We live in a microwave society.
Do you remember having to warm your food up in a pan on a stove? This was before the invention of the microwave of coarse.
Do you ever warm things up on the stove anymore or even put a tea kettle on for tea or oatmeal?
Doesn't feel like it take FOREVER?
Unfortunately we have become a microwave society.
We have no patience and we want everything...NOW.
I see it in business, sports, our politics as well as our day to day.
Sometimes it takes time to fix things or to turn them around or to implement new ideas.
Look at Professional football, if a team is losing they fire the coach. That coach than needs to hire a new staff and implement a whole new plan and philosophy. It takes time BUT people want and yell for instant results and they want it NOW.
We have ATM's, the Internet- heck look at the Internet when it first hit the scene we had dial up but we were fine with it after all we had crazy access to things that we never had. Now we are inpatient when it take more than 5 seconds to find a site.
In business you have to constantly readjust, look at what new tools are available and what the economy is like as well as profits and payroll and you have to be able to change and adapt.
This takes good leadership and people that are not afraid to change.
It also takes time and patience and follow up.
Change does not happen overnight and sometimes as you are in the middle of the changes you find better ways and have to mold it along the way. You always need to be willing to admit that maybe your original plan was not completely correct , listen to others and change it along the way.
But most of all stick with it, be willing to ride it out.
Be prepared for the negative and the Monday morning quarterbacking because they will be there. Those in our microwave society have little patience. What you do find more often than not is that the Monday morning quarterbacks never really have ideas of their own but they always find the time to shoot your ideas down. These people exist in every faucet of life.....do your best to listen to them but do not allow them to slow you down and dampen your enthusiasm for change.
Patience....
Friday, August 31, 2012
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Politics
Politics.... both in the work place and in our nation.
I have heard statements lately that the person with the most money will be able to flood the market with ads and win.
I have also heard pundits talk about ads and say " it may not be true but it plays well".
Where are we and where are we going?
Money and lieing...who do you trust?
At the work place many people are worried about themselves, their jobs. Therefore they say what they need to to the powers to be to keep the light off of them if there are issues. What happens then is no one takse real responsibility and very little gets done.
I have said before that Paul Arpin always spoke to everybody the same, he did not speak different or play to anyone. Therefore you trusted him.
The problem is sooner or later it all shows and plays out. No one can stand alone and make it or improve things around them. You need partners, you need help. The only way to improve is to admit that you need improvement.
I fear for our politics, we live in a world that is becoming one big reality show.
ENTERTAINMENT.
If it is amusing people will listen, if it is hurtful people will listen.
Do they really care or do they just want to be entertained?
I have heard statements lately that the person with the most money will be able to flood the market with ads and win.
I have also heard pundits talk about ads and say " it may not be true but it plays well".
Where are we and where are we going?
Money and lieing...who do you trust?
At the work place many people are worried about themselves, their jobs. Therefore they say what they need to to the powers to be to keep the light off of them if there are issues. What happens then is no one takse real responsibility and very little gets done.
I have said before that Paul Arpin always spoke to everybody the same, he did not speak different or play to anyone. Therefore you trusted him.
The problem is sooner or later it all shows and plays out. No one can stand alone and make it or improve things around them. You need partners, you need help. The only way to improve is to admit that you need improvement.
I fear for our politics, we live in a world that is becoming one big reality show.
ENTERTAINMENT.
If it is amusing people will listen, if it is hurtful people will listen.
Do they really care or do they just want to be entertained?
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
AN UNUSUAL MOVE
My Most Unusual Move.......from driver, Skip
Phoenix,Arizona to Bemidji,Minnesota...The job was right off loop 303,matter of fact,if,you've driven down(south)from 60,it is on the right...A simple complex,house,livestock pens and a barn....What I did not understand was the crate the agent gave me....The size of 2 wardrobe cartons,side by side and plywood enclosed.It turned out this lady raised,bred,animals for zoo's around the country,and I was ATTACKED while trying to just ring the door bell,her trained ATTACK goose bit the crap out of me while trying to get someone to just answer the door......What a long strange day this will turn out to be...When asked about the crate,her answer was to wheel it out to the Llama pasture(????)(WHY??)
Being who I am and what I do,no questions,dropped it in the pasture and watched her fill it with Llama droppings(????)JESUS,300 pounds of Llama droppings(?)I really thought she,and that was STRANGE,just thankful for the work...
Now,on to destination,that crate went into another pasture and we broke it open and spread Llama droppings all over....At this point I did ask her WHY?It turns out Llamas are territorial and they need their own scent around the new location.....News to me,New logo......”We'll haul your crap,all over the map”.
In all honesty,I knew an agent in Fresno,who raised,|Llamas,he told me,a shoe box would have been enough...
Sunday, August 26, 2012
When is a negative a positive
When is a negative a positive?
When we learn.
We all make mistakes, we all have a tendency to prejudge or to group people.
It seems that too many people either try to trap you or have that A HA moment. And worse too many people do not let it go.
As long as it is not done in malice or you not intentionally hurt then try to learn from it, - admit the false if it is yours, - it's ok....it's part of the process.
The problem is when your list of people that you dislike and won't talk to or work with is longer than the one that you will.
When you forgive, yourself - as well as the other guy, you feel better......You learn.
When we learn.
We all make mistakes, we all have a tendency to prejudge or to group people.
It seems that too many people either try to trap you or have that A HA moment. And worse too many people do not let it go.
As long as it is not done in malice or you not intentionally hurt then try to learn from it, - admit the false if it is yours, - it's ok....it's part of the process.
The problem is when your list of people that you dislike and won't talk to or work with is longer than the one that you will.
When you forgive, yourself - as well as the other guy, you feel better......You learn.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
1966
1966
- Taster's Choice freeze dried coffee is introduced.
- The fourth of four lost H Bombs is found off the Spanish coast.
- U.S. troop strength in Vietnam is 400,000. U.S. deaths: 6,358. Enemy deaths: 77,115.
