New and Beautiful

 While riding to my Brighton Collectibles Success Rally in Houston this morning, I looked up and saw this beautiful new BoConcept store.

I went to the door about 10 minutes before opening and by flashing my ponytail was allowed in. I asked, “Do you know who I am”, and the answer was, “You are the DRL Man”.

It was a lot of fun to give the staff a Morning Report tutorial. They look forward to seeing it every day, and were happy to hear that Carsten Pedersen looks at it religiously as well.

Help Wanted - I Guess So!!!

One thing I look forward to when traveling is the opportunity to get a shoe shine. This is a non-existent business in Hawaii.

The other night I saw a shoe shine stand in the San Antonio Airport and asked for a shine. The guy said, “Sorry, but I am about to close”. The airport was busy, but I decided to cut him some slack since it was after 8 PM.

Today I was back in the same San Antonio Airport at about noon and saw this sight!
#@!~

Three Generations; Two Countries Come Together 

 As I venture deep into the heart of Texas, and Gilbert into the great unknown, Masae’s mother, Yoshiko and sister Shizue are in Hawaii from Tokyo venturing deep into the heart of Samantha, Yoshiko’s great grand daughter. Samantha is slow to go to anyone she doesn’t know well, but she just can’t resist the temptation of a banana; (even when it comers from me).

While on Oahu Yoshiko and Shizue got to go to Surf-n-Sea and meet founder and business person deluxe, Joe Green. Hey Joe, what a great new web site you have there.

14 Hours Later

Just 14 hours after arriving at the Vancouver BC Airport we have arrived in Houston. Next is to catch a flight to San Antonio.

If all goes well I will get to my San Antonio hotel by mid-night. That will give me a chance to update the forum, respond to e-mail and maybe even get a little sleep to re-energize for two Success Rallies tomorrow.

Today’s experience is a good example of how people tend to blame a whole company when things go wrong and the people working there fail to handle it well. Continental Airlines was getting a lot of bad publicity today, yet there was no real fault there. We should be thankful that they catch and fix mechanical problems on the ground, not in the air.

All we needed was more empathy from the flight attendants and all would have been much better. We also saw how forgiving people can be; as we landed the passengers all applauded. I haven’t heard that in a long time.

I Am Not Smiling Anymore

Nobody knows more than I do that STUFF HAPPENS; it’s a chapter in my book. That being said, my patience and understanding have run out and I am finding myself in a rant.

After sitting on this airplane for close to three hours without a word being said, I look out the window and see the guy in this photo taking bags off of the plane. I casually asked one of the flight attendants what he is doing, and he said, “Oh, he is taking off bags for people that we have accommodated on another flight.” You can imagine how my “mood” changed.

After giving him a little “lecture” on communication and “Aloha”. He just gave me a blank stare; he couldn’t care less. I headed out to the lobby to get “accommodated on another flight”.  Well, after setting off a security alarm and being accosted by another unfriendly agent, I was told that there are no guarantees, and if I want to change to another flight to “wait in that line over there”.

I never have been very good at “line waiting”, but I went to the back of the line anyway and stood there with several angry people for a half an hour and the line didn’t move an inch. So, I came back on the plane and began writing this post. The first friendly employee that I have seen all day came over and said, “I think you left your glasses case in your seat when you left.” She was actually smiling, so I dumped on her about my felings; sorry!

She explained that they have another mechanic coming out to help and that he should be here in an hour. She also said that there is a good chance that this plane will get me into Texas before those other accommodations might, and without the hassle of changing planes, gates and even losing my 1st chosen seat, that I had to fight for upon checking in.

She was so pleasant, that I calmed down immediately and got back to work. A few minutes ago she came back and told me that she has an agent checking to see if there is any better way to get me to San Antonio any faster.

As in selling, it’s all about people, how they act, and what they say.

Stay Tuned! 

 Keep Smiling!

It isn’t always easy to keep smiling when things are not going as they should, but you should.
My patience is being put to the test right now as I sit on a Continental jet in Vancouver when we should be in the air flying to Houston.

Just last night I was talking to a group of managers about the importance of using check lists, and I mentioned airline pilots as an example. Just before take off this morning our pilot saw something wrong on his check list and returned to the gate for the mechanics to check it out.

Having got up at 4:30 AM to catch this flight, it was a bit annoying to say the least.

We were given the opportunity to stay on the plane or get off. Almost everyone got off. I see it as an opportunity to get some work done completely uninterrupted.

Stay Tuned!

 C-O-L-D

A few other words that come to mind are, “dreary”, “nasty” and “miserable”.

