Greetings from rural Australia.
Guerrilla From The Bush has moved to my new site, Simple Solutions For Difficult Problems.
All my blog posts are there plus many new ones.
Follow this link to follow the Guerrilla From The Bush. She misses you, so please click here now.
See you there!
Take care,
CAROL
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Chapter 24 My Twist On Twitter
Greetings from rural Australia.
I first discovered Twitter in 2007, not long after Twitter was launched. I signed up because it was highly recommended. But after looking at Twitter more closely, I decided it just wasn’t for me.
For several reasons.
I’m a very private person and have never been compelled to discuss my comings and goings with my closest friends or even my sister, Janet, who I adore. My favourite topic isn’t me.
I can’t think of one endeavour I do that’s of enough interest to coerce another person to want to read about it.
Because I don’t do off the wall activities.
I’ve never bungy jumped.
I’ve never harnessed up a pack of Huskies to a sled to traverse the landscape of Antarctica.
I don’t do white water rafting, although a drop of rain in my drought ravaged rural village would be more welcome than a froth of waves.
I’m sure you get the point.
But when Twitter makes the news on my favourite radio station, the conservative ABC Radio National, and is even discussed on Geraldine Doogue’s Saturday Extra’s Program, it’s time to revisit Twitter.
And my first impression hasn’t changed.
I recently left a comment on Valerie Khoo’s Sydney Morning Herald, Small Enterprise Blog, to say that Twitter is in danger of becoming a worse pest than SPAM on the internet.
There’s a lot of shouting and posturing on Twitter.
And some people post TWITS every hour, so if you’re following them, you have 24, 140 character messages that contain trivia about what they have for lunch, where they’re going, what they’re seeing, to wade through.
Some people have 25,000 followers and are following 25,000 people. This is about quantity, not quality.
I’m still adamant that there’s very little quality information on Twitter.
In many cases, Twitter is no more than minute by minute commercials posted by business people who want something from you, with no hint of giving something back. Especially for free.
But the hub bub about Twitter intrigues me. And it’s hard to ignore the crescendo of hype that now pervades the media. Which means Twitter is no longer in ‘early adaptor stage’ and is very much in the mainstream of communication technology.
So it’s back to the drawing board.
How can I use Twitter to my benefit? Even though I’m not inclined to share the minutiae of my life with people I know little about.
In my favour, I have Sherlock Holmes character traits. I love investigations because they all too often lead to opportunities.
I’m also an avid reader of business books. Stay with me, this thread does lead somewhere.
I read little fiction these days because I’ve no reason to escape reality. I’m living my dream.
I’ve established a world wide business while living and working from my beautiful rural property in the Central Tablelands of NSW.
I look out any window and see serenity. I walk outside and am surrounded by tranquillity.
Birds and kangaroos are my constant companions, as is my partner, exceptionally talented architect, Victor Pleshev, and my three dogs.
City slickers envy my early morning walks in the rising sun, swathed in the morning mist, with my dogs galloping through the bush. The only sounds I hear are the chatter of the birds and the thump, thump, thump of the kangaroos as they traverse across the landscape.
And I have no near neighbours who drive me to distraction.
So I devote my reading time to anything that will make a difference to the success of my business. My voracious appetite for business knowledge has never let me down.
And opened my eyes to the value of Twitter for me.
Two facts come to light immediately while ruminating about Twitter.
It’s an often quoted homily that you are who you surround yourself with.
If you want to be the very best at what you do, hang out with people who are doing what you want to do. Go to where the people are who are achieving their goals. If you want to be at the top of the tree, climb up there and hang out with the ones who are making it to the top.
Second, if you want to be hugely successful, tap into a simple, but effective strategy used by everyone who’s reached the top of their profession or industry.
Stop talking and start listening.
My little village of Ilford NSW is populated by farmers. Some of them quite famous, like Sydney heart surgeon Matt Bayfield, who owns the adjoining property. His sheep graze on my property to keep the grass down to extinguish any possible bushfire hazard on the rare times we have gully washers of rainfall.
But I’m not interested in becoming a heart surgeon. Nor am I interested in sheep farming. Although Matt is a lovely man and he and his wife Meredith and children are a charming family, there’s little in common to share with him when it comes to my business.
In fact, there’s little opportunity for me to mix with high fliers who I can learn from, anywhere in my region.
The tyranny of distance is a major drawback. And not everybody wants to share their secrets of success.
Can Twitter be the answer?
Is it possible to be a voyeur and tap into some quality information without committing myself to participate in the endless chit chat?
I reactivate my account to do some research.
I key in the names of people I admire, and discover all but two are on Twitter.
This is promising.
I then look at their messages to evaluate the quality of information they’re transmitting.
You can do this without permission from anyone. If someone has a Twitter account, you’re able to look at all the messages they’ve posted. It really is freedom of information in the truest sense.
And because Twitter is about talking, I can deduce from their posts what’s quality information and what’s trivial rubbish.
This Guerrilla From The Bush discovers she can turn a negative, for me, into a positive, purely by surveying the landscape, twisting it around and upside down, looking at it from a completely different perspective, and transform it into a market research tool I can make work – for me! And for free!
I use Twitter to hang out with the people I admire who are posting quality information on their Twits. And I’m listening to what they’re talking about.
Like master persuader David Lakhani of Bold Approach, who has written some awesome books about persuasion in marketing. And devoured by me.
And super traffic generator Alex Mandossian, who’s go, go, go all the time. His Alex Mandossian Blog is worth a visit because his energy is contagious.
Street Smarts Marketer Kathleen Gage, whose down to earth information is so refreshing to read.
Tellman Knudson, because I witnessed his rise from nowhere to somebody in a few short years. And I love his funky emails, even though I read only a few. But his List Building Blog is a must read.
The Ezine Articles Team, because I submit articles to them.
And Victoria Hansen, because she’s a very savvy media entrepreneur who I admire and she’s also a friend of 20 years.
What do I get in return?
By Twitter standards, not much. The objective on Twitter is to be followed, so you can shout and be heard, like the screaming that goes on at a football match.
But I want to be quiet and listen so I can learn. I want to follow.
The first thing I notice is that super successful people are always doing something significant to move themselves forward one step at a time.
Imagine the cheek of Victoria Hansen sending a Twitter message to Hugh Jackman, requesting an interview for her podcasts on Please Explain!
David Lakhani posts numerous links to videos and websites which are rich in content and are fabulous learning experiences. He’s a giver. These links have nothing to do with his business, Bold Approach . He just passes on information that he thinks is of value. And much appreciated by me! And remembered every time he brings out a new book.
Alex Mandossian is a learning machine. His Twitter posts are rich in content, content, content. Following them can be exhausting, but it’s all free and valuable.
The Ezine Team is awash with tips about writing articles and getting them published without hassles. Using keywords to make them valuable to search engines. How to create the perfect resource block. And more.
So if you’re like me and can’t see the value of Twitter, twist it around and use it to look into what the important people in your industry are doing.
Observe. Listen. And learn.
You’re not only hanging out with people who are making a difference, but you’re listening and learning, rather than wasting your energy shouting above the roar to be heard – by no one, really.
Then emulate – copy, imitate - what they’re doing.
Most are really upfront people who knock on doors and ask permission to enter. And they knock on so many doors it’s a given that some will open. That’s why they’re where they are.
They’re also doing things to create interest in themselves and their business.
Kathleen Gage is 55 and a non-runner. But she’s participating in a 26 mile marathon to raise money for the Leukaemia Foundation. Spurred on by her friend, Sam Crowley, who’s the ‘Every Day Is Saturday Guy’.
A tip.
Before you click on Follow, look at how often someone posts to Twitter. If they’re posting every hour on the hour, give them a miss. Most of it is trivia. It’s a lot of shouting and hollering and little is of substance.
One last word.
There’s a lot of information to wade through. It’s like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. Some of it fits perfectly. And sometimes you struggle to see the relevance of the piece you’re looking at.
By listening to and following people who are doers, you can pick and choose what’s relevant to you. You can adapt anything to suit your own circumstances.
I guarantee you it will be hard to walk away from these Twitter messages without some compelling information that will force you to sit down and write out a marketing and action plan, just to keep up.
If you’re having a tough day and can’t see the trees for the forest, click on Twitter and follow some of your doers for a few minutes. It lifts your spirits and energises you to move forward one more step.
If you have a creative and adventurous spirit, you’ll always turn a sow’s ear into an exquisite silk purse.
That’s my twist on Twitter.
What’s yours?
I invite you to post your comments and share your opinion with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions make every product a joy to use
Let’s have a chat. Ring me on 02 63 58 85 11 if you’re within Australia, OR
+612 63 58 85 11 if you’re outside Australia
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at www.interfaceaustralia.com.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
I first discovered Twitter in 2007, not long after Twitter was launched. I signed up because it was highly recommended. But after looking at Twitter more closely, I decided it just wasn’t for me.
For several reasons.
I’m a very private person and have never been compelled to discuss my comings and goings with my closest friends or even my sister, Janet, who I adore. My favourite topic isn’t me.
I can’t think of one endeavour I do that’s of enough interest to coerce another person to want to read about it.
Because I don’t do off the wall activities.
I’ve never bungy jumped.
I’ve never harnessed up a pack of Huskies to a sled to traverse the landscape of Antarctica.
I don’t do white water rafting, although a drop of rain in my drought ravaged rural village would be more welcome than a froth of waves.
I’m sure you get the point.
But when Twitter makes the news on my favourite radio station, the conservative ABC Radio National, and is even discussed on Geraldine Doogue’s Saturday Extra’s Program, it’s time to revisit Twitter.
And my first impression hasn’t changed.
I recently left a comment on Valerie Khoo’s Sydney Morning Herald, Small Enterprise Blog, to say that Twitter is in danger of becoming a worse pest than SPAM on the internet.
There’s a lot of shouting and posturing on Twitter.
And some people post TWITS every hour, so if you’re following them, you have 24, 140 character messages that contain trivia about what they have for lunch, where they’re going, what they’re seeing, to wade through.
Some people have 25,000 followers and are following 25,000 people. This is about quantity, not quality.
I’m still adamant that there’s very little quality information on Twitter.
In many cases, Twitter is no more than minute by minute commercials posted by business people who want something from you, with no hint of giving something back. Especially for free.
But the hub bub about Twitter intrigues me. And it’s hard to ignore the crescendo of hype that now pervades the media. Which means Twitter is no longer in ‘early adaptor stage’ and is very much in the mainstream of communication technology.
So it’s back to the drawing board.
How can I use Twitter to my benefit? Even though I’m not inclined to share the minutiae of my life with people I know little about.
In my favour, I have Sherlock Holmes character traits. I love investigations because they all too often lead to opportunities.
I’m also an avid reader of business books. Stay with me, this thread does lead somewhere.
I read little fiction these days because I’ve no reason to escape reality. I’m living my dream.
I’ve established a world wide business while living and working from my beautiful rural property in the Central Tablelands of NSW.
I look out any window and see serenity. I walk outside and am surrounded by tranquillity.
Birds and kangaroos are my constant companions, as is my partner, exceptionally talented architect, Victor Pleshev, and my three dogs.
City slickers envy my early morning walks in the rising sun, swathed in the morning mist, with my dogs galloping through the bush. The only sounds I hear are the chatter of the birds and the thump, thump, thump of the kangaroos as they traverse across the landscape.
And I have no near neighbours who drive me to distraction.
So I devote my reading time to anything that will make a difference to the success of my business. My voracious appetite for business knowledge has never let me down.
And opened my eyes to the value of Twitter for me.
Two facts come to light immediately while ruminating about Twitter.
It’s an often quoted homily that you are who you surround yourself with.
