"Family first Bro"

                                                      

Edition 103  Monday 15th August 2011

Hi, crikey snow predicted on the Bombays, ice, sleet and hail at the beach, time to hunker down against the crazy elements gone mad ! Just the time NOT to run low on firewood so a mercy pinecone mission to the forest was launched. An elite squad of collectors was assembled to gather the close and free source of fuel however one problem quickly emerged…as fast as the cones were gathered they were munched by squad members Harry, Kate and Oscar . No one told them it wasn’t a game !

The local and global weather isnt the only thing that is upside down at the moment as we continue to be bombarded with negative financial and social news locally and globally,the world needs time out!

I find the secret to staying ‘upbeat’ and above all the bad news is to focus on the things that are important to me. To this end we made the effort to make a long overdue visit on the weekend to see and be with family.It was cool to stretch the legs of the recently neglected Suzuki Retro rocket ship and to have a laugh and some happy family time.

Staying with the family theme we also treated the ‘canine kids’ to a ‘nose to tail’ groom with all the trimmings. I combed enough hair out of Harrys winter coat to make him another one ! Suffice to say we had the sweetest smelling truck on the way home with three squeaky clean hounds fast asleep in the back. Simple this family stuff , makes you feel good too…….so why don’t we do it more?, a question I often end up asking myself and one I shouldn’t have to…..note to self, family first bro!

I hope you all had a good weekend with family and friends and if you didn’t then you need to plan to make some time to next week. Don’t be left regretting you didn’t, refer family message above.

Have a great week ahead, cheers Jonesey.

Harry the pinecone munching hairy beast was a pussycat at ‘nose to tail’ under the warm running water, luxurious organic shampoo and warm blow drier!, you are a star bro !

“We don’t believe we have staff members; we have business ‘family’.” David Norman

This quote came from a recent speech by David Norman who along with his wife Anne presides over a group of companies ecompassing nine brands, 650 retail outlets and 10,000 employees in Australia and New Zealand. They own the Pascoe Group which includes iconic brands such as Farmers, Pascoes, Stevens and Whitcoulls amongst others. His speech was given at the couples recent induction into the New Zealand Business Hall of Fame.

This information was taken from an article in the business section of one of the weekend papers. It took my eye because it talked about the importance of family just as I have done this weekend. It was also a motivational piece about a success story that inspired me.

The Normans clearly identified early in their business careers the key to their success would be determined by the quality and calibre of the people they employed. That quality and calibre developed through coaching, mentoring and leadership by example. They placed trust in the business family they built around them and they placed the highest importance on earning and keeping the trust of those they worked and associated with.

An inspirational success story about a ‘Westie’ couple who worked hard using simple but sound business principles based on their most valuable asset,the people they employed and developed.

These are the stories I look for in the newspapers bypassing all the doom and gloom referred to earlier. I find no matter how bad things might seem there are always ‘diamonds in the rough’ like the Normans success story that stand out and inspire. The fact that they succeeded in the cut throat ‘retail’ environment was even more sensational. I am glad I made the effort to read this ‘upbeat’ story. My simple message this week is;the end of the world is not nigh, it is a marvellous vibrant and challenging time to do business and we all need to read more upbeat stuff, celebrate others success and keep working hard toward achieving our own. Good luck, go for it.

“Trust is the emotional glue that binds ‘business families’ together” David Norman