Nicolas Sarkozy was interviewed by CBS recently and had left the set once personal questions regarding the cheating scandal surrounding his wife was brought up. “No, no. This is stupid,” Sarkozy was heard to be saying as he removed his microphone and began to walk out on CBS “reporter” Lesley Stahl. What a messy self-representation of unprofessionalism on both sides of the whole wreck. Luckily, oui, I mean…we, can learn a fair bit about how to handle ourselves in awkward situations from the disaster of an “interview”.

Mistakes made by Lesley Stahl

- Brought up an issue that she knew to be volatile with the President of France. Quite simply, the public is tired of receiving gossip passed off as news. Ms. Stahl, more so than anyone, should be aware of that.
- Took a disrespectful tone. Seriously, nearly everyone deserves to be talked to with a decent level of respect and polish. Stahl acts as if she is the show, and not the interviewee.
- Made herself look more foolish by acting as if she had no idea why the interview went sour when she knew full-well what the problem was.

Mistakes made by Nicolas Sarkozy

- Let Stahl get to him. Unfortunately for Sarkozy, he allowed the situation control him which further promotes an image of weakness.
- Insulted a member of his staff via being quoted as calling his press secretary an “imbecile.” I can understand his dissatisfaction, however there’s no need to further dirty one’s own reputation in such an instance.
- Had the opportunity to take the high road and did not. Sarkozy could have had his moment against CBS’s Lesley Stahl but instead was controlled by raw emotion.

Watch and learn in the Nicolas Sarkozy 60 Minutes interview video

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Don’t be the person with the barely recognizable voice, muttering incoherently into the receiver’s ear about how you somehow aren’t at your desk. Be clear, concise and friendly so you’re voicemail is a greeting and not a nightmare.

Honestly, it’s doesn’t take much to craft an effective, yet pleasant voice mail intro. As long as you’re hitting some or all of the following key points, you’ll establish your phone reputation as upbeat. A good attitude is essential in all aspects of being a professional, if you wish to succeed.

• Thank the person for their call
• State that you are unavailable (optional: why you are away/busy)
• Ask for info such as name and phone number
• If beneficial, provide an alternate co-worker as “immediate assistance”
• Close out the message

I realize this may be, well… mundane to some of you but effective voicemail greetings are an often overlooked part of maintaining a certain level of professionalism and courtesy in the workplace. Make the extra effort to review your current voicemail intro and determine if perhaps it’s time to clean house and refresh with something new.

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As the weekend fast approaches, I’d like to direct you to some reading that will fatten your wallet and introduce some new ways of thinking when it comes to handling finances on your days off the job. 5 thoroughly enjoyable articles by none other than MoneyNing…

• Opportunities Are Everywhere, Even at Chick-Fil-A
• Why Do We Read and Follow Money Tips But Never Become Rich?
• Bangkok People’s Great Use of Space For Their Market
• Does Always Thinking About Money Really Make Me Happy?
• Reduce Your Taxes Forever

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Across the pond from the U.S., postal workers in Liverpool, England were on strike for the past several day. Nine days, to be exact. The members of the Communication Worker’s Union (CWU) went on an unofficial strike last week apparently over the rights to local negotiations about flex schedules. As you can imagine, no deliveries of parcels can and does have a major effect on business. Surely, Liverpool is glad their mail men and women are back in the saddle today, as 90% of the striking workers voted to end the defiance.

Strikes are controversial being that unions are seen as a thing of the past in many people’s eyes. Personally, I’ve never been part of a union however I can see the disadvantages and benefits for the employees. I’d love to have your input on the matter, particularly if you or someone you know works directly or indirectly with a union-prevalent environment.

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UPDATE: I thank Elizabeth for leaving a comment and apologizing for the message. If every employee of Cox were as well-spoken and responsible as she seems to be; the company would thrive a lot more

Cox Enterprises is despised by thousands, possibly millions of Internet users through the U.S. due to their horrifically flawed customer service efforts (or rather, lack thereof) and extremely poor quality of product. Anyone who has gone through the “Cox nightmare” with cable Internet, television, and/or phone service knows full well of the frustration and pain inflicted by Cox Communications onto their subscribers.

Luckily, I was able to make the move away from their horrible cable Internet service a few years back but the disrespect I was dealt through sheer idiocy will not soon leave my memory. When someone has to generally spend 5-10 hours a week on the phone with their ISP, it’s a wicked tale of anger spawned from handling the appalling ineptitude of Cox Communications employees.

Fast forward to the present, where I’m running Modern-Worker.com and have taken part in Blog Action Day. I shouldn’t be too surprised, but Cox found a way to come back and haunt me. How, you ask? SPAM.

Somehow, Cox Enterprises (which owns the tarnished Cox Communications) obtained my e-mail address and sent me an unpersonalized pre-fabbed e-mail which clearly qualifies as spam. Without further delay, here is the e-mail in all it’s canned ham shame…

Name: liz

Email: elizabeth.******@coxinc.com

Subject: Green Tips

Message: I work for Cox Enterprises and saw that you participated in
Blog Action Day. I thought you might be interested in visiting
www.CoxConserves.com. The site details Cox’s commitment to the
environment and offers tips on how anyone can become eco-friendly.

Now I ask you; has anyone else received a spam message from Cox?

UPDATE: I thank Elizabeth for leaving a comment and apologizing for the message. If every employee of Cox were as well-spoken and responsible as she seems to be; the company would thrive a lot more

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