This continual manifesto is an articulation of statements exemplifying the
author’s beliefs, strategies and motivations based on personal life and business
experiences along with doses of common sense
by James D. Roumeliotis
12/2014
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought

Keep Things Simple
Matters should be kept simple -
avoiding complications where
unnecessary. As Leonardo Da
Vinci’s quote states: “Simplicity is
the ultimate sophistication.”
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Differentiate Yourself
Be unique and remarkable in what
you do by differentiating oneself from
the mainstream. In today’s crowded
and competitive world, we need that
extra something that sets-us apart.
Be distinctive, daring and acquire a
competitive edge. After all, it’s a “dog-
eat-dog” environment and survival of
the fittest. No matter what you do,
you don’t have to live your life the
way other people expect you to.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Make Decisions in a Timely Manner
As a general rule of decision making,
more time does not create better
decisions. In fact, it usually decreases
the quality of the decision. More
information may help but more time
without more information just creates
anxiety, not insight. Deciding now
frees up your most valuable asset,
time. Make every decision as soon as
you have a reasonable amount of data,
otherwise, you end-up falling into the
procrastination mode.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Least Expensive ≠ Value
VALUE does not mean the lowest
price but rather the GREATEST
RETURN for the time and money
invested. Avoid using the term
“cheap” which denotes inferior -
instead, replace it with
“inexpensive”.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Real Estate Prices Are Arbitrary
In REAL ESTATE every PRICE IS ULTIMATELY ARBITRARY
– the seller decides what it will be, then adjusts it until
someone buys. There are a few basic ways to estimate what
someone else will pay: estimating replacement cost, looking
what other people in the market are paying, calculating the
value of a series of payments, or figuring out how much
subjective value the offer has to the other party. Think of
selling a house, how much should you ask for it? You could
(1) figure out how much it would cost to re-purchase the land
and re-build the same house now, (2) see what similar houses
in the area have recently sold for, (3) estimate how much you
could rent the house for, then discount that series of cash
flows to the present, or (4) sell against a particularly appealing
characteristic of the house that makes it even more valuable
to particular buyers. (Example: a market-priced $200,000
house can easily sell for $2 million or more if it was previously
owned by a famous celebrity). No matter what strategy is
used, it’s ultimately the seller’s responsibility to assign a price
and convince the purchaser that it’s worth even more. Selling
is mostly a psychological process of convincing yourself it’s
worth that much so you can then convince prospective buyers.
In that way, every price is fundamentally arbitrary.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Education is Perpetual
Education is not a one-time event
but rather an on-going process.
We never stop learning. We
develop oneself continuously
especially with the world
constantly changing. As a parent,
if you don’t educate your child to
the best of your ability, you have
failed in your fundamental
responsibility.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Life is a Do-it-Yourself Project
Life is a “do-it-yourself” project.
Be proactive and responsible for
your destiny. No one will do for
you what’s necessary to
succeed/progress. No one owes
you anything. Each and every
single one of us (especially
without any physical handicaps)
is capable and should be
responsible for self-
development and his/her
outcome.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Avoid Dealing With Flakes and Negative
People
To put it mildly, avoid dealing with the following
characters who will aggravate you:
-Naysayers
-Unreliable and constantly late
-Bad characters (notably psychopaths)
-Lack loyalty
-Disrespectful
-Constantly nagging
-Chronic liars
-Hang-out with bad company
-Greedy & selfish
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |
2014

Handle Rejection Graciously
When you’re turned down don’t
take it personally and portray
anger. Instead be gracious and
thank the person for taking you
into consideration in the first
place. This attitude will make
you more likely to be invited
back/re-considered in the future.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |
2014