I guess that “42 degrees and raining” is a bit worse to those of us used to Hawaii weather. When I stepped off of the plane last night without a jacket on, I got a fast and rude reminder of the phrase, “Lucky we live Hawaii”.

In a few short hours I will be in Vancouver, BC, and although I don’t anticipate it being much warmer, I will be in the warm company of Steen Skaaning and Team INspiration BC. They always warm my heart if not the temperature outside.

“Stars” Don’t Sell; People Sell

Today’s Honolulu Advertiser carried a story stating that Macy’s is “turning to star power this holiday season to fight disappointing sales and resistance to its takeover of local department stores.”

Having Stars like Donald Trump and Martha Stewart might bring some people into the stores, but unless their employees start talking to those people, they will just be there “Star Gazing”.

In Honolulu the new Nordstrom store will be presenting the biggest challenge that Macy’s has seen since gobbling up Liberty House in 2001. Shoppers had high hopes of something better, but that has not been the case. I repeatedly hear that they (Macy’s) have really made Liberty House look good. The residents of Hawaii would love to have its Liberty House back again.

Here’s WHAT to EAT and WHY!

I am grateful to “Runaway”, whoever that is, for sending me this wonderful list of health promoting foods, in alphabetical order. I hope that you will cut and paste this into a document of some form that you can save and refer to often.
I also hope that you will pass on a link to this list to the people in your life that matter to you. To do so, simply click on the title above (You Are What You Eat) and then copy the URL into your browser and send it along.

Apples
- They protect your heart
- They improve your lung capacity
- They cushion your joints
- They prevent constipation
- They block diarrhea

Apricots
-They combat cancer
-They control your blood pressure
-They save your eyesight
-They shield you against Alzheimer’s disease
-They slow the aging process

Artichokes
-They aid in digestion
-They lower cholesterol
-They protect your heart
-They stabilize your blood sugar
-They guard against liver disease

Avocados
-They battle diabetes
-They lower your cholesterol
-They help stop strokes
-They control blood pressure
-They smooth out your skin

Bananas
-They protect your heart
-They quiet a cough
-They strengthen your bones
-They control your blood pressure
-They block diarrhea

Beans
-They lower cholesterol
-They combat cancer
-They stabilize your blood sugar
-They prevent constipation
-They help with hemorrhoids

Beets
-They control your blood pressure
-They combat cancer
-They strengthen your bones
-They protect your heart
-They aid in weight loss

Blueberries
-They combat cancer
-They protects your heart
-They stabilizes your blood sugar
-They boost your memory
-They prevent constipation

Broccoli
-It strengthens your bones
-It saves your eyesight
-It combats cancer
-It protects your heart
-It controls your blood pressure

Cabbage
-It combats cancer
-It prevents constipation
-It promotes weight loss
-They protect your heart
-It helps with hemorrhoids

Cantaloupe
-It saves your eyesight
-It controls your blood pressure
-It lowers your cholesterol
-It combats cancer
-It supports your immune system

Carrots
-They save your eyesight
-They protect your heart
-They prevent constipation
-They combat cancer
-They promote weight loss

Cauliflower
-It protects against Prostate Cancer
-It combats Breast Cancer
-It strengthens your bones
-It banishes bruises
-It guards against heart disease

Cherries
-They protect your heart
-They combat Cancer
-They end insomnia
-They slow the aging process
-They shield you against Alzheimer’s disease

Chestnuts
-They promote weight loss
-They protects your heart
-They lower your cholesterol
-They combat Cancer
-They control blood pressure 

Chili peppers
-They aid in digestion
-They soothe a sore throat
-They clear your sinuses
-They combat Cancer
-They boost your immune system

Figs
-They promote weight loss
-They help stop strokes
-They lower your cholesterol
-They combat Cancer
-They control your blood pressure

Flax
-It aids in digestion
-It battles diabetes
-It protects your heart
-It improves mental health
-It boosts your immune system

Garlic
-It lowers your cholesterol
-It controls your blood pressure
-It combats cancer
-It kills bacteria
-It fights fungus

Grapefruit
-It protects you against heart attacks
-It promotes Weight loss
-It helps stops strokes
-It combats Prostate Cancer
-It lowers cholesterol

Grapes
-They save your eyesight
-They conquer kidney stones
-They combat cancer
-They enhance blood flow
-They protect your heart

Green Tea
-It combats cancer
-It protects your heart
-It helps stop strokes
-It promotes Weight loss
-It kills bacteria

Honey
-It heals wounds
-It aids in your digestion
-It guards you against ulcers
-It increases your energy
-It fights allergies

