a guest post by Marsha Petrie Sue
(www.bizchicksrule.com) — We have all encountered Backstabbers at work. They are gossips, mean spirited and hurtful. In my research for the Toxic People book, one in every 30 people in high-performing business situations has been identified as a Backstabber. This rate is several times higher than that of the general population. Are you surprised? These people have little conscience or ability to change because their antics get them what they want. So what can you do to manage these emotional vampires and your mental terrorism caused by these nasty people? How do you take …read more

a guest post by Dayelle Deanna Schwartz
(www.bizchicksrule.com) — I was still in people pleasing mode when I started a record label on a dare, one of the few chicks doing it. I wanted to be liked by the guys in the All Boys Club so I’d smile and let them walk all over me. But that wasn’t good business! Slowly I learned how to play their game, nicely, while handling myself in ways that got me taken seriously. It helped me evolve into what I call a Nice Girl on Top. Then the boys had no choice but to treat …read more

a guest post by Kathy Gruver
(www.bizchicksrule.com) — “It’s not what you know it’s who you know” has never been more true than it is today. Connections and self-promotion are the cornerstones of a successful business. Here are some pointers I’ve picked up along the way.
Learn from the boy scouts
I’ve been to so many mixers where people are unprepared with no business cards, no pen and an almost apologetic way of introducing themselves. Have enough cards and have them ready to hand out, especially at a function where meeting contacts is the objective.
Show your muscles
One of the first things my father …read more

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — The comments exploded on my mean girls post when I wasn’t looking! I tried to respond in the comments box, but it got so ridiculously long that it made more sense as its own post. So, here goes.
I’m going to steal from a comment I just left on Ry’s post "Why I Fear Women and Love Mythical Hobbits":

Whether Heather [Armstrong] is in actuality a mean girl is in my opinion immaterial to this discussion because she’s not the one talking smack on the blogs and making herself look like a vitriolic shrew — and THAT is what I …read more

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — The thing about mean girls is that, unless someone smacks them down — hard — along the way, they grow from being mean girls to being mean women. And sometimes, girls who started out nice are so tormented by mean girls that they turn mean as they get older. And then, we all get to work with them. Good times.
This weekend at BlogHer, there was some drama during the closing keynote. I don’t know any of the people involved personally and I couldn’t tell you anyone’s intentions and I’m not going to try. But here’s what happened in …read more

or, Promoting Yourself, Your Business, Your Product, or Your Client Is REALLY Not This Difficult, People
In April, I laid into PR folks who suck at their jobs, and I stand by my complaint. Really, they have no excuse. But if you have no PR or marketing training I can understand why you would make some mistakes when you’re first getting the hang of your business. I want to help you, really, I do. But before I get into that, let me give you some context for why I’m writing this post.
I recently joined an excellent mailing list called Help a …read more

I’d like to believe that after the skank post in April, we don’t have to have a lengthy conversation about what’s appropriate to wear to work. But APPARENTLY your good common sense doesn’t carry over to your online image, because sweetheart, you look like a ho on your LinkedIn profile.
I’m only saying this because we’re friends, and I would be a bad friend if I didn’t tell you. And, you know, BECAUSE we’re friends, I feel like I can be totally honest with you about this: You need to put up a new photo or have no photo at …read more

My recent post “If You Hate Networking, You’re Not Doing it Right — 5 Tips for Getting Comfortable With Networking” garnered this comment from reader Heather Cottrell:
Great basic, down-to-earth tips Kristen. And what’s the next step? I’m OK (not great) at meeting new people, and exchanging cards, but it never goes anywhere, because I’m awful at follow-up. It seems everyone I meet is awful too because no matter how many cards I exchange I never hear from anyone, nor contact anyone.
Would love to hear post-networking-event advice!
Here at your favorite women’s business blog, we aim to please, so here we go.
I’m …read more

I’ll be posting this at my freelance communications blog Inkthinker, too, but since it actually appears here at Biz Chicks Rule, you get it first:

I inserted a green arrow in the screenshot to show you where the problem lies. Here’s a closer look, highlighted by the yellow arrow:

Oy to the vey. Say it with me: SPELL CHECK. Do I even need to tell you how stupid these kinds of errors make you — and your business — look? I sincerely hope not!
Here are some of my favorite public oopses:

"the figthing Irish" in an MSN ticker notice about Notre Dame football
a …read more

Alright, I know. Blogging may not be a **wow** marketing strategy for some of you. But, for those who are starting new businesses, or are new to the idea of blogging, starting a blog writing about your business may be the ideal marketing strategy you need to get things started.
Although there are tons of information available on the internet about blogging, what I’d like to submit to you is how blogging can be a source of referrals for your business, whether you are blogging on your own business or you are a corporate blogger.
Instead of regurgitating information that is …read more