The difference between "better than" and "the best."

You may have thought that being better than your competition by default meant that you were "The Best" at what you do, at what you produce, or at how you serve your customer.


But I believe there is a key philosophical difference between being "better than" and being "the best."

Being better than the competition implies that whatever they are doing you are going to be as good as them, plus one degree. Hmmm, just one degree, that's not much, is it? When you are trying to win a race or a game you don't have to be too much better than or execute much better than your competition.

For example, in a 400 meter race you can win by hundredths or thousands of a second! A better start off the blocks, a stride that is a fraction of an inch longer, more forward lean at the finish line and you win ... by a hundredth of a second. No doubt winning is good, winning is fun, winning beats losing.

Or, look at the (American) game of football ... you can beat your opponent by one touchdown, one field goal ... or even one point. But is beating your opponent by one point enough? In a game that is timed aren't you taking a big chance if you decide to let up because you've pulled out in front by two touchdowns before the half? Do you come out in the second half and hope to just keep them from scoring more points? No. Do they concede defeat because you are two possessions ahead of them? No. Yesterday's (11/18/12) Patriots & Colts game was a prime example. Happily, I write that the Pats beat the Colts 59-24. Did the Pats let up at the half because they were up 24-17? Nope. Did the Colts quit because they were down by 7? Nope. Both teams kept giving it their all until the final seconds ran out. Do some people or teams get accused of running up the score? Yes. Do they care? Nope.

Think of Apple. They are considered the best at what they do; they have incredible customer loyalty and incredible profits. Currently they are producing the I-Phone 5; arguably their best phone so far. Do you think they will stop there or do you think the geeks at Apple are thinking that the I-Phone 6, 7 and 8 will each be their best phone ever?

Your competition will keep on trying and so should you! You shouldn't just try to beat them, you should try to play or compete to the BEST of your ability. You should always, always, always try to do your best.

There is a significant difference between "good enough" and giving it your "best" effort. As my dad always says, "If it's worth doing at all, it's worth doing right." And doing it right means giving it your best effort. Challenge yourself, your team; reach farther, reach higher. That's what the best do, day in and day out!

The problem with Robin Hood ...

Once upon a time there was a good hearted fellow named Robin Hood.  No doubt you're familiar with this guy's story ... he's the one who stole from the rich to give to the poor.  Sounds noble doesn't it?

There's just a few problems with the modern day version of Robin Hood (a.k.a. U.S. Federal Government).

Problem #1: Stealing is wrong!  Taking from the rich, taking anything from anyone is just plain wrong.  Biblical or not, most (dare I say all) persons who earn what they have do not like it when someone comes along and takes any or all of what they've earned.  Young or old, people who worked hard for something feel like they deserve to keep most or all of what they earned.

Problem #2: Redistribution is wrong!  Distributing money, goods or services to people who DID NOT earn it is not fully appreciated (with few exceptions).  There are many people who are temporarily down on their luck and deserve a helping hand.  But if someone is able to work, but not willing to work then either they are lazy or are not focused on what is important.

Problem #3: Wealth and poverty are both created.   A great philosopher (whose name escapes me) once said that "if you took all the wealth in the world and distributed it evenly ... eventually it would end up back in the hands of the wealthy."  I believe this to be true.  Not because the wealthy will steal it back from the poor ... it's because they will put what they have to work to create more wealth.  They will delay gratification today, so that tomorrow they will have greater means.  This is how most of the wealthy became wealthy in the first place!

To understand why I believe the above to be fact you have to know a little bit about my upbringing:

I didn't have the toughest life growing up ... but I also didn't have the easiest life either.  I came from a family of seven (Dad, Mom, four bothers and me).  My father worked construction and when times were lean (the 70's) we received government aid which included food stamps and other handouts.  My parents hated that we needed the handouts, they were embarrassed and they even felt disgraced.  I even remember going to the food stamp office with my mom to pick them up ... I was young, but I recall being embarrassed ... and I remember not being the only ones in line.  A small home, one car and hand-me down clothing were the norm for us. But believe it or not, we were considered lower middle-class!  Ha!

