The Cincinnati Enquirer from Cincinnati, Ohio • Page 39

1J KW pM9iMIit pBSUTl'R(v OtTTIDIJ I WJ I I OLvIIUiI I I 1 mm I I 1 I I Opportguties yJZZILy jmm C'TTL 1 3 Editor: Carolyn Pione, cpioneenquirer.com, WEDNESDAY, AUQUST E2, EOTJ7 wawmmmim 3 DAILY GRIND WORKPLACE oil to stort om a mi Managers think they're best in office 1 Okeana man opens service after job hunt finds nothing At about the same time Richard Humphries was laid off from his account executive job at Interstate Brands he looked to his discolored roof and found a new career. Roof Cleaning Specialists, for which Humphries is owner and marketing director, cleans fungus from commercial and residential roofs. If a problem that didn't exist mk iF 1 J.W. Believe you're among the top performers in your office? You're not alone. According to a new survey, 90 percent of managers think they're among the top 10 percent of performers at their workplace.

The number is highest among executives, 97 percent of whom consider themselves shining stars, according to a survey in the current edition of BusinessWeek magazine. This is what gets you out of bed and to work in the morning," survey editor Peter Coy said. "You have to think you're good." The nonscientific survey, which covered a range of workplace issues, also found that the majority of workers think it will be easier for women and minorities to get ahead in business 10 years from now. Nearly 50 percent of workers ages 35 to 54 said employees under age 35 tend to be slackers. Thirty percent of people in that oft-maligned group, those ages 25 to 34, agreed.

Another strike against the younger set 6 percent of respondents under age 30 admitted they've accidentally called their boss "Mom" or "Dad." The online survey was conducted from June 28 to July 5 and included 2,000 Americans in middle management and above who were 25 years and older. Jackie Farwell, the Associated Press here a decade ago. Spores from roof fungus had not yet traveled on winds northward to our region from Southern states where the fungus was commonplace. ii i John E.L. Hubbard for The Enquirer Richard Humphries, who owns Roof Cleaning Specialists, stands In front of the VFW hall In Overpeck.

The roof shows the before (on the left) and the after of Humphries' service. BOOKSHELF Beware self-mocking language of office rivals it isn't true tCKDBTg na resident, founded the company in 2004 after he was laid off. "I got called into an office on a Monday. At 11 a.m., they took my car and took me home and that was that," Humphries said. "I was qualified but I wasn't young," he added.

He was 53 and had a mortgage and a family to support, so the first thing he did was post his resume on all of the major Web sites to start the long look for a new job. Then he waited. And waited some more. Nothing happened. Humphries had cleaned his roof about a year before he and 79 others lost their jobs.

"It came to my mind that if I couldn't get anything else, that maybe this would be a good business to get into," he said. How 5ucwriil FMtk Become KveaMortfliKteMfiill hat Got You Here Wont Get You There And that's how Roof Cleaning Specialists was born that and about $25,000 invested in equipment, supplies and office gear. So far his revenues are below the $55,000 a year he.made as a director of that snack cake division, but he hopes to top the figure this year, particularly because a housing slowdown might bring plenty of customers interested in making improvements to the house they are livinginnow. Others may want to spruce up the roof to help with a sale. Humphries' advice is simple enough for others who are thinking about or must make a career shift because they've lost a job: Get referrals through word of mouth.

Plan on working a lot harder and plan on spending longer hours at work, too. "I've enjoyed building the business," he said, "but it's been a struggle. Getting customers to spend the extra dollar on curb appeal, well, if tough. And if expensive to run a business because of health insurance premiums, worker compensation fees, and self-employment taxes. The company employs two people full time and one part time.

One lesson that others might take to heart is that if important to build a network of industry allies. Humphries turned for help to a few real estate agents, who convinced some homeowners that an attractive roof made an investment in cleaning worthwhile, particularly in a competitive housing market Soliciting real estate professionals worked, but like most businesses, Humphries could always use more revenue, more clients and more work. "It's been a struggle," he concluded, "but I enjoy what I'm doing." Ewailjeckbergenquirer.com "Pseudo-self-deprecating remarks the ones we say about ourselves but don't believe are rhetorical devices and debating tricks of everyday communication that allow us to get an edge on our rivals. To a student of intracorporate warfare, such self-deprecation from others should put you on high alert" From "What Got You Hera Wn't Get You There" by Marshall Goldsmith MAPSHAUrXOSMIIH Customer Service success has a brand new web i Discover the opportunities at macysCallCenterJOBS.com Build your future at Macy's Credit and Customer ServkesFDS Bank. At Macy's, we're committed to being the very best in customer service.

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