move forward is wise and productive. If you think about it, what holds us back is often our thinking that we can't do it. Or looking at a closed door for too long. As a manager, this translates into providing feedback in a timely and constructive manner.

There are many more; all revolve around the philosophy that being your real self beats being a copy of someone else any day. This is a tribute to all mothers -- teachers, friends, sisters, colleagues, bosses, heads of state, etc. They all leave a profound imprint in our lives and hearts every day. What lessons did your mother teach you?

Comments

[Mark]

Valeria, my parents were my first, and remain my best, teachers. Every May and June, I dedicated my monthly newsletter to a lesson that I learned from them.

This month, it was about how my mother reminded me to be considerate of others. http://www.berkshire-company.com/Resources_Consideration_for_Others.shtml

[David Reich]

Valeria, nice post.

My mother has taught me (and still does) about patience, understanding, kindness and helping people -- whether by listening, reaching out, or other ways.

As I said in my post today... every day really is Mothers Day.

Regards.

[ann michael]

Valeria-

Your mother sounds like a wise and caring woman - now I know where you get it from.

Happy Mother's Day.

Ann

[Chris]

Great article, great picture! Here's to our moms. ;-)

c.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Mark - that is an inspiring article. "Too often, we take for granted the people we work with." Absolutely, and we fit them into boxes instead of giving them the space to become. Mother helped me expand my thinking and filling the space with executed ideas throughout my life.

David -- it's wonderful to have a close relationship with someone who loves us unconditionally, and who we can love back. I must have skipped the part on patience with mine.

Ann -- Happy Mothers Day to you. I'll want to hear all about SOBCon when we get a chance.

Chris -- she was a teenager in the photo. You can see the Italian style in the photography. The gaze and air of possibility are all hers.

Thank you all for helping me celebrate the most important person in my life.

[Cam Beck]

Valeria - I love it. If only we all learned this much from our mothers, wouldn't life be so much more fruitful?

[Anna Farmery]

A little tongue in cheek but that "Mum is always right" The annoying thing is that she normally is!! Lovely post and great picture

[Lewis Green]

Valeria,

Three principles we all can learn from. Thank you for sharing.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Cam -- you have a great post on mom too, thank you for sharing.

Anna -- so good hearing from you. Yes, mothers tend to be right a lot. I was glad we passed the rebellious years in one piece.

Lewis -- they seem to simple. Simple is hard to do at times.

[Catherine Carey]

Three wonderful things we must do.

My mom was sick for a very long time, so her "pearls of wisdom" stopped while I was a girl. Love was important to Mom. Mom shared love with all of us and many others as well.

One thing I learned from all the folks who stepped in and filled a sick mom's shoes, take good cues from everyone. Don't copy them, their way is a guide to doing something new your own way.

Thanks Valeria!

Catherine

[Bob Glaza]

This is the closest thing that relates to business...but Ma taught me this - it might take a while to come to a decision, it might be right or wrong...but once you make it - own up to it and deal with it. No excuses - you made the decision.

That along with treating everyone as you'd wish to be treated :) - and using your head for more than a hat rack!

[Valeria Maltoni]

Catherine -- I cannot even begin to imagine what it must have been like to have your mother ill. When we start losing out health, we begin to appreciate how much more we have inside and never get to use. We are love. Most of what I described about mom I learned by observing.

Bob -- it reads like a lot of very sound advice, useful both at work and in life. So that we can make a life that works. Mothers are so wise that way.

[Tim Jackson]

Great post Valeria. Your mother was so beautiful and I am sure that she still is... it seems to be an Italian woman trait.

One of the greatest things my mom taught me was to be patient. If you want it bad enough, it's worth being patient and working to make it happen. Earn what you have so you can appreciate it that much more. Kind of the same thing- both require patience.

Here's to the Mom's of the world!

[Mike Wagner]

Wonderful reflection and tribute to your mother.

I dashed off a post that answers your question.

What strikes me is the quest for identity I sense in people all around me. There is a hunger. And then, along side this raging desire, I recognize like you, that I have been blessed with "the good beginning" that a mother like yours provides her children.

Thankful for what you so beautifully shared here.

Keep creating,
Mike

[Valeria Maltoni]

Tim -- thank you for the compliment on mom. Yes, she is still quite beautiful. Alas I look more like dad. That will be a post for father's day. Patience and appreciation for what we have; those are important lessons.

Mike -- hunger and need to define oneself. Not by the standards given in a job, or a title, which still matter to a certain degree. In the overall context of our lives.