Regardless of how the government defined us, we felt poor and we HATED IT!  We did not want to live like that forever.  Most of the Americans living during this time in the same circumstances felt the same way.  So what did my parents do about it?  Once their five kids were old enough they both worked full time!  A novel concept ... work, so you don't have to receive hand-outs!  Work, so that you can support your family with dignity and pride.

Once my parents both started working things did get better ... but we still weren't rich.  We didn't eat steak and potatoes 7 days a week.  In fact, when we did eat steak it was usually the cheapest cut possible.  We still handed down clothes, we still brown-bagged school lunches, my brothers and I all had paper routes and then jobs when we were old enough.  We didn't have new Nike's on our feet nor did we wear Levi's.  But what we had was ours and we earned it!  Not relying on the government to provide our basic needs made us feel good!

Fast forward 40 years ... and the Robin Hood philosophy has morphed into a "steal from the rich and give me what I want" philosophy!  I travel all over Florida for work and I see all kinds of people in all kinds of neighborhoods.  There are people collecting food stamps, welfare  and an unemployment check ... yet have a satellite dish on their house and a Cadillac Escalade in their driveway.

I also watch way too much news and remember the story of a convenience store worker in New York State that lost her job early in 2012 because she refused to let a minor buy cigarettes with his food stamps (card)!  She thought she was doing the right thing and she ends up out of work because of it.

Robin Hood ... your place is in the story books, not Washington D.C.!

Victim!

Are we victims of capitalism ... Or victims of Obama-Care?

My company's annual health care elections came and went and for the first two weeks we stewed!  We were pissed-off ... mad as hell ... ready to take up arms and fight the evil Human Resources Zombies! Our share of the HMO that I have clung to for years was going up 33%.  A huge increase by any measure.  Do we choose health care ... or food?  Health care or electricity?  Health care or ... (gasp) CABLE?!

We asked, "Are those capitalist pigs just driving up costs to make more profits?  Is it because they are greedy and can get away with stealing our hard earned money?

Or should our gratitude be towards the Obama/Reid/Pelosi trio ("pass it, you can read it later!"); as well as all the socialists that think they are playing Robin Hood!  "Steal from the rich and give to the poor."  Or in modern terms ... "steal from the hard working earners and give to the government dependents".  Isn't "stealing" still wrong??

Phew ... got that off my chest ... I feel better, but I'm not done.

The wife and I sat down and reviewed our options.  No matter how we looked at it our health costs were either going to go up ... or we would have to assume more risk.  For a family of five (5) living on one (1) income ... we didn't really want to assume more risk.  The kids are all very active in cheer, baseball and football.  They risk knee, ankle, wrist injuries ... and of course, concussions on a daily basis.  One emergency room visit can end up costing a month's salary.

We ended up choosing a high deductible PPO, we are putting as much money as we can afford into a health savings account, we are praying that the kids avoid injury ... and we are also at peace with our decision.

In retrospect, the HMO that we were on for years was not in our best interest.  If we had switched to a PPO years ago we would be miles ahead in our health care now.  We were over-spending and paying for other people's health care (actually supporting socialism!). 

We were afraid of change, we were comfortable and rather than investigate our options we spent two weeks complaining to others and being pissed off.  The lesson here is: don't complain, investigate and adapt ... if it doesn't mess with your morals and it won't kill you, then find a way to persevere.  If it messes with your morals .. fight like hell.  But at least do your research first .. then decide whether or not to be pissed-off.

EMERGENCY BACKUP TOILET PAPER?

Unbelievable!  I am at a business conference and staying at the Wynn in Las Vegas.  Beautiful hotel, great service and great attention to detail.

