Author Archives: Harry K. Jones

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Change Your Thinking – Change Your Day!

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There was a time in my life when I thought I could handle anything and everything. I didn’t need sleep, I didn’t need to eat well, and I could deal with any amount of stress necessary to get the job done and care for my family. I’ve never had occasion to drink, smoke or do drugs so I felt pretty comfortable that my health would never be an issue.

However, life changes happen to everyone. I experienced several major change events within a short period of time and the consequences took their toll. I totally lost my eyesight. A specialist told me that had it been an accident or a disease he could give me an idea of when my sight would return and to what degree. However, due to the fact that it was a result of stress, he could do neither. Thankfully, my sight slowly returned within two weeks but resulted in my having to wear trifocals ever since.

My specialist explained that the loss of sight was a warning that I must examine my lifestyle and make some radical changes. The next warning could easily be a brain aneurysm, stroke or heart attack. He was very convincing, and I immediately made the necessary changes.

One of the major changes I made dealt with how I viewed circumstances. Prior to the sight loss, I was very impatient. I struggled waiting for a traffic light to change, a slow driver in front of me, a commercial to end so a program could resume … even waiting for someone to finish a sentence. Watching a train pass in front of me at four miles an hour was almost unbearable.

While impatience was only one of the challenges I had to deal with, it was indeed significant. However, after a little research, all it took was a re-frame in my thinking process. I can’t believe the difference it’s made in my life!

Now, when I get ten miles from home and realize I’ve forgotten my license or plane tickets, I don’t panic and allow stress to take over. If I’m caught by a long, slow train, I deal with it by enjoying the music from my radio or glancing at the newspaper headlines while I patiently wait. All it took to make that change was to change my thinking. I realize I can’t speed up the train, and I now feel that things happen for a reason. Maybe catching the train saved me from a traffic ticket five miles down the road or, worse yet, a serious car accident I may have been involved in. That may sound silly to some but that’s okay. I have since many times found this new way of thinking to be validated quite often.

Let me share a documented example. During the deadly 9-11 terrorist assault on the twin towers in New York, thousands lost their lives. However, many who would have normally been in one of the towers that morning weren’t there on 9-11. Review the simple reasons that saved their lives from a tragic end and consider the fact that many things happen for a reason.

  • One woman was late because her alarm clock didn’t go off on time. That had never happened to her before.
  • One company CEO survived because his son started kindergarten that morning.
  • Another man was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts so he was delayed in arriving at work.
  • Another was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because of an auto accident and his life was spared.
  • One missed his bus.
  • One spilled food on her clothes and had to take time to change.
  • One’s car wouldn’t start.
  • One went back to answer the telephone.
  • One had a child that dawdled and didn’t get ready as soon as he should have.
  • One couldn’t get a taxi.
  • One that really struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning. Before he got to the Towers he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That’s why he is alive today!

Do you think by the end of that fateful day any one of those people were upset that those unexpected interruptions took place that day? …or do you think they might think those things happened for a reason?

Now when I’m stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone … all the little things that used to annoy me tremendously, I think to myself, this is exactly where I’m supposed to be at this very moment.

So the next time your morning seems to be going wrong, the children are slow getting dressed, you can’t seem to find the car keys, you hit every traffic light, don’t get mad or frustrated. Pause, relax, re-frame, and enjoy.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Little-known Facts about Well-known Leaders – Earl Nightingale

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Earl Nightingale may have done more to influence and inspire more of the nation’s leaders than anyone else could ever hope to do. He was an American motivational speaker who is known as the Dean of Personal Development and as one of the greatest thinkers and inspirational men of time.

Although he died 20 years ago, he continues to inspire people worldwide with his timeless wisdom and unusual ability to communicate and captivate audiences of all ages.

Earl Nightingale was on the USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor. After the war Nightingale began work in the radio industry, which eventually led to work as a motivational speaker. In 1956 he produced a spoken-word record, The Strangest Secret, which sold over a million copies, making it the first spoken-word recording to achieve Gold Record status.

The combination of his extraordinarily distinctive voice and his powerful life-changing story continues to inspire listeners everywhere. About this time, Earl met a successful businessman by the name of Lloyd Conant, and together they began an “electronic publishing” company which eventually grew to become a multimillion dollar giant in the self-improvement field. They also developed a syndicated, 5-minute daily radio program, Our Changing World, which became the longest-running, most widely syndicated show in radio.