If you want to be the very best at what you do, hang out with people who are doing what you want to do. Go to where the people are who are achieving their goals. If you want to be at the top of the tree, climb up there and hang out with the ones who are making it to the top.
Second, if you want to be hugely successful, tap into a simple, but effective strategy used by everyone who’s reached the top of their profession or industry.
Stop talking and start listening.
My little village of Ilford NSW is populated by farmers. Some of them quite famous, like Sydney heart surgeon Matt Bayfield, who owns the adjoining property. His sheep graze on my property to keep the grass down to extinguish any possible bushfire hazard on the rare times we have gully washers of rainfall.
But I’m not interested in becoming a heart surgeon. Nor am I interested in sheep farming. Although Matt is a lovely man and he and his wife Meredith and children are a charming family, there’s little in common to share with him when it comes to my business.
In fact, there’s little opportunity for me to mix with high fliers who I can learn from, anywhere in my region.
The tyranny of distance is a major drawback. And not everybody wants to share their secrets of success.
Can Twitter be the answer?
Is it possible to be a voyeur and tap into some quality information without committing myself to participate in the endless chit chat?
I reactivate my account to do some research.
I key in the names of people I admire, and discover all but two are on Twitter.
This is promising.
I then look at their messages to evaluate the quality of information they’re transmitting.
You can do this without permission from anyone. If someone has a Twitter account, you’re able to look at all the messages they’ve posted. It really is freedom of information in the truest sense.
And because Twitter is about talking, I can deduce from their posts what’s quality information and what’s trivial rubbish.
This Guerrilla From The Bush discovers she can turn a negative, for me, into a positive, purely by surveying the landscape, twisting it around and upside down, looking at it from a completely different perspective, and transform it into a market research tool I can make work – for me! And for free!
I use Twitter to hang out with the people I admire who are posting quality information on their Twits. And I’m listening to what they’re talking about.
Like master persuader David Lakhani of Bold Approach, who has written some awesome books about persuasion in marketing. And devoured by me.
And super traffic generator Alex Mandossian, who’s go, go, go all the time. His Alex Mandossian Blog is worth a visit because his energy is contagious.
Street Smarts Marketer Kathleen Gage, whose down to earth information is so refreshing to read.
Tellman Knudson, because I witnessed his rise from nowhere to somebody in a few short years. And I love his funky emails, even though I read only a few. But his List Building Blog is a must read.
The Ezine Articles Team, because I submit articles to them.
And Victoria Hansen, because she’s a very savvy media entrepreneur who I admire and she’s also a friend of 20 years.
What do I get in return?
By Twitter standards, not much. The objective on Twitter is to be followed, so you can shout and be heard, like the screaming that goes on at a football match.
But I want to be quiet and listen so I can learn. I want to follow.
The first thing I notice is that super successful people are always doing something significant to move themselves forward one step at a time.
Imagine the cheek of Victoria Hansen sending a Twitter message to Hugh Jackman, requesting an interview for her podcasts on Please Explain!
David Lakhani posts numerous links to videos and websites which are rich in content and are fabulous learning experiences. He’s a giver. These links have nothing to do with his business, Bold Approach . He just passes on information that he thinks is of value. And much appreciated by me! And remembered every time he brings out a new book.
Alex Mandossian is a learning machine. His Twitter posts are rich in content, content, content. Following them can be exhausting, but it’s all free and valuable.
The Ezine Team is awash with tips about writing articles and getting them published without hassles. Using keywords to make them valuable to search engines. How to create the perfect resource block. And more.
So if you’re like me and can’t see the value of Twitter, twist it around and use it to look into what the important people in your industry are doing.
Observe. Listen. And learn.
You’re not only hanging out with people who are making a difference, but you’re listening and learning, rather than wasting your energy shouting above the roar to be heard – by no one, really.
Then emulate – copy, imitate - what they’re doing.
Most are really upfront people who knock on doors and ask permission to enter. And they knock on so many doors it’s a given that some will open. That’s why they’re where they are.
They’re also doing things to create interest in themselves and their business.
Kathleen Gage is 55 and a non-runner. But she’s participating in a 26 mile marathon to raise money for the Leukaemia Foundation. Spurred on by her friend, Sam Crowley, who’s the ‘Every Day Is Saturday Guy’.
A tip.
Before you click on Follow, look at how often someone posts to Twitter. If they’re posting every hour on the hour, give them a miss. Most of it is trivia. It’s a lot of shouting and hollering and little is of substance.
One last word.
There’s a lot of information to wade through. It’s like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. Some of it fits perfectly. And sometimes you struggle to see the relevance of the piece you’re looking at.
By listening to and following people who are doers, you can pick and choose what’s relevant to you. You can adapt anything to suit your own circumstances.
I guarantee you it will be hard to walk away from these Twitter messages without some compelling information that will force you to sit down and write out a marketing and action plan, just to keep up.
If you’re having a tough day and can’t see the trees for the forest, click on Twitter and follow some of your doers for a few minutes. It lifts your spirits and energises you to move forward one more step.
If you have a creative and adventurous spirit, you’ll always turn a sow’s ear into an exquisite silk purse.
That’s my twist on Twitter.
What’s yours?
I invite you to post your comments and share your opinion with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions make every product a joy to use
Let’s have a chat. Ring me on 02 63 58 85 11 if you’re within Australia, OR
+612 63 58 85 11 if you’re outside Australia
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at www.interfaceaustralia.com.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Chapter 23 How To Create Your Own Bad Publicity
Greetings from rural Australia.
Creating your own bad publicity is very simple. Just don’t keep your word.
Nothing infuriates people more than being let down. And the chatter and prattle that passes from mouth to mouth once someone starts to poison you because of your bad manners, is like a stone rolling down a hill. It gathers momentum with every tumble, crashes into obstacles and causes you great harm along the way.
Most of us crave publicity, because we know that it attracts the right customers or clients to your business.
But it’s so hard to get.
So why does a high profile business expert think nothing of creating bad publicity for himself and his business when he knows better?
I’m flummoxed by the lack of attention to detail that’s considered unimportant and which only leads to guaranteed mistrust on the internet.
I recently signed up for one of this expert’s free Ezines.
On the 11th of May 2009, I receive an email from this expert offering me a trial subscription to a members only newsletter/coaching course.
The email that arrives on the 11th of May also says that if I take up the trial subscription, I can attend a free telecoaching seminar on May 12th.
I am already very impressed by what I read so far by this expert, so eagerly submit my payment for the trial subscription.
A thank you email immediately arrives with the link to the necessary call-in information for the teleseminar.
The link I pay for is a 404 – link not found. The link is to a February edition of the newsletter which has already been removed from the internet.
As scams on the internet are as common as fleas on a stray dog, I am now on full alert.
I email his assistant, described by him as a fabulous woman and a wonderful person to interact with, to say how disappointed I am that the link is a 404. I request an active link to the call-in information. If this can’t be done, I request a refund.
I am polite, but terse.
As with all things to do with the internet, which is the last frontier, distrust is rife.
Online rating reviews overflow with bad experiences. Far too many people pay for something they never receive. Or receive in a diminished format.
When you pay your money to someone you don’t know, and your link is bodgey, you automatically assume the worst. You judge the book by its cover. Especially when the company you’re dealing with presents itself as trustworthy. It’s natural to expect them to be, and do, better. When they aren’t, you’re as suspicious of them as you are of a spouse you believe is cheating on you.
Anyone who reads the first page of my website will glean that trust on the internet is a big issue with me.
The reply email I receive is from his assistant and is for a refund.
This wonderful, fabulous woman who is a joy to interact with offers no explanation and no apology. Just the details of the refund made to my credit card.
I am confounded that he chooses to give me a refund rather than what I ask for and am promised. Which is an active link for the call-in details for the teleseminar. It’s all that I want.
To me, a promise is a promise. Yes, I’m naive enough to expect people to keep their word and although not shocked when they don’t, I am always deeply disappointed.
Ditto for their behaviour. Having read his opinion of his assistant as the eighth wonder of the world, and having read glowing, walk on water reports about him and his expertise on the internet, perfunctory is not what I expect.
I will tell you again that what I read up to now about his methods is impressive and I looked forward to a long business association where I learn a great deal from him.
To get a perfunctory refund with no explanation puts him into a totally different picture frame.
I take him out of the hand carved, ornate frame, overlaid with gold leaf and expensive non-reflective glass, and put him into a tacky, chipped and battered frame, with a cracked pane of glass.
It’s a given that the easiest activity in business is to care for a happy customer.
But the real measure of a business and the calibre of its people, is the way they handle a grumpy, disappointed customer who feels they haven’t received what they paid for.
To pack up your marbles and go home smacks of the tantrums thrown by spoiled children who are used to getting their own way.
The reaction to my terse disappointment doesn’t match what’s written about this expert and his assistant on the internet.
You know what? Once you realise your image of a person doesn’t match the reality, the seeds of bad publicity start to sprout.
Think about it. How many times have you been tempted to put a different, more realistic slant, on a person you know to be unlike their public image? It could be a relative, a co-worker, a pillar of the community. I bet you’ve exchanged differing views more than once.
Obviously any criticism about his manner of business is not to be tolerated. And the person causing the criticism is to be despatched as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, I don’t go quietly.
I’m also not the only person involved in this scenario.
I am so excited by what his company promises to offer, I email the information to a friend, who also signs up for the trial subscription.
He receives a different email link to mine. His link is to the March newsletter, which is active, and which gives the date for the April teleseminar, along with call-in information.
We put our heads together and deduce the call-in number, access code and time of day the teleseminar takes place must be the same. Apply that to the May teleseminar and we should be OK. Just show up at 7AM on May 12 and listen.
I’m there at 6:45AM. So is my friend and a few other listeners. But the host is a no show.
Ever the optimist, I’m the only one left listening to teleconferencing music at 7:30AM.
It finally sinks in that we’ve all been duped and I hang up.
You’re not surprised, are you, when I tell you that there isn’t a positive comment made by anyone.
This ‘Expert Number One’ was recommended to me by ‘Expert Number Two’.
I have nothing but the utmost respect for Expert Number Two.
Because he’s a vocal advocate about the productive use of your time and makes a huge issue about not allowing other people to waste YOUR TIME, I fax a letter to him, telling him that his Expert Number One has let him down in a big way.
Yes, this does rub off onto him. I trust his recommendations and am disappointed that Expert Number One not only wastes my time, but the time of the others waiting for him on the call, including my friend.
And because I never do anything behind the back of another person, I email a copy of my letter as an attachment to Expert Number One.
What time do I send my fax and email? At 8:30AM May 12th. It’s now May 13th. And more than 24 hours later.
So far, the silence is deafening.
As an important addendum to this, do you ever wonder why people are so reluctant to give you names of their friends and relatives as referrals? Many people say referrals are almost as hard to get as good publicity.
Guess what?
The scenario above is reason number one.
People who care about their personal reputation will not make a referral to you of someone they know, just in case you treat their friend, relative or co-worker like Expert Number One does. Which is nothing short of a lack of respect.
This lack of respect comes back to smack you in the face if you’re the one who makes the referral.
Remember my friend who took up his subscription at my recommendation?
He’s now casting aspersion on my judgement and ridiculing Expert Number Two. Guilt by association.
Suddenly, I’m not only disappointed, but I’m on the defensive.
I’m always inclined to give the benefit of the doubt. It’s possible to blame some of this on the prolific use of auto-responders and simply not checking what you send out.
All that needs to be done is to make sure the link is active and correct before emailing it to those of us who take up his offer.
It’s something to be done by an assistant. And checked regularly on a specific day every month. It’s a procedural part of a system. Which obviously isn’t in place in this organisation.