- The first Acid Test is conducted at the Fillmore, San Francisco.
- The Beatles: In an interview published in The London Evening Standard, John Lennon comments, "We're more popular than Jesus now," eventually sparking a controversy in the United States.
- United States president Lyndon Johnson signs the 1966 Uniform Time Act act dealing with Daylight Saving Time.
- The Church of Satan is formed by Anton Szandor LaVey in San Francisco.
- The final new episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show airs.
- Bob Dylan breaks his neck and nearly dies in a motorcycle accident near Woodstock, New York. He isn't seen in public for over a year.
- The Beatles play their very last concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California.
- Star Trek, the classic science fiction television series, debuts with its first episode, titled "The Man Trap."
- Grace Slick performs live for the first time with Jefferson Airplane.
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas, narrated by Boris Karloff, is shown for the first time on CBS. It will become an annual Christmas tradition, and the best-loved film ever based on a Dr. Seuss book.
Friday, August 24, 2012
The good
It is so easy to get sucked into the negative, let's face it there is a lot of negative being bantered about. Just turn on the TV or the radio and listen to the news and the talk shows. If you listen to all of them then you believe the sky is falling.
Same with the moving industry and trucking. Between the economy and safety regulations coupled with the military and national account discounts you have plenty to complain about.
But....
We also have plenty to still be positive about. I still view trucking and this industry as a respectable place to make a living. Is it harder- yes. But this industry seems to have it's ebbs and flows. For the 26 plus years that I have been in it I have experienced the highs and the lows. I have also seen people work hard and make a good living, providing for their families and enjoying life.
Arpin has always gone out it's way to support it's agents and drivers, in the time that I have been here I have witnessed, and been a part of, many success stories. I have seen drivers work their way from learning their craft to managing one of our company stores and buying the agency that they managed- all with the backing and the support and guidance of the Arpin family.
I have seen agents that started with nothing but ambition and hard work from their kitchen table to a multi million dollar business, once again with the help and support of Arpin. Where other Van Lines would not even give them a second thought Arpin nurtured them and encouraged them.
I have see countless of drivers come to us with no tractors and no money, literally with their pockets inside out looking for work and a opportunity and Arpin will sell them a tractor in some cases with no money down, where do you see that anymore? It is very satisfying to watch these drivers come in with nothing and grow and work hard to make good money and a living for themselves and their family.
Just last night I received a email from a very good driver who we helped out this year. He came to us after getting burned in the past from others, I knew the man and I knew he was a good man with good character and I knew he was a good household man. We helped put him in a tractor and started him as a owner operator at the beginning of the summer. He has been working hard and making a good living ever since.
I received a nice letter from one of his customers this week and sent it to him with our thanks. He replied last night my simply saying ..." thank you for believing in me".
That my friends is what it is all about it. That is my reward.
Yes I do believe,... I still try to find the good and the positive through all the negative and the bad.
It is still there and it IS still worth the effort.
To all the believers out there ......hang in there, punch your way through the nay sayers...
....we can still do it - together.
Same with the moving industry and trucking. Between the economy and safety regulations coupled with the military and national account discounts you have plenty to complain about.
But....
We also have plenty to still be positive about. I still view trucking and this industry as a respectable place to make a living. Is it harder- yes. But this industry seems to have it's ebbs and flows. For the 26 plus years that I have been in it I have experienced the highs and the lows. I have also seen people work hard and make a good living, providing for their families and enjoying life.
Arpin has always gone out it's way to support it's agents and drivers, in the time that I have been here I have witnessed, and been a part of, many success stories. I have seen drivers work their way from learning their craft to managing one of our company stores and buying the agency that they managed- all with the backing and the support and guidance of the Arpin family.
I have seen agents that started with nothing but ambition and hard work from their kitchen table to a multi million dollar business, once again with the help and support of Arpin. Where other Van Lines would not even give them a second thought Arpin nurtured them and encouraged them.
I have see countless of drivers come to us with no tractors and no money, literally with their pockets inside out looking for work and a opportunity and Arpin will sell them a tractor in some cases with no money down, where do you see that anymore? It is very satisfying to watch these drivers come in with nothing and grow and work hard to make good money and a living for themselves and their family.
Just last night I received a email from a very good driver who we helped out this year. He came to us after getting burned in the past from others, I knew the man and I knew he was a good man with good character and I knew he was a good household man. We helped put him in a tractor and started him as a owner operator at the beginning of the summer. He has been working hard and making a good living ever since.
I received a nice letter from one of his customers this week and sent it to him with our thanks. He replied last night my simply saying ..." thank you for believing in me".
That my friends is what it is all about it. That is my reward.
Yes I do believe,... I still try to find the good and the positive through all the negative and the bad.
It is still there and it IS still worth the effort.
To all the believers out there ......hang in there, punch your way through the nay sayers...
....we can still do it - together.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
HELPING OR HURTING ?
Are you angry or disappointed with something at your work place or at home?
How do you approach it?
Are you helping or hurting?
If you are being honest with those around you and discussing solutions or exchanging ideas -you are helping.
If you participate in gossip and just talk negative with everyone but the party you may have issue with then- you are hurting.
You may be surprised if you just speak honestly and sincerely come to the table with positive suggestions and compromise. Beginning the conversation can be hard but once you do cross that bridge you can start on the way to open and honest communication. One thing I know for sure is that you will feel better about yourself and the world around you. When people lower their shoulders and look at each other with honest eyes good things happen.
Be honest with yourself and others and stop the negative talk...we all get protective and may carry baggage from someone who lied to us or hurt us in the past. That may make it hard to trust but if you want to grow and stop carrying that baggage you have to attack it head on.
Learn to trust again.
Are you helping or hurting?
How do you approach it?
Are you helping or hurting?
If you are being honest with those around you and discussing solutions or exchanging ideas -you are helping.
If you participate in gossip and just talk negative with everyone but the party you may have issue with then- you are hurting.
