Year III May-June 2011 n. 3
in san marino
C ONTENTS
INFORMATION MAGAZINE PUBLISHED BY THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SAN MARINO
INTERVIEW Chamber of Commerce turns 10 years old Russian customs Financial statements collection Meeting with estonian delegation Members’ area Web 2011 Prize
Pompeo Batoni (1708-1787), Saint Marinus with the Republic in his hands, 1740 detail Pompeo Batoni (1708-1787), San Marino risolleva la sua Repubblica, 1740 part.
E DITORIAL Massimo Ghiotti - General Manager
The busy have no time for tears
Albert Einstein
Somehow, periods of crisis seem to produce fresh opportunities. Many are those who consider the time is ripe to set up a new business, expand, take risks, change. Now is the time, for example, to ask ourselves how to manage customers in a different and better way, strengthening their confidence, and to think about how to stand out from the crowd. But to grasp the opportunities which are currently there for the taking, you first of all have to be curious and a positive outlook is crucial. Our mental attitude can change our relations with customers and those who surround us. The real problem however is that optimism is not much in fashion; it is more trendy to be a pessimist and talk about the “hard times” facing us and express opinions on how bad things will become and how unhappy we shall all be. What’s stopping us then? Fear, the same fear that often unites us in unhappiness. What can we do? Numerous are the studies which
tell us that happy and positive people live longer, perform better, earn more, are less inclined to become ill and are less harassed. So how about an injection of confidence? How about asking ourselves not “what’s wrong”, but “what’s right, what’s going well, what has produced results? What are the good things we have done so far and how can we improve on them? What are our capacities?”. We must remember however that things do not happen by themselves. Being optimistic is not enough. If ever there was a time to work hard, be ready for change, be flexible and ready to take up challenges, this is it. And if we want to ride out the storm, we must get down to work and be very clever in managing our time and using it efficiently, having our priorities clearly in our minds. Hence it becomes important to share our priorities with those who surround us, with our family and our work colleagues. Our plan of action will only be successful if those near to us know what we want and how we want to spend our time.
Let us then start recording all our activities so we realise where we are wasting our time and therefore how to better manage it. This way we shall understand how to dedicate more time to our priorities. Let’s find a way to increase our productivity and enjoy ourselves doing so, almost as if it were a challenge, a competition. The nature of the world is to change and so today’s priorities need not necessarily be those of tomorrow; we shall achieve goals and set new ones, consequently flexibility will be crucial for tackling change. This year, the Chamber of Commerce will be ten years old and over these years it has implemented many many different projects. Projects that came to a close while others were already beginning; no time to stop and look back. If there is one thing we have understood, it is that which we have just mentioned: without priorities and organisation, one gets nowhere. Our greatest wish therefore is that the Chamber of Commerce’s course might always be well plotted even in the midst of the storm.
in san marino
may-june 2011 1