'Wired' for Planet Saving!

         

 

 

                                                                                       Edition 305 Tuesday 27/10/2015

 

 

 

 

 

Hi,I should have known better,really what was I thinking?.....to recommend to my devoted dog loving wife that we watch ‘Marley and Me’ a tear jerker movie about a dog and a happy family!!Sure it starts out ok with the dog being nothing but a pain and a nuisance (like our three at times!). Then slowly but tactfully and  surely Marley the dog becomes a vibrant,rich and inseparable part of the family tapestry.This is a  story of love, forgiveness,affection and importantly…family as we are reminded of the unconditional nature of our pets devotion to us as their guardians.I say guardians because they are here for such a short time in the overall scheme of things and it is up to us to make sure their stay is a safe and happy one!...we owe them that.Well what a scene in our living room with Christine sobbing uncontrollably and me not far behind.Yes it was only a movie but it had a powerful message for me who has been known to be a bit grumpy with our three at times.I am pleased to say it was a timely wake up call for me to appreciate Harry and the Hendersons a bit more for the important part they play in our family.The reality is they wont be here forever but my guilt and regret will be!!!

Fletcher says; there needs to some rules of engagement around golf ball hunting before we come to blows on dog walks beside the local course.He is suggesting a 1/3-1/3-1/3 split of profits from resale between father/son/local donation (fire brigade/surf club). Crikey I knew I should have kept that little money making scheme to myself!! FJJ also excited about flying for the first time to Queenstown this coming week!!....remember son, windows don’t open!

Not sure I have one more nailbiting footy game in me but hope Richie and the boys in Black have as we go down to the wire with the Aussies this coming weekend…….GO THE ALL BLACKS !!!!!!!!

Upbeat goes ‘on the road’ to Queenstown this week…..watch this space.

I hope you are having fun whatever you are up to,take care,have a good one.….……Cheers Jonesey!

 

Harry and the Hendersons reckon everyone needs a ‘Marley and Me’ moment J !!!

 

 

"We are living in a revolutionary age and we must adapt." Thomas Jefferson

 

I had a paradigm shift in thinking last week related to a ‘tool of trade’ I take for granted.

The ‘company car’ is a work related benefit I have enjoyed for the majority of my working career. I remember with affection every car I have had responsibility for across the variety of roles I have had.

I remember the excitement of the first Mark 3 Ford Cortinas I drove then the Mark 4 station wagons I did thousands of km in up and down the country with hundreds of garments swinging on a rack from side to side.Then there was the Cortina Morph into the Telstar range and the Telstar morph into the Mondeo range all compliments of Henry Ford. I will never forget the move into the Falcon range as a Sales Manager at John Andrew Ford and my first experience of a V8 drive car (I loved my XR 8)!

Then into the SUV and unbelievably my first automatic! in my first Honda CRV  but soon back to Ford into an Escape and onto a Nissan Pathfinder all of which I never had in 4x4 mode (haha). Then back into a senior management Ford Fairmont (I thought I was pretty cool in that J). Then my first diesel another Ford Mondeo which I wrote off and now the diesel Ssang Yong Korando my first branded car which I did my best to write off (both accidentally of course).

So thirty five plus years of company car driving, hundreds of thousands of km , a couple of lucky escapes and a branded green gorilla later I come back to last weeks paradigm shift……………

Ladies and Gentlemen introducing the new Nissan leaf EV (electric vehicle) with a range of 170km per charge we have taken delivery of our first three EV’s. I would have never thought but we have and we are leading the way for environmentally responsible companies to follow our bold example.Quiet, smooth and carbon free they are the future of motoring as we know it….the power be with you !!!!!!

 

"It is our collective and individual responsibility… to preserve and tend to the environment in which we all live." Dalai Lama

Infectious positivity!

 

 

                                                                                       Edition 304 Monday 19/10/2015

 

 

 

 

 

Hi,I remember my Dad getting me up in the wee small hours of the morning to watch the All Blacks playing live on the other side of the world!I am sure there are many of us revsiting these memories in the last few weeks as the RWC 2015 action unfolds live from the UK.There is nothing like watching the All Blacks live no matter how old you are.Replays are fairweather folly but live is grass roots boys own action.From the raw emotion of the national anthem and the haka through to flying horizontal into  every ruck,lifting and stretching at every lineout,grunting at scrumtime through to laying life and limb on the line there is nothing like being there live on the couch playing our part.

Crikey it is exciting/emotional and for me it does matter so Im going for it.I do,however,respect the views and opinions of those for whom it isnt such a big deal but I bet even you guys and girls are at least slightly/mildly affected in a positive way…..hope so anyway!!...positivity is infectious!!
Fletcher says; “go away Dad”when he is so rudely awoken at 3.45am to watch Wales v South Africa??….ok so he wont have fond memories of that particular time in 2015!Pretty cool playing lounge test match rugby with Dad at half time in the later game though!...he has a mean fend off in the early stages of development!!