You may be surprised if you just speak honestly and sincerely come to the table with positive suggestions and compromise. Beginning the conversation can be hard but once you do cross that bridge you can start on the way to open and honest communication. One thing I know for sure is that you will feel better about yourself and the world around you. When people lower their shoulders and look at each other with honest eyes good things happen.
Be honest with yourself and others and stop the negative talk...we all get protective and may carry baggage from someone who lied to us or hurt us in the past. That may make it hard to trust but if you want to grow and stop carrying that baggage you have to attack it head on.
Learn to trust again.
Are you helping or hurting?
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
What's at the end ?
At the end of the day- what do you have?
At the end of a year- what do you have?
At the end of a career- what do you have?
In the end all we have is each other and the friends and loved ones that we met and helped along the way.
The rest fades away and in the end it just does not matter. No one remembers, including you.
It is not the end goal but the journey. It can be all you want it to be....if you let it.
Stop getting frustrated because life is not exactly as you planned because the master plan is completely out of your control.
Be good to each other and enjoy the journey and good things happen, maybe not on your time table but it will.
At the end of a year- what do you have?
At the end of a career- what do you have?
In the end all we have is each other and the friends and loved ones that we met and helped along the way.
The rest fades away and in the end it just does not matter. No one remembers, including you.
It is not the end goal but the journey. It can be all you want it to be....if you let it.
Stop getting frustrated because life is not exactly as you planned because the master plan is completely out of your control.
Be good to each other and enjoy the journey and good things happen, maybe not on your time table but it will.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
1965
1965
- Medicare bill passes.
- 34 people die in Watts ghetto riot.
- 190,000 troops are in Vietnam.
- 32,000 people make 54-mile "freedom march" from Selma to Montgomery.
- Malcolm X is assassinated on the first day of National Brotherhood Week, at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City, allegedly by Black Muslims.
- In Cold Blood killers Richard Hickock and Perry Smith, convicted of murdering 4 members of the Herbert Clutter family of Holcomb, Kansas, are executed by hanging at the Kansas State
- Bob Dylan elicits controversy among folk purists by "going electric" at the Newport Folk Festival.
- Jefferson Airplane debuts at the Matrix in San Francisco, California and begins to appear there regularly.
- The Beatles performed the first stadium concert in the history of rock, playing at Shea Stadium in New York.
- At the Auschwitz trial in Frankfurt, 66 ex-SS personnel receive life sentences, 15 others smaller ones.
- Rock musician Bob Dylan releases his influential album Highway 61 Revisited, featuring the song "Like a Rolling Stone."
- The soap opera Days of our Lives debuts on NBC.
- A Charlie Brown Christmas, the first Peanuts television special, debuts on CBS.
Monday, August 20, 2012
CUSTOMER NEEDS
What Customer Needs Are You Meeting? - Excerpt from Bill Hanifin Blog (submitted by Ricardo Ramos, Global Marketing Director)
Every once in a while, it’s good to get back to the marketing basics. I was reminded of one recently while reading Reverb, an interesting e-book by writer and consultant Gwen Bell. While it’s primarily about building a small business from the ground up, there’s one quote in the book that really struck a chord with me, as it relates to all businesses and the way we talk to our customers:
The priority of running a business is to help your customers meet their needs, while staying in alignment with your
principles.
"Help your customers meet their needs…" Pretty obvious, right? But how often do we get so caught up in promoting the features and talking points of a product, service or loyalty program, that we forget to address a basic premise: how does what I’m selling meet the needs of my customer?
The first step in answering that question is figuring out what your customers really want from you. Remember: It’s not about what you’re selling, it’s about why they’re buying. Do they want you to save them money? Make their lives easier? Sexier? More fulfilling? Less stressful? More fun?
Until you can determine what basic customer need you’re meeting, or customer problem you’re solving, you should put your advertising, social media and loyalty efforts on the back burner. Because how you answer the "needs" question is one of the most important factors in determining the communications strategy and tactics that will work best for you.
About the second part of that quote: "staying in alignment with your principles."
We’ve all worked for clients whose key guiding principle is "let’s sell more stuff so we can make more money". But ideally, the products or services you’re selling and marketing are integrated with the company’s core purpose, its raison d’être.
For me, the gold standard for a company that’s in perfect alignment with its principles is Patagonia, the purveyor of all things outdoors. Go to their Web site and click on the Company Info link you’ll see in big bold type Patagonia’s mission statement:
Our Reason for Being
Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire
and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.
Is that beautiful or what? Short, principled and to the point. And it fits perfectly with the products Patagonia sells and the customer needs they meet.
Now I know that not every company is going to have such a noble mission, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that so many successful and highly regarded companies do. From Starbucks to Southwest, each one has a set of rules they do business by which has helped them become leaders in their particular business vertical.
What about the companies you work with and for—are they helping your customers meet their needs while aligning with a core set of principles?
Every once in a while, it’s good to get back to the marketing basics. I was reminded of one recently while reading Reverb, an interesting e-book by writer and consultant Gwen Bell. While it’s primarily about building a small business from the ground up, there’s one quote in the book that really struck a chord with me, as it relates to all businesses and the way we talk to our customers:
The priority of running a business is to help your customers meet their needs, while staying in alignment with your
principles.
"Help your customers meet their needs…" Pretty obvious, right? But how often do we get so caught up in promoting the features and talking points of a product, service or loyalty program, that we forget to address a basic premise: how does what I’m selling meet the needs of my customer?
The first step in answering that question is figuring out what your customers really want from you. Remember: It’s not about what you’re selling, it’s about why they’re buying. Do they want you to save them money? Make their lives easier? Sexier? More fulfilling? Less stressful? More fun?
Until you can determine what basic customer need you’re meeting, or customer problem you’re solving, you should put your advertising, social media and loyalty efforts on the back burner. Because how you answer the "needs" question is one of the most important factors in determining the communications strategy and tactics that will work best for you.
About the second part of that quote: "staying in alignment with your principles."
We’ve all worked for clients whose key guiding principle is "let’s sell more stuff so we can make more money". But ideally, the products or services you’re selling and marketing are integrated with the company’s core purpose, its raison d’être.