Lemons
-They combat cancer
-They protect your heart
-They control your blood pressure
-They smooth your skin
-They stop scurvy

Limes
-They combat cancer
-They protect your heart
-They control blood pressure
-They smooth your skin
-They stop scurvy

Mangoes
-They combat cancer
-They boost your memory
-They regulate your thyroid
-They aid in your digestion
-They shields you against Alzheimer’s disease

Mushrooms
-They control your blood pressure
-They lower your cholesterol
-They kill bacteria
-They combat cancer
-They strengthen your bones

Oats
-They lower your cholesterol
-They combat cancer
-They battle diabetes
-They prevent constipation
-They smoothes your skin

Olive Oil
-It protects your heart
-It promotes Weight loss
-It combats cancer
-It battles diabetes
-It smoothes your skin

Onions
-They combat cancer
-They lower your cholesterol
-They reduce the risk of heart attacks
-They kill bacteria
-They fight fungus

Oranges
-They support your immune systems
-They combat cancer
-They protect your heart
-They straighten control your respiration

Peaches
-They prevent constipation
-They combat cancer
-They help stops strokes
-They aid in your digestion
-They help hemorrhoids

Peanuts
-They protect you against heart disease
-They promote Weight loss
-They combat Prostate Cancer
-They lower your cholesterol
-They aggravate diverticulitis

Pineapples
-They strengthen your bones
-They relieve colds
-They aid in your digestion
-They dissolve warts
-They block diarrhea

Prunes
-They slow the aging process
-They prevent constipation
-They boost your memory
-They lower your cholesterol
-They protect you against heart disease

Rice
-It protects your heart
-It battles diabetes
-It conquers kidney stones
-It combats cancer
-It helps prevent strokes

Strawberries
-They combat cancer
-They protect your heart
-They boost your memory
-They calm stress

Sweet Potatoes
-They save your eyesight
-They lift your mood
-They combat cancer
-They strengthen your bones

Tomatoes
-They protect your prostate
-They combat cancer
-They lower your cholesterol
-They protect your heart

Walnuts
-They lower your cholesterol
-They combat cancer
-They boost your memory
-They lift your mood
-They protect you from heart disease

Water
-It promotes Weight loss
-It combats cancer
-It conquers kidney stones
-It smooths your skin

Watermelon
-It protects your prostate
-It promotes Weight loss
-It lowers your cholesterol
-It helps prevent strokes
-It controls your blood pressure

Wheat Germ
-It combats Colon Cancer
-It prevents constipation
-It lowers your cholesterol
-It helps prevent strokes
-It improves your digestion

Wheat Bran
-It combats Colon Cancer
-It prevents constipation
-It lowers your cholesterol
-It helps prevent strokes
-It improves your digestion

Yogurt
-It guards against ulcers
-It strengthens your bones
-It lowers your cholesterol
-It supports your immune systems
-It aids your digestion

Yep, Longs is in Trouble

My dentist told me that I should use a Sonicare brand electric toothbrush.

 I asked him where I should get it. He suggested that I get it at Longs or Costco. Well, Costco was too far away, so I headed over to Longs.
Well, after searching around a while I finally hunted down an employee and asked where I would find it. She gave me the aisle number and walked off. I found the aisle but could not find the Sonicare brand. I went searching for help again and found a “clerk” who looked along with me and finally said, “I guess that we don’t have it”. I asked him about the similar brands and he couldn’t tell me the difference, so I left empty handed.

Then I remembered that Walgreens was now open right across the street, so I headed over there. While I was disappointed not to see a greeter, I was able to easily find the section for tooth brushes, and low and behold there was the Sonicare in three models. Unfortunately they were under lock and key, so I went to a readily available cashier at the pharmacy window and asked for help. She got on the speaker and paged for a supervisor to offer customer assistance at the aisle number. By the time I got back to the area, there was a smiling young man asking me what he could do. He didn’t have the key, but called for someone that did and she was there in seconds with the key and all the information needed to buy the most expensive of the three models available. After re-locking the display case she said, “Unless there is something else that you need I can get that rung up for you at the pharmacy counter so you won’t need to wait in line.” That was music to my ears. She escorted me there. The woman behind the counter had a customer at the window. My “escort” asked her for her attention and said, “Pam, as soon as you finish there will you please ring this up for this gentleman?” She agreed with a smile, and my “assistant” thanked me and walked away. I wasn’t there more than a minute before she returned and said, “I see there is an open register up by the door, come with me and I will ring that up for you there.” I followed her to the register area where she went behind the counter, opened up a register, processed my order and thanked me. Wow! I will be back!!!