BNGIowa

Traditions Connect Us

2010-12-15T12:55:41-06:00

There is a lot of technology to connect us. But the best connections, I think, are traditions. This is the time of year when traditions are hauled out. Good ones, bad ones, silly ones...

There is just nothing techy about hanging a favorite ornament on the Christmas tree and telling the story behind it. Or eating a family favorite dish and remembering the past dinners together. The connections created are human and cannot be duplicated by technology.

When I married into my husband's family, I was assigned a dish to bring to Christmas dinner. I later expanded the responsibility to Thanksgiving. This year, our group for Thanksgiving dinner was small. I didn't make my specialty. Dinner, and more importantly leftovers, just wasn't the same.

It wasn't only a food item. It was a tradition. I won't make the same mistake for Christmas.

Don't skip the traditions. And if you don't have traditions, start some. Do it for your family or for your business. The connections from traditions can't be duplicated by a computer.

Here is the recipe for my specialty. Enjoy!

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

2 cups crushed pretzels (put them in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin)
3/4 cup melted margarine
3 Tbsp sugar
8-oz brick of cream cheese
1 cup sugar
2 cup whipped topping (the kind in a tub in the freezer section)
2 boxes of strawberry jello (3-oz size)
2 cup boiling water
Frozen strawberries (a 16oz bag or two 10oz packs, whatever you can find). Thaw the package a little.

Press crushed pretzels mixed with margarine and 3 Tbsp sugar into 9x13 pan. I like to use my metal cake pan because it has a lid. It makes it easy to take to the pot luck. Bake 9 minutes at 350-degrees or 325 for glass pan. Cool. I like to do this step an hour or so before the next step. If you don't plan ahead, then put the pan outside to cool faster. That is if you live someplace with cold weather. It is usually very cold outside when I make this dish. Next, dissolve the jello in boiling water and add the strawberries. Let this mixture congeal in the frig to thicken. Next make the cream cheese layer: Using a mixer, cream the sugar and cream cheese then fold in the whipped topping. To layer it up: Spread the cream cheese layer over the pretzel layer. Make sure to "seal" the edges by spreading all the way around the pan. Spread the jello on top. Refrigerate.

This is a bit fussy to make, but the combination of flavors is really good. I serve it as a fruit salad with dinner but it works as a dessert too.

Fall Checkup: Reliability

2010-11-11T10:04:47-06:00

Have you been told you have high standards? Sometimes the comment is intended as a compliment and sometimes as an insult.

I think those who intend it as an insult are trying to justify their own flaws. There are people who think that when I expect them to do what they promise, I am being unreasonable. If you tell me you are going to do something, and you don't do it, I am going to be disappointed. The seriousness of the promise determines the level of disappointment. I might get downright mad if the broken promise results in strong consequences.

I like to do business with companies that keep their word. I think most people want to do business with companies that keep their word. I wish there was an inspection report that would tell me up front if a company is reliable. Restaurants have health inspections and the score is posted. But for most of our transactions, we only have a promise.

Is it too high a standard to expect you to keep your word? If so, put out a sign so I can stay away from your business. Oh, wait, if you are not reliable then being honest might not be in your repertoire either.

FREE Works

2010-10-16T09:14:02-05:00

Free. Yep, that is a universal attention getter. In response to a postcard, I signed up to receive emails from Amish Haus Furniture. Then, if I just took my postcard to the store, I would get a free Frank Lloyd Wright print. Framed!

What I liked about this promotion was that it started with a postcard. I still think real mail is more personal than electronic communication. I am a huge fan of Wright's design style. I like free stuff. And, I thought the concept was very clever.

Yep, I signed up. I got my framed print, which is lovely, the frame is lovely too. I will now receive the email newsletter enticing me to buy furniture that I will want.

The best part is, I was so impressed, I am writing about the store here. For a second time!

What are you doing to get attention for your business?

Dirty Habit

2010-09-30T10:27:39-05:00

I must confess, I have a dirty habit. It is a good habit, though. I am one of those who wipes down the shower. Every time. Well, not if I am staying at a hotel.

It is an engrained habit. It is also one of the best housekeeping tips I can recommend. I never have to spend hours trying to clean hard water or mildew stains.

It takes about 5 minutes to wipe down the shower. That's a small investment of time for a huge payoff. I really dislike cleaning a dirty shower. The motivation to keep my habit is high.

Since it is a habit, I just do it and never even give it a thought. I am faster and better at than I was when I started. There is no substitute for practice, you know.

What habit can you add to your business that takes 5 minutes a day and offers a huge payoff? Maybe you can prioritize your to-do list and put the most challenging task first. Pick something that will improve your life or your business and make it a habit. I have heard it only takes 21 days to make an action a habit.

Membership Drive Meeting, Tuesday, September 21, 2010, 1pm

2010-09-14T12:42:57-05:00

Are you a small business owner or entrepreneur? Do you want to improve your success and help others do the same? Would you like to meet with others like you?

Business Network Group is ready to welcome new members. If you are interested, please join us on Tuesday, September 21 from 1p to 2pm. We will gather at Panera in the Jordan Creek Mall in West Des Moines.

Our members meet on the first and third Tuesdays of most months. We ask each member to blog at least once every two weeks. Blog posts should relate to the BNG mission.

Check our this site to learn more about BNG, our mission and our current members.

Please rsvp if you want to attend. Contact Barb Gordon, bgordon@myarbonne.com or gordon@dwx.com.

What will you want next?

2010-08-23T14:12:49-05:00

I like to watch Mad Men. The leading man reminds me of old photos of my dad. My dad wore neat suits, white shirts and a skinny tie. He was very dapper. That was the requirement of salesmen back in the day.