For me, the gold standard for a company that’s in perfect alignment with its principles is Patagonia, the purveyor of all things outdoors. Go to their Web site and click on the Company Info link you’ll see in big bold type Patagonia’s mission statement:
Our Reason for Being
Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire
and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.
Is that beautiful or what? Short, principled and to the point. And it fits perfectly with the products Patagonia sells and the customer needs they meet.
Now I know that not every company is going to have such a noble mission, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that so many successful and highly regarded companies do. From Starbucks to Southwest, each one has a set of rules they do business by which has helped them become leaders in their particular business vertical.
What about the companies you work with and for—are they helping your customers meet their needs while aligning with a core set of principles?
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Bruuuuuuuce
Went to a Bruce Springsteen concert last night....he is the definitely the BOSS !
Jack Of All Trades"
I’ll mow your lawn
Clean the leaves out your drain
I’ll mend your roof to keep out the rain
I’ll take the work that God provides
I’m a Jack of all trades
Honey, we’ll be alright
I’ll hammer the nails
And I’ll set the stone
I’ll harvest your crops when they’re ripe and grown
I’ll pull that engine apart and patch her up
Until she’s running right
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
A hurricane blows
Brings a hard rain
When the blue sky breaks
Feels like the world’s gonna change
We’ll start caring for each other like Jesus said that we might
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
The banker man grows fatter
The working man grows thin
It’s all happened before and it’ll happen again
It’ll happen again
They’ll bet your life
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
Now sometimes tomorrow comes soaked in treasure and blood
Here we stood the drought
Now we’ll stand the flood
There’s a new world coming
I can see the light
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
So you use what you’ve got
And you learn to make do
You take the old, you make it new
If I had me a gun
I’d find the bastards and shoot ‘em on sight
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
Clean the leaves out your drain
I’ll mend your roof to keep out the rain
I’ll take the work that God provides
I’m a Jack of all trades
Honey, we’ll be alright
I’ll hammer the nails
And I’ll set the stone
I’ll harvest your crops when they’re ripe and grown
I’ll pull that engine apart and patch her up
Until she’s running right
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
A hurricane blows
Brings a hard rain
When the blue sky breaks
Feels like the world’s gonna change
We’ll start caring for each other like Jesus said that we might
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
The banker man grows fatter
The working man grows thin
It’s all happened before and it’ll happen again
It’ll happen again
They’ll bet your life
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
Now sometimes tomorrow comes soaked in treasure and blood
Here we stood the drought
Now we’ll stand the flood
There’s a new world coming
I can see the light
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
So you use what you’ve got
And you learn to make do
You take the old, you make it new
If I had me a gun
I’d find the bastards and shoot ‘em on sight
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
I’m a Jack of all trades
We’ll be alright
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Listen
Two of the things I pray for every day is to please give me the strength to talk and the wisdom to listen.
If we all stop for a few minutes and listen, really listen, to the other guy maybe just maybe we may learn something.
It is often hard , especially when the other person has hurt our feelings, or we heard something before we even had the conversation -probably through gossip- that already has us forming a opinion.
Maybe we are already angry from something else that has happened to us that day and we prematurely decide that we are going to stand our ground this time and show them.
The hardest thing to do sometimes is actually the easiest....just listen.
Let the other person talk and ask questions and try to understand where THEY are coming from.
They may be the ones that have just got pushed around and disrespected before your conversation even started and THEY have decided to make a stand.
What ever the reason on either side yelling louder than the other guy or constantly interrupting them will get you no where, except more frustrated and angry. And more than likely your friendship or business relationship will take a hit.
Try to listen, walk a mile in their shoes and take a breath.
There will be times that you may be best served to walk away and absorb everything and render a decision or an opinion at a later date.
You just may find that they have some validity to their story and you may learn a little something.....LISTEN
If we all stop for a few minutes and listen, really listen, to the other guy maybe just maybe we may learn something.
It is often hard , especially when the other person has hurt our feelings, or we heard something before we even had the conversation -probably through gossip- that already has us forming a opinion.
Maybe we are already angry from something else that has happened to us that day and we prematurely decide that we are going to stand our ground this time and show them.
The hardest thing to do sometimes is actually the easiest....just listen.
Let the other person talk and ask questions and try to understand where THEY are coming from.
They may be the ones that have just got pushed around and disrespected before your conversation even started and THEY have decided to make a stand.
What ever the reason on either side yelling louder than the other guy or constantly interrupting them will get you no where, except more frustrated and angry. And more than likely your friendship or business relationship will take a hit.
Try to listen, walk a mile in their shoes and take a breath.
There will be times that you may be best served to walk away and absorb everything and render a decision or an opinion at a later date.
You just may find that they have some validity to their story and you may learn a little something.....LISTEN
Friday, August 17, 2012
Fuuny posting from our Road Warrior..Skip..
Unprotected Sex?
I had a job last year out of Florida.14,000#'s headed to the bay.It was fun at origin as it was SUPPOSED to be pbo(packed by owner)and there was NOTHING packed when we got there.I suggested to the shipper that she needed to take the guys I brought along and put them on her clock to get this done....I got started on the inventory while the guys packed.At this point(not generating any revenue)I must admit,I was just screwing around.Well?With the first tour of the house,and the master bedroom full of a ”NEW”Cherry bedroom set,AND a wooden Parkay floor,and the shipper's comment's about that set being new and it”better have NO damages on your inventory sheet!”.I said ok,if there's anything noted,I'll show you the damage...YUP,,when doing the inventory,first thing I made notes about was the top rear corners of the headboard,it was dented,rubbed,marred AND scratched,called her in(even before it was dissambled)told her to just put her hand up to those area's and feel the damage....She had no problem with me noting that.......