Be Wary of Charismatic Swindlers
Be wise and cautious not to get
drawn-in by certain charismatic, highly
persuasive people who have one goal
in mind – to steal your valuable time
and take advantage of your
talent/expertise, stellar reputation and
money for their own personal gain.
They can even get you into trouble. If
a scheme sounds too good to be true,
it definitely is. Be careful who you
trust. Conduct your due diligence
before you commit.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Your Appearance & Image
Grooming and clothing are the
packaging of your total image. The
way you dress and groom says a
great deal about you – whether you’re
doing so out of necessity or doing it
with flair, one can usually distinguish
the difference. Watching your
appearance also makes you feel good
about yourself.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Perfection vs. Humility
A perfect human being doesn’t exist
– although some will go out
of their way to prove they are
(short lived).
In an ideal world, a perfect person
would be boring.
Perfection is intimidating;
humility is comforting.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Doing a Good Job – With Meaning
Unfortunately, most people
work hard merely to retain their
job, rather than enjoy what they
do. This is reflected in their
results. Those employees are
surely leading a meaningless
life who look forward to nothing
more than their scheduled pay
cheques. Don’t fall into that
trap. Find work you are proud to
perform with passion and look
forward to wake-up to each and
every (workday) morning.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |
2014

Intellectual Intelligence (IQ) vs.
Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
Seems many people who are academically gifted also
happen to be socially inept. What they are missing is
emotional intelligence.
Today, success in the “new
normal” is far more relational
than it is intellectual. That said,
when it comes to human
interaction, what will make a
difference is our emotional
intelligence rather than our intellectual intelligence.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Experience Gained from Living Abroad
Young single people are encouraged to
either study or live/work in a foreign
country for at least 2 years and/or work
on a cruise ship for a year. This
opportunity allows the person to live
outside his/her comfort zone/box and to
discover how other nationalities and
cultures live. They will appreciate the
experience, gain knowledge about
cultural diversity and perhaps pick-up a
new language. In addition, they will learn
to see things from a different perspective.
“Live abroad and you become a more
creative person.” So say two academics,
whose research found that business-
school students with experience of foreign
living had better problem-solving skills
and were more creative negotiators than
the stay-at-homes. These findings don’t
surprise me by any means.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Intimate Relationship Challenges
An INTIMATE/PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP is
one of life’s great physiological pleasures and
one of the world’s universal preoccupations -
but not without its challenges and occasional
stress. It requires continuous nurturing and
strong will from both sides to make it
consistently work. Neither party can ever be
taken for granted. Marriage relationships take
on the tasks of commitment, obligation and
expectation; all of which are in addition to the
emotional aspects of the relationship itself. It's
no wonder that at least fifty percent of
marriages eventually break-up. Men and
women simply do not have the same mindset,
therefore, both need to come to terms with a
mutually agreed accord. For some, it requires
the involvement of a neutral third party such as
a counselor. The irony here is that in the
beginning of a relationship, both sides behave
much differently which includes acceptance of
almost any flaws and compromise from each
other.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Life has taught us that love does not consist in
gazing at each other, but in looking outward
together in the same direction.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
French writer (1900 - 1944)
About Intimate/Personal Relationships…continued
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Transparency = Honesty & Accountability
Transparency benefits all those
involved. It implies openness,
communication and accountability.
Companies, particularly public ones,
are required to be transparent more
than ever before. It’s about trust and
says a lot about a company’s
reputation along with Its leadership
team.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Corruption & Favoritism
Corruption and Favoritism,
amongst its many negative
outcomes, hinders growth,
spurs inequality and erodes
macroeconomic and fiscal
stability in countries where
it’s prominent.
World map of the Corruption Perceptions Index, which
measures "the degree to which corruption is perceived to
exist among public officials and politicians". Blue colors
indicate little corruption, red colors indicate much corruption
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Negotiations
Business and personal
transactions or disputes
should benefit all parties. In
