Author: Gina Romero (26 Articles)

Gina is a networking strategist and a creative management consultant. Anyone who has met Gina will tell you her enthusiasm is contagious, her energy and business savvy awe-inspiring, and her dedication ever-present. Gina successfully ran an IT solutions company and is an advocate of social media and communications technology. Gina is the Managing Director of The Athena Network’s International Online Business Community and aptly the Head of Creative Thinking at the Creative Ideas Department. Connect with Gina on Twitter @gina_romero

Sunken Beauty

I recognize in thieves, traitors and murderers, in the ruthless and the cunning, a deep beauty – a sunken beauty. ~ Jean Genet

In business misplaced trust comes at a high price and being open and transparent is a vulnerability. On the other hand, how many opportunities have you lost to fear?

So do we need harden up & close ourselves off over time, building an inpenetratable forcefield to protect us from potential risks? Must we become ruthless and clinical to survive and succeed in the dog-eat-dog business culture? Do we stop sharing and collabourating out of concern that someone will steal our idea and do it bigger and better?

Bad experiences may hurt us but they do not need to change us – unless for the better.

Steve Jobs summed it up beautifully when he said:

“.. almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”

So I choose good faith over paranoia, vulnerability over cynicism and integrity over self preservation. And if this means I end up as the dog chow of the business world then so be it.