Jump to the last tier in the trailer(matts)she comes out of the house like a shot,MADD AS HELL,wanting to know what happened to the parkay floor in her bedroom?I got the strap tight,and followed her in to see,4 ,4 inch badly rubbed marks in that floor.She was wondering how many times the headboard and footboard had been dropped to do that kind of damage and what kind of MORONS,I had working for me?All it took was one look to see.......UNPROTECTED SEX was the cause,footboard,headboard,nothing(felt)on the bottom,HEADBOARD TOO CLOSE TO THE WALL,AND having sex without those areas being protected.....So the damages were from UNPROTECTED SEX!
Thursday, August 16, 2012
1964
1964
Ford Motors introduces the "Mustang".
Ford Motors introduces the "Mustang".
- Studebaker-Packard introduce seat belts as standard equipment.
- Plans to build the New York World Trade Center are announced.
- The Beatles vault to the #1 spot on the U.S. singles charts for the first time, with "I Want to Hold Your Hand," forever changing the way rock-and-roll music sounds.The Beatles appear on The Ed Sullivan Show, marking their first live performance on American television. Seen by an estimated 73 million viewers, the appearance becomes the catalyst for the mid-1960s "British Invasion" of American popular music.
- Malcolm X, suspended from the Nation of Islam, says in New York City that he is forming a black nationalist party.
- The Beatles hold the top 5 positions in the Billboard Top 40 singles in America, an unprecedented achievement. Due mostly to the explosive growth, fragmentation, and marketing of popular music since, this is certain to never happen again. The top songs in America as listed on April 4, in order, are: "Can't Buy Me Love," "Twist and Shout," "She Loves You," "I Want to Hold Your Hand," and "Please Please Me."
- From Russia With Love was shown in US theaters.
- Country singer Jim Reeves (40) is killed when his private plane crashes in thunderstorm near Nashville Tennessee.
- 3.5 billion dollars worth of vending machine sales.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Thank you
Today I have been in the world for 55 years...and most of all I have to say thank you.
So far it has been, to quote James Taylor, " A Lovely Ride".
Sure I have gone through some tragedies and hard times , who hasn't?
When I reflect back all I remember are all the good times and all the people that I have met and befriended.
Going all the way back to my growing up years, I grew up in the early 60's when kids still knocked on your neighbor;'s door for your friends to come out and play. When your dog roamed the street with you without a leash and you picking up poop, when you played pick up games and stayed out till you heard the 8 0'clock whistle. We built tree forts, played all sports, played card games, and just hung around a lot and made bonds for life.
Then at around 12 scouting entered my life and I learned my love of camping, nature and learned leadership and my leaders gave me the confidence in myself to do so much more.
Then at 16 I bought my first car, 1967 SS Camero convertible and got my first part time job, met my first girlfriend and away I went on my next chapter of my life.
My first full time job turned into my first management job in the retail world. I learned much more about responsibility and managing people and met my second mentor, who showed me to work harder than the people under you and have a good time doing it.
And most important I met my future wife and the mother of my children. She worked in the store across from mine and my life changed forever.
I left retail when they decided to open Sundays, I need my Sundays, and I wanted more job security now that I had a young family....enter Honeywell and learning dispatching.
Again I wanted to a better path for advancement and enter Paul Arpin Van Lines and again my life would change...for the better. Enter my third mentor, Paul Arpin. Again showing me that hard work and treating people right will gain you success. Thank you Paul and thank you David Arpin.
My second child is now born, giving my wife and I a wonderful baby boy to go along with our beautiful baby girl.
My wife went on to show me so much more than anyone else in my life. How to love unconditionally and giving me the confidence and the backing so that I could grow even more in both my personal life as well as my work life.
I have met so many friends and have learned from so many people along the way and I continue to learn.
There are hundreds to thank but in reflection I think I am the man I am and I have the life I have because of my wife.
Life sure ain't easy but if you have a good person beside you that supports you it sure makes it easier and it makes the ride so much more enjoyable....thank you Lisa.
And thank you to all of the people that I have been blessed to meet and work with in my life.
Thank you to my two children from whom I have so much pride for and for who I still learn from, they are truly special and a product of a loving family...thanks again Lisa.
It is a lovely ride and I look forward to watching my kids continue to grow with their families now and my grandchildren and growing old with the little girl I met back in 1980...life is what you make it.
Thank you
So far it has been, to quote James Taylor, " A Lovely Ride".
Sure I have gone through some tragedies and hard times , who hasn't?
When I reflect back all I remember are all the good times and all the people that I have met and befriended.
Going all the way back to my growing up years, I grew up in the early 60's when kids still knocked on your neighbor;'s door for your friends to come out and play. When your dog roamed the street with you without a leash and you picking up poop, when you played pick up games and stayed out till you heard the 8 0'clock whistle. We built tree forts, played all sports, played card games, and just hung around a lot and made bonds for life.
Then at around 12 scouting entered my life and I learned my love of camping, nature and learned leadership and my leaders gave me the confidence in myself to do so much more.
Then at 16 I bought my first car, 1967 SS Camero convertible and got my first part time job, met my first girlfriend and away I went on my next chapter of my life.
My first full time job turned into my first management job in the retail world. I learned much more about responsibility and managing people and met my second mentor, who showed me to work harder than the people under you and have a good time doing it.
And most important I met my future wife and the mother of my children. She worked in the store across from mine and my life changed forever.
I left retail when they decided to open Sundays, I need my Sundays, and I wanted more job security now that I had a young family....enter Honeywell and learning dispatching.
Again I wanted to a better path for advancement and enter Paul Arpin Van Lines and again my life would change...for the better. Enter my third mentor, Paul Arpin. Again showing me that hard work and treating people right will gain you success. Thank you Paul and thank you David Arpin.
My second child is now born, giving my wife and I a wonderful baby boy to go along with our beautiful baby girl.
My wife went on to show me so much more than anyone else in my life. How to love unconditionally and giving me the confidence and the backing so that I could grow even more in both my personal life as well as my work life.
I have met so many friends and have learned from so many people along the way and I continue to learn.
There are hundreds to thank but in reflection I think I am the man I am and I have the life I have because of my wife.
