HOWARD’S DAILY CHRONICLE
NUMBER 14 VOL 9
APRIL 14TH 2008
WEATHER; COOL, MED HUMIDITY, 43/72 DEGREES
ANSWER TO POP QUIZ; “RUPERT” WAS THE NAME GIVEN THE RUBBER DUMMIES!
POP QUIZ; IN THE MOVIE “THE LITTLE COLONEL” WITH SHIRLEY TEMPEL, WHO PLAYED THE BIG BURLY SERGENT WHO TOOK CARE OF HER?
ANOTHER SLOW NEWS DAY, WE DIDN’T HAVE TO PICK UP HALEY JO BECAUSE GLENDA STAYED HOME TO TAKE HER TO THE DOCTOR AND GLENDA HAD A DOCTORS APPOINTMENT ALSO!
MOM HAD TO GO TO TOWN AND MAKE A BANK DEPOSIT AND PICK UP SOME THINGS FOR GLENDA!
I HAVE TWO HUMMERS NOW, A GRAY ONE AND ONE WITH A DARK HEAD AND A WHITE RING AROUND ITS NECK! I WENT TO SERVICE THE FEEDERS TODAY AND FOUND OUT WHY THE HUMMERS WOULDN’T GO NEAR ONE OF THEM IT WAS INFESTED WITH ½ INCH LONG BLACK CARPENTER ANTS! WHEN I TOOK THEM DOWN TO CLEAN AND ADD SOLUTION I SPRAYED ANT KILLER ALL OVER THE2X4s THEY’RE HUNG FROM! I’VE GOT TO FIND OUT HOW TO KEEP THE ANTS AWAY FROM THE FEEDERS! WE’RE GOING TO TRY WRAPPING THE 2X4s WITH THE STICKY FLY PAPERS WE HANG FROM THE CEILING DURING THE SUMMER, I DON’T THINK THEY’LL BE ABLE TO CROSS IT UNLESS THEY CRAWL ACROSS ON THEIR DEAD BUDDYS BODYS! IF THAT HAPPENS I’LL HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ELSE! IF ANY ONE OF YOU OUT THERE HAS A SOLUTION FOR MY PROBLEM LET ME KNOW ON THE COMMENT SPACE AT THE END OF THE CHRONICLE ON THE BLOG! OR E-MAIL ME AT howard@mahoney-ranch.com !
I’VE GOT TO GO TO THE VA TOMORROW AND PICK UP SOME MEDICINE THE DOCTOR FORGOT TO ORDER FOR ME LAST MONTH. THEN WE’RE GOING OUT TO CHARLEEN’S AND LET HER TRY MOM’S BATTERY POWERED WEED EATER TO SEE IF SHE WANTS TO GET ONE!
TALKED TO TIM TODAY AND TOLD HIM I FOUND TWO RADIATOR BLOWER MOTORS FOR HIS NEON, HE WAS REAL BUSY IT BEING MONDAY MORNING AND HE NEVER DID CALL ME BACK SO I GUESS IT’S OK!
COLLEEN CALLED TO SEE HOW I WAS DOING, MOM TOLD HER AND DICK I WASN’T FEELING GOOD IS WHY I DIDN’T MAKE MASS! I DON’T LIKE TO MISS MASS, WHEN I DO I FEEL LIKE MY DAY IS JUST HALF COMPLETE! I CAN REMEMBER MY MOTHER (SHE WAS A CONVERT) TELLING ME NOT TO MISS MASS IF I CAN POSSIBLY MAKE IT, SHE USED TO SAY YOU CAN BE JUST AS SICK AT MASS AS YOU CAN AT HOME AND, DON’T EVER MISS MASS BECAUSE OF A HANGOVER! THERE HAVE BEEN TIMES WHEN I FELT LIKE MISSING BUT I ALWAYS MANAGED TO GET THERE!
* MASTERMINDING AT THE BARBER SHOP *
THE FATHER WAS A THIRD GENERATION BARBER IN A SMALL COMMUNITY IN THE MID-WEST. THE SHOP HAD BEEN HANDED DOWN FROM HIS GRANDFATHER, TO HIS FATHER, AND WAS NOT ONLY A BARBERSHOP BUT MORE OF A COMMUNITY CENTER.
HERE YOU COULD NOT ONLY GET YOUR HAIR CUT, BUT COULD ENJOY COFFEE AND DONUTS AND SPEND TIME WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS SHARING THE NEWS OF FARMS AND FAMILIES. THE SHOP HAD GROWN TO INCLUDE 10 STYLISTS WHO CUT ALL THE MEN'S HAIR AND ALL THE WOMEN'S HAIR IN THE COMMUNITY.