The following link will take you to a Google site where you can experience this mesmerizing voice and inspiring message. The video is more like a still photograph, but you’ll certainly appreciate the voice and message. It takes 31 minutes and 35 seconds to hear the entire piece, but you can at least sample this rare classic to understand its long-lasting attraction.

It appears that Earl was destined for greatness at a very early age. His childhood challenges led him to adult greatness, enlightenment, and success. As a Depression-era child, Earl Nightingale was hungry for knowledge. From the time he was a young boy, he would frequent the Long Beach Public Library in California, searching for the answer to the question, “How can a person, starting from scratch, who has no particular advantage in the world, reach the goals that he feels are important to him, and by so doing, make a major contribution to others?” His desire to find an answer, coupled with his natural curiosity about the world and its workings spurred him to become one of the world’s foremost experts on success and what makes people successful.

After the war, Earl went to work for KTAR in Phoenix. Radio was in its “hay day,” and with Earl’s talent, it wasn’t long before he moved to where the heart of the action was—Chicago, Illinois. Offered jobs at both NBC and CBS, he went to work for CBS, where he quickly became a legendary icon to kids across the nation, as the voice of radio hero, Sky King. When he wasn’t flying through the sky in his airplane, The Songbird, or riding off on his horse to round up the bad guys, Earl was busy writing and broadcasting his daily radio, and later, television show, from the broadcast stations in the Windy City.

Later, expanding his horizon, Earl bought a small Franklin Life Insurance agency, where each Saturday morning, he would give little pep talks to the salesmen, hoping to inspire and motivate them to be the best salesmen they could be.

One day, Earl told his office manager that he planned to take a fishing vacation and would be away for a few weeks. Because the salesmen relied so heavily on their weekly pep talks from Earl, the manager expressed concern that sales would drop during Earl’s absence. Earl came up with the idea to record something that could be played while he was gone.

Earl thought about what he might write, and turned the question over and over again in his mind. Then, one night, a short time later, he woke up and knew exactly what he wanted to say. He got up, went to his typewriter and wrote a short message. The next morning, he recorded the message and pressed it on a record. The message contained the most valuable information Earl had ever learned—a conclusion of truth that he had searched for and found in every book he’d ever read since he was a child of nine. Of course, he hadn’t recognized this … truth, during those long years of self-education, because he had been looking for something else—the answer to the question he had asked his mother when he was little, why they were so poor, and what made people turn out the way they do.

His enlightenment had come when he was 29, while working at CBS. He happened to be reading, Think and Grow Rich, when he read the words, “we become what we think about.” Suddenly, like a bolt out of the blue, he realized that he had been reading the same truth over and over again, from the New Testament, in the sayings of Buddha, in the writings of Lao Tse, to the works of Emerson. “We become what we think about.” “As ye sow, so shall ye reap.”

The Strangest SecretSo, it was from this enlightenment that Earl wrote his classic, The Strangest Secret. He said he called it that, because of the irony of it all—that this truth of why we become, whatever it is we become, is no “secret” at all, and therefore, it’s “strange” that we don’t all know about it!

Earl gave the recording to his manager and left on his fishing trip. When he returned, he was amazed at the reaction to the message. Everyone who had heard the record, wanted one for themselves. Earl pressed more records for the salesmen. The salesmen played it, not only for themselves, but for their families and friends, and when the others heard it, they wanted one too.

The Strangest Secret went on to receive a Gold Record—the only recording of its kind to ever go Gold.

Meanwhile, Earl Nightingale’s success as a radio and later television personality continued to grow, as did the demand for him as a speaker. Earl’s radio program, Our Changing World, became the most highly syndicated radio program ever, and was heard across the US, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, South Africa, the Bahamas, 23 countries overseas, as well as the Armed Forces Network.

In 1985, Earl was inducted into The Association of National Broadcasters, Radio Hall of Fame.

During his lifetime, Earl Nightingale wrote and recorded over 7,000 radio programs, 250 audio programs as well as television programs and videos.

In the mid-eighties, Earl wrote his first book, Earl Nightingale’s Greatest Discovery for which he received the Napoleon Hill Gold Medal for Literary Excellency.

Today, Earl Nightingale is remembered as the greatest philosopher of his time, and his best-selling programs and books continue to sell daily, and inspire new generations around the world, to reach their highest potential.