Life sure ain't easy but if you have a good person beside you that supports you it sure makes it easier and it makes the ride so much more enjoyable....thank you Lisa.
And thank you to all of the people that I have been blessed to meet and work with in my life.
Thank you to my two children from whom I have so much pride for and for who I still learn from, they are truly special and a product of a loving family...thanks again Lisa.
It is a lovely ride and I look forward to watching my kids continue to grow with their families now and my grandchildren and growing old with the little girl I met back in 1980...life is what you make it.
Thank you
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Failure
Always try to get over failure quickly.
Learn from it.
Study how you contributed to it.
If you are responsible for it, own up to it.
Though others may have greater responsibility for it than you do, don't look for that as an escape hatch.
Once you have analyzed what went wrong and what you did wrong, internalize the lessons and them MOVE ON.
As always, drive through life looking through the front windshield and not the rear view mirror.
Don't become one of those pests who can't stop talking about their by now ancient slights, betrayals, hurts, or disasters.
Don't wallow with your sympathetic friends.
LEARN AND MOVE ON.
Learn from it.
Study how you contributed to it.
If you are responsible for it, own up to it.
Though others may have greater responsibility for it than you do, don't look for that as an escape hatch.
Once you have analyzed what went wrong and what you did wrong, internalize the lessons and them MOVE ON.
As always, drive through life looking through the front windshield and not the rear view mirror.
Don't become one of those pests who can't stop talking about their by now ancient slights, betrayals, hurts, or disasters.
Don't wallow with your sympathetic friends.
LEARN AND MOVE ON.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
AMERICA'S PROMISE
America's promise focuses on five basic promises we must make and deliver to our children.
We promise them a responsible, caring loving adult in their lives to guide them along the right path. Where the family is unable to that, we need to provide mentors.
We promise them safe places in which to learn and grow, protected from the negative influences encountered in too many of our communities.
We promise to try to provide every kid with a healthy start and access to continuing health care.
We promise our kids a good education with marketable skills.
Finally, we promise them an opportunity to serve others so that they grow with the virtue of service embedded in their hearts.
We NEED to do this for the sake of our kids, for the sake of the future of the country we all love, and for the sake of our noblest ideals.
(That was an excerpt from Colin Powell's book- It worked for me..)
We promise them a responsible, caring loving adult in their lives to guide them along the right path. Where the family is unable to that, we need to provide mentors.
We promise them safe places in which to learn and grow, protected from the negative influences encountered in too many of our communities.
We promise to try to provide every kid with a healthy start and access to continuing health care.
We promise our kids a good education with marketable skills.
Finally, we promise them an opportunity to serve others so that they grow with the virtue of service embedded in their hearts.
We NEED to do this for the sake of our kids, for the sake of the future of the country we all love, and for the sake of our noblest ideals.
(That was an excerpt from Colin Powell's book- It worked for me..)
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Routine and commitment
The following is a excerpt from a speech given by running back Curtis Martin at his Hall of Fame induction:
Curtis recalled one of Bill Parcell's moments with him when he was a rookie-
Bill said " There is a big difference between routine and commitment. Many people are good at routine and some even get better through routine BUT very few make a commitment to reach the next level."
Curtis recalled one of Bill Parcell's moments with him when he was a rookie-
Bill said " There is a big difference between routine and commitment. Many people are good at routine and some even get better through routine BUT very few make a commitment to reach the next level."
Friday, August 10, 2012
Team recovery
We are all happy and proud when a move goes perfect but what is just as satisfying is watching people work together as a team to work a problem.
In many businesses no matter how much you plan " stuff happens "
And in the domestic moving business because so many people are involved in one move AND because in many cases there are hundreds if not thousands of moles in between the load and the delivery the challenges can be a plenty.
Everything from mother nature to human error can complicate a well intentioned and planned move.
I see it every day, when you move 18 million lbs of tonnage in one month you bound to come across just about everything.
It is when people work together in the best interest of the customer that good things happen.
That is the difference between a true team and just a lot of people working for the same company.
You see someones true colors when it gets difficult or a curve ball is thrown. Some times it is in the discussions that you find the answers. I know one thing, that if it was not for those " true" team players we would be successful. I see it every day and it makes me proud.
There are a ton of unsung heroes EVERY DAY.
In many businesses no matter how much you plan " stuff happens "
And in the domestic moving business because so many people are involved in one move AND because in many cases there are hundreds if not thousands of moles in between the load and the delivery the challenges can be a plenty.
Everything from mother nature to human error can complicate a well intentioned and planned move.
I see it every day, when you move 18 million lbs of tonnage in one month you bound to come across just about everything.
It is when people work together in the best interest of the customer that good things happen.
That is the difference between a true team and just a lot of people working for the same company.
You see someones true colors when it gets difficult or a curve ball is thrown. Some times it is in the discussions that you find the answers. I know one thing, that if it was not for those " true" team players we would be successful. I see it every day and it makes me proud.
There are a ton of unsung heroes EVERY DAY.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
1963
1963
President Kennedy is assasinated. Stores and businesses shut down for the entire weekend and Monday, in tribute.
President Kennedy is assasinated. Stores and businesses shut down for the entire weekend and Monday, in tribute.
- Congress enacts "equal pay for equal work" legislature for women.
- Two thirds of the world's automobiles are in the United States.
- Film goddess Marilyn Monroe is found dead of an apparent overdose. It becomes the most controversial death on record.
- The Whisky a Go Go night club in Los Angeles, California, the first disco in the United States, is opened.
- A large cloud that some say resembles the face of Jesus is seen on Sunset Mountain, Arizona.
- In Camden, Tennessee, Country superstar Patsy Cline (Virginia Patterson Hensley) is killed in a plane crash along with fellow performers Hawkshaw Hawkins, Cowboy Copas and Cline's manager and pilot Randy Hughes while returning from a benefit performance in Kansas City, KS for country radio disc jockey "Cactus" Jack Call.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. issues his "Letter from Birmingham Jail".