Expert Number One is earning what he reaps. Well deserved bad publicity for being careless.
The truth is, he’s been offering this trial subscription for more than 9 years. He’s had plenty of time to perfect the delivery of correct links that are part of the trial. He’s had plenty of time to practice getting it perfect every time. He’s had plenty of time to make sure there are no hiccups.
Most importantly, he's had plenty of time to make sure he delivers what you pay for and expect.
Why am I really annoyed?
Because too few people make a business truly accountable for how it performs. If they’re not overtly ripping off the public, there’s little criticism or demand for accountability.
In essence, I wasn’t ripped off. I was given a refund.
But yes, I was ripped off, because I expected more and better. Being ripped off includes issues that are more than financial.
Acceptance of the mediocre is currently the norm. And that’s what we get. Mediocre people running businesses that are written up as extraordinary.
Dumbing down in business is as prolific as the dumbing down of the press, the dumbing down of our education system and the dumbing down of our expectations of just about everyone and everything.
How many people do you consider to be head and shoulders above the rest? How many people do you consider to be truly outstanding? How many businesses do you consider to be the crème de la crème?
Also, the lack of response to my email of more than 24 hours ago regrettably confirms my view that he has dismissed me as unimportant.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was recently described as being intoxicated with his own magnificence.
Is this a necessary trait to become a celebrity in the business world, too?
What do you think?
Does it mean Expert Number One isn’t interested in my perspective? Is he too busy to respond? Is he too caught up in his own importance and therefore deaf and dismissive to the mutterings of the underlings?
This is definitely not the first impression I formed of him from what I read about him on the internet. And to discover that it’s false is doubly disappointing.
It’s generally accepted that it’s dangerous to underestimate and dismiss the perspective of a cranky employee or customer. You do so at your own risk.
A little Australian called Bernie Banton brought James Hardie Industries to its knees in the asbestos war for a compensation fund for mesothelioma victims.
James Hardie pulled out all the stops to defeat Bernie. They diverted funds overseas and even registered overseas part of their corporate structure that applied to compensation. They hid valid information and tried with all their might to discredit and smear Bernie and the other victims.
But Bernie won the fight, just before he died from mesothelioma.
James Hardie Industries misjudged, trivialised and dismissed the fire in Bernie’s belly to make James Hardie accountable and to extract justice for all mesothelioma victims.
And the likes of high fliers Meredith Hellicar, at one time one of the most admired women in corporate Australia, Peter Willcox and their co-directors at James Hardie were damned in the courts and are now unemployable. They are paying a huge price for their lack of respect for accountability.
This is a messier and less glorious version of Susan Boyle slaying the judges and the audience on Britain’s Got Talent.
The message? Never underestimate an individual’s drive to make a point.
To my regret, Expert Number Two is distrusted by my friend. Nothing I say changes his mind. Again, it’s a case of guilt by association.
My perspective is this. If he ignores me, I have no option but to question his veracity.
If their silence is permanent, I’ll mull over putting names to Expert Number One and Expert Number Two, as I have in other posts. But I’m giving them both the benefit of the doubt and waiting to hear their side of the story.
But I want you to remember this.
Every action you take is like a pebble tossed into a tranquil river. The ripples spread far and wide. It’s a given. You affect more than one person at a time, every time you deal with someone else. There will always be someone who holds you accountable for your actions.
Don’t trivialise any relationship with a customer or potential customer. You may not agree with their sentiment, but their perspective is as important to them as yours is to you.
I live and work from a remote property in the Australian bush. In a rural village called Ilford. In New South Wales.
As an ex-New Yorker, I’m a rank outsider.
The one thing I observed in my early days here is that everyone is either directly or indirectly related to everyone else. I instinctively knew to be circumspect about what I say. And as a local business, to make sure I’m friends with everyone. But socialise with no-one. Never get caught up in local politics.
Because what I don’t know is the complex matrix that connects these people to each other.
It’s the same with business relationships. There’s only 6 degrees of separation between you and the person you want to meet or do business with. What you may not know is who the 5 people are who are separating you from them.
The person you just buzzed off as ‘not important enough to keep your word with’, may know some very powerful people who will hold you accountable and put a serious dent in your business reputation and your credibility.
If your performance doesn't match up with the image your customer has of you, I guarantee you the seeds of bad publicity will quickly sprout.
If you ignore the ripples of accountability by not keeping your word, I guarantee you that this is the best and quickest way to create unwanted, bad publicity for yourself, with no help from anyone else.
People who know me never underestimate this Guerrilla From The Bush. I have zero tolerance for not keeping your word.
Read this story many times because it’s a graphic illustration of what goes through the mind of a customer when you let them down by not keeping your word.
And multiply me by 1,000.
That’s the number of people who may not be as articulate as I am and write about their experience with you on a blog, but express their disappointment and annoyance in other ways.
The beat of the tom toms on the bush telegraph is still alive.
And be very aware of the power of social networking. All those short and snappy status messages beamed from friend to friend start to add up to a story about you.
My most popular posts are those written about bad manners in business. They’re clicked on more than any other, by men and women all over the world.
Not keeping your word is bad manners and wastes the time of other people. It’s self-centred, self-focused and selfish. All the qualities you want to avoid when dealing with other people.
What’s your take on this? Do you think not keeping your word is bad manners? Or do you think this is acceptable behaviour in business today?
I invite you to post your comments and share your opinion with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple solutions for difficult products make every product a joy to use
Let’s have a chat. Ring me on 02 63 58 85 11 if you’re within Australia, OR
+612 63 58 85 11 if you’re outside Australia
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at http://www.interfaceaustralia.com/.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
Creating your own bad publicity is very simple. Just don’t keep your word.
Nothing infuriates people more than being let down. And the chatter and prattle that passes from mouth to mouth once someone starts to poison you because of your bad manners, is like a stone rolling down a hill. It gathers momentum with every tumble, crashes into obstacles and causes you great harm along the way.
Most of us crave publicity, because we know that it attracts the right customers or clients to your business.
But it’s so hard to get.
So why does a high profile business expert think nothing of creating bad publicity for himself and his business when he knows better?
I’m flummoxed by the lack of attention to detail that’s considered unimportant and which only leads to guaranteed mistrust on the internet.
I recently signed up for one of this expert’s free Ezines.
On the 11th of May 2009, I receive an email from this expert offering me a trial subscription to a members only newsletter/coaching course.
The email that arrives on the 11th of May also says that if I take up the trial subscription, I can attend a free telecoaching seminar on May 12th.
I am already very impressed by what I read so far by this expert, so eagerly submit my payment for the trial subscription.
A thank you email immediately arrives with the link to the necessary call-in information for the teleseminar.
The link I pay for is a 404 – link not found. The link is to a February edition of the newsletter which has already been removed from the internet.
As scams on the internet are as common as fleas on a stray dog, I am now on full alert.
I email his assistant, described by him as a fabulous woman and a wonderful person to interact with, to say how disappointed I am that the link is a 404. I request an active link to the call-in information. If this can’t be done, I request a refund.
I am polite, but terse.
As with all things to do with the internet, which is the last frontier, distrust is rife.
Online rating reviews overflow with bad experiences. Far too many people pay for something they never receive. Or receive in a diminished format.
When you pay your money to someone you don’t know, and your link is bodgey, you automatically assume the worst. You judge the book by its cover. Especially when the company you’re dealing with presents itself as trustworthy. It’s natural to expect them to be, and do, better. When they aren’t, you’re as suspicious of them as you are of a spouse you believe is cheating on you.
Anyone who reads the first page of my website will glean that trust on the internet is a big issue with me.
The reply email I receive is from his assistant and is for a refund.
This wonderful, fabulous woman who is a joy to interact with offers no explanation and no apology. Just the details of the refund made to my credit card.
I am confounded that he chooses to give me a refund rather than what I ask for and am promised. Which is an active link for the call-in details for the teleseminar. It’s all that I want.
To me, a promise is a promise. Yes, I’m naive enough to expect people to keep their word and although not shocked when they don’t, I am always deeply disappointed.
Ditto for their behaviour. Having read his opinion of his assistant as the eighth wonder of the world, and having read glowing, walk on water reports about him and his expertise on the internet, perfunctory is not what I expect.
I will tell you again that what I read up to now about his methods is impressive and I looked forward to a long business association where I learn a great deal from him.
To get a perfunctory refund with no explanation puts him into a totally different picture frame.
I take him out of the hand carved, ornate frame, overlaid with gold leaf and expensive non-reflective glass, and put him into a tacky, chipped and battered frame, with a cracked pane of glass.
It’s a given that the easiest activity in business is to care for a happy customer.
But the real measure of a business and the calibre of its people, is the way they handle a grumpy, disappointed customer who feels they haven’t received what they paid for.
To pack up your marbles and go home smacks of the tantrums thrown by spoiled children who are used to getting their own way.
The reaction to my terse disappointment doesn’t match what’s written about this expert and his assistant on the internet.
You know what? Once you realise your image of a person doesn’t match the reality, the seeds of bad publicity start to sprout.
Think about it. How many times have you been tempted to put a different, more realistic slant, on a person you know to be unlike their public image? It could be a relative, a co-worker, a pillar of the community. I bet you’ve exchanged differing views more than once.
Obviously any criticism about his manner of business is not to be tolerated. And the person causing the criticism is to be despatched as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, I don’t go quietly.
I’m also not the only person involved in this scenario.
I am so excited by what his company promises to offer, I email the information to a friend, who also signs up for the trial subscription.
He receives a different email link to mine. His link is to the March newsletter, which is active, and which gives the date for the April teleseminar, along with call-in information.
We put our heads together and deduce the call-in number, access code and time of day the teleseminar takes place must be the same. Apply that to the May teleseminar and we should be OK. Just show up at 7AM on May 12 and listen.
I’m there at 6:45AM. So is my friend and a few other listeners. But the host is a no show.
Ever the optimist, I’m the only one left listening to teleconferencing music at 7:30AM.
It finally sinks in that we’ve all been duped and I hang up.
You’re not surprised, are you, when I tell you that there isn’t a positive comment made by anyone.
This ‘Expert Number One’ was recommended to me by ‘Expert Number Two’.
I have nothing but the utmost respect for Expert Number Two.
Because he’s a vocal advocate about the productive use of your time and makes a huge issue about not allowing other people to waste YOUR TIME, I fax a letter to him, telling him that his Expert Number One has let him down in a big way.
Yes, this does rub off onto him. I trust his recommendations and am disappointed that Expert Number One not only wastes my time, but the time of the others waiting for him on the call, including my friend.
And because I never do anything behind the back of another person, I email a copy of my letter as an attachment to Expert Number One.
What time do I send my fax and email? At 8:30AM May 12th. It’s now May 13th. And more than 24 hours later.
So far, the silence is deafening.
As an important addendum to this, do you ever wonder why people are so reluctant to give you names of their friends and relatives as referrals? Many people say referrals are almost as hard to get as good publicity.
Guess what?
The scenario above is reason number one.
People who care about their personal reputation will not make a referral to you of someone they know, just in case you treat their friend, relative or co-worker like Expert Number One does. Which is nothing short of a lack of respect.
This lack of respect comes back to smack you in the face if you’re the one who makes the referral.
Remember my friend who took up his subscription at my recommendation?
He’s now casting aspersion on my judgement and ridiculing Expert Number Two. Guilt by association.
Suddenly, I’m not only disappointed, but I’m on the defensive.
I’m always inclined to give the benefit of the doubt. It’s possible to blame some of this on the prolific use of auto-responders and simply not checking what you send out.
All that needs to be done is to make sure the link is active and correct before emailing it to those of us who take up his offer.