THE OWNER'S SON CAME HOME FROM GRADUATE SCHOOL OVER SPRING BREAK TO FIND HIS FATHER DEPRESSED AND RECLUSIVE. FINALLY GETTING HIS FATHER TO SHARE WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS, THE FATHER CONFIDED THAT THERE WAS A NEW, NATIONAL CHAIN THAT HAD BEEN MOVING ACROSS THE COUNTRY, BRINGING CHEAP HAIR SALONS INTO ALL OF THE DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES AND DRIVING EVERYONE OUT OF BUSINESS.
EVEN THOUGH THE COMMUNITY HAD LOVED ALL OF THE WORK THAT HE HAD DONE - THE PERMS AND THE HAIRCUTS AND THE STYLES OVER THE YEARS - RIGHT DOWN THE STREET OPENED UP THIS NEW NATIONAL CHAIN. IT OFFERED SIX DOLLAR HAIRCUTS. PERSON AFTER PERSON HAD LEFT TO GO TO THE NEW LOW COST SHOP, THE FATHER TOLD HIS SON,
"THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO WAY I CAN COMPETE WITH $6.00 HAIRCUTS. SO MUCH OF MY CLIENTELE HAS NOW GONE TO THE NEW SHOP THAT I HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO CLOSE OUR SHOP. AFTER THREE GENERATIONS, WE ARE GOING BANKRUPT. I CAN'T PAY THE BARBERS OR THE OVERHEAD ANYMORE," HE DESPONDENTLY SAID WITH HIS HANDS COVERING HIS FACE SO HIS SON WOULD NOT SEE THE TEARS ROLLING OUT OF HIS EYES. THE SON SAID,
"YOU KNOW, THIS LAST SEMESTER I TOOK A 'SCIENCE OF SUCCESS' PROGRAM THAT WAS OFFERED FOR EXTRA CREDIT IN MY MARKETING CLASS. ONE THING I LEARNED WAS SOMETHING THAT EINSTEIN SAID:
"TO RAISE NEW QUESTIONS, NEW POSSIBILITIES, TO REGARD OLD PROBLEMS FROM A NEW ANGLE, REQUIRES CREATIVE IMAGINATION." ALBERT EINSTEIN
"SO, DAD, WE HAVE TO FIND ANOTHER WAY TO THINK ABOUT THIS. WE'VE GOT TO FIND ANOTHER WAY TO SEE THIS. ANOTHER ONE OF THE STRATEGIES I LEARNED MAY HELP US."
SO THE SON LEFT THE ROOM AND BROUGHT BACK A NOTEBOOK AND A PEN. HE TOLD THE DAD ABOUT "MASTERMINDING," A STRATEGY INTRODUCED IN THE 1930'S BY NAPOLEON HILL WHO HAD BEEN COMMISSIONED BY ANDREW CARNEGIE TO STUDY THE PATTERNS OF EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE.
"HERE'S WHAT WE DO. WE LET OURSELVES THINK OF ANY IDEA THAT COMES TO MIND AND WE WRITE IT DOWN. NO EDITING. WE GET A FLOW OF IDEAS FOR 15 TO 20 MINUTES AND TRY TO GET AS MANY AS POSSIBLE. NO IDEA IS OFF LIMITS. LET'S GO." THE FATHER SAID,
"WELL, THE ONLY IDEA I'VE GOT IS TO CLOSE THE SHOP!" THE SON SAID,
"WELL, YOU'RE RIGHT THAT IS AN IDEA." AND HE WROTE IT DOWN AS IDEA NO. 1. THEN THE SON SAID,
"OK, LET'S KEEP GOING."
BEFORE LONG THE SON AND THE FATHER STARTED GETTING A FLOW OF IDEAS AND WRITING DOWN EVERY ONE OF THEM, EVEN EVERY CRAZY THING THAT CAME TO MIND. WHEN THEY FINISHED, ONE OF THE IDEAS ABSOLUTELY JUMPED OFF THE PAGE AND THEY LOOKED AT EACH OTHER IN ASTONISHMENT AND SAID,
"THIS JUST MIGHT WORK!"
THE SON LEFT THE NEXT DAY TO GO BACK TO COLLEGE. THE FATHER IMPLEMENTED THE IDEA. WITHIN 6 WEEKS, NOT ONLY HAD HIS DROP IN CLIENTELE COMPLETELY RETURNED, BUT THE NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS WAS NOW 11% HIGHER THAN EVER IN THE HISTORY OF THE SHOP. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE IDEA WAS THAT TURNED SURE FAILURE INTO A NEW COURSE OF INCREASING SUCCESS? THE IDEA WAS, TO PLACE A BIG SIGN ON TOP OF THE SHOP THAT READ,
"WE FIX SIX DOLLAR HAIRCUTS!!"
ANY TIME WE THINK WE HAVE A BIG PROBLEM THAT CAN'T BE SOLVED, THAT THOUGHT IS THE PROBLEM.
LEARNING TO THINK IN A NEW WAY BRINGS FREEDOM AND POWER.
THAT’S “30” FOR THIS ISSUE.
HOWARD
No comments:
Post a Comment