Here are some examples of Earl’s wisdom that will live on for decades to come:

  • The mind moves in the direction of our currently dominant thoughts.
  • We become what we think about.
  • We tend to live up to our expectations.
  • The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else. Job Security is gone. The driving force of a career must come from the individual. Remember: Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career.
  • Whatever we plant in our subconscious mind and nourish with repetition and emotion will one day become a reality.
  • You are, at this moment, standing, right in the middle of your own “acres of diamonds.”
  • Everything in the world we want to do or get done, we must do with and through people.
  • People are where they are because that is exactly where they really want to be—whether they will admit that or not.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Stark Reality Returns

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Just got in from a long flight cross country and a tedious drive home from the airport. It’s after midnight which is my most productive time of the day. Therefore, after grabbing a late snack, I tackled my phone messages and e-mails which have accumulated in my absence. I had an e-mail from a colleague updating me on his recent success in utilizing a Tom Peters strategy I wrote about a few months ago. He admitted he initially had little faith in the simplistic approach but was amazed in his final results.

If you’d like to learn more about Tom, his unique strategy, his web site, and a quick review of the first 14 challenges, go to A Taste of Stark Reality. You, too, will discover the powerful results of a simple approach overlooked by the majority of your competition.

In his article, “TOP 50 HAVE YOUS,” he challenges readers to attempt some very basic actions which, if done, will absolutely improve your “competitive position” in today’s challenging environment.

I’ve added a number of challenges to the original 14 I shared in the previous article. Tom’s TOP 50 suggestions can and will make a difference if properly applied. Read them over. Share them with your staff. Discuss them in depth. Determine what it would take to execute each. Speculate as to what benefits might evolve. Identify and eliminate any barriers to execution. Take action. It all comes down to the closure of that ever-present “knowing-doing gap.”

  • HAVE YOU thanked a frontline employee for a small act of helpfulness … in the last three hours?
  • HAVE YOU thanked a frontline employee for carrying around a great attitude … today?
  • HAVE YOU, in the last week, recognized—publicly—one of your folks for a small act of cross-functional cooperation?
  • HAVE YOU personally, in the last week-month, called-visited an internal or external customer to sort out, inquire, or apologize for some little or big thing that went awry? (No reason for doing so? If true—in your mind—then you’re more out of touch than I dared imagine.)
  • HAVE YOU, in the last two days, had a chat with someone (a couple of levels down?) about specific deadlines concerning a project’s next steps … and what specifically you can do to remove a hurdle? (“Ninety percent of what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to get things done.” —Peter “His eminence” Drucker)
  • HAVE YOU, in the last six months, had a week-long, visible, very intensive visit “tour” of external customers?
  • HAVE YOU, in the last two hours, … stopped by someone’s (two-levels “down”) office-workspace for 5 minutes to ask “What do you think?” about an issue that arose at a more or less just completed meeting? (And then stuck around for 10 or so minutes to listen—and visibly taken notes.)
  • HAVE YOU, in the last two weeks, had an informal meeting at least an hour long-with a frontline employee to discuss things we do right, things we do wrong, what it would take to meet your mid- to long-term aspirations?
  • HAVE YOU had, in the last year, a one-day, intense off-site with each (?) of your internal customers, followed by a big celebration of “things gone right”?
  • HAVE YOU, in the last week, pushed someone to do some family thing that you fear might be overwhelmed by deadline pressure?
  • HAVE YOU, in the last 4 hours, injected into a meeting “I ran across this interesting idea in [strange place]”?
  • HAVE YOU examined in detail (hour by hour) your calendar to evaluate the degree “time actually spent” mirrors your “espoused priorities”? (And repeated this exercise with everyone on the team.)
  • HAVE YOU, in the last two months, had a presentation to the group of a cool, beyond-our-industry ideas by two of your folks?
  • HAVE YOU, at every meeting today (and forevermore), had an end-of-meeting discussion on “action items to be dealt with in the next 4 or 48 hours? (And then made this list public and followed up in 48 hours.) And made sure everyone has at least one such item.)

Don’t try to do all of the above at once. Pick one of these items that you do by yourself in the next 4-48 hours.

Upon successful completion, revisit the list and choose a few more strategies.

Use the list as the trigger for an ongoing discussion.

As a team, pick two long-term and three short-term ideas.

Even more importantly, visit Tom’s website and take advantage of the remaining 22 actions for continued success and achievement.

