Dyersburg State Gazette - Chamber Hosts 'Membership Matters' Annual Luncheon

News Article

By Dyersburg State Gazette Staff

The Dyersburg/Dyer County Chamber of Commerce was abuzz with excitement on Monday afternoon after the announcement that Dot Foods was locating a food-redistribution plant to Dyersburg with the promise of a $24 million investment in a new 166,000-square-foot facility and 157 new jobs. However, the excitement did not stop there as Congressman Stephen Fincher continued the "Membership Matters" Annual Luncheon with a brief update on what is currently happening in Washington, D.C. followed by keynote speaker Glenn Shepard, who spoke about 'why people do the things they do.'

After being introduced by Bob Kirk, Fincher discussed the current climate in Washington, D.C. beginning with jobs. Fincher applauded the announcement by Dot Foods that will bring new jobs to his 8th Congressional District and stressed that it is local leaders and the private companies that have a greater impact on job creation.

"Jobs are created in the private sector, not in the halls of Congress," said Fincher. "We are supposed to have a limited role."

Fincher briefly spoke about energy, health care and the need to reform the current tax code. He also discussed the importance of capital, which is vital for the creation of jobs.

"We can turn things around if we in Congress can just get out of the way," concluded Fincher.

Fincher then turned the floor over to Shepard, a No. 1 bestselling author and a recognized leader in fighting the declining American work ethic and increasing entitlement mentality. Shepard outlined three kinds of behavior patterns in people: aggressive, passive and passive-aggressive. Shepard's seminar was mixed with humor as he tackled issues within the workplace and differences between the sexes.

"The failure to recognize that men and women are different is a recipe for failure," said Shepard. "It is important to treat everyone the same within a set of circumstances. Supervisors have to adapt to the changing environment around them."

Shepard discussed one of his favorite authors, Dr. John Gray, who wrote "Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus" and shared how the book explores the fact that men talk to convey information while women talk to convey emotions -- an important point for supervisors to remember as they deal with their female and male employees. Shepard explained that a supervisor with an employee exhibiting aggressive personality should define boundaries not to punish the employee, but rather to correct and define what is acceptable and not acceptable.

The opposite of an aggressive personality is a passive personality, with the most common passive behavior that of a hypochondriac. Shepard defined a hypochondriac as an individual who thinks he is ill but is really trying to draw sympathy from others. A hypochondriac will always want to be around others even though they say they are ill because they are unable to draw sympathy if they are home by themselves. Shepard says that most supervisors will react to a sick employee by decreasing their workload, sending the message that lesser production is OK. However, Shepard noted that the best approach is the more a hypochondriac whines, the more work they should be given.

The last personality type Shepard explored was that of the passive-aggressive, who exhibit charming skills to your face but tend to be sarcastic, smart-mouth individuals when no one is looking. Passive-aggressive individuals tend to despise confrontations so the best approach to dealing with them is to force them out in the open and into a direct confrontation. True passive-aggressive personalities will flee from such confrontations.

"The assertive manager can clearly define boundaries, hold everyone accountable and chooses their battles wisely," said Shepard. "Seasoned managers know that sometimes you have to lose the battle to win the war."

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