....How Do You Like to Work?

What type of work environment do you like?  Are you the kind of person who likes a totally peaceful work environment or one who thrives when there are lots of people around to interact with?  Or are you a combination of the two?  It’s always interesting to see how people function when they work.  I love to get in the office early every morning and have about an hour of quiet time.  It gives me a chance to think about the day- look over emails and generally ease into my day. But I also like to have others around to bounce off ideas and talk about projects. 

So when you work alone, how do you balance that alone versus being around others time? Some people join groups which help keep them up to date on issues and their industry but it also allows for that time to connect with others.  Some people have a trusted business friend that they might invite to lunch or coffee.  Others join co-working spaces in order to have some together time with like-minded professionals. 

So think about how YOU like to work.  Make sure you are getting enough of whatever it is you need.  We spend a lot of time working, make sure you make your time exactly what you need it to be.  

Suzanne Cormier

Executive Director

BizWorks (Small Business Incubator)

Follow Suzanne Cormier on Facebook and

Twitter @BizWorksCenter

...Nice Guys Don't Always Finish Last Part 2

So if you read my last blog you know I wrote about a business owner who seems to keep his employees happy and at their jobs.  What is his secret?  For one, it’s a fun place to work.  When Coastal Consultants was here at BizWorks their offices were beside mine.  I always said it was like coming to work at Comedy Central. The guys were just funny!   But they still managed to get their jobs done. Eric has a great sense of humor as do most of his employees and they aren’t afraid to make a joke about each other or themselves. 

Michael Kerr, an international business speaker, president of Humor at Work, and author of The Humor Advantage: Why Some Businesses are Laughing all the Way to the Bank (Dec. 2013), says “In workplaces that encourage people to be themselves–that are less hierarchical and more innovative–people tend to be more open with their humor.  Even people who aren’t always comfortable sharing their humor tend to do so in more relaxed environments where the use of humor becomes second nature with everyone’s style.”

This is how Coastal functions. People are encouraged to be themselves led by Eric who is truly himself in whatever situation that arises.  Humor in the work place can do wonders for employee morale.  Having happy employees just doesn’t happen - you need to work to make it happen.  

Image Source

Suzanne Cormier

Executive Director

BizWorks (Small Business Incubator)

Follow Suzanne Cormier on Facebook and

Twitter @BizWorksCenter

...Nice Guys Don't Always Finish Last

When people say “Nice guys finish last”, they haven’t met Eric Ertzner. Eric is the owner of Coastal Consultants, LLC, which is a survey company.  Coastal does a lot of surveys for gas lines and such.   When Eric started with BizWorks he didn’t think his company would grow very much, or wasn’t sure he wanted it to really grow. He thought he would be content with a very small company doing most of the work himself. 

Once he got going though, work flowed his way and he had to hire employees.  When Eric moved this past July from BizWorks he employed around 20 people. Most of those employees have been with Eric for five years or longer.  His employees rarely leave once they come on to work there.  His secret, well he is a really nice guy and takes care of his employees.  Now are his employees happy all the time? Of course not - no employee ever is, but they are obviously happy enough to stay with the company.

So, are you a nice boss? Do you think of ways to take care of your employees?  Can you think of ways to make sure they have what they need? Can you provide benefits to them? Some employers can and some just financially make it happen.  But creating a work environment where employees are happy is not an easy thing to do.

There will be more to come in my next blog on how he seems to have happy employees.   

Image Source

Suzanne Cormier

Executive Director

BizWorks (Small Business Incubator)

Follow Suzanne Cormier on Facebook and

Twitter @BizWorksCenter