- The Coca-Cola Company debuts its first diet drink, TaB cola.
- Dr. No, the first James Bond film, was shown in US theaters.
- In Saigon, Buddhist monk Thich Quong Doc commits self-immolation to protest the oppression of Buddhists by the Ngo Dinh Diem administration.
- ZIP Codes are introduced in the U.S.
- The first episode of the BBC television series Doctor Who is broadcast in the United Kingdom.
- I Want to Hold Your Hand and I Saw Her Standing There are released in the U.S., marking the beginning of full-scale Beatlemania.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
MORE HAPPY CUSTOMERS
Steve Martin packed and picked up my HHGs in Newbury Park, CA June 8-10, and delivered them in Chantilly VA June 23. I just wanted to write and give him positive feedback. In 20 years in the military this was my 7th professional pack and move. My 6th was with Arpin and I was so pleased, I requested them again is time. This one was the first time I was able to go door-to-door. That, combined with the quality of Steve's work and thoroughness, resulted in our most successful move to date. When I move again in 2-3 years, I'll be calling on Arpin again!
ALSO...
I just wanted to let you know what a pleasure it was having Kenny Robinson perform our July 24-28 move from Cordova, AL, to Manassas, VA. He was extremely professional, courteous, and knowledgeable and provided us with much needed reassurance during the process. He made sure that all our items, which included a lot of antique glassware, were expertly packed and delivered safely to our new home. My wife and I would not hesitate in calling on Mr. Robinson to perform any future moves for us.
Many thanks Kenny Robinson for a great move!
THANK YOU STEVE AND KENNY !!! WE ARE PROUD OF YOU !
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
We need each other
Ok now that I went on about my respect for our drivers I must take the time to emphasize that we ALL NEED EACH OTHER.
Yes, as Paul Arpin would say- " We are nothing without our drivers " that said we all must recognize that with out the full circle of people involved the driver would not have jobs to put on his trailer and without the proper information he can not do his best.
So in the end we all need each other, the salespeople, the men and women that survey the move, our packers, our agents, our customer care people, our dispatchers, our mechanics and safety departments and yes even our claims department.
In order to have a successful move we ALL need to do our part.
I think of it as we are each a spoke in the wheel, in order to have complete efficiency we need all spokes in tune and at their best.
Respect- take the time to treat each other with respect because we ALL NEED EACH OTHER.
Yes, as Paul Arpin would say- " We are nothing without our drivers " that said we all must recognize that with out the full circle of people involved the driver would not have jobs to put on his trailer and without the proper information he can not do his best.
So in the end we all need each other, the salespeople, the men and women that survey the move, our packers, our agents, our customer care people, our dispatchers, our mechanics and safety departments and yes even our claims department.
In order to have a successful move we ALL need to do our part.
I think of it as we are each a spoke in the wheel, in order to have complete efficiency we need all spokes in tune and at their best.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Achievements
It is NOT what you achieve in life BUT
it is who you become during the process of those achievements.
it is who you become during the process of those achievements.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Saturday, August 4, 2012
WHY?
I often get asked by many people in the moving business why jobs are late or why an agent may have to pick jobs up or why there was not more labor out on a job , why , why, why-
I understand these questions from people outside of the business or new people just being introduced to the business, but what frustrates me is these questions coming from me from people who have been in the business for decades.
They cock their heads to the side like a dog does when they hear a sound or a whistle and just stare at you.
Where do I even begin.
For one we live a business that is more and more seasonal. In February we booked 8 million lbs of tonnage and in June and July we booked 18 million for EACH of those months- and in a few months we will back to 8-9 million lbs.
It is impossible to rev up for just those few months and think that you will be able to have the same service available to you. It is a miracle that we do what we do. We do what we do because we still have a core of people, agent, drivers and employees that care and work their asses off to try to take care of our customers.
That said the numbers speak for themselves. When you stuff that much work into a short time period you will have breakdowns, both physical and mechanical that will have domino effects on other jobs. Not to mention that you will have more agents picking up work because you just do not have the manpower to get all directs.
I also get that you have to "get it "when it is their. Because we are such a seasonal business you have to take as much as you can to make as much as you can in that short time table.
Paul Arpin would always say that it does not matter how big you are you will never have enough trucks in the summer months to cover all the work. He was so right.
By the end of July people are tired- PEOPLE are tired. Some people tend to forget that we are in the MOVING business and in the end it is the hard work of our drivers that we are built on. And being human they get tired, their trucks get tired and need service.
This is tough industry getting tougher and WE in the industry need to work together to make it better and help our drivers. They are the backbone, sure we need salesman and people getting the work no question- absolutely- but once they GET the work then what? and more than likely at the end of the day that salesperson goes home at 5 while the driver is finishing loading his truck and getting ready to driver another couple of hundreds miles to do it all over again the next day.
We also need to get the right information in the hands of the people actually doing the work- the worse thing for a driver is to show up the day of a load to find out that there is a shuttle needed or that it is not 8000 lbs but more like 18,000 lbs, - these things happen every day and the driver is left having to figure it out.
Paul Arpin "got it" because he WAS a driver he knew what they do and respected them. We still have a good foundation of people that " get it" and I hope we continue to grow that.
Our current CEO and President David Arpin , Paul's son, also ran the road and was on the trucks. David dispatched with his father when I first started and hired me to take over operations. I respect David as I did his father.
Come August and September every year I always look back in wonder on what we accomplished.
How agents, drivers, employees and all people come together to do the impossible.
Move thousands of families all over the country and all mostly within a 15-18 week period- crazy-
So yes we are unfortunately late on some jobs and may be out later then we want on some loads and may not have the correct amount of labor on all jobs but we ALL do our best and thank GOD for the people that still care and at the end of the day still SEE the customer and their needs and their stress.
It is too easy to stay on the sidelines and and play Monday morning quarterback and ask why this and why that, either get in the game and see people for what they do everyday and try to help this industry and all of the hard blue collar people that are in it OR get out.