negotiations, all participants
can profit from it in one way or
the other (“WIN-WIN”).
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Definition of Luxury Has Been Misused
Over the years, the word “luxury”
Has been overused and often
ambiguous. There no longer
seems to be one standard
definition to help determine
what is or is not luxury.
No longer can something be
considered luxury just based on
cost. In my opinion, there are 3
genuine luxury “maison de luxe” brands
- Hermes, Chanel and Louis Vuitton.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Luxury vs. Premium
Luxury is self expression, an exceptional
experience and a feeling of sense of
emotion. There is also a difference
between a “luxury” and a ‘premium”
product but they can be both – as in a
tailored made fine wool suit for example.
Luxury product pricing is related to
scarcity, brand and storytelling. Premium
goods, on the other hand, are expensive
variants of commodity goods – pay more,
get more. Plenty of brands get in trouble
because they can’t figure-out which one
they represent.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Conspicuous Consumption
Conspicuous consumption (buying
things one really doesn’t need) nowadays
appears to be out of vogue. It’s frowned upon
with disgust and could be viewed as
obnoxious flaunting. The “nouveau riche” are
infamous for this type of activity. Needless to
say, in recent years conspicuous consumption
is thought to be a contributor to personal
bankruptcies resulting from abuse and
mismanagement of credit to finance an
excessive lifestyle. The sophisticated affluent
currently eschew conspicuous consumption in
favor of charity. Ostentatious parsimony is the
new conspicuous consumption.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Etiquette & Respect
Etiquette, which forms a
part of human interaction
skills, is a strong indication of
a refined person and proper
upbringing. It should be
applied in everyday life in a
civilized society. In addition,
Respect is esteem of a
person, a personal quality
and ability to demonstrate it to
others through deeds.
"There are four ways, and only four
ways, in which we have contact with
the world. We are evaluated and
classified by these four contacts:
what we do, how we look, what we
say, and how we say it.“
~ Dale Carnegie (1888-1955) American
Educator
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Starting a Business is…
…the School of Hard
Knocks
This is the college of the streets. When
you have to eat what you kill, you learn
extremely fast.
Starting a business is one of the most
challenging, yet most fulfilling things you
could ever do.
Many college graduates come equipped
with theory but lack critical thinking and
application. Amongst other things,
entrepreneurship forces you to exercise
your cleverness and judgement on a daily
basis.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Business Success
To succeed in business, or in a
profession, one should adhere to
certain immutable principles -- but
most importantly, a burning desire,
the right offer, target market, along
with determination fueled by a strong
dose of passion for the business.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Beauty, Design & Creativity
BEAUTY and DESIGN in all things is artistic, engaging,
stimulating and creates a sense of comfort.
It’s also a very personal thing. CREATIVITY is beauty
in art form. It starts from nothing, utilizes mind
exploitation, imagination then something awe
inspiring is produced which stimulates the mind and
senses. The approach to creativity is the way an artist
might stand before a new canvas, on which a
beautiful painting can be crafted. Staff who work in a
creative environment should be given plenty of
leeway to utilize their full potential – the freedom to
flourish. Not doing so limits their artistic talent and
deprives the company from taking a leap at the
competition. Apple has successfully unleashed the
talent from their product engineers by creating a non-
stifling work environment. As for architects and
industrial designers, they should definitely possess
the talent and imagination to create and turn
extraordinary drawings into reality.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Innovation
INNOVATION is what a business should be
carrying-out as often as it’s required for its
existence. It is widely described as: “Leading
to significant organizational improvements in
terms of improved or new business products,
services, or internal processes.” It involves
acting on creative ideas to make some specific
and tangible difference in the domain in which
the innovation occurs. The old adage that goes
something along the lines of “If it isn’t broken,
don’t fix it” is a paradigm which doesn’t sit well
with forward thinking companies that thrive on
innovation. Nothing wrong with change if done
to enhance or replace the status quo. It’s part
of progress.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Advertising Impact
Ads and Commercials should not
only attract attention but be memorable.
Visually distinctive campaigns and brand
features enhance customer recall and
positively influence intent to purchase.
Your ad campaigns should be built-in Public
Relations campaigns.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

