Blog Post: It’s All Attitude!

As my puppy grew, we became locked companions. Wherever I went, he was with me. He was my protector, my defender, my friend. As he grew up he learned there are things in life that you don’t want to bother, such as skunks. Yes, because we lived in the country, we had all kinds of wildlife, including skunks along with bobcats, wild turkeys, raccoons, possums, you name and we had it. Hey, we’re talking the 50’s ok? I’m probably mentioning names you never heard of!

Up until now, Poncho ruled the yard. Turkey…no problem. I saw that dog hit a wild turkey broadside and walk away, so did the turkey. It was a mission of conquer and destroy. Poncho had the attitude that he ruled the yard. Heck with “yard”, he ruled about three acres! One night Poncho decided to target a skunk. Yes, he ran as fast as he could, and hit the skunk broadside. Poncho rolled the skunk; the skunk reacted and sprayed Poncho. And there he was. He stunk let alone the stinch was causing him to weep. What a blow to Poncho’s self esteem! Can you imagine? The prey outwitted the predator. Oh my! And it got worse! The only cure for skunk spray was a bath in tomatoes. Seems the tomatoes neutralized the skunk stinch. Worse yet, imagine you bathing the stinking dog! I did it and don’t regret it. We were partners, in it together.

It didn’t take Poncho but one hit on the skunk to realize some things in life you don’t won’t to bother with. And you could only count on your partner to help you get threw it.

Is that the same with business these days? How many businesses bring all the employees together to talk about hitting the skunk and what shall we do? The employees have more insight in the business than the business owners. Sorry, but you may own the business, but the employees are actually running your business. Give the employees a direction that you want to go, and turn them loose. You would be surprised at the results. They don’t want to loose their jobs let alone a fellow employee.

I remember a preacher giving a sermon and his topic was “get off the ass and get into the ditch”. Stop, stay calm, we’re talking about a donkey, aka jackass, legal name. But the bottom line is what he said; get in the ditch with the other folks and you will find out what’s going on and how to handle it. Unless you’re in the ditch, you don’t know what’s going on. It all starts from the top. Unless the top jumps into the ditch, how can you expect the others to follow? You can’t ask them to go where you refuse to go. You will be astounded how the others react when they see you jumping into the ditch. Ford, Continental, Southwest, Chevrolet, you name it. The top sets the standard. If the employees see the sacrifice or aggressiveness from the top, they will notice. Lead, follow or get out of my way. It’s your choice. It’s all attitude!