It’s something to be done by an assistant. And checked regularly on a specific day every month. It’s a procedural part of a system. Which obviously isn’t in place in this organisation.
Expert Number One is earning what he reaps. Well deserved bad publicity for being careless.
The truth is, he’s been offering this trial subscription for more than 9 years. He’s had plenty of time to perfect the delivery of correct links that are part of the trial. He’s had plenty of time to practice getting it perfect every time. He’s had plenty of time to make sure there are no hiccups.
Most importantly, he's had plenty of time to make sure he delivers what you pay for and expect.
Why am I really annoyed?
Because too few people make a business truly accountable for how it performs. If they’re not overtly ripping off the public, there’s little criticism or demand for accountability.
In essence, I wasn’t ripped off. I was given a refund.
But yes, I was ripped off, because I expected more and better. Being ripped off includes issues that are more than financial.
Acceptance of the mediocre is currently the norm. And that’s what we get. Mediocre people running businesses that are written up as extraordinary.
Dumbing down in business is as prolific as the dumbing down of the press, the dumbing down of our education system and the dumbing down of our expectations of just about everyone and everything.
How many people do you consider to be head and shoulders above the rest? How many people do you consider to be truly outstanding? How many businesses do you consider to be the crème de la crème?
Also, the lack of response to my email of more than 24 hours ago regrettably confirms my view that he has dismissed me as unimportant.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was recently described as being intoxicated with his own magnificence.
Is this a necessary trait to become a celebrity in the business world, too?
What do you think?
Does it mean Expert Number One isn’t interested in my perspective? Is he too busy to respond? Is he too caught up in his own importance and therefore deaf and dismissive to the mutterings of the underlings?
This is definitely not the first impression I formed of him from what I read about him on the internet. And to discover that it’s false is doubly disappointing.
It’s generally accepted that it’s dangerous to underestimate and dismiss the perspective of a cranky employee or customer. You do so at your own risk.
A little Australian called Bernie Banton brought James Hardie Industries to its knees in the asbestos war for a compensation fund for mesothelioma victims.
James Hardie pulled out all the stops to defeat Bernie. They diverted funds overseas and even registered overseas part of their corporate structure that applied to compensation. They hid valid information and tried with all their might to discredit and smear Bernie and the other victims.
But Bernie won the fight, just before he died from mesothelioma.
James Hardie Industries misjudged, trivialised and dismissed the fire in Bernie’s belly to make James Hardie accountable and to extract justice for all mesothelioma victims.
And the likes of high fliers Meredith Hellicar, at one time one of the most admired women in corporate Australia, Peter Willcox and their co-directors at James Hardie were damned in the courts and are now unemployable. They are paying a huge price for their lack of respect for accountability.
This is a messier and less glorious version of Susan Boyle slaying the judges and the audience on Britain’s Got Talent.
The message? Never underestimate an individual’s drive to make a point.
To my regret, Expert Number Two is distrusted by my friend. Nothing I say changes his mind. Again, it’s a case of guilt by association.
My perspective is this. If he ignores me, I have no option but to question his veracity.
If their silence is permanent, I’ll mull over putting names to Expert Number One and Expert Number Two, as I have in other posts. But I’m giving them both the benefit of the doubt and waiting to hear their side of the story.
But I want you to remember this.
Every action you take is like a pebble tossed into a tranquil river. The ripples spread far and wide. It’s a given. You affect more than one person at a time, every time you deal with someone else. There will always be someone who holds you accountable for your actions.
Don’t trivialise any relationship with a customer or potential customer. You may not agree with their sentiment, but their perspective is as important to them as yours is to you.
I live and work from a remote property in the Australian bush. In a rural village called Ilford. In New South Wales.
As an ex-New Yorker, I’m a rank outsider.
The one thing I observed in my early days here is that everyone is either directly or indirectly related to everyone else. I instinctively knew to be circumspect about what I say. And as a local business, to make sure I’m friends with everyone. But socialise with no-one. Never get caught up in local politics.
Because what I don’t know is the complex matrix that connects these people to each other.
It’s the same with business relationships. There’s only 6 degrees of separation between you and the person you want to meet or do business with. What you may not know is who the 5 people are who are separating you from them.
The person you just buzzed off as ‘not important enough to keep your word with’, may know some very powerful people who will hold you accountable and put a serious dent in your business reputation and your credibility.
If your performance doesn't match up with the image your customer has of you, I guarantee you the seeds of bad publicity will quickly sprout.
If you ignore the ripples of accountability by not keeping your word, I guarantee you that this is the best and quickest way to create unwanted, bad publicity for yourself, with no help from anyone else.
People who know me never underestimate this Guerrilla From The Bush. I have zero tolerance for not keeping your word.
Read this story many times because it’s a graphic illustration of what goes through the mind of a customer when you let them down by not keeping your word.
And multiply me by 1,000.
That’s the number of people who may not be as articulate as I am and write about their experience with you on a blog, but express their disappointment and annoyance in other ways.
The beat of the tom toms on the bush telegraph is still alive.
And be very aware of the power of social networking. All those short and snappy status messages beamed from friend to friend start to add up to a story about you.
My most popular posts are those written about bad manners in business. They’re clicked on more than any other, by men and women all over the world.
Not keeping your word is bad manners and wastes the time of other people. It’s self-centred, self-focused and selfish. All the qualities you want to avoid when dealing with other people.
What’s your take on this? Do you think not keeping your word is bad manners? Or do you think this is acceptable behaviour in business today?
I invite you to post your comments and share your opinion with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple solutions for difficult products make every product a joy to use
Let’s have a chat. Ring me on 02 63 58 85 11 if you’re within Australia, OR
+612 63 58 85 11 if you’re outside Australia
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at http://www.interfaceaustralia.com/.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Chapter 22 Doom And Gloom Is A Mindset, Not Reality
Greetings from rural Australia.
The doomsayers are in their element. There's hardly a positive word spinning around in all the doom and gloom we're reading.
Perhaps it's true that most people love hearing bad news. It sells more papers and keeps more viewers glued to their TV's and radios than almost any other topic outside the Olympics and a royal wedding.
The business world has crashed into the side of a mountain and set loose an avalanche of unprecedented mayhem.
This is déjà vu for me.
My partner, Victor Pleshev, and I lived through the 1989 'recession we had to have'.
Yes, our architectural business finally crashed in 1992, when all our property developer clients went bankrupt, owing us hundreds of thousands of dollars we couldn't collect. So they took us with them.
We had to sell our home and valuable possessions to avoid bankruptcy. Everything we worked for, for almost 20 years, went up in flames.
And we had to quickly start again somewhere else, doing something different.
So I speak from experience.
Doom and gloom is in the mind of the beholder. I can assure you that more doom and gloom exists in a person's mind than exists in reality. Perception is everything and if you perceive doom and gloom around you, that's the world you live in.
When we lost everything in 1992, we escaped Sydney to live in the bush, where the cost of living more closely fit our economic circumstances.
And I've learned even more about coping with adversity in the 16 years we've been here.
We've had unrelenting drought for 13 of those years.
I've seen our surrounding small towns lose all but one bank, the railway and coach services. And every business has suffered with that loss.
Agriculture and mining have waxed and waned many times during these 16 years.
But there's been one constant.
The tenacious belief by 'the locals' to keep pressing forward.
Some bush philosophy.
Many locals shake their heads at the panic selling of the stock market. Why, they wonder, do people sell their investments when they're on the way down?
What does a farmer do when cattle or sheep prices are going down?
They protect their investment by holding onto their livestock for as long as possible, so when prices go up, they're well placed to take advantage of a much better opportunity.
During the downward slide, they don't let their livestock die in the paddocks. They water and feed their animals to keep them as healthy as possible for when the good times return.
Because the good times always return.
Two years ago, when we had 3 years in a row of very little rain, one of my neighbours, who has a 4,000 hectare property with many dams, had all of his dams completely dry up.
He has a properly stocked property. Neither too many, nor too little sheep, for the prevailing conditions.
He's in his 60's, and every day, he drove to the nearest river and for 6 hours each day, he legally pumped water from the river into his truck and hand watered his sheep. This took several trips of driving back and forth.
His wife, also in her 60's, hand fed the sheep while he was collecting water. They were exhausted at the end of every day, but they never thought about packing it in. Even when the cost of feed increased daily.
Why?
Because they have a 40 year investment in their sheep. And they won't let anything dire happen to them unless there's no other alternative. And also, because they love their sheep.
Last year, when rain was adequate and wool prices were good, he was smiling and thought the effort to keep going was worth every minute.
Perhaps we should think of our business in the same way.
Marketing, collecting fees owed to you, pulling out all stops to keep your business going if it's at all possible, should be on your agenda. These activities are equivalent to the watering and feeding of my neighbour's livestock.
And equally as hard to do when times are tough, but you’ll be surprised at how your business will be so much stronger when the good times return.
Because the good times always return.
Those of you who love your business will keep pressing forward, if you can. And you will have a much better business than you possibly imagined.
W Clement Stone, the 20th century billionaire businessman who wrote many books, including The Success System That Never Fails and Success Through A Positive Mental Attitude, says "every adversity has the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit".
And it's true.
Losing our business in 1992 was hard, but we so loved owning our own business, we started a much different one, in the depths of the worst recession on record since the depression.
'Doom and gloom' wasn't part of our vocabulary or mindset.
And that seed of adversity has blossomed into a worldwide business that gives us much pleasure.
I'm watering and feeding my business every day, without fail. And I hope you are of the same mindset.
Perhaps, like me, you look forward to the end of the doom and gloom gabfest.
Yes, I’m a Guerrilla From The Bush and have learned so much about what’s possible, I want to share it with you.
What’s your plan for weathering the current crash and burn mentality?
I’d love you to post your comments and let’s see if we can help each other. Your expertise and wealth of experience is wasted if you don’t share it with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions make every product a joy to use
Let’s have a chat. Ring me on 02 63 58 85 11 if you’re within Australia, OR
+612 63 58 85 11 if you’re outside Australia
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at www.interfaceaustralia.com.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
The doomsayers are in their element. There's hardly a positive word spinning around in all the doom and gloom we're reading.
Perhaps it's true that most people love hearing bad news. It sells more papers and keeps more viewers glued to their TV's and radios than almost any other topic outside the Olympics and a royal wedding.
The business world has crashed into the side of a mountain and set loose an avalanche of unprecedented mayhem.
This is déjà vu for me.
My partner, Victor Pleshev, and I lived through the 1989 'recession we had to have'.
Yes, our architectural business finally crashed in 1992, when all our property developer clients went bankrupt, owing us hundreds of thousands of dollars we couldn't collect. So they took us with them.
We had to sell our home and valuable possessions to avoid bankruptcy. Everything we worked for, for almost 20 years, went up in flames.
And we had to quickly start again somewhere else, doing something different.
So I speak from experience.
Doom and gloom is in the mind of the beholder. I can assure you that more doom and gloom exists in a person's mind than exists in reality. Perception is everything and if you perceive doom and gloom around you, that's the world you live in.
When we lost everything in 1992, we escaped Sydney to live in the bush, where the cost of living more closely fit our economic circumstances.
And I've learned even more about coping with adversity in the 16 years we've been here.
We've had unrelenting drought for 13 of those years.
I've seen our surrounding small towns lose all but one bank, the railway and coach services. And every business has suffered with that loss.
Agriculture and mining have waxed and waned many times during these 16 years.
But there's been one constant.
The tenacious belief by 'the locals' to keep pressing forward.
Some bush philosophy.
Many locals shake their heads at the panic selling of the stock market. Why, they wonder, do people sell their investments when they're on the way down?
