Joyland

"Always know where your wallet is, and show up."  Carny Rule

I recently read a Stephen King book "Joyland" about a college kid who works a summer job at a theme park set in the early '70's.  During his induction one of the old hands gives him this advice and my thought was, "Crap, now I'm going to have to update my Ten Simple Rules.

Pretty good advice no matter your profession and frankly when I think about the bulk of things that have caused me problems eliminating these two would take care of a bunch of them.

When taken in the literal sense I think people in general do a pretty good job on knowing where their wallet is .  But if you extrapolate it to mean knowing where your "wallet"  (Wealth, Assets, Loot, Love, Emotions, Talent)  is at all times I think most of us fail to some greater or lesser degree.  We have become a society who depend on others to watch out for us.  We trust investors, bankers, talk shows, reality shows, infomercials and un-invested outsiders more than we trust ourselves.  So we end up not knowing where our "wallet" is and trusting it to other people.

I've certainly made this mistake on both the financial and professional side and have my share of flaws on the personal side as well.

However, I'm convinced that the showing up part, in the literal sense, gets lost along the way too often.

Old Geezer Alert!!

I'm also convinced that young people today are especially bad when it comes to showing up.  I don't know if it's because of our mobile society where you don't have to actually ever see and talk to people face-to-face, or if it's inherent in all young people and I just don't remember me being that way or, maybe it's not as bad as I think and I just need to go out on the porch and yell at the neighbor kids to get off my lawn.

But I don't think so.

My observations tell me that a whole lot of people wait for things to come to them rather than going and looking for them.

Additionally I keep reading a growing number of blogs and articles on places like LinkedIn that encourage us to not try to make the Millennia's fit into our outdated and archaic methods of recruiting and management.  We need to let them express their artistic freedom and not restrict them.  We need to "Understand" them.

BAH!!

How about THEY understand that being able to verbally communicate, properly write and spell, take doing their assigned job seriously and show up on time is not outdated, but essential.

Now, back to watching the front lawn.

What I learned by moving

"Moving Tip #48:  Packing tape should not be used for painful practical jokes."

We recently moved to a new home.  It had been twelve years since I had moved and all it did was rekindle all the reasons I hate moving.  I think most people hate moving.  Even when you have someone else doing the packing and hauling it's a royal pain in the butt.  We didn't.  We packed and moved ourselves with some help from friends and family.

The upside is once it's over, and if you've done it halfway properly, you've eliminated a lot of worthless stuff and cleaned and organized everything.

As I said it's a new home but it's not a new house.  Actually it's an old house (by American standards anyway).  It's been mostly remodeled and we really, really like it.  But it's not a new house.

So as we're settling in I start systematically running across things that don't work or don't fit.

The first problem was my office desk.  Under no circumstances would it fit in the room that I REALLY wanted as my office.  The room I wanted has a big window, faces East for morning sun and is large enough for all my stuff.  Remember the getting rid of stuff line?  I'm down to three printers instead of four and one flat screen instead of two.  The other option is a much smaller, much darker room.  So, my desk doesn't come apart and won't fit, therefore the options are settle for the less desirable room or spend money to get a new desk.  Or...cut off two of the legs then reattach them after moving it in.  I was pretty nervous since I knew if I screwed it up I'd ruin a great piece of furniture.  But I took my time, remembered the adage to "measure twice and cut once" and it worked perfectly.  I'm sitting at it as I write this post.

The next thing to come up was the electricity in the garage went out.  Totally out.  No where else, just the garage.  So, being an older house it has a couple of fuse boxes.  A newer one with breaker fuses and an old one with screw-in fuses.  Nothing is labeled so it's hunt an peck time.  The breakers are easy since you can pretty easily tell if it's flipped or not.  The old one, not so much.  So my options are go buy some new fuses and one-by-one switch them out and see if it works, or spend the money to call an electrician.  Or....look around the garage.  There's a switch for the overhead lights and one for the outside lights, and one that doesn't appear to be for anything.  So I flip it and all the electricity comes back on.  Don't know why it's there or why it doesn't have a "Don't Touch This" label but there it is.

So, relearning some lessons.

• Don't miss an opportunity to clear out unused or unwanted things and clean and organize as you're doing it.
• Don't just settle instead of taking the time to get it the way you want it.
• Try the simple things first.

Really good lessons for the workplace as well, don't you think?

The Greatest Generation

"You know, fathers just have a way of putting everything together."  Erika Cosby

We laid my father to rest this week.  Dad had a pretty amazing life.  88 years with most of them healthy.  He and Mom were married for 67 years.  The turnout of friends and family was pretty overwhelming and was a true testament of Dad's effect on people.

Bern Kiser, the minister of their church, and Phil LaMaster, the leader of Living Hope Ministry and my cousin, jointly performed the service and both did a great job.  Phil especially given his family ties.  I had thought about saying a few words but quickly came to the determination that there was no way I could hold it together long enough to finish.  After all, my cousin Phil couldn't and he's a trained orator and minister.

