Kaneohe Facility
The beautiful Pohai Nani facility in Kaneohe was the site for my talk this morning to the Kaneohe Businesses Association.

Laurie Rodriguez
Long time friend and owner of Today’s Little People, Laurie Rodriquez engaged me to be the luncheon speaker at the monthly Kaneohe Businesses Association luncheon.

Networking
There was a lot of networking going on between association members and their guests. The energy was good as today’s agenda included thanking the local Naval and Marine Servicepeople for all that they do.

Success Message
My message was all about success and I pleaded with everyone to take responsibility for his and her own economy and not buy into the negative spin spewed by the mainstream media.

My Pleasure
I was happy to sell a lot of books today, but most pleased with the opportunity to sign them for the US Marine and Navy personell.

So Proud
I was then honored with the opportunity to pose with these fine young men and women who are making major sacrifices on our behalf. This was a great priveledge.

Island Air Terminal
Several records were set during my recent trip to Maui. The first was the number of people at the sleepy little inter-island terminal. One of the reasons I like to fly out of this terminal is the small amount of traffic, making for easy, and hassle free checking in. Not this time. I have been flying in and out of this terminal for 28 years now and have NEVER seen it like this. My thought was, “What recession?”

Kaanapali Morning
One of the enjoyable things about Maui is waking up in Kaanapali. I normally stay at the Westin Maui, but this time it was overbooked and I could not get a room. I took this picture from my room at the Sheraton just down the beach. They were at near capacity, but I got in. My thought was, “What recession?”

Whalers Village Shopping Center
I have been doing Success Rallies for the merchants at Whalers Village for 18 years now. We meet at Leilani’s on the Beach. During that time I have seen attendance as low as 10 people, and as high as 50 or 60.

7:45 AM
The rally starts at 8 AM. I often joke that you have to get there early to get a back row seat. As you can see that was the case today.

7:50 AM
Five minutes later they are lining up to get in. The coffee is hot and the pastries are tasty.

7:55 AM
Besides hearing me talk and getting coffee and sugar, the attendees also get free parking stickers. Signing up for that usually creates a bottle neck getting in the restaurant.

8 AM - Showtime
By 8 AM the place is packed and it’s time to learn something. My topic today was “befriending” your customers in a way that makes them want to return to your store to buy more as well as referring you to those they know and meet. One suggestion was having your customers pose with their purchase and promise them that you will post their photo on line to share wiith their friends back home.

It’s a Record
Before leaving this morning I congratulated them on a record turnout and asked them to pose for this photo promising that it would be on my blog for them to see in the morning.

Another Record
One last record set this morning was in coffee and pastry consumption. Mahalo Whalers Village for 18 years of success; I’ll see you soon.
 

Totally Addicted!
Coffee is my last remaining vice, and I can (and do) drink it day and night. When my long time coffee maker died the other day I hustled right over to the mall to get a new one. I was actually excited about seeing the latest innovations in coffee makers.

Starbucks
My first stop was Starbucks. After a quick look at the few options they had, I decided that this was the one. I don’t remember the price, but it was about $80. I took it down from the shelf and began to figure out how to use it. I couldn’t get it open and nobody seemed interested in my interest, as they were all busy handling the line of people buying coffee. When it comes right down to buying anything I become quite impatient, so I put it back on the shelf and reluctantly walked into Macy’s.

Fancy
When I arrived at the houseware section I saw coffee makers as far as the eye could see. I didn’t see any salespeople however, which has become pretty much the norm at Macy’s. I reached for my iPhone to take a photo of this vast unattened area, imagining a sarcastic blog post. To my suprise I heard my name and saw Char, who has worked for at least two of my clients in the past. I asked her if she works here, and was thrilled when she said that she does. Not only did I have a salesperson all to myself, but a good one too. Char showed me the options, gave me the information needed and in less than 10 minutes I was out the door with my new $100 coffee maker. It does everything but the dishes. I found myself thinking, “This is the way it is supposed to be.” Do you agree with me?

Japanese Gift Giving
Americans buy souvenirs for themselves when traveling. It’s different in Japan, and understanding this difference can lead to large sales.

Senbetsu
When Japanese people travel, their friends give them money. This money (SENBETSU) is not to spend on a good time, but to bring back a gift (OMIYAGE) to the giver. People in Japan like being able to point to some nice thing in their home and say, “My friend brought me that from Hawaii (or wherever.)”

Get on the List
The Japanese traveler must keep accurate track of the amounts given, and must spend “at least” the amount given. It is so obligatory that some spend their entire vacation shopping. Because the money was given to them, the cost is not a factor. This is one of the reasons that the Japanese visitor spends so much more than those from other places in the world.
When you have a Japanese visitor in your store, ask, “Are you shopping for Omiyage?” If not, he or she will point to themself, meaning, “No, I am shopping for me.” If they are shopping for Omiyage point to the things you sell that make good Omiyage, and say. “II Omiyage.” “II” (prononouced eee) means “Good.” Omiyage is pronounced Oh-Me-Ah-Gay.
To qualify as good OMIYAGE your product must be in one of two categories:

A. Worldwide Name Brand Products: We all know who they are, and Japanese travelers spend millions on them.

B. Locally Made: Products that originated in the place being visited, or are in anyway unique to the place being visited.

The givers determine the amounts being spent. They have all ranges of OMIYAGE obligations to fulfill. Millionaires must buy trinkets, and workers often times buy gifts for millionaires.

It’s the Right Thing to Do
Today’s telephone answering devices and call identifyers have caused some people to develop bad telephone etiquette. Few things are as annoying as leaving a message and having it not returned. It says more about you than you might intend to. The thing to do is answer the phone if you are there, and if not, return the call as soon as possible. It’s the polite thing to do, even if it is to say, “No thank you.”
I have taken to not leaving messages as it removes control as I await the return call.

Learning Becomes Permanent
You can teach a dolphin to jump in the air by offering a reward when done. Once that behavior has been learned, the dolphin is “trained” and will always make the jump EVERY TIME the reward is offered, regardless of the weather, the dolphin’s mood and what the other dolphins are doing.

Not With People
I have come to the conclusion that you cannot “train” people. Often times I am introduced as a “sales trainer” and I usually start my talk with a disclaimer to the introduction. It’s easy to assume you can “train” people since they are a part of the animal kingdom.
You can teach people WHAT to do, but they are oftentimes greatly influenced by things like the weather, their mood and what other people are doing, regardless of the rewards.

Constant Coaching
Once taught, people must be motivated, coached and inspired to keep doing it. Even professional athletes that have been taught the game well need constant motivation, coaching and inspiration to play at their best potential. In professional football there are more coaches on the sidelines than there are players on the field.

Head Coach
The head coach never misses a down, and these are pros; the best of the best. In business we often times find the head coach (manager) in the office, the back room, out of town, or down at the bank during the game.
No wonder there are so many “fumbles.”

Contemplate:
When researching successful people to write Think and Grow Rich, Napolian Hill discovered that they all practiced what he labeled R2A2. Whenever ANYTHING comes up on their life’s screen, they see it as a “lesson”, and they RECOGNIZE the principle within it, RELATE that principle back to their own life or business, then ASSIMILATE what they just learned, and finally APPLY it.
Recognize
Relate
Assimilate
Apply
When you practice R2A2 you learn and grow all day every day as a result of the things you encounter.
There are lessons EVERYWHERE for ANYONE and EVERYONE. You just need to think positively as you encounter the “Stuff of Life.”