My youngest daughter (Chloe who is back home with the rest of the family - this is a business trip afterall) asked me to take lots of pictures so that she could experience Las Vegas too.  My second day in Las Vegas had some free time, so I walked about the strip and took lots of pictures to share with her.  Since my sense of observation was at a heightened level I noticed in my hotel room something I hadn't noticed on day one.  It was an "emergency backup" roll of toilet paper!

I spent the next twenty-four hours joking about it.  Then I realized, this is part of their attention to detail.  I still think it's funny ... but they truly want their rooms to be prepared for their clients' every need.  That's great service!

"Do I really, really, really want _____?"

Do you remember when you were a small child and you went grocery shopping with your Mom or Dad?  In my hometown there was a grocery store (pretty sure that "supermarkets" weren't invented yet) called Fernandes.  I remember doing the grocery shopping with my Mom and without fail there were always three times during the weekly events that I fervently asked for something (actually, I am certain it sounded a lot like begging!).

1. When we turned down the 'candy' aisle.  The folks at Fernandes were obviously smart enough to host important stuff like the big block Hershey bars and bulk bags of Reese's peanut butter cups along side boring stuff that Mom needed, such as bread or crackers
2. When we strolled down the 'cereal' aisle.  There was no reason for store management to split this aisle between cereal and any other items -- we were going down this aisle no matter what!  This is where I learned about Count Chocula, Sugar Smacks and Frosted everything!
3. The last chance for Mom to appease my pleading was at check out.  If my begging and crying hadn't worked on either of my 1st two chances this was my last chance to make the trip worth it.  There were plenty of candy bars, Life Savers, Tic Tacs, Mentos, etc. to choose from. As we went through check out I would really have to pour it on.  And this was always my best chance to score since there was always at least four more eyes (cashier and bag boy) waiting to see if Mom would concede to my skillful reasoning skills

At the ripe age of 44 (it hurts to type that) I realize that what I am missing in my life is that intense passion or desire that I had when I was a child.  Granted, at the age of 5 it was in small bursts in the cereal aisle or candy aisle or even at check out.  Where is my passion now ... Even in small bursts?  I know that it's not New Year's eve ... but this is one of my goal or resolution for the remainder of 2012 ... find my passion(s)!  My other big goal is once I find my passion(s) ... pursue it/them!  I hope you have a great day.

God Bless You,
Tubby

25 X 19 = 475

Today I checked my personal email! A momentous occasion for me because I have a work email address that I must check several times each day; which is also handily delivered to my blackberry. But today was the day that I chose to check my personal email. Most anybody that knows me uses my work email if they need to send me anything, mainly because they know I check that one.

My inbox counter said that there were 493 new messages. I sorted them by ‘sender’ and quickly selected the ones that I wanted to save or respond to – that was a total of 18! Out of nearly 500 email messages fewer than 4% were ones that I felt were relevant. Put another way, my inbox was 96% clutter.

I wonder what other parts of my life are filled with this much clutter? What can I do to reduce or eliminate it? Are the meetings I go to ‘clutter’? Are the few shows I watch on TV clutter? Where else can I ‘delete’ clutter, leaving more time and energy to focus on the things I want to do?

BE THAT GUY OR (GIRL)!

I have no doubt that by now you’ve heard the expression “don’t be THAT guy.” It’s a catchy phrase that is used in a friendly way to tell someone when they are being a bad person, friend, neighbor, etc. As an expression I give it a 5. It serves a purpose and can be kind of funny at times. But it’s very negative. I’ve learned that negative words don’t usually lend themselves to positive results.

So, it got me to thinking … why not change the expression to “Be that guy (or girl).” When the mind is focused on something there is an increased chance that it will happen … so why not “be that guy!”

Be that guy … that puts your friends and family first.

Be that guy … that gives 100% to everything that you do.

Be that guy … that cares about others.

Be that guy … that everyday strives to make the world a better place.

Be that guy … that sees the best in everyone and the best in every situation.

I’m going to try to be that guy! Have a blessed week and GO PATRIOTS!