What does a farmer do when cattle or sheep prices are going down?
They protect their investment by holding onto their livestock for as long as possible, so when prices go up, they're well placed to take advantage of a much better opportunity.
During the downward slide, they don't let their livestock die in the paddocks. They water and feed their animals to keep them as healthy as possible for when the good times return.
Because the good times always return.
Two years ago, when we had 3 years in a row of very little rain, one of my neighbours, who has a 4,000 hectare property with many dams, had all of his dams completely dry up.
He has a properly stocked property. Neither too many, nor too little sheep, for the prevailing conditions.
He's in his 60's, and every day, he drove to the nearest river and for 6 hours each day, he legally pumped water from the river into his truck and hand watered his sheep. This took several trips of driving back and forth.
His wife, also in her 60's, hand fed the sheep while he was collecting water. They were exhausted at the end of every day, but they never thought about packing it in. Even when the cost of feed increased daily.
Why?
Because they have a 40 year investment in their sheep. And they won't let anything dire happen to them unless there's no other alternative. And also, because they love their sheep.
Last year, when rain was adequate and wool prices were good, he was smiling and thought the effort to keep going was worth every minute.
Perhaps we should think of our business in the same way.
Marketing, collecting fees owed to you, pulling out all stops to keep your business going if it's at all possible, should be on your agenda. These activities are equivalent to the watering and feeding of my neighbour's livestock.
And equally as hard to do when times are tough, but you’ll be surprised at how your business will be so much stronger when the good times return.
Because the good times always return.
Those of you who love your business will keep pressing forward, if you can. And you will have a much better business than you possibly imagined.
W Clement Stone, the 20th century billionaire businessman who wrote many books, including The Success System That Never Fails and Success Through A Positive Mental Attitude, says "every adversity has the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit".
And it's true.
Losing our business in 1992 was hard, but we so loved owning our own business, we started a much different one, in the depths of the worst recession on record since the depression.
'Doom and gloom' wasn't part of our vocabulary or mindset.
And that seed of adversity has blossomed into a worldwide business that gives us much pleasure.
I'm watering and feeding my business every day, without fail. And I hope you are of the same mindset.
Perhaps, like me, you look forward to the end of the doom and gloom gabfest.
Yes, I’m a Guerrilla From The Bush and have learned so much about what’s possible, I want to share it with you.
What’s your plan for weathering the current crash and burn mentality?
I’d love you to post your comments and let’s see if we can help each other. Your expertise and wealth of experience is wasted if you don’t share it with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions make every product a joy to use
Let’s have a chat. Ring me on 02 63 58 85 11 if you’re within Australia, OR
+612 63 58 85 11 if you’re outside Australia
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at www.interfaceaustralia.com.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Chapter 21 Good Manners in Business. Volume II. A Tale Of Three Encounters.
Greetings from rural Australia.
My April posting, Chapter 18, Good Manners in Business. Where Are They? . . . hit a nerve with quite a few people.
A subject that I thought was a sleeper, turns out to be quite important to people. I was surprised by the emails and phone calls I received.
Three in particular stand out.
My first encounter was with a prominent, award winning business woman. She rang with her own experiences of bad manners. Which ranged from helping others and never hearing a thank you for her efforts. To her emails, letters and phone calls that went unanswered. Even her local shopkeepers were rude to her. And it appears that in her life everyone is left wanting.
As I’m a curious soul, I visited her website to find out more about her business. And was confronted with a very dull and dreary site. Much like her, I said to myself. First impressions always make the biggest impact!
Fast forward to July. A very good business friend emails me a list of people she wants to contact and asks if I know any of them. Yes, I do! My award winning business woman is on the list. And I quickly look up her website so I can email my friend her contact details.
But this time, her website is anything but dull and dreary. She’s transformed her site into a wondrous, vibrant site, complete with the addition of a new product range and a new business partner.
Perhaps her new business partner is the oomph! behind the transition from dull to divine.
This is a rule I always live by. Not noticing and commenting on a job well done is also a form of bad manners.
So it was a natural reaction for me to go to her Contact Us page and send her an email waxing lyrical about her stylish new look.
8 weeks later and I’m still waiting for her ‘thank you for noticing’ reply. And I know she received the email because her online email form has ID monitoring and I had to decipher KRAZY letters before I could send the email.
So, is this a case of her not noticing that her lack of response to my email is just as much bad manners on her part, as the people who don’t respond to her emails?
You know what? I don’t think people think they display bad manners. But they do notice when bad manners are lacking in their interactions with other people. Strange, isn’t it?
Christopher White is one half of the charm and charisma behind TalaFarmStay B&B. We met over the telephone in October 2007 when he placed an order for The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover after reading about me on Rob Ingram's The Country Squire page in Australian Country Style Magazine.
And we’ve been in contact ever since.
He reads all my posts and emailed me to make his own observations about manners in business.
He emails me his best tips for starching and scenting the sheets and pillowcases for his B&B.
He tells me stories about his best guests and Albert, his Pug, who snores. He sends me photographs of their ritual Saturday night ‘Black Tie & Tails Dinner’ and of his beautiful farm on the north coast of NSW.
And we share stories about customer service, manners in business and about how it’s the little things you do for people that count.
And one thing Christopher always does is reply to every one of my emails and he always says thank you.
Go to his website, TalaFarmStay B&B, and you'll notice that it’s all about helping you enjoy yourself and making you feel at home. It’s no surprise that his guests keep coming back for more of his alluring TLC.
When I wrote my chapter on manners in business, I quoted from the website of Chris Rewell, the renowned image consultant. And included a link to her site.
I didn’t know Chris then. But I knew that her comments about manners were spot on.
To my surprise, I received an email from her thanking me for mentioning her. Her husband was doing research on her and came across my post in Google.
Ten days ago I did a check of all my links on Guerrilla From The Bush to make sure they still connected to the right place. And noticed that Chris has also revamped her website.
As she had an outstanding website to begin with, it is amazing to see her new look is even better. And as I did with the business woman in my first encounter, I left Chris an email to congratulate her on being able to deliver something even better than before.
It only took a few days for Chris to say thank you. This is one busy woman who travels everywhere. And it wasn’t a short, cursory email. It was filled with news and snippets of her busy life since April.
Chris is a very charming woman and a pleasure to keep in touch with.
And this is what good manners is all about.
When you display them, everyone notices how charming, courteous and charismatic you are. You radiate an aura of magnetism that attracts people to you. People can’t help themselves. They want to do things for you and with you.
When you hide them under a bushel, everyone thinks you're crass, selfish, self focussed and ego centric.
Out of my three encounters, which person do you prefer to do business with? Christopher White and Chris Rewell get my vote at every tick of the clock.
By the way, Chris Rewell now has a second website you should visit. It’s What Colour Am I, which is an innovative new book, written and designed by Chris. It takes you through an easy colour process and shows you your most flattering colours. It’s a clever, new approach to personal image.
Just as an aside, colour is one of the most important influences in your life. And when you’re wearing colours that suit you, you unconsciously impart an air of glamour about yourself.
When I was growing up in New York City, my mother was a couture dressmaker and she knew all about the impact of colour. She always dressed me in cool colours and my older sister in warm colours. And we both looked glorious when we promenaded the streets of New York City on Sunday afternoons with our mother and father.
So go visit Chris’ site about her new book What Colour Am I.
Please believe me when I tell you that if you want to be extraordinary, you simply have to go that extra mile. And as you can see, it doesn’t take much effort to travel so much further than your competitors.
Yes, I’m a Guerrilla From The Bush and have learned so much about what’s possible, I want to share it with you.
What’s your experience with manners? Both good and bad.
I’d love you to post your comments and let’s see if we can help each other.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at http://www.interfaceaustralia.com/.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
My April posting, Chapter 18, Good Manners in Business. Where Are They? . . . hit a nerve with quite a few people.
A subject that I thought was a sleeper, turns out to be quite important to people. I was surprised by the emails and phone calls I received.
Three in particular stand out.
My first encounter was with a prominent, award winning business woman. She rang with her own experiences of bad manners. Which ranged from helping others and never hearing a thank you for her efforts. To her emails, letters and phone calls that went unanswered. Even her local shopkeepers were rude to her. And it appears that in her life everyone is left wanting.
As I’m a curious soul, I visited her website to find out more about her business. And was confronted with a very dull and dreary site. Much like her, I said to myself. First impressions always make the biggest impact!
Fast forward to July. A very good business friend emails me a list of people she wants to contact and asks if I know any of them. Yes, I do! My award winning business woman is on the list. And I quickly look up her website so I can email my friend her contact details.
But this time, her website is anything but dull and dreary. She’s transformed her site into a wondrous, vibrant site, complete with the addition of a new product range and a new business partner.
Perhaps her new business partner is the oomph! behind the transition from dull to divine.
This is a rule I always live by. Not noticing and commenting on a job well done is also a form of bad manners.
So it was a natural reaction for me to go to her Contact Us page and send her an email waxing lyrical about her stylish new look.
8 weeks later and I’m still waiting for her ‘thank you for noticing’ reply. And I know she received the email because her online email form has ID monitoring and I had to decipher KRAZY letters before I could send the email.
So, is this a case of her not noticing that her lack of response to my email is just as much bad manners on her part, as the people who don’t respond to her emails?
You know what? I don’t think people think they display bad manners. But they do notice when bad manners are lacking in their interactions with other people. Strange, isn’t it?
Christopher White is one half of the charm and charisma behind TalaFarmStay B&B. We met over the telephone in October 2007 when he placed an order for The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover after reading about me on Rob Ingram's The Country Squire page in Australian Country Style Magazine.
And we’ve been in contact ever since.
He reads all my posts and emailed me to make his own observations about manners in business.
He emails me his best tips for starching and scenting the sheets and pillowcases for his B&B.
He tells me stories about his best guests and Albert, his Pug, who snores. He sends me photographs of their ritual Saturday night ‘Black Tie & Tails Dinner’ and of his beautiful farm on the north coast of NSW.
And we share stories about customer service, manners in business and about how it’s the little things you do for people that count.
And one thing Christopher always does is reply to every one of my emails and he always says thank you.
Go to his website, TalaFarmStay B&B, and you'll notice that it’s all about helping you enjoy yourself and making you feel at home. It’s no surprise that his guests keep coming back for more of his alluring TLC.
When I wrote my chapter on manners in business, I quoted from the website of Chris Rewell, the renowned image consultant. And included a link to her site.
I didn’t know Chris then. But I knew that her comments about manners were spot on.
To my surprise, I received an email from her thanking me for mentioning her. Her husband was doing research on her and came across my post in Google.
Ten days ago I did a check of all my links on Guerrilla From The Bush to make sure they still connected to the right place. And noticed that Chris has also revamped her website.
As she had an outstanding website to begin with, it is amazing to see her new look is even better. And as I did with the business woman in my first encounter, I left Chris an email to congratulate her on being able to deliver something even better than before.
It only took a few days for Chris to say thank you. This is one busy woman who travels everywhere. And it wasn’t a short, cursory email. It was filled with news and snippets of her busy life since April.
Chris is a very charming woman and a pleasure to keep in touch with.
And this is what good manners is all about.
When you display them, everyone notices how charming, courteous and charismatic you are. You radiate an aura of magnetism that attracts people to you. People can’t help themselves. They want to do things for you and with you.
When you hide them under a bushel, everyone thinks you're crass, selfish, self focussed and ego centric.
Out of my three encounters, which person do you prefer to do business with? Christopher White and Chris Rewell get my vote at every tick of the clock.
By the way, Chris Rewell now has a second website you should visit. It’s What Colour Am I, which is an innovative new book, written and designed by Chris. It takes you through an easy colour process and shows you your most flattering colours. It’s a clever, new approach to personal image.