PR & PR
Gain tremendous exposure and build integrity
utilizing the influence of PUBLIC RELATIONS
and PRESS RELEASES. They are undoubtedly
your best sources of free advertising. Public
Relations can be used to build rapport with
employees, customers, investors, voters or the
general public. It is perceived as credible
compared to paid ads and can become “viral”
(spread like a disease) if set-up strategically
through the Internet/social media. This includes
professionally produced videos which are
becoming broadly appealing particularly if they
are newsworthy. If celebrities hire Publicists,
why shouldn’t a company, with the budget, hire
a PR firm? Media training in larger companies
is highly recommended especially if they are
often exposed in the media.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Website Design & Functionality
Research has proven that website visitors are directly
affected by the visual aspects of a Website.
Your Website is the first impression viewers’ get of you,
your services or your products. If that impression isn’t
good, then your Website isn’t effective and probably not
earning money for you. In the case of social networking the
same applies to your profile and blog. Think about this – if
you walked into a grocery store and it was filthy, with dust
all over the place and hand - written signs everywhere –
you would probably think twice before purchasing from
that store. The most important key elements for a
successful website are: An attractive and professional
appearance - Content with style and substance (“less is
more”), Functionality - Ease of use/navigation - Engaging
with the visitors with plenty of interactivity to keep them
there as long as possible, to encourage comments/views
through blogs, create word of mouth and an element of
loyalty. In addition, it should be frequently updated and be
Search Engine Optimized (SEO) by professionals so it can
have high rankings on search engine results.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Stellar Customer Service
Much is touted by companies about CUSTOMER
SERVICE but surprisingly only a few actually deliver
on their promises. At the outset, it appears that many
lack a vital customer relations policy. Inadequate staff
training amongst other factors further aggravates the
problem. Picking up the telephone and calling certain
companies, for example, can sometimes lead to an
exasperating experience. People love to hate the
phone tree experience where you have to go through a
maze of menus until you eventually get to speak to a
human – assuming you’re lucky. It shouldn’t have to be
that way. How a customer is dealt with is a reflection of
the brand - the image of the company in the
mind. Dealing with a company’s customer service
center should be an efficient and pleasant experience.
Companies should place toll-free numbers in visible
and large type on their labels. Calls should be
answered on the first or second ring and no phone
tree. The trained person who handles the calls should be
congenial, apologetic and non-argumentative.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Niche Market Player
A business which focuses on a niche is effective and efficient at
working closely with customers to build and
maintain long term relationships by innovating and
challenging the existing norms in the industry,
thus adding value to the project, program, and
organizational level. If one is considered an
expert in what one does by focusing in one area,
then great success shall follow. Your value
proposition must be relevant to your target
market. This means your target market must be
clearly defined. Focusing on your specific
market requires knowing it inside and out. This
includes conducting a market analysis, stating a
precise target market description and goal, as
well as being clear about the type of relationship
you would like to achieve with your market.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Exceptional Sales Results
Exceptional sales results are derived first and foremost by having a
viable plan, followed by its vigorous execution and constant adjustments
according to market conditions. Consider a sales force that behaves more like
“consultative agents” instead of aggressive peddlers. Along with the thorough
knowledge of the company’s products/services, the charismatic, enthusiastic,
motivated and competent sales force should be constantly trained, developed
and coached – along with all the necessary tools at their possession for added
competitiveness. Sales people should be client centered. That is, focus on
needs/wants and fulfill them with specific products/services – solutions. This is
how trust will be earned. Clients don’t like being sold to - they prefer to buy
(push vs. pull). Businesses ought to know their ideal customer/target market,
the competition and how they can be approached most effectively. The sales
force should not have to resort to the daily grind of making cold calls. Instead,
they can be provided with techniques and tools to make better use of their
prospecting time. In the end, more of their valuable time can be spent in the
field in front of prospective clients rather than working on the law of averages
in search of appointments. Better still; the lead generation activity can be
outsourced to a company specializing in those services. Marketing should
collaborate closely with Sales with a mutual goal. A simple to use yet
comprehensive CRM system can be in place and its data constantly monitored
by management focusing on activities and results.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Leaders vs. Managers
LEADERS and MANAGERS don’t fall
under the same category. They have
different tasks and competencies. For
one, leaders have followers and are
compelling individuals, whereas
managers have employees and are
great supervisors. In contrast, leaders
possess high emotional intelligence,
engage their workforce and focus on
strategic planning, whereas managers
motivate employees to perform, as well
as follow/implement orders from their
superiors.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Women in Executive | Professional
Roles
For the last 40 years or so, women have
come a long way. We are witnessing
more of them stepping aboard C-suites
at remarkable brands or excelling at
their on business and professions.
Jack Nicholson famously stated, “These
days, women are better hung then the
men.”
With the exception of several unnamed
countries, and societies which deprive
girls for what we take for granted,
including basic education, may progress
always prevail in both genders. Cheers
to that!
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Compulsive Habits and Vices
If you are disciplined and respect
your health – regardless of any
peer pressure, stress or
depression, you will abstain from
smoking, taking drugs, consuming
alcohol and gambling.
Even medication abuse should not
ever be contemplated.
One can experience enjoyment and
bypass distressing moments
without the influence of any of the
abovementioned.
No need to elaborate on the “why.”
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Questioning Authorities
Many people are afraid to shake the
establishment in fear of any retributions.
Authorities include, big corporations and
their moguls, government and their
politicians – most notably, fat cats that
benefit the wealthy at the expense of the
working class and powerless.
However, united we stand, divided we fall
as people. The more you can unite to fight
a legitimate cause, the easier it gets to be
heard and succeed.
Incidentally, injustice causes rift amongst
people and institutions. Ever heard of the
term, “freedom fighter?”
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Passionate Profession
It’s essential that you are able to
marry your work and what you love. This
passion will ignite the minds of your
potential clients and connections. Your
business or profession has to be a
reflection of what you are already willing
to pour countless hours into. Your
passion and enthusiasm for the work
you’re performing has to connect to your
desires which is ultimately what will make
you successful.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Dealing with Difficult People
Dealing with difficult people requires adequate
human relations skills, patience, empathy,
persistency and anger/emotional control. It’s an
exhausting and daunting task. For these reasons
alone, many people simply try to avoid the
arrogant, narcissist, control freak, the unyielding,
the abrupt, the serial negative type and the
obnoxious just to name a few. If you have to
frequently cope with any such characters, or a
combination thereof, don’t expect them to
change. Simply change your game plan to
get a different result. Try disarming people
with kindness and allowing them to feel
important.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Self Esteem & Self Confidence
Self esteem & confidence offer happiness
and a better life. Self esteem increases your
confidence. If you have confidence you will
respect yourself and then you can respect others,
improve your relationships and become happier.
Low esteem, on the other hand, causes
depression, unhappiness, insecurity and low
confidence. Constant negative circumstances can
also cause a person with a weak character to lose
his/her self esteem and self confidence. Working
to build your self esteem and confidence building
measures takes time. It requires discipline,
motivation, a positive attitude, as well as support
and coaching from either a professional counselor
or someone who cares enough and is willing to
listen.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Complacency
Complacency is a
comfort zone which yields
marginal performance. It
can cause deficiencies, stifle
growth and progress. This
syndrome should be
replaced with drive and
consistent improvement.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