While these “HAVE YOUS” appear to be simple and basic … the STARK REALITY is that few of them are utilized to their fullest potential.

We KNOW these things … We seldom DO these things. Close the knowing-doing gap!

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Pay It Forward

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Politicians aren’t the most popular people in the country these days. I know they don’t put a smile on my face and the majority of them, on both sides of the aisle, have lost my respect. CEOs are having a rough time of it lately as well. Outrage seems to be brewing more and more everyday with news of scandalous executive bonuses hitting the headlines at a time when so many organizations are failing, layoffs and job losses are increasing, and citizens from coast to coast are losing their homes. Corporate CEOs aren’t exactly the most popular people in America these days. It must be increasingly lonely at the top. And for good reason.

However, just when you think it can’t get much worse, you come across a situation that restores your faith and makes you realize there are good people out there. If you look long enough and hard enough you can find them. It’s just a shame that it’s that difficult.

Jack Windolf, CEO of Bollinger Insurance in New Jersey, recently received $500,000 in deferred compensation when he sold 51% of the company last year. Faced with the option of hoarding more than a half a million dollars, he chose instead to distribute it among all those responsible for his company’s success. He gave each of his 434 employees a $1,000 bonus check conveying a belief that his workers add value to the company and deserve to share in that value.

While the scope of Windolf’s own economic stimulus program isn’t as big as President Obama’s $787 billion, it’s giving a boost to hundreds of people. What is truly impressive is that these bonuses didn’t come from company coffers or the pockets of taxpayers … they came from the CEOs own pocket.

Windolf called the bonuses “a mini-economic stimulus package,” and his only request was that the employees spend the money to help the weak economy and indulge themselves a little.

“We encourage them to spend it. We hope they can help jump start the economy,” Windolf said. “I like it when they spend on themselves rather than pay bills.”

While it’s true that $1,000 doesn’t go very far in today’s economy, each of those 434 employees now has additional funds to help them cope with their individual financial challenges. You can bet that the respect Windolf has shown his workers is sure to yield huge dividends.

Obviously, there are bosses out there who do care and want the best for their workers. Maybe other CEOs should take note.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

The Times They Are A-Changin’

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The title of this article was first the title of a 1963 best-selling record album by an artist named Robert Allen Zimmerman who recorded and performed as Bob Dylan. Today, this 68-year-old veteran is the proud creator of Billboard’s #1 album, Together Through Life, topping even the sales of the world-renowned 17-year-old millionaire singer, dancer, actress and author Miley Cyrus who often records and performs under the name Hannah Montana. Bob apparently is right on target with his message that “The Times They are a-Changin’!”

The lyrics of changing times go back even further than Dylan and his ballads and will inspire future music creations for centuries to come. We’d best wake up to that fact, examine current changes as well as the impact of those changes, and take the necessary action to adapt to those changes.

Artists such as Dylan are still topping the charts decades after their initial fame for the simple reason that they have changed with the times. Can the same be said of you and your organization? It’s actually less challenging to count the number of organizations and individuals who did NOT change when they should have and, as a result, have since disappeared. What does the future hold for you?

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Engagement + Execution = EDGE (E + E = E)

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At any given time there are several business trends emerging within the business community. This has been going on for what seems like forever. Many have passed the test of time and are still being utilized by organizations large and small. The following list includes just a sample of those strategies available today.

  • JIT
  • MBO
  • PIMS
  • Kaizen
  • 6-Sigma
  • Gap Analysis
  • ISO Strategies
  • Reengineering
  • Empowerment
  • Bench-marking
  • Quality Circles
  • Psychographics
  • Strategic Alliances
  • Pay-4-Performance
  • Core Competencies
  • Cycle Time Reduction
  • Horizontal Organizations

In the ever-growing quest for excellence, new strategies are constantly being formulated as a result of continual efforts. Based on current trends, emerging studies, and an array of recently published books, two powerful strategies are currently gaining recognition across industries. However, neither are new. While both have been around for a while, neither have enjoyed acceptance or support until just recently. In spite of that fact, be prepared to see and hear a great deal more about Engagement and Execution as they have both recently demonstrated great success for those who have successfully implemented them.

Effective employee Engagement and consistent Execution can and will provide the sustainable EDGE all organizations seek during today’s chaotic business environment. We’ve been providing articles on both strategies and will continue to do so as we strive to assist our clients and readers Achieve the Maximum®.