So I'm going to use this forum to express those thoughts:

I grew up in a time of hero's.  Military hero's like Eisenhower, Patton, McArthur.  Sports heroes like Mantle, Williams, Gibson.  Space hero's like Armstrong, Aldrin, and local guy Gus Grissom.  Comic book hero's like Superman, Spiderman and The Fantastic Four.  And as funny as it sounds today even Political hero's like John Kennedy.

With all that I only ever had one hero.  Dad.  Dad was the strongest and bravest guy I knew.  He had been to Europe during World War II. He had been drafted while still in high school. Imagine trying to pull that off these days. He had served during the Korean Conflict.    He wasn't afraid of anyone or anything - with the exception being my Grandmother.  But I think most boys have a healthy fear of their mothers.

Dad believed in God, in Country and in Community.  But he believed most of all in Family and in Friends.  He was always there for people.  He never failed to help, to support and to encourage.  He never talked badly behind peoples backs.  He didn't have to because anything he had to say he said directly.

My parent's generation has been dubbed The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw.  This is the generation that grew up during the Great Depression, fought WWII then came home and built the United States into the Superpower it became.  One of his most important points about this generation, he argued, is that these men and women fought not for fame and recognition, but because it was the "right thing to do."

Doing "the right thing" is the best descriptor you could ever have for Dad.  Any decision he ever made was based upon whether it was "right".  It's the way he lived his life and it's the expectation he had for all of us who lived with and around him.

Now at the end I'm equally convinced of two things.  One is that the world shines a bit less brightly without him in it.  The other is that the universe is a better place because of what he left within all of us.

Alvin Bruce Strouse

January 3, 1925 - August 14, 2013

Post note:  My cousin Phil during his eulogy talked about the "time between the dash".  The dash he referred to is the dash between the date of birth and the date of death on the tombstone.  The dash represents everything the person did and who they were.  The question being what will people say about your dash.  Dad had a long dash, but more than long it was filled with a life of living and loving and leaving an indelible imprint on the people around him.

Maybe Now I Get It

"I like long walks, especially when they're taken by people who annoy me."  Noel Coward

I'm not famous.  Never have been, never will be.  Quite happy that it never happened to tell you the truth because frankly I'd probably be an insufferable ass if I were.  I'd probably be one of those "Stars" who demand very specific things backstage or in my dressing room. 

"I want my '90 Bollinger La Grande Année served exactly 15 minutes after I arrive at precisely 47 degrees, DO NOT mess this up!!!"

Yeah, me and fame, probably not a good thing.

Another reason I know I wouldn't be a good celebrity would be the total annoyance they must experience when going on promo tours for their new book/movie/concert.  Being asked the same question over and over and over and over and over ad nausem would take me over the edge.

I've gotten to experience a mild version of this with the new tenant who took over the ground floor of my building.  I alluded to these happenings in my first post of 2013 New Hope.  So after months of renovation and activity they have opened to some fanfare (for a small town).  I hope they're successful.  The problem is they're nothing to me but a tenant.  I have no investment in their business nor really even a passing interest.  It's a simple arrangement.  They pay their rent and I don't think about them again for 30 more days.

The problem (back to it being a small town) is because I've owned the building for so many years and had two businesses operate there a lot of people know me.  So almost everywhere I go I get quizzed incessantly about what's going on with the new business.

"So what's she doing in there?'

"Can she make a business out of selling cookies?"

"What's she going to do with the patio?'

"Is she going to sell wine?"

"What are her hours?"

On and on and on.

It's one thing when you're promoting your own business (or book or movie) its another when you have no involvement.  So I keep trying to find a short, quick answer that doesn't come off as impolite but also closes the door on any follow up questions. 

This is what I accidentally hit on the other day.  A local acquaintance stopped me on the street and immediately started in with the "So, what's going on in the building?" quiz.  But then, as is their reputation, without pause launched into their own life and times and never came back to the question.  So now when asked I mumble some stock answer and immediately ask the person something about themselves - their business, family, whatever.  So far it's worked every time.

Ah, I love human nature.

Say, Do and repeat

A first for my blog.  I'm republishing an old post.  I've been getting really,  really bugged recently because I feel I'm surrounded by people who promise, promise, promise but never deliver.  It's one thing when you kind of force people to give you a commitment but these guys repeated volunteer delivery details then are not heard of again until I chase them down.  As I was thinking about drafting this I went "hey, I've written about this before".  So, here it is....again.

Say Do

Jellybeans

Groupon's CEO Andrew Mason was just fired and to his credit he sent an open and endearing message out about it Mason. 

When Leaf, Barley & Vine was open I tried a Groupon program once.  Hated it.  No, let me be clear, HATED IT.  As you can see from the picture my General Manager didn't care for it much either.