Just as an aside, colour is one of the most important influences in your life. And when you’re wearing colours that suit you, you unconsciously impart an air of glamour about yourself.
When I was growing up in New York City, my mother was a couture dressmaker and she knew all about the impact of colour. She always dressed me in cool colours and my older sister in warm colours. And we both looked glorious when we promenaded the streets of New York City on Sunday afternoons with our mother and father.
So go visit Chris’ site about her new book What Colour Am I.
Please believe me when I tell you that if you want to be extraordinary, you simply have to go that extra mile. And as you can see, it doesn’t take much effort to travel so much further than your competitors.
Yes, I’m a Guerrilla From The Bush and have learned so much about what’s possible, I want to share it with you.
What’s your experience with manners? Both good and bad.
I’d love you to post your comments and let’s see if we can help each other.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at http://www.interfaceaustralia.com/.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Chapter 20 And 'The Secret' Is . . . .
Greetings from rural Australia.
The secret is this.
Nothing! Nothing! Nothing! And nothing again! Ever happens until you get off your derriere and take action.
What’s The Secret I’m referring to?
It’s the concept and book and DVD The Secret by Rhonda Byrne.
The synopsis is this.
Think positive thoughts, send those thoughts out into the universe, and good fortune, wealth, happiness and nothing but good tidings will come your way forever.
It’s both the guardian angel and fairy godmother waving their wands over your life to create copious quantities of fame, fortune and unbridled wealth, without you having to do anything other than send out positive thoughts into the universe.
You wish! And I wish! It was that easy.
And so many people have been taken in by this concept. Including Oprah Winfrey, who ranks as one of the most take action oriented people in the world.
My good friend, Jill Weeks, the co-author of the bestseller, ‘Where to Retire’, and I exchange a lot of business information that we think might please each other. And especially anything to do with marketing, as we’re both interested in the subject.
She recently emailed me information about the successful marketing campaign behind The Secret.
I couldn’t help myself. This is my reply to her email.
JILL,
Thank you for this.
The marketing plan for The Secret is very interesting. But they forgot to mention one thing. The whole success behind The Secret is the myth behind the message that you can get anything you want just by wishing for it. It was embraced because it was like getting paid for doing nothing. That was the engine driver behind its success.
Their media campaign was very extensive, but can you imagine it being that successful if the message was this: - To be successful, you have to get off your derriere and put in some seriously hard work by taking action. No action, no riches.
Instead of, you can sit on your derriere like a couch potato, send your wishes off into the universe and enjoy the spoils.
Sorry, Jill. The Secret drives me to the edge of distraction. Just like over pampered, mollycoddled children.
Take care,
CAROL
And that’s the problem in a nutshell.
Rhonda Byrne has convinced people they don’t need to do anything to achieve their goals other than wish and dream.
Because that’s such an easy option, isn’t it? When faced with a choice, we always want to take the easy way out.
One of her stories is about John Assaraf and his dream home.
Who’s John Assaraf?
He’s an internationally best selling author and co-founder of OneCoach, a highly effective small business growth program.
About 8 years ago, he did a storyboard of his future life. And part of that storyboard was a picture of a house he saw in a magazine that he decided would be his ideal future home.
And yes, 8 years down the track, when he had amassed a significant fortune, he tripped across that house while looking for a place to relocate. Purchased it and now lives very happily in it with his wife and son Keenan.
What’s missing here?
The hard work he put into the intervening 8 years that brought him his great fortune.
It didn’t fall out of the sky.
He set up quite a few businesses in those years, worked hard to make sure they were successful, and when they met his goal, on sold them for a profit.
And when he had enough money invested and the time was right, he went on a house hunting spree to find his dream home.
In other words, his dream home is the result of 8 years of hard work.
Eight years of John Assaraf getting off his derriere and putting in the hard yards to achieve his goal.
John is very quick to correct any misapprehension people have that his dream home and significant wealth came from just dreaming.
As he says, you need to have the dream.
But the dream doesn’t come true without putting into place all the tools and skills you need to bring it to life.
And that’s still not enough.
Once the dream, the tools and the skills are in place, you need to take action and do things to bring the dream alive and keep it alive.
But knowing he wanted a dream home in the future was an important first step for John.
So that part of The Secret is true.
You must recognise and articulate what you want to achieve.
But that’s the only part of The Secret that will help you.
And it’s interesting to note that Rhonda Byrne is now involved in a $15 million lawsuit brought against her by one of her collaborators for breach of contract.
What does this mean?
She didn’t take the right action to tie up the loose ends. She obviously didn’t dot the ‘i’s and cross the ‘t’s’ in her negotiations. There were too many loose ends that created a loophole for someone to be able to bring a lawsuit. Whether she wins or loses, she has a messy few years ahead of her.
The Secret isn’t exactly going to her plan.
Frank Rumbauskas of Never Cold Call Again is also in anti The Secret mode.
This is a snippet from an email he sent out the end of May. It’s an email he received from a customer praising his program and book regarding Never Cold Call Again. And a portion of his response.
QUOTE
Ashley thanked her for her praise and told her she is the kind of customer we really appreciate - someone who actually puts the information into action, explaining that people who return the product under the 30-day trial seem to think that leads will magically appear on their desks the next morning (in other words, they need to go back to reading magic books instead of my book).
The customer went on to say,
"I can see that. 'The Secret' has ruined everyone. Salespeople all now believe they can just sit back and wish for the things they want without having to do any work to get them."
She, on the other hand, applied the material and signed a six-figure contract (and got a fat commission check for it) only 10 days later. And then repeated the process. I'm sure she'll continue to do that over and over again.
This is what happens when you decide to get into ACTION and actually DO something to make your future happen for you, instead of sitting around being lazy, only hoping and dreaming but not DOING.
END QUOTE
Are you convinced yet?
So what are you going to do now?
Still hold onto the myth that your dreams will come true just because you want them to?
Or take a reality check and understand that your dreams are just the first step. An all important first step.
But if you want to be able to fly your plane, you need to get into the cockpit, learn the controls, learn how planes operate, learn safety standards, then get up in the sky and practice, practice, practice, until you’re a skilled pilot.
All that takes thousands of hours of work, work, work. And again, remember this. The only time success comes before work is in the dictionary.
What’s your preference?
Your dream?
Or the better, more worthy reality that you bring your dream to life as soon as you start to put in the hard yards?
And you keep your dream alive and moving forward by doing over and over and over again all those things that make your dream come true.
Only a few will opt for the latter. Which is why only 5% of people are truly successful.
Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett are two of the world’s finest actors. Not only because they had a dream to be the best. But because they both have put in the multitude of hard yards to get where they are today.
The fact they’re Australian and not in the mainstream of celebritydom makes their achievements all the more significant.
You know what? I’m an experienced Guerrilla From The Bush and I know that taking action and putting in the hard yards is the only true path to success. Once in a blue moon you strike it lucky and things fall into place with little effort. But believe me when I tell you this. It’s a rare occurrence.
Do you agree? Or disagree?
I’d love you to post your comments and let’s see if we can help each other. Your expertise and wealth of experience is wasted if you don’t share it with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions change your attitude and make every product a joy to use
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at http://www.interfaceaustralia.com/.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
COMMENT From Jill Weeks June 23, 2008 9:57 AM
If it's a secret, why tell everyone!?
Jill
The secret is this.
Nothing! Nothing! Nothing! And nothing again! Ever happens until you get off your derriere and take action.
What’s The Secret I’m referring to?
It’s the concept and book and DVD The Secret by Rhonda Byrne.
The synopsis is this.
Think positive thoughts, send those thoughts out into the universe, and good fortune, wealth, happiness and nothing but good tidings will come your way forever.
It’s both the guardian angel and fairy godmother waving their wands over your life to create copious quantities of fame, fortune and unbridled wealth, without you having to do anything other than send out positive thoughts into the universe.
You wish! And I wish! It was that easy.
And so many people have been taken in by this concept. Including Oprah Winfrey, who ranks as one of the most take action oriented people in the world.
My good friend, Jill Weeks, the co-author of the bestseller, ‘Where to Retire’, and I exchange a lot of business information that we think might please each other. And especially anything to do with marketing, as we’re both interested in the subject.
She recently emailed me information about the successful marketing campaign behind The Secret.
I couldn’t help myself. This is my reply to her email.
JILL,
Thank you for this.
The marketing plan for The Secret is very interesting. But they forgot to mention one thing. The whole success behind The Secret is the myth behind the message that you can get anything you want just by wishing for it. It was embraced because it was like getting paid for doing nothing. That was the engine driver behind its success.
Their media campaign was very extensive, but can you imagine it being that successful if the message was this: - To be successful, you have to get off your derriere and put in some seriously hard work by taking action. No action, no riches.
Instead of, you can sit on your derriere like a couch potato, send your wishes off into the universe and enjoy the spoils.
Sorry, Jill. The Secret drives me to the edge of distraction. Just like over pampered, mollycoddled children.
Take care,
CAROL
And that’s the problem in a nutshell.
Rhonda Byrne has convinced people they don’t need to do anything to achieve their goals other than wish and dream.
Because that’s such an easy option, isn’t it? When faced with a choice, we always want to take the easy way out.
One of her stories is about John Assaraf and his dream home.
Who’s John Assaraf?
He’s an internationally best selling author and co-founder of OneCoach, a highly effective small business growth program.
About 8 years ago, he did a storyboard of his future life. And part of that storyboard was a picture of a house he saw in a magazine that he decided would be his ideal future home.
And yes, 8 years down the track, when he had amassed a significant fortune, he tripped across that house while looking for a place to relocate. Purchased it and now lives very happily in it with his wife and son Keenan.
What’s missing here?
The hard work he put into the intervening 8 years that brought him his great fortune.
It didn’t fall out of the sky.
He set up quite a few businesses in those years, worked hard to make sure they were successful, and when they met his goal, on sold them for a profit.
And when he had enough money invested and the time was right, he went on a house hunting spree to find his dream home.
In other words, his dream home is the result of 8 years of hard work.
Eight years of John Assaraf getting off his derriere and putting in the hard yards to achieve his goal.
John is very quick to correct any misapprehension people have that his dream home and significant wealth came from just dreaming.
As he says, you need to have the dream.
But the dream doesn’t come true without putting into place all the tools and skills you need to bring it to life.
And that’s still not enough.
Once the dream, the tools and the skills are in place, you need to take action and do things to bring the dream alive and keep it alive.
But knowing he wanted a dream home in the future was an important first step for John.
So that part of The Secret is true.
You must recognise and articulate what you want to achieve.
But that’s the only part of The Secret that will help you.
And it’s interesting to note that Rhonda Byrne is now involved in a $15 million lawsuit brought against her by one of her collaborators for breach of contract.
What does this mean?
She didn’t take the right action to tie up the loose ends. She obviously didn’t dot the ‘i’s and cross the ‘t’s’ in her negotiations. There were too many loose ends that created a loophole for someone to be able to bring a lawsuit. Whether she wins or loses, she has a messy few years ahead of her.
The Secret isn’t exactly going to her plan.
Frank Rumbauskas of Never Cold Call Again is also in anti The Secret mode.
This is a snippet from an email he sent out the end of May. It’s an email he received from a customer praising his program and book regarding Never Cold Call Again. And a portion of his response.
QUOTE
Ashley thanked her for her praise and told her she is the kind of customer we really appreciate - someone who actually puts the information into action, explaining that people who return the product under the 30-day trial seem to think that leads will magically appear on their desks the next morning (in other words, they need to go back to reading magic books instead of my book).