If you’re a regular reader of our blog, you’re probably familiar with our many references to the need to close the knowing-doing gap. This action is, in essence, the focus on Execution.

Engagement can best be summed up by a quote from Control Your Destiny or Someone Else Will. Jack Welch, himself, attempts a final explanation of what’s really needed for success:

“I think any company that’s trying to play in this generation has got to find a way to engage the mind of every single employee. Whether we make our way successfully down this road is something only time will tell—but I’m sure this is the right road. If you’re not thinking all the time about making every person more valuable, you don’t have a chance! What’s the alternative? Wasted minds? Uninvolved people? A labor force that’s angry or bored? That doesn’t make sense! If you’ve got a better way, show me! I’d love to know what it is!”

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Persistence in Turbulent Times

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You can’t pick up a newspaper or surf your television channels without being told how tough times are today. We’re also told to expect it to get worse before it gets better. That’s always encouraging.

These tough times have happened before—many times throughout history. You can bet they’ll happen again and again in the future. Those who are wise learn from the past—others are destined to repeat the past until they do learn.

What are some of the basic lessons we’ve learned from past turbulent times? There are many to be sure and we must choose those which best meet our needs and circumstances.

History mentions many:

  • Research
  • Network
  • Create
  • Innovate
  • Change
  • Never give up
  • Try, try again
  • Take one step at a time
  • Keep moving forward
  • … and probably most important, Be persistent.

Here’s a perfect example. Theodore Geisel’s first book was turned down by 28 publishers before Vanguard finally accepted it. After that Geisel went on to write 46 other books including two you’re sure to recognize: The Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham. We know Theodore Geisel, of course, by his pen name: Dr. Seuss. His world-renowned stories inspired a line of clothing, television specials, movies, many toys, Halloween costumes, furniture, games, puzzles, a web site, etc. What if he hadn’t been persistent during any of those 28 rejections?

Geisel’s not the only author who learned the value of persistence. Each of the following famous novels was originally rejected by publishers. Most went on to be filmed for the big screen.

  • The Time Machine (H.G. Wells)
  • Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (J.K. Rowling)
  • The Good Earth (Pearl Buck)
  • Moby-Dick (Herman Melville)
  • The Naked and the Dead (Norman Mailer)
  • Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
  • A Time to Kill (John Grisham)
  • The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (John LeCarre)
  • Animal Farm (George Orwell)
  • Lord of the Flies (William Golding)

Tough Times Never Last, But Tough People Do!Examples abound from all walks of life. The common thread? Persistence.

Thomas Edison said: “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

Robert Schuller said: “Tough times never last, but tough people do!”

Be persistent!

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Creative Minds Borrow to Succeed (Cows, Cars and Motown Music)

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In our creativity keynote presentation “Tennis Shoes & Blue Jeans” (Back-to-the-Basics Approach to Creativity and Innovation),we share an interesting anecdote that decisively confirms the point that creative ideas aren’t always original.

Each and every person reading this article has been the benefactor of two very creative minds who knew how to borrow, tweak and succeed in such successful ways that the entire world has been impacted. Sadly, far too few people are aware of these historically documented facts.

Many are aware of the fact that Henry Ford developed the “assembly line” and, in doing so, changed the face of manufacturing forever. Or did he? It’s true that Henry developed the automobile assembly line, but where did his idea actually come from? You may be surprised.

The honorable Mr. Ford never hid the fact that his inspiration for assembly-line production came from a visit he made as a young man to a Chicago slaughterhouse! In his autobiography, My Life and Work (1922), Ford revealed that he studied the stock-yards “disassembly line” and simply reversed the procedure. Chicago packers used an overhead trolley in the process of dressing beef. Watching this activity led Ford to the division-of-labor principle he would later adopt to produce automobiles.

The slaughtered animals, suspended upside down from a moving chain, or conveyor, would pass from workman to workman, each of whom would perform some particular step in the process. The workmen were forced to conform to the pace and requirements set by the assembly line itself, producing a higher level of quality, more continuity, and a reduction in the time required to complete the process. If it worked with carcasses, it could work with cars. The rest is history.

Let’s fast forward from 1908 to 1959. A man by the name of Berry Gordy, working on the production line at Ford Motor Co. in Detroit, borrows this novel concept to create a proven method of producing hit music as well as hit stars.