The Anathema of Bureaucracy
According to Wikipedia, “BUREAUCRACY”
is succinctly defined as “The collective
organizational structure, procedures,
protocols and set of regulations in place to
manage activity, usually in large
organizations and government.” In other
words, it’s a frustrating, rigid, process driven,
and a snail paced institution. This shouldn’t
exist in democratic countries and ought to be
controlled by developing nations if they are
to effortlessly succeed. Not doing so,
bureaucracy will become increasingly self-
serving, complacent and breed corruption,
rather than properly serve society as its
intention.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Nepotism
NEPOTISM - promoting family members
over other qualified employees often
leads to resentment or, worse, prompts
valuable non-family employees to leave
the company. Likewise, doing business
or working with/for relatives is not highly
recommended since doing so, risks
upsetting your family relationship/ties as
a result of intense disagreements.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Hiring Criteria
Don’t simply hire well educated and
experienced people but most importantly
motivated, dedicated, coachable and
with interpersonal skills. Moreover, make
certain that the people you hire fit-in with
your corporate culture. Your organization
should also foster an atmosphere of
innovation and creativity through
leadership. These conditions can’t help
but breed success.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

When Job/Career Hunting
A JOB SEARCH ought to be a full time
task if one expects to obtain prompt
results. More than that, a career seeking
candidate should think outside the norm
and be exceedingly creative. Distinguish
yourself from other candidates and market
yourself as a business professional. Think
of yourself as a candidate who’s running
for elections and make a lasting first
impression. It takes self branding, merely a
2 page CV/Resume with substance and
relevance to what you’re looking for, not
relying solely on advertised jobs and being
fully prepared for the interviews.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