The customer went on to say,
"I can see that. 'The Secret' has ruined everyone. Salespeople all now believe they can just sit back and wish for the things they want without having to do any work to get them."
She, on the other hand, applied the material and signed a six-figure contract (and got a fat commission check for it) only 10 days later. And then repeated the process. I'm sure she'll continue to do that over and over again.
This is what happens when you decide to get into ACTION and actually DO something to make your future happen for you, instead of sitting around being lazy, only hoping and dreaming but not DOING.
END QUOTE
Are you convinced yet?
So what are you going to do now?
Still hold onto the myth that your dreams will come true just because you want them to?
Or take a reality check and understand that your dreams are just the first step. An all important first step.
But if you want to be able to fly your plane, you need to get into the cockpit, learn the controls, learn how planes operate, learn safety standards, then get up in the sky and practice, practice, practice, until you’re a skilled pilot.
All that takes thousands of hours of work, work, work. And again, remember this. The only time success comes before work is in the dictionary.
What’s your preference?
Your dream?
Or the better, more worthy reality that you bring your dream to life as soon as you start to put in the hard yards?
And you keep your dream alive and moving forward by doing over and over and over again all those things that make your dream come true.
Only a few will opt for the latter. Which is why only 5% of people are truly successful.
Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett are two of the world’s finest actors. Not only because they had a dream to be the best. But because they both have put in the multitude of hard yards to get where they are today.
The fact they’re Australian and not in the mainstream of celebritydom makes their achievements all the more significant.
You know what? I’m an experienced Guerrilla From The Bush and I know that taking action and putting in the hard yards is the only true path to success. Once in a blue moon you strike it lucky and things fall into place with little effort. But believe me when I tell you this. It’s a rare occurrence.
Do you agree? Or disagree?
I’d love you to post your comments and let’s see if we can help each other. Your expertise and wealth of experience is wasted if you don’t share it with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions change your attitude and make every product a joy to use
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at http://www.interfaceaustralia.com/.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
COMMENT From Jill Weeks June 23, 2008 9:57 AM
If it's a secret, why tell everyone!?
Jill
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Chapter 19 Don’t Fence Me In
Greetings from rural Australia.
It was the email from my friend and publicist, Penny Stevens of Awarehouse Communications, that began a train of exchanges between me and a number of business friends about the nanny state.
Penny lit the spark with her comment that she was rapidly becoming a very grumpy old woman over the encroachment of the nanny state into all facets of our life, including personal, business and political.
And most pointedly, the upbringing of children.
She recounted the restrictions put in place at her grandson’s school in the UK.
Private photographs taken by parents and other relatives at school events are banned.
Why?
In case they find their way onto the internet and onto the computer screens of paedophiles.
##!*
And then she quickly moved onto the mollycoddling of today’s children.
More ##!*
The truth is, Penny is a very fiery lady and above is just the gist of what she said. I can't repeat what she actually said.
But her view is shared by many people.
Me? I have no children. So I have no biases for or against children.
I confess to not being attracted to babies.
But I’m utterly enchanted and captivated by the innocence of toddlers to 5 year olds and their reality check on life. On their ability to tell it like it is without the restrictions and constraints of political correctness.
And I’m mesmerised by spunky teenagers who are suddenly aware of their sexuality, interacting with each other. Observing them testing their boundaries is totally absorbing.
I also admit to not having a bad experience with a child or a teenager, even though I frequently come into contact with both.
Well, only once.
It was a two year old who accompanied her parents to a meeting at my office in Balmain.
She’d just had lunch. And was jumping up and down with excitement at being at a ‘big people’s’ meeting.
Her jumping up and down was creating a milkshake inside her tummy, which just had to explode, all over our boardroom table.
All I could do was stare. I was in shock and awe from the sheer spontaneity, velocity and volume of the explosion.
I was saved by my elegantly dressed secretary, Sharon Cook, who arrived, mop and bucket in hand, explaining to all of us that her son, Julian, does the same thing at home.
Sharon always put everyone at ease. You want to be in her lifeboat when catastrophe strikes.
I first became aware of children being protected from the world at large in the early 80’s, when I overheard a co-worker mention she doesn’t let her 14 year old daughter walk to school because she might be kidnapped.
I thought this was outrageous and had to be a one-off.
You see, when you don’t have children, neither do most of your friends. Birds of a feather do flock together.
And I have very little in common with parents. So I’m usually a decade behind everyone else’s knowledge of parenting techniques.
But then I noticed I was reading snippets here and there of parents and journalists discussing the perils of ‘stranger danger’.
As parenting escalated to competition status, even I became aware of the intense rivalry between mothers about who was rearing the most gifted, talented, brilliant child.
Mothers are applauded or condemned on the basis of whether they give birth naturally, breastfeed their child until it’s at least 16 years old, and begin their child’s education not at the age of 2 hours, but in the womb.
Competition has swiftly moved from the workplace to the child’s nursery.
And there appears to be nothing more ferocious, or as competitive, as an ambitious mother who wants her children to be the best – at everything. Her dedication to achieving her results has no boundaries.
The current terms permeating lifestyle articles are ‘helicopter parents’ who constantly hover over their children; ‘hyper parents’; ‘curling parents’ who walk in front of their children, removing all obstacles; ‘education mothers’ who devote every waking second to steering their children through the school system; to the current, all encompassing, ‘age of the managed child’.
And I’m totally bemused by the concept of organising ‘play dates’ for a child.
Play dates?!
What an absurd concept. It’s no different to and just as stifling and restrictive as arranged marriages. It’s a Victorian era concept, not 21st century.
What ever happened to going out onto the street and mixing it up and interacting freely with all the children in your neighbourhood?
Wow! Are these kids in trouble?!
I gleaned the above terms from a recent article in Sunday Life magazine titled ‘Growth Industry’ by Carl Honore, author of ‘In Praise of Slow’.
Although I admit to being aware of most of them from reading lifestyle articles by social historians like Hugh McKay and lifestyle journalists such as Mia Freedman and titbits from Maggie Alderson’s comments about her daughter and her friends.
But I found Carl Honore’s ‘Growth Industry” article disturbing.
Because he’s telling a real story about his son and children his son’s age.
And it’s alarming.
Parents have hijacked childhood. Today’s children in middle class homes are over protected, over managed and over parented. Adult anxiety and intervention in the lives of their children are unprecedented.
For instance, some pregnant women spend time every day ‘pumping WombSongSerenades’ into their pregnant belly in the hope of stimulating the brain of their unborn infant.
Children have PDA’s to keep track of their extracurricular activities. Piano lessons, baseball matches, Spanish lessons, basketball practice, soccer, tennis, swimming, karate and after school tutoring.
At 10 years of age, the son of one of Carl’s friends is expected to learn how to ‘manage his time’.
The following really alarms me.
Carl’s son, who is 7, like two thirds of his friends, has never walked to the park alone.
Mobile phones now double as tracking devices. If a child drifts out of the designated ‘safe zone’, their parents get an instant text message alerting them to the transgression of their precious asset.
Day-care centres and nurseries now install webcam so parents can check on their children at any time of the day from anywhere in the world.
And holiday camps now relay daily video clips of their charges to inboxes back home.
Help! Help! I’m suffocating!
As Carl aptly admits, “we’re raising the most wired, pampered and monitored generation in history”.
And asks. “Is this a good or a bad thing?”
Before I scream out my answer, let me tell you about my childhood.
I grew up on the streets of New York City and after that, Pennsylvania. And after that, a small town in southern Virginia. All in the USA. The home of rapists, muggers, thugs, murderers, kidnappers, thrill killers, et al.
Without exception, everywhere I lived, I walked to school. Often on my own. I picked my own friends. And went outside and played without parental supervision.
And just so we're on the same train, I lived in working class neighbourhoods. My world was one of families who struggled financially. Moms stayed at home to look after the kids and dads went to work in the factories.
In New York I played with the boys in my neighbourhood.
And they were tough.
I got into skirmishes, often got injured while playing, organised my own ferocious pay back, defied teachers who were tyrants and revelled in my proudest achievement, reducing my school bully into a screaming, crying wuss.
Once we left New York City, I didn’t have a gaggle of friends. We didn’t live in a neighbourhood with many children. And I discovered I was fussy about who I associated with.
In Pennsylvania, I walked blocks and blocks to visit my special friends. I often rode my bicycle, on my own, to secluded areas, to camp out and read my latest Nancy Drew mystery.
I climbed giant trees. I played in the local playground. I taught myself not only how to swing standing up, but to swing so high, I could wrap the bars.
Even I admit that was a bit scary and not something I’d recommend to someone else.
My play time was often on my own, sometimes with other kids. But it was always away from the prying eyes and supervision of my parents.
At the age of 9, I took the allowance I’d saved up and hopped a bus into town to buy my parents and sister presents. I did have to convince my parents that I understood the dangers of talking to strangers. But once I convinced them I understood the consequences and was trustworthy, I did it often.
That progressed to me and my friends going into town every Saturday to go to the movies. No chaperones. Just the bus driver wishing us a good time and telling us to behave ourselves. When the afternoon movies finished, we walked everywhere on our own before we caught a bus back home in time for dinner.
Stranger danger wasn’t a term used then. But every parent instilled into their children the dangers of talking to strangers. That we weren’t to get into a car with a stranger, or go with them anywhere for any reason. And we understood the ramifications of that and adhered to those rules.
And I don’t have a single friend who was lured away by an evil stranger.
And you know what? On some of my solitary journeys, I got lost. There were no tracking devices and I had to find my own way back home. Sometimes, I had to rely on a grown up, a total stranger, to help me find the way.
By mixing it up in the hurly burly of life, I learned how to be responsible. How to look after myself. How to pick my friends according to my own values. How to figure things out for myself and solve my own problems. How to judge the sincerity of a stranger.
And best of all. I became self reliant, trustworthy, confident, a good problem solver and a very good friend to others.
I also learned nothing in life is free. That everything you do has a consequence and everything comes at a price. You can’t be both active and a layabout at the same time. You can’t have an all day Saturday job for pocket money and go to the swimming pool with your friends on Saturday afternoon.
And I experienced the greatest gift a parent can give to a child.
The freedom to develop my personality and my own values outside of the shadow of my parents. At my own pace, in my own direction, in an environment with boundaries, but not with my parents breathing down my neck, monitoring and checking up on every minute of my life.
And equally important, I experienced the freedom to make mistakes and discover for myself the impact of the consequences of those mistakes on my life and those of others.
What has this got to do with being a Guerrilla From The Bush?
Everything.
These wired to the apron strings of their parents, over pampered, over monitored children are tomorrow’s leaders.
What kind of person can lead a business or a country who has never walked to the park on their own?
What kind of person can make a judgement about others when their parents have hijacked their social skills by selecting children for approved play dates?
How can a person recognise real danger when everything and everyone outside their personal space is considered dangerous?
How can they show compassion for the differences in people when they’ve never been exposed to people who are truly different to them?
How can they understand and deal with rejection, disappointment or failure when their presumed brilliance at everything is constantly reinforced at the home front?
How do they go forth and conquer the world when they’ve been monitored and pampered to death and stripped of their coat of armour that protects them from the hurly burly of life?
Away from the cocoon, how do they learn to dig deep down into their soul and find the grit to keep going when the going gets tough?
Can they become the future Thomas Edison’s? Will they have what it takes to try 10,000 experiments before a light bulb lights up their world?
Do you get my gist?
My instincts tell me tomorrow’s leaders will be no better than today’s George Bush.
Pampered show ponies who have never had to do the hard yards. Who can’t make decisions. Don’t have vision. And quickly rise to their own level of incompetence because they’ve never been tested until it’s too late.