Gordy founded Motown Records in a very modest wood-frame house in the middle class residential neighborhood in mid-town Detroit. He lived upstairs and converted the garage into a studio and called it “Hitsville, USA.” Today that same house is now a Motown museum.

Note the similarities between the Ford assembly line and the Magic of Motown music:

  • All the songs were written in standardized format by a team of in-house songwriters.
  • The same in-house band, The Funk Brothers, provided the same distinctive Motown rhythm for every hit.
  • The same choreographers familiarized every artist with the characteristic Motown dance moves.
  • The skilled team of make-up artists created the same Motown look for each performer.
  • The same wardrobe staff made certain that every performer hit the stage in that very unique Motown finery.

Whether we realized it or not, as an audience, we had that very comfortable feeling of deja vu every time a Motown performer graced the stage. Little did we know that feeling had been engineered as precisely as Ford Mustang. As Ford produced its classic car models, Motown, too, created classics that will live on in the hearts of music lovers forever … The Supremes, The Temptations, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, Martha & the Vandellas, Marvin Gaye, Diane Ross, Mary Wells, Stevie Wonder, The Contours, The Marvelettes, The Ruffin Brothers (Jimmy and David), The Four Tops, The Isley Brothers, Gladys Knight & the Pips, The Jackson Five, The Commodores, Lionel Richie, and the list goes on and on.

Henry Ford borrowed from the meat-packers. Berry Gordy borrowed from Henry Ford. No one lost. Everyone gained.

Who will you borrow from? Keep your eyes peeled and your mind open. As you view life around you, consider how it can be “tweaked” for other uses and benefits. Consider the two examples above and how they, simplistic as they were, changed the entire world as we knew it. You, too, have that potential.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

See It to Believe It!

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In this series, we’ve focused on people, products, organizations and trends which, for one reason or another, have disappeared from the environment they were once so much a part of. We have also predicted those which will more than likely disappear in the very near future.

This time we’re going to provide you with a few resources that can accomplish a couple of things for you:

  1. Provide you with some fond memories you may have forgotten altogether.
  2. Enhance communication skills between generations.
  3. Reveal just how much things have really changed.
  4. Prove the point that while visuals are key to communication, they can also actually make explanations even more difficult to explain.

For the first time in American history, we are faced with the challenge of having four generations working together in the work place. This, of course, presents a major communication challenge which few seem to want to acknowledge. That challenge arises due to opposing environments, traditions, societies, etc. This exercise will demonstrate, in no uncertain terms, how difficult it can be to communicate with a generation other than your own.

Sit with a child or grandchild and attempt to explain each of the following graphics. Keep a close eye on facial expressions and questions which may be asked as a result of your explanation. Let’s get started.

With this first graphic, note that you’ll have to explain not only the spindle itself but the 45 in which it was inserted.

45 rpm spindles

To explain the next graphic, you may want to start by explaining why you need a key for a roller skate as you’ll be talking to someone who has only known rollerblades.

Roller-skate keys

Here you’ll want to explain how much gum had to be chewed to create this necklace, how you folded and connected the pieces and why you couldn’t find anything better to do with your time!

Gum-wrapper chains

You’re going to struggle with this one as you’ll have to explain why, how, and when it was used, which may also lead to explaining how we only had three networks, a few channels, an antenna on top of our house, and the fact that we actually had to walk over to our TV set in order to change channels and turn it on and off.

TV Test patterns

You’ll soon realize how difficult it is to explain that these signs lined our highways from coast to coast with 7,000 different sayings. Click on this link for more history and examples of sayings.  And don’t forget to explain what Burma Shave was.

Burma Shave signs

Try to keep a straight face as you explain how we used to dry our clothes by feeding them through this contraption. Explain that it was also a method of enhancing our biceps which was one of our first ways of multitasking.

Washtub wringers

You may not want to admit that anyone in your family practiced this favorite tradition. However, if you do, explain how and where we got the stamps, how we licked them for hour after hour in order to place them in books, what we traded them in for, and how many boxes of books it took to get the simplest of prizes. Don’t forget to mention Blue Chip Stamps, Gold Bell Stamps, Top Value Stamps, Gold Bond Stamps and Plaid Stamps.

S & H Green Stamps

Try to explain how you attached these to your camera, how they blinded everyone in the room where the picture was being taken, and how easily they burned your hands when you ejected them from the camera.