I also like to see the way the business people acted (or the way the writers think they acted) back in the day. The way women are portrayed is quite interesting too. On the show last night, one professional woman confessed to wearing a wedding ring even though she wasn't married. She said it kept unwelcome advances at bay. Clever woman.

This post isn't about all that, but that is some interesting things about the TV show for me. This post is about a comment on Mad Men last week. The ad men were using a focus group to test out an idea. The results were not what they hoped for exactly. The head creative said something like: How can they talk about something they don't know is possible.

I really liked that. I can think of many products I have that I didn't know were possible. I love Skype and use it every week to talk to my family in Australia. I used to think mascara was the only way to thicken lashes, but then there was Arbonne lash enhancer. I never thought I would be able to make a photo book so easily, I should have invented that!

So it is important to find out what a customer wants, but just as important to find out what they will want if they know it is possible.

Expectations

2010-08-03T10:11:10-05:00

I remember doing research papers for school homework. Seems like there was one or two due every semester. I was lucky, my family owned an encyclopedia set. I remember my mom bought a book at a time with a grocery purchase until she completed the set. The books made a lovely display on the bookshelf in the hallway by the phone (the one phone and it was corded). I used the books more than the phone. That was what my parents expected, so that is what I did.

Information is available in vast quantities these days. But what about the quality? No one questioned the reliability of the facts published in the old encyclopedia. These days, it is hard to trust any information. Who is writing the stuff online? Anyone can put information online. Even me.

So why do I write for free? Today, I hope to influence someone to be trustworthy and provide quality work. It will make you happy, at least that is what I believe. I guess that is why people are spewing out so much information and communication: We want others to believe as we do.

Trust. Quality. I hope there are still people and companies who value those qualities. I have met too many lately who don't.

Do Opposites Attract?

2010-07-07T11:32:57-05:00

Seeing Sharon Osbourne on America’s Got Talent last night, inspired this blog post. I really like Sharon Osbourne, or at least the person she seems to be on TV. She appears smart, generous and caring and also strong, tough and hard working. As I watched her on TV, I wondered if her marriage is based on the "opposites attract" theory.

If you are a talker, it can be nice to have a friend who is a listener. But if you are adventurous, you probably want a friend who is adventurous too.

In my experience with Arbonne, a network marketing company, I have attended many training meetings. One prominent message is duplication. I show a prospect how I work my Arbonne business and then they do the same with their prospects. The system seems to work best when the prospect is similar to me, not the opposite of me.

Everyone attracts all types of people and for different reasons. Some attractions are about similarities and some are about dissimilarities. Law of Attraction vs. the Opposites Attract theory.

I like my dentist because he is not like me. He is not much of a talker, at least in the office. Generally, I am a talker. But not when I am at the dentist. I don't want to make conversation when I have a drill in my mouth or when my mouth is numb after a procedure.

People can't change is another frequently heard theory. But people can and do change all the time. I change from a talker to a non-talker when I am at the dentist.

What a businessperson needs to know is how and when to change so you attract the right customers. When do you need to be similar to a customer and when do you need to be opposite? To be really successful, you need to make those adaptations sincerely. You need to be multi-faceted in a real way. You can only get away with faking it for so long.

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T09:58:21-05:00

There is a country song about writing a letter to myself." It is a man thinking about what he would have told himself when he was teenager. It is suggesting that if you could go back and give yourself advice, what would you say.

Of course, we don't get to give ourselves advice in the past, only in the present. Lots of other people give us advice in the present too. Parents feel a lot of pressure to offer the correct advice. Society tends to blame parents for the mistakes of their children.

The songwriter seems to be taking responsibility for his own actions. That is a good message.

On this Father's Day, I hope all fathers get hugs and kisses from grateful children. I hope all fathers offer good advice and raise self-reliant children. Society takes at least one day to say thanks. Try to let that offset the other days of blame!

ps: I am enjoying the changing art on the google site, the logo. Today is is neckties. Yikes, I hope most dads don't still get neckties on Father's Day!

I Learned From You

2010-05-30T08:07:39-05:00

Memorial Weekend is more meaningful this year for me. My brother-in-law died last week. He was a WWII veteran. So was my dad. So was my father-in-law. They are gone too. Soon no WWII veterans will be alive. Soon, there will be fewer of their widows to decorate the graves on "decoration day" too. If you go to a cemetery this weekend, you will see the widows. They open the car trunk and take out the red, white and blue flowers. Mostly the flowers are silk so they will last. They have other flowers in the trunk too. Gold ones for fall and yellow ones for summer.

I remember looking at the photos of my dad in his Navy uniform. He was dashing, no doubt about it. I used one photo as reference for an art class assignment. It was a large pen and ink drawing. The black and white contrast of the white uniform against the foliage of Hawaii was perfect for the ink rendering.

I was fortunate to attend a performance of South Pacific, the musical, a few weeks ago. The timing, right before Memorial weekend, was coincidence. It made the event that much more memorable. The themes of discrimination, intolerance and defining freedom to still be around, long after WWII.

My dad and father-in-law and brother-in-law were part of the WWII fight for freedom. They thought freedom meant a man was free to work hard to support his family. And they did. They were all businessmen. They treated their customers honestly and with respect. They sincerely appreciated their customers and let them know it. They valued their work and the opportunity to do it. They were successful and the rewards were well-raised, happy families. Families who miss them terribly.

I think some Americans view freedom as the right to do whatever they choose. Selfishness seems to be what they think freedom means. I hope on this Memorial weekend, some Americans remember that freedom and selfishness are not related. Freedom means responsibility. The veterans know that.