Bring on semi-finals weekend at 48 on the big screen!

I hope you are enjoying life whatever you are up to, take care have a good one.….……Cheers Jonesey!

 

Harry and the Hendersons reckon all said and done…..Rugby will be the winner!!! J

 

 

“I am too positive to be doubtful,too optimistic to be fearful and too determined to be defeated.” Larry Ellison

 

Positive people generate an infectious aura around them.

We need to surround ourselves with positive people.

Seems straight forward but not always easy to do because of the negativity that confronts us daily.

Positive people outlast the cynics and the tall poppy cutters.

I was lucky enough to spend time with a number of positive people recently which inspired me!

These were optimists who saw opportunity rather than pessimistic doom or failure whilst looking at the same situations.

To these refreshingly different individuals there is no such thing as difficulties,instead they see them as opportunities and set about solving these with innovative yet simple ideas.

One guy I met even announced to multi levels of Management in a Board presentation I was in with him that he welcomed problems because most people didn’t like them so he had built his business out of embracing and solving them!

WOW….what a simple business strategy for success…welcome and solve problems vs ignoring them and having them escalate.

So the advice from the optimists is to rise above the pessimists and to stay positive whilst persevering with innovation and solving problems others have filed in the too hard basket!

One simple thing I did and you can too is to treat every contact you have internal or external as an opportunity to add value either by solving a problem or meeting a need.

I am constantly amazed how many people don’t do this and instead they think the worst every time the phone goes or an email appears…..you simply cant afford to do that!

So your mission in the coming week (should you decide to accept it) is to add a positive person to your network and to solve some problems rather than create some for others!!! Go for it !!!

 

“Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.” Colin Powell

Rats and mice!

         

 

 

                                                                                       Edition 303 Monday 12/10/2015

 

 

 

 

 

Hi,pride is something we all feel but if you are like me you probably don’t show it enough.Pride in ourselves,pride in others,pride in a uniform needs to be expressed and acknowledged.As Kiwis we are typically humble and tend to let our pride fly under the radar a little more than we should.So I am officially breaking the mold and announcing how proud I was of my wife Christine last weekend for helping organise and partcipating in our local volunteer fire brigades 50^th anniversary and open day celebrations! I think it is important to shout stuff like this from the roof tops and to make sure the people closest to you know exactly how you feel!Your mission is to tell someone how proud you are of them in the coming week…….it will make you and them feel awesome! Just do it!!

Fletcher says; the best thing about the Fire Brigade open day was definitely the bouncy castle closely followed by squirting his Father with a high pressure fire fighting hose! (attached).

The pitter patter of tiny feet is normally something to celebrate unless of course they are of the rodent variety!We have had several furry families attempting to move into #48 this winter and have managed to repel them by laying baits regularly.The unpleasant downside is the smell eminating from the ceiling for a week or two after each eradication campaign.The shallow cavity between our ceiling and our roof is such that we are unable to remove before the decomposition stage!!!I have  developed a brief explanation script for visitors to warn them……that’s life in the country folks!!

Its business end time at RWC 2015 and I cant wait for next weekends quarter finals where the top teams in the world will go head to head….ruggers heaven,it doesn’t get any better…GO ALL BLACKS !!

I hope you are enjoying life whatever you are up to, take care have a good one.….……Cheers Jonesey!

 

Harry and the Hendersons reckoned they would never say it but perhaps we need a cat?

 

 

“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.” Mark Twain

 

I love buying and wearing something new.

It always makes me feel good and that gives me confidence and I reckon people I meet react positively to me if I look and feel a million bucks.

I was lucky enough to discover a scooby doo deal on a suit (new not recycled J) recently the wearing of which happened to coincide with me closing a couple of good deals!

I felt great and I reckon the threads made me look and feel successful which is exactly what happened.

It is easy to get complacent about how you look and what you wear but the reality is that it matters!

Taking time over your appearance is essential if you want to project the right image no matter what you do.

I remember many years ago I bought a a pre loved Armani suit at a Primary School jumble sale for $15.

It was navy and could have been tailored for me it fitted so well and looked amazing……how do I know….well apart from my own opinion it was also the opinion of everyone I met in that suit.It was a suit with X factor and with me in it there was no stopping the deals from flowing inJ.

Maybe it wasn’t that good but it seemed it and I cherished the opportunities to wear that suit because together we were winners!

I also had a Pierre Cardin double breasted blazer (new) of epic Fleet Admiral proportion and it looked and made me feel like royalty…….yes clothes, accessories and grooming are a critical success factor.

Speaking of accessories the recent coup de gras for me is definitely the wooden eco watch equally at home with suits and casual attire and more of a talking point than a Tag or Rolex would ever be !!

Yes perception is everything so always be on the look out for the X factor edition to your wardrobe!!!

 

“Clothing is the first step to building a character.”  Sylvester Stallone