Flash bulbs

Realizing that you’re talking to someone who takes pictures with a cell and downloads them onto a computer, try to explain what this box is and why we called it Brownie. Be sure to point out that we could get our pictures developed within ten days of snapping them. Point out that you had to wait until the entire roll of film was used and then explain what a roll of film was.

Brownie camera

Don’t even attempt to explain this one. They’ll never believe it.

Penny candy

This one might be even more difficult for them to believe.

15-cent McDonald’s hamburgers

Last, but not least, when explaining how this contraption works and how you stored the cubes after their release, remember that you’re talking to a generation that gets their ice cubes by pushing the button on the doors—and they can get them crushed or cubed.

Metal ice-cube trays with levers

Hopefully, this exercise has illustrated why it’s so difficult to communicate between just two generations. Now consider the fact that we’re dealing with four generations in today’s workplace. Strive for empathy and understanding in dealing with this very real challenge. By the way, it was probably kind of fun attempting this experience, wasn’t it? … regardless of the quizzical looks you had to deal with.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Size Does Matter!

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I live in Michigan, and everyone in the country knows we’re struggling at the moment in a number of crucial areas.

  • Michigan has a 12% unemployment rate.
  • Michigan is second in the nation when it comes to job cuts (California is first.)
  • According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Michigan is losing more residents than any state in the nation.
  • If the master minds in Washington, D.C. get their way, our Big Three Automakers (GM, Ford, and Chrysler) will soon be replaced by Tonka, Matchbox, and Hot Wheels.

Enough of all that. I’m sure I could go on and on about our challenges in the Great Lakes State, but national media outlets are doing too much of that at the moment. You seldom hear anything about why so many Michiganians (Michiganders or Michiganites) are still here and will probably never leave. I’ll skip the travelogue and get right to the point.

Size Does Matter!

It’s getting to be that time of the year again when the call of cracking bats and peanut vendors once again fill the air. Michigan also boasts several minor league baseball teams who happen to play in beautiful, state-of-the-art, high-tech, baseball stadiums.

One of those stadiums is Fifth Third Ballpark located in Comstock Park, Michigan, just north of Grand Rapids. The stadium is home to the West Michigan Whitecaps, a professional minor league baseball team and class A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. It currently has a seating capacity of 11,123. Don’t forget that number.

If they have their way, the West Michigan Whitecaps may soon replace the traditional hot dogs, peanuts and beer usually found in every stadium. They’ve added a menu item they have dubbed the Fifth Third Burger. Wait a minute—this isn’t your typical burger.

It starts with an 8-inch sesame seed bun that requires 1 pound of dough and is made specially for the Whitecaps by a local baking company. Then spoon on nearly a cup of chili and place five one-third pound hamburger patties on top of that. (Get it, 5/3 pounds of beef for the Fifth Third Burger?) Add five slices of American cheese and liberal doses of salsa, nacho cheese and Fritos. Top it off with lettuce, tomato and sour cream, and you have a burger that can be sliced with a pizza cutter and feed four people for $20. Jalapeños are optional. Now consider that price tag when you remember that the stadium seats 11,123. Great financial potential!

In addition to more than 4,800 calories—potentially the most caloric item ever offered at a ballpark—the Fifth Third Burger contains nearly 300 grams of fat, 744 milligrams of cholesterol and more than 10,000 milligrams of sodium. The smell alone might be 25 calories.

The Whitecaps might want to consider the potential of offering Pepto-Bismol, Rolaids, Tums, Pepcid and Maalox at their concession stands as well. This may be the real gold mine.

Here you see the giant burger compared to a McDonald’s Cheeseburger. If a single person can consume the entire 4-pound finished product in one sitting, the team plans to give him or her a special T-shirt.

The team’s Fifth Third Burger was recently featured on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” and NBC’s “The Today Show.”

Maybe this article should have been filed in our “Out-of-the-Box Thinking” category as the creative minds in Grand Rapids seem to have a knack at producing mind-boggling and stomach churning specials such as:

  • deep-fried Twinkies
  • deep-fried Pepsi
  • entire turkey drumsticks
  • frozen bananas dipped in chocolate
  • sandwiches utilizing such potential ingredients as cactus, sausage gravy, Spam, fried eggs and grape jelly. Fortunately, not all on one sandwich.

However, they’re going to have to go overboard to top the Fifth Third Burger.

What were they thinking?

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.