FINISH

One of the hardest things that I have had to accept as a father is the fact that my kids don’t listen to me. They hear me just fine … they just choose not to heed my advice. Grudgingly, I’ve come to accept this as a fact of life. Kids just don’t want to listen to their parents.

At first I was angry with them for not accepting my pearls of wisdom and learning from the errors of my ways. Then I became angry with myself for not being a better communicator; one who could break the generation gap and crack through their concrete skulls. But after speaking with several dads in my neighborhood; and at my kids’ activities, it was apparent that my title (‘Dad’) is the cause of my consternation.

There wasn’t a lot of comfort in finding out that it’s a normal occurrence. And to some degree it irritates me even more when, for example, I take my son to a pitching lesson or hitting camp and pay someone else to give him the same instruction that I can, and have, given him. BUT HE LISTENS TO THEM! I guess that is money well spent?

But, as I sit here today, I realize that most of the time I don’t even listen to my own advice! If anybody should listen to me … shouldn’t it be me? I’m a pretty accomplished guy … I’ve got two degrees, nearly twenty years of professional experience, fourteen years under my belt as a dad and seventeen years of marriage. There must be tons of wisdom swimming around in my noggin. So my commitment to myself is that I am going to heed my own advice and it begins today!

My son loves playing sports – basketball, football and baseball. And I spend a lot of time working with Conner on his motions – shooting, throwing and swinging. And the best advice that I have ever given him was to “finish” … which has since been reiterated by several coaches whom I have paid hundreds of dollars to (okay, I am still a litter bitter). Following through or “finishing” is key to success whether you are swinging a bat, throwing a football or launching your next BIG IDEA!

My advice to myself (and to you) is to “FINISH!”

Wake-Up Call

I don't remember the exact day, in fact it actually happened over two days, but I do know that it was in July of 2011 when I received my wake-up call. The wake-up call came from my regional manager, shortly after I had been told that I was not selected to back-fill my boss (who had transferred to a different position within the company). And it came in the form of two face to face meetings.

The background: I had been told that I was the "preferred candidate" for the position I thought that I wanted. Being with the company for over thirteen years, history had taught me that the "preferred candidate" was the person selected ninety-nine out of one hundred times. My regional manager said that it would be tough and that there were other candidates; so “it’s not a done deal yet, but you are my preferred candidate.”

As it turned out, the company decided to go with someone with “more experience”. I assumed more experience meant five more years with the company, several different management positions in different divisions, etc. In this case “more experience” means two more years with the company, no MBA, no experience in our division and only one previous management job (supervising one person).

I was not just bitter, quite frankly, I was mad as hell. So I met with my regional manager to discuss what had happened and why. We met for about half an hour and he highlighted the merits of the selected person – his enthusiasm and his “experience.” I, of course, defended my position – eight different positions in the company over thirteen years, five years of retail experience in the same industry, MBA, etc. The regional manager finally told me “Warren, I didn’t have a choice, this was Detroit’s decision. And besides, {our company} doesn’t promote within the same region and have you supervise your previous peers; it just doesn’t happen” For a split second it made me feel better, but it faded quickly because I figured out who was back-filling my new boss in his old position. It was his direct report. Ah, so the company does allow you to back-fill your supervisor, it just depends on which region you work in and who you know.

In a separate meeting with my regional manager, as we were discussing some of our franchisees and how some of them had tremendous entrepreneurial spirit and others didn’t. The regional manager actually said, and I paraphrase, “he’s like guys like us, who are happy and secure collecting a good paycheck and putting in their twenty-five or thirty years, you do a good job and live a good life. That's how our company breeds them.”

WOW! It didn’t hit me at first. But wow! I kept hitting the snooze button for a few months after this meeting, but now I realized that my regional manager thought (or at least was projecting his feelings on me) that I was not entrepreneurial, not creative, not willing to take a risk … not going anywhere?

If I have given him the impression that I don’t want more, that I don’t want to grow, that I don’t want to prosper … then shame on me. If I’ve allowed this to be how my life has played out … then shame on me.

I will not settle for this ... stay tuned!