A Snow Story

Every driver out here has his favorite SNOW story(or several)and here is one from driver Skip...

 

1993,I had a job after Christmas,I loaded out of Atlanta that was late(loading)along with about another 24,000 pounds of stuff going to Albuquerque,Denver,and parts unknown(getting old,don't remember)that was going to Pagosa Springs,Colorado....You guys ever look where Pagosa Springs is?Right at the bottom of Wolf Creek Pass(yes,that same pass from CW McCall’s song).It seems it's in a bowl.....8000 foot mountains all the way around,except one small pass south west of town..Funny thing about this is,when fronts come up from the gulf of BAJA,they can't get past any of those mountains except the small pass down there and the fronts just go around and around....DUMPING SNOW ON Pagosa Springs....WELL???

 

 

I managed to drop a piano in Albuquerque on Sunday,early,and drove on up to Pagosa.I found a place to park on the east end of town...Great place to park,Restaurant had Elk Steaks,beer store across the street,video tape store next door...Life is good...only to find out a MAJOR winter storm is due in tonight.....DANG!Whutever...The next morning I woke up and climbed out of the closet,to discover,the hood on my truck was so covered in snow,it blocked the windshield....DANG,looks like no drop today....I put on my snow suit and climbed out of the truck into 4 feet of new powder....and called the shipper at 8am only to get reamed by her for not being there last week.Gets better,there's so much snow,the town is shut down and all I can do is watch video's and eat Elk steaks....LIFE IS GOOD!

 

4 Days later(gained 10 pounds there food was good)they had plowed one lane up the hill to her neighborhood,and 1 lane up to her house..My trailer cannot make any of the turns and we get a shuttle truck to drop....I got it done and the went back to the same parking spot......Wolf Creek pass had some snow slides and was not open......For another 4 days....Dang!They had to blast the pass and when I finally got through there it was driving in a tunnel,high side was 16 feet of snow wall,low side was 12 feet....Wish I had pics.....

Get Up in the morning....

The Winner’s Mindset

There is a sense of control acquired from beating the inner voice. If your mind wins the battle between victim and success, things start on a high note and usually only get better.

 Recognizing the voice is your best defense against him.

When the alarm goes off and the voice tells you that you went to bed far too late to get up this early, or that five more minutes won’t hurt, DON’T LISTEN!

Those who stay in bed won’t be competition for the big guys, but they will have to watch out for you.

 When you are in charge of the inner voice, there will be no stopping you.

More Time

If you were to get up just one hour earlier each morning you would gain 15 days in a year. Scary when you put it like that. How many days of our lives do we waste sleeping? I don’t know about you, but I have too much I want to achieve to waste my life in this way. If you are time deficient, sleep less. We only need six to seven hours a night. Any more is wasting life.

Get Active

The morning is a great time to exercise. It sets you up for the day with energy, focus, and enthusiasm. Some mornings when I come back from my new habit of running, I feel invincible. Stress has to work a lot harder to get hold of me, and all my relationships are happier and calmer. Exercising in the morning will make you more productive and contribute to making you more successful.

Quiet Time

With three boys in my house, I rarely find quiet time. If I want to meditate or do something undisturbed, I do it early morning. Rising early gives me the time to fit it in. You could also use this time to write, paint, or do something else creative.

Persistence

Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.

Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.

Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.

Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts.

Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.

Calvin Coolidge

 Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success.

Napoleon Hill

 

Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence.

Colin Powell

 

SETTING EXPECTATIONS

Setting expectations for our customers in vital to a successful and happy experience-


Setting expectations is one of the basic fundamentals of management; yet, many managers fail to do this very important step effectively. Setting expectations first requires planning.

 The more time you invest on the front end, the more effective your team will be when it is in operations mode.

 The second component of setting expectations requires communication skills.
 People cannot read your mind, so to get your team on the same page as you, you must communicate your expectations clearly, in a way they can be heard, and often several times before they become internalized by others.

Provide Structure

 Providing structure starts with defining a direction and setting clear boundaries.
Your direction might come from your boss, your customers, your own vision for the future, or even from the collective wisdom of your team.

However it comes about, it needs to be clearly articulated and spoken about often. It ensures you are all on the same page in terms of what needs to be accomplished.
 Next, setting clear boundaries requires defining what is within the scope of work and what is not, what appropriate behavior is and what is not, and what productive work is and what is not. Sometimes this feels bossy; as if you are telling people what to do.

 But when people have guidelines within which to operate, they are actually more empowered to act, take initiative, and innovate. -

More on Expectations

Clarify Roles

Take a second look at job descriptions and job duties. Do they match the work that is actually being done? Are they an appropriate fit for the structure you have set? Generally, you can expect a job description to accurately describe 50-75% of the role. The rest may require adaptability as needs arise and priorities shift. Keep in mind job descriptions are the baseline minimum expectation. For those on your team seeking advancement, a career development conversation should focus on above and beyond.

 Set Motivating Goals

 It is incredibly important to get goals right.

 When goals support key initiatives and are aligned with the department or organization’s strategic goals, they have a lot of power to direct work almost effortlessly.

 And when work piles up, stress mounts, and we start to lose sight of how to prioritize, goals can refocus our efforts and help keep us on track. To be motivating, goals should make a difference, be fairly urgent, have a measurable accomplishment tied to them, and sound challenging.

Give and Receive Feedback

Nobody is perfect; a conversation that includes two-way feedback is one of the best ways to ensure continued improvement, upward progress, and ultimately, better performance.

 Additionally, an honest conversation where you seek and accept feedback without defensiveness or excuses builds trust and your relationship with your team.

Be the Change

You hear it all the time....I wish people would be nicer?...why can't people just treat others with respect? ...why don't people care anymore? ... What happened to good old fashion customer service?

Be the Change.

Start with yourself, what could you have done different today? Could you have spoken better to that person that you may have disagreed with? How was your tone or body language
Did you show that you at least give a dam about their side or their feelings?

It is easy to join the parade and complain and whine- be the change-


 

Two Things

Love this quote....




"Two things define you. Your patience when you have nothing and your attitude when you have everything"

NUFF SAID