SoCo Chamber Tackles Struggles of Owning Business with Spouse
The chamber hopes to help local business owners who work alongside their spouses or partners and address specific challenges that arise in the workplace.
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Update (10/8 10:00 a.m. )—Running a small business in the current economic climate can be hard enough, but imagine handling those struggles while working alongside the person you love—day in and day out.
It’s a reality for many business owners in south county and throughout the region, so that’s why the Southern Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce is hosting a special dinner this fall to discuss specific challenges facing those businessmen and women.
Initially scheduled for Sept. 20, chamber president Cindy Morgan told Patch that a scheduling conflict with the key speaker forced them to postpone the seminar to a later date yet to be announced. However, the chamber has since scheduled a new date for the seminar, Nov. 12.
Morgan said many challenges face couples that work with one another or own businesses together.
“How do you prevent the fight at home from making your employees uncomfortable in the workplace? How do you balance business needs and family duties? How do you allocate business responsibilities so you don’t set on your spouses toes?” Morgan said in a chamber newsletter.
To address similar questions and allow a discussion among like-minded business owners, the chamber invited business coach Frank Newhard to a special dinner discussing couples in business, as well as a couples counselor to address specific issues that arise in the workplace.
Newhard and the couples counselor will address:
- Successfully dividing work responsibilities
- Work/family life balance and boundaries
- Bringing relationship issues to work and work issues home
- Turning off the business and turning on the relationship
The special dinner and discussion time is set to even mention more personal areas of conflict like, “How do you keep shop talk out of the home, especially the bedroom?” according to the newsletter.
The event will take place at the West River Center, located at 5100 Chalk Point Rd., West River, MD on Nov. 12. It will include a registration time, dinner, a presentation from Newhard and the couples counselor, following by a panel discussion time. The entire gathering is scheduled to last from 6-8 p.m., according to Morgan’s newsletter.
Interested residents and business owners can register by calling 301-490-7661 or emailing southcounty@toad.net.
Sue Crandall
9:41 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Hmm. I know that the CofC isn't a " government" agency, but I'm not sure why the internal mascinations of any business, regardless of who owns it, is any of the CofC's concern. I know it's probably present thusly: " tell us all your trials and tribulations so we can share the info with other folks to...blah blah blah." Sounds like the CofC is just plain nosy.
Lucy
10:42 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
I think this is a very valid issue to business owners in South County (or anywhere for that matter). Kudos to the South County Chamber for a valuable program offering for their members and non-members!
Jen Reilly
12:30 pm on Saturday, September 8, 2012
I completely agree with you Lucy. Our problem is not establishing boundaries between work and home.
Sue Crandall
11:17 pm on Sunday, September 9, 2012
Think about this...what exactly are THEY offering? It's more like information gathering under the guise of being helpful. Trouble is-the CofC ain't doing squat. They ate depending on unsuspecting folks to fill in their database for unexplained purposes. The CofC needs the business community to participate in order to exist. No members, no chamber. This gets lost sight of sometimes.
Sue Crandall
11:19 pm on Sunday, September 9, 2012
Jen...you are responsible for establishing those boundaries, not an organization. You know best how to run your business without sharing personal information with none other than close associates.
Ray Zancan
9:16 am on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Couples that work together side by side all day then go home together need boundaries. I agree with Sue with regards that the couple needs to set the boundaries, however a licensed couple therapist and a business coaches can give great solutions and pointers to help the couple themselves make good healthy decisions. I am sure a vast majority of couples could benefit by a good healthy suggestions.