And who are devoid of the basic street smarts that characterised the Harry Truman’s, Winston Churchill’s, Bob Ansett Sr’s and Weary Dunlop’s of previous generations.
You know what?
I’m old enough to hope that I won’t be around in 40 years time to witness the straight jackets the public will be confined to. Because freedom as I know it will be a thing of the past. And the nanny state will reign supreme.
As my fiery friend Penny Stevens says, ##!*!
I’d love you to post your comments. Your expertise and wealth of experience is wasted if you don’t share it with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions change your attitude and make every product a joy to use
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at www.interfaceaustralia.com.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
It was the email from my friend and publicist, Penny Stevens of Awarehouse Communications, that began a train of exchanges between me and a number of business friends about the nanny state.
Penny lit the spark with her comment that she was rapidly becoming a very grumpy old woman over the encroachment of the nanny state into all facets of our life, including personal, business and political.
And most pointedly, the upbringing of children.
She recounted the restrictions put in place at her grandson’s school in the UK.
Private photographs taken by parents and other relatives at school events are banned.
Why?
In case they find their way onto the internet and onto the computer screens of paedophiles.
##!*
And then she quickly moved onto the mollycoddling of today’s children.
More ##!*
The truth is, Penny is a very fiery lady and above is just the gist of what she said. I can't repeat what she actually said.
But her view is shared by many people.
Me? I have no children. So I have no biases for or against children.
I confess to not being attracted to babies.
But I’m utterly enchanted and captivated by the innocence of toddlers to 5 year olds and their reality check on life. On their ability to tell it like it is without the restrictions and constraints of political correctness.
And I’m mesmerised by spunky teenagers who are suddenly aware of their sexuality, interacting with each other. Observing them testing their boundaries is totally absorbing.
I also admit to not having a bad experience with a child or a teenager, even though I frequently come into contact with both.
Well, only once.
It was a two year old who accompanied her parents to a meeting at my office in Balmain.
She’d just had lunch. And was jumping up and down with excitement at being at a ‘big people’s’ meeting.
Her jumping up and down was creating a milkshake inside her tummy, which just had to explode, all over our boardroom table.
All I could do was stare. I was in shock and awe from the sheer spontaneity, velocity and volume of the explosion.
I was saved by my elegantly dressed secretary, Sharon Cook, who arrived, mop and bucket in hand, explaining to all of us that her son, Julian, does the same thing at home.
Sharon always put everyone at ease. You want to be in her lifeboat when catastrophe strikes.
I first became aware of children being protected from the world at large in the early 80’s, when I overheard a co-worker mention she doesn’t let her 14 year old daughter walk to school because she might be kidnapped.
I thought this was outrageous and had to be a one-off.
You see, when you don’t have children, neither do most of your friends. Birds of a feather do flock together.
And I have very little in common with parents. So I’m usually a decade behind everyone else’s knowledge of parenting techniques.
But then I noticed I was reading snippets here and there of parents and journalists discussing the perils of ‘stranger danger’.
As parenting escalated to competition status, even I became aware of the intense rivalry between mothers about who was rearing the most gifted, talented, brilliant child.
Mothers are applauded or condemned on the basis of whether they give birth naturally, breastfeed their child until it’s at least 16 years old, and begin their child’s education not at the age of 2 hours, but in the womb.
Competition has swiftly moved from the workplace to the child’s nursery.
And there appears to be nothing more ferocious, or as competitive, as an ambitious mother who wants her children to be the best – at everything. Her dedication to achieving her results has no boundaries.
The current terms permeating lifestyle articles are ‘helicopter parents’ who constantly hover over their children; ‘hyper parents’; ‘curling parents’ who walk in front of their children, removing all obstacles; ‘education mothers’ who devote every waking second to steering their children through the school system; to the current, all encompassing, ‘age of the managed child’.
And I’m totally bemused by the concept of organising ‘play dates’ for a child.
Play dates?!
What an absurd concept. It’s no different to and just as stifling and restrictive as arranged marriages. It’s a Victorian era concept, not 21st century.
What ever happened to going out onto the street and mixing it up and interacting freely with all the children in your neighbourhood?
Wow! Are these kids in trouble?!
I gleaned the above terms from a recent article in Sunday Life magazine titled ‘Growth Industry’ by Carl Honore, author of ‘In Praise of Slow’.
Although I admit to being aware of most of them from reading lifestyle articles by social historians like Hugh McKay and lifestyle journalists such as Mia Freedman and titbits from Maggie Alderson’s comments about her daughter and her friends.
But I found Carl Honore’s ‘Growth Industry” article disturbing.
Because he’s telling a real story about his son and children his son’s age.
And it’s alarming.
Parents have hijacked childhood. Today’s children in middle class homes are over protected, over managed and over parented. Adult anxiety and intervention in the lives of their children are unprecedented.
For instance, some pregnant women spend time every day ‘pumping WombSongSerenades’ into their pregnant belly in the hope of stimulating the brain of their unborn infant.
Children have PDA’s to keep track of their extracurricular activities. Piano lessons, baseball matches, Spanish lessons, basketball practice, soccer, tennis, swimming, karate and after school tutoring.
At 10 years of age, the son of one of Carl’s friends is expected to learn how to ‘manage his time’.
The following really alarms me.
Carl’s son, who is 7, like two thirds of his friends, has never walked to the park alone.
Mobile phones now double as tracking devices. If a child drifts out of the designated ‘safe zone’, their parents get an instant text message alerting them to the transgression of their precious asset.
Day-care centres and nurseries now install webcam so parents can check on their children at any time of the day from anywhere in the world.
And holiday camps now relay daily video clips of their charges to inboxes back home.
Help! Help! I’m suffocating!
As Carl aptly admits, “we’re raising the most wired, pampered and monitored generation in history”.
And asks. “Is this a good or a bad thing?”
Before I scream out my answer, let me tell you about my childhood.
I grew up on the streets of New York City and after that, Pennsylvania. And after that, a small town in southern Virginia. All in the USA. The home of rapists, muggers, thugs, murderers, kidnappers, thrill killers, et al.
Without exception, everywhere I lived, I walked to school. Often on my own. I picked my own friends. And went outside and played without parental supervision.
And just so we're on the same train, I lived in working class neighbourhoods. My world was one of families who struggled financially. Moms stayed at home to look after the kids and dads went to work in the factories.
In New York I played with the boys in my neighbourhood.
And they were tough.
I got into skirmishes, often got injured while playing, organised my own ferocious pay back, defied teachers who were tyrants and revelled in my proudest achievement, reducing my school bully into a screaming, crying wuss.
Once we left New York City, I didn’t have a gaggle of friends. We didn’t live in a neighbourhood with many children. And I discovered I was fussy about who I associated with.
In Pennsylvania, I walked blocks and blocks to visit my special friends. I often rode my bicycle, on my own, to secluded areas, to camp out and read my latest Nancy Drew mystery.
I climbed giant trees. I played in the local playground. I taught myself not only how to swing standing up, but to swing so high, I could wrap the bars.
Even I admit that was a bit scary and not something I’d recommend to someone else.
My play time was often on my own, sometimes with other kids. But it was always away from the prying eyes and supervision of my parents.
At the age of 9, I took the allowance I’d saved up and hopped a bus into town to buy my parents and sister presents. I did have to convince my parents that I understood the dangers of talking to strangers. But once I convinced them I understood the consequences and was trustworthy, I did it often.
That progressed to me and my friends going into town every Saturday to go to the movies. No chaperones. Just the bus driver wishing us a good time and telling us to behave ourselves. When the afternoon movies finished, we walked everywhere on our own before we caught a bus back home in time for dinner.
Stranger danger wasn’t a term used then. But every parent instilled into their children the dangers of talking to strangers. That we weren’t to get into a car with a stranger, or go with them anywhere for any reason. And we understood the ramifications of that and adhered to those rules.
And I don’t have a single friend who was lured away by an evil stranger.
And you know what? On some of my solitary journeys, I got lost. There were no tracking devices and I had to find my own way back home. Sometimes, I had to rely on a grown up, a total stranger, to help me find the way.
By mixing it up in the hurly burly of life, I learned how to be responsible. How to look after myself. How to pick my friends according to my own values. How to figure things out for myself and solve my own problems. How to judge the sincerity of a stranger.
And best of all. I became self reliant, trustworthy, confident, a good problem solver and a very good friend to others.
I also learned nothing in life is free. That everything you do has a consequence and everything comes at a price. You can’t be both active and a layabout at the same time. You can’t have an all day Saturday job for pocket money and go to the swimming pool with your friends on Saturday afternoon.
And I experienced the greatest gift a parent can give to a child.
The freedom to develop my personality and my own values outside of the shadow of my parents. At my own pace, in my own direction, in an environment with boundaries, but not with my parents breathing down my neck, monitoring and checking up on every minute of my life.
And equally important, I experienced the freedom to make mistakes and discover for myself the impact of the consequences of those mistakes on my life and those of others.
What has this got to do with being a Guerrilla From The Bush?
Everything.
These wired to the apron strings of their parents, over pampered, over monitored children are tomorrow’s leaders.
What kind of person can lead a business or a country who has never walked to the park on their own?
What kind of person can make a judgement about others when their parents have hijacked their social skills by selecting children for approved play dates?
How can a person recognise real danger when everything and everyone outside their personal space is considered dangerous?
How can they show compassion for the differences in people when they’ve never been exposed to people who are truly different to them?
How can they understand and deal with rejection, disappointment or failure when their presumed brilliance at everything is constantly reinforced at the home front?
How do they go forth and conquer the world when they’ve been monitored and pampered to death and stripped of their coat of armour that protects them from the hurly burly of life?
Away from the cocoon, how do they learn to dig deep down into their soul and find the grit to keep going when the going gets tough?
Can they become the future Thomas Edison’s? Will they have what it takes to try 10,000 experiments before a light bulb lights up their world?
Do you get my gist?
My instincts tell me tomorrow’s leaders will be no better than today’s George Bush.
Pampered show ponies who have never had to do the hard yards. Who can’t make decisions. Don’t have vision. And quickly rise to their own level of incompetence because they’ve never been tested until it’s too late.
And who are devoid of the basic street smarts that characterised the Harry Truman’s, Winston Churchill’s, Bob Ansett Sr’s and Weary Dunlop’s of previous generations.
You know what?
I’m old enough to hope that I won’t be around in 40 years time to witness the straight jackets the public will be confined to. Because freedom as I know it will be a thing of the past. And the nanny state will reign supreme.
As my fiery friend Penny Stevens says, ##!*!
I’d love you to post your comments. Your expertise and wealth of experience is wasted if you don’t share it with others.
Take care,
CAROL
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Ilford NSW 2850 Australia
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
Our simple design solutions change your attitude and make every product a joy to use
The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover, Roadworks Apron, Log Lugger, Travel Bug Shoe Bag, Mr Chin’s Laundry Bag and Sweet Shoo are all simple solutions for difficult problems. And every one is a joy to use.
We’ve developed markets for these 6 products without national or international retail distribution. To see what we’ve achieved, click on our website at www.interfaceaustralia.com.
Read the story of how our business began on The Ironing Board Cover Lady. No sales hype. Just a down home story about how we started our business on the dining room table of our rural property, driving on ‘L’ Plates, without an instructor.
A comment about LinkedIn. If you’re not a member of LinkedIn, when you click View Full Profile, you’ll be asked to join. It’s free and the option is yours. There are benefits to joining. Once you’re a member, you can key in the name of any person you do business with. If they’ve taken the trouble to complete a Profile, you’ll be able to assess their background, their capabilities and the calibre of person they are. You might be, as I am, often pleasantly surprised. So go have a look.
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