E-mail Message Response Time
E-MAIL ETIQUETTE – Akin to the act of returning
phone messages in a timely manner, a good rule
of thumb should be that an e-mail RESPONSE,
especially to someone you know, should be
replied within 24-48 hours. Barring unusual
circumstances, with today’s high tech
communications and portable gadgets, not
responding within a reasonable time demonstrates
a lack of courtesy and makes a silent derogatory
statement about the receiver’s character including
“arrogant” and/or “ignorant”. As for SENDING e-
mails, don’t be a Spammer. BE PERSONAL if you
want the receiver/reader to take it seriously.
Therefore, don't send the same e-mail to large
numbers of people. If you have more than a few
people to contact don’t be tempted to copy and
paste or mail merge.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Religion & Politics
Avoid discussing topics of religion
and politics with strangers and
clients. If you’re brought into such
conversations, play it neutral to avoid
alienating the other person.
In addition, no state should unite with
religion if the former is to remain
“secular.”
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Character vs. Reputation
Reputation is what people say/think
about you, it’s your personal brand
and should be well preserved –
assuming that’s important to you.
Character is what you really are. It is
said that character is like a tree and
reputation like a shadow. The
shadow is what we think of it while
the tree is the real thing.
Always deliver on what you promise
and if you look after your character
your reputation will look after itself.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

The MBA Degree Illusion
Those who possess an MBA degree have
no guarantee of success in a field of
endeavor. Real experience trumps
credentials every time. Management is a
practice, not a science. The young
graduates with little or no practical
work/business experience and inadequate
street smarts are often misled to believe
that they can become great business
saviors soon after they obtain their post
graduate degrees. They may be good at
analysis and given a dose of confidence,
however, it doesn’t necessarily make them
good managers/leaders. For a third party
analysis and critique on this issue, from a
management guru, you are encouraged to
refer to his book, “Managers, Not MBAs.”
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Agreements Always in Writing
Avoid accepting verbal agreements
for any business transaction. Make
sure the WRITTEN AGREEMENTS
are binding preferably with a signed
witness. Same goes if you decide to
lend money to a FRIEND or a
RELATIVE (which should be avoided,
if at all possible, as it can cause
disputes and misunderstandings, as
well as sever relationships/ties).
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
Every business and professional must have
one to differentiate amongst the crowds and
stand for something unique.
Your USP should be comprised of the
company personality, image, core
competencies and characteristics.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Hypocrisy
HYPOCRISY is unfortunately all around us.
However, it must be said that politicians are the
masters of it. Political hypocrisy is when a
politician draws a veil over the political realities
of a policy in order to deceive the public. Having
had the privilege to personally speak candidly
off–the-record with several diplomats, while
residing overseas, I have come to the
conclusion that plenty of what is said by them
and others involved in the diplomatic world, is a
farce and does not always reflect their own
personal beliefs. That shouldn’t be surprising.
Nevertheless, give them credit for their ability to
eloquently deceive/manipulate the media and
others with a straight face.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Persistence, Perseverance & Tenacity
All these are common traits with
every successful person along with
working efficiently. Try/possess them
and you will see how well they work
together which eventually bring about
the results you seek. LUCK, on the
other hand, can be an ally. It’s
described as preparation meeting
opportunity.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

Seizing Opportunity
You can’t seize opportunity
without (calculated) risk. One
should tread beyond his/her
comfort zone if to succeed. If
you don't take risks you’ll
never accomplish most of
your goals and never know if
your dreams could have
come true.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

In Closing – Your Health
Life’s a great journey
Nothing stated in this manifesto
will ultimately have any meaning
if one neglects his/her state of
health.
Eat well, exercise thrice weekly,
control stress, go for annual
physical examinations and
occasionally treat yourself to
life’s pleasures.
A DIFFERENT ANGLE: Food for Thought | James D. Roumeliotis |

“People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and
courageously. This is how character is built.”
- Eleanor Roosevelt

James D. Roumeliotis
author, lecturer, speaker & entrepreneurial practitioner/adviser
I very much enjoyed creating this to share with you my strong
beliefs via my personal lens view. For my profile/background,
kindly visit: http://about.me/jdroumeliotis
My blog: www.unconventionalbusinesswisdom.org
Twitter: @jdroumeliotis
I encourage you to send me your questions and thoughts at:
jdrazure@gmail.com
December 2014