What you can see in the picture is the stack of Groupon's that were cashed in...on the last night they were valid.  That's six months after they were bought.  They equal about 40% of all that were bought.  We got crushed.  It was a Wednesday night which is normally moderate and we got killed.  First time customers who came because of the Groupon probably never came back our service was so bad.  Loyal customers just left and went elsewhere.  Some came back another night.

We knew the number of outstanding vouchers and staffed up an additional person but it wasn't enough.  If I would have called in every on-staff person it wouldn't have been enough.

That incident, however, is not why I hate the program.  I hate the program because it's bad business.  Great for the customer (except when they wait till the last night and get lousy service) and great for Groupon, but not for the business owner.

Reasons why:

One.  Not profitable.  The way the program works is you offer a service or package at a highly discounted price.  Ours was $30 of appetizers and drinks for $15.  The $15 was split between LBV and Groupon, so we made no profit on each one.  The rationale for doing it it to bring in new customers who either don't know about you or wouldn't normally come in.  And oh, by the way, most voucher carrying customers tip on the discounted amount not the value amount.  If you're one of those.  Stop it.

Two.  One-sided.  People go out and buy programs from Groupon.  In our case about 500 people bought vouchers that were good for six months.  So it generated $7,500.  Groupon kept  half and we got half.  But not all at once.  Groupon pays it out in thirds over two months.  So they get all theirs up front and the float on yours for several weeks.

Three.  Jellybeans.  A long time ago as a young manager I proposed an incentive program for my employees that essentially paid them small bonuses in either cash or gifts for "doing good things".  When I proposed the idea to my manager he said, "jellybeans".  "Jellybeans?" I asked.  "Yep, jellybeans".  He went on to explain that programs like the one I was proposing was essentially a jellybean program in that if you always give your kids a jellybean to get them to do something - a chore or whatever - then all you're doing to teaching them to expect something any time they do anything.  Over time they won't do anything unless there's a jellybean waiting.  Groupon is a jellybean program.  What we've learned is there's a large group of people that will only go out if they have a discount voucher in their hand.  So you don't end up amassing a new set of customers because they go on the the next jellybean being offered.

Thus I'm not surprised that Groupon is not making their numbers, have a low stock price and fired their CEO.  Too many of us tried it and said never again and then when asked by other business owners if they should try it gave them a resounding NO.  Any time I'm asked if I ever tried Groupon or something similar I always answer "twice". (It's my line when asked if I've ever run a marathon.  "Twice", I say, "1996 Detroit Marathon, my first and my last".  Discount programs are a fad that's run their course and Groupon is on the down side of the fad.

Discounting is fine if you're a discount store and that's your business model but it's a horrible way to do business otherwise.  Build your brand, deliver good service, demand quality, offer something unique and leave the jellybeans in the jar.

Will and Vic

"The reason a lot of people are Purdue fans? Because they can't afford Final Four tickets." Tom Swanson

Yes, I'm a pretty happy guy right now. My Indiana Hoosiers are riding high again, finally. They've just come off an epic victory against Michigan State and are looking good getting ready to head into the tournaments (Big Ten and NCAA).

Coach Tom Crean has done a masterful job of resurrecting this storied old program bringing it from the brink of chaos (one scholarship player who used to be a walk-on) to being ranked #1 in the nation.  It shows no signs of slowing down due to success on the court combined with a rich basketball history, the best fan base in the country and a relentless recruiting presence.

Due to these factors Coach Crean is able to get the attention of many of the top high school ball players in the land.  His upcoming recruiting classes are already ranked in the top 10.  Yes, success breeds success.

Here’s my worry.  Where do the future Will Sheehey’s and Victor Oladipo’s come from?

Who?

Will and Vic.

Here’s the point.  Victor Oladipo is a 6’5” Junior.  He is currently in strong contention for National Player of the Year (POY) in college basketball.  Will Sheehey is a 6’6” Junior who is currently the leading candidate for National Sixth Man of the Year and only doesn’t start because of the energy and chaos he brings when he comes off the bench.

Neither player was highly regarded coming out of high school.  Neither had offers from any of the big time programs except Indiana and that was primarily because IU was in total rebuilding mode and couldn’t get the attention of many of the top players.  Both were known as good athletes but not necessarily good basketball players.

Both have developed into top players on the current best team in the country.  How?  Well, both, as mentioned, are very athletic which obviously helps.  They have great coaches and top notch facilities in which to practice.  But what they have brought with them is an edge.  A burning desire to show all those people who disregarded them what a tremendous mistake they made.

We see this every year when teams from lesser regarded conferences come into the tournament with players who weren’t recruited by the Indiana’s, Kentucky’s and Duke’s and wreak havoc with kids who have something to prove.

Finding talent – from high school ball players to your next new hire – cannot always be measured by recruiting rankings or GPA’s from highly regarded schools(although let’s be honest, it certainly helps) but sometimes you need to find that person with an edge, something to prove and bring them in and help them develop.  Your next Will or Victor could be out there.