As Abraham Lincoln said ,and later quoted by General Pattern-
LEAD ME, FOLLOW ME OR GET OUT OF MY WAY.
Just don't waste my time asking why all day....we have work to do.
I understand these questions from people outside of the business or new people just being introduced to the business, but what frustrates me is these questions coming from me from people who have been in the business for decades.
They cock their heads to the side like a dog does when they hear a sound or a whistle and just stare at you.
Where do I even begin.
For one we live a business that is more and more seasonal. In February we booked 8 million lbs of tonnage and in June and July we booked 18 million for EACH of those months- and in a few months we will back to 8-9 million lbs.
It is impossible to rev up for just those few months and think that you will be able to have the same service available to you. It is a miracle that we do what we do. We do what we do because we still have a core of people, agent, drivers and employees that care and work their asses off to try to take care of our customers.
That said the numbers speak for themselves. When you stuff that much work into a short time period you will have breakdowns, both physical and mechanical that will have domino effects on other jobs. Not to mention that you will have more agents picking up work because you just do not have the manpower to get all directs.
I also get that you have to "get it "when it is their. Because we are such a seasonal business you have to take as much as you can to make as much as you can in that short time table.
Paul Arpin would always say that it does not matter how big you are you will never have enough trucks in the summer months to cover all the work. He was so right.
By the end of July people are tired- PEOPLE are tired. Some people tend to forget that we are in the MOVING business and in the end it is the hard work of our drivers that we are built on. And being human they get tired, their trucks get tired and need service.
This is tough industry getting tougher and WE in the industry need to work together to make it better and help our drivers. They are the backbone, sure we need salesman and people getting the work no question- absolutely- but once they GET the work then what? and more than likely at the end of the day that salesperson goes home at 5 while the driver is finishing loading his truck and getting ready to driver another couple of hundreds miles to do it all over again the next day.
We also need to get the right information in the hands of the people actually doing the work- the worse thing for a driver is to show up the day of a load to find out that there is a shuttle needed or that it is not 8000 lbs but more like 18,000 lbs, - these things happen every day and the driver is left having to figure it out.
Paul Arpin "got it" because he WAS a driver he knew what they do and respected them. We still have a good foundation of people that " get it" and I hope we continue to grow that.
Our current CEO and President David Arpin , Paul's son, also ran the road and was on the trucks. David dispatched with his father when I first started and hired me to take over operations. I respect David as I did his father.
Come August and September every year I always look back in wonder on what we accomplished.
How agents, drivers, employees and all people come together to do the impossible.
Move thousands of families all over the country and all mostly within a 15-18 week period- crazy-
So yes we are unfortunately late on some jobs and may be out later then we want on some loads and may not have the correct amount of labor on all jobs but we ALL do our best and thank GOD for the people that still care and at the end of the day still SEE the customer and their needs and their stress.
It is too easy to stay on the sidelines and and play Monday morning quarterback and ask why this and why that, either get in the game and see people for what they do everyday and try to help this industry and all of the hard blue collar people that are in it OR get out.
As Abraham Lincoln said ,and later quoted by General Pattern-
LEAD ME, FOLLOW ME OR GET OUT OF MY WAY.
Just don't waste my time asking why all day....we have work to do.
Friday, August 3, 2012
1962
1962
- The Beatles' first record, "My Bonnie" with Tony Sheridan, is released by Polydor.
- Adolf Eichmann is hanged in Israel.
- The Rolling Stones make their debut at London's Marquee Club, Number 165 Oxford Street,
- John Lennon secretly marries Cynthia Powell.
- Dr. No, the first James Bond film, premiers in UK theaters.
- October 12 - The infamous Columbus Day Storm strikes the U. S. Pacific Northwest with wind
- gusts up to 170 mph (270 km/h); 46 dead, 11 billion board feet of timber is
- blown down, with $230 million U.S. in damages.
- October 14 - Cuban Missile Crisis begins: A U-2 flight over Cuba takes photos of Soviet
- nuclear weapons being installed. A stand-off then ensues the next day between the United
- States and the Soviet Union, threatening the world with nuclear war.
- October 22 - In a televised address, U.S. President John F. Kennedy announces to the nation the existence of Soviet missiles in Cuba.
- October 28 - Cuban Missile Crisis: Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev announces that he has ordered the removal of Soviet missile bases in Cuba.
- The term "Personal computer" is first mentioned by the media.
- The films "American Graffiti" and "Animal House" are set in 1962.
- American Broadcasting Company (ABC) begins color telecast for 3.5 hours a week.
- Diet Rite is the first sugar-free soda introduced.
- Pull tabs on cans are introduced.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Remember the little things
When I review some of the failures in our jobs most of the time it is the small things that make the difference.
In operations I see dispatchers that work very hard and care about their job but because they have so much to do and a lot things to remember to check some times it's the small things or the one question left unanswered that makes the difference.
And in the end that one thing or that one question may have made the difference in a happy customer and a good move.
Same thing with our drivers, time and time again it is because the driver is rushing at the end of a move or the end of a long loading day that makes the difference.
It's the small things that the customer remembers.
A driver may do all the hard things and do a absolute professional job on wrapping and caring for their goods but they just did not take the time to LISTEN to the customer's concerns or to mother that one piece that they cherish.
Sometime it is all about slowing down for that moment in our very hectic day to show that we care.
Remember the small things.
In operations I see dispatchers that work very hard and care about their job but because they have so much to do and a lot things to remember to check some times it's the small things or the one question left unanswered that makes the difference.
And in the end that one thing or that one question may have made the difference in a happy customer and a good move.
Same thing with our drivers, time and time again it is because the driver is rushing at the end of a move or the end of a long loading day that makes the difference.
It's the small things that the customer remembers.
A driver may do all the hard things and do a absolute professional job on wrapping and caring for their goods but they just did not take the time to LISTEN to the customer's concerns or to mother that one piece that they cherish.
Sometime it is all about slowing down for that moment in our very hectic day to show that we care.
Remember the small things.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
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