Who’s tougher than you!

Back in the day Tom Manoogian, aka “Lou from Littleton”, was a radio sports talk show personality on the airwaves of Denver and beyond: 

FIFTY THOUSAND WATTS OF POWER! 850 KOA; THE BLOW TORCH!

Lou applied his tag line, “Who’s tougher than…” to sports stories of the day.  Comeback victories; beating the odds; under dogs slaying prohibitive favorites; any and all tales of victory; punctuated by Lou’s, “Who’s tougher than x, y, or z?”  Verbalized with gusto; articulated slowly; every syllable over emphasized:

 WHO’S…TOUGH…ER…THAN YOU!

Lou’s distinctive verbal style originated from Detroit.  Catchy clichés; a Broncos homer; tough on B.S.; soft on his callers (referred to everyone as “cuz” as in cousin).  He saluted competitors every day.  Competition is nothing new:

I’ve been up against tough competition all my life.  I wouldn’t know how to get along without it.

Walt Disney

While Lou was on the air, he made his callers feel so comfortable that they often related personal tales about competing with adversity.  Sports challenges, for sure; but also stories of life’s trials and tribulations.  If the caller’s name was “J.K.” and J.K. had a story to share about overcoming hardship, at the end Lou would always add, “Who’s tougher than J.K.?” as testimony to J.K.’s triumph!

Many of us are enduring misfortunes.  Many have to be tough just to make it to the end of a day; just to make it home; just to make ends meet.  We’re tough enough to get through because we know:

Tough times don’t last; tough people do. 

Mike Shanahan

How do we become tough enough to last?    Here’s a profile offered by AQR International.   

I would add having the right attitude helps.  Perhaps recognizing struggle is part of life is a good mind set.  Associating with the right associates helps get us to the end of a tough day, too:

Stick with the optimists.  It’s going to be tough enough even if they’re right.

James Reston

So, here’s to you and to your tough mindedness.  Here’s to your will power to overcome adversity.  Whether you call into the radio station or not… WHO’S TOUGHER THAN YOU!

GAP

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

 

Luv rules…

Friday is Valentine’s Day!  There’s still time to do something special for that special person.

OK – so I can’t take credit for creating this awesome display of love for my love.  That was someone else’s awesome display along a roadside in western Illinois farming country.  I think my wife will give me credit for a little photo-plagiarism because I know she knows:

Love rules without rules.

Italian Proverb

Who says men are oblivious and have no powers of observation?  OK – so a billboard is hard to miss.  Observing that man’s demonstration of love reminds us all that Friday, no assumptions; no taking her for granted; no obliviousness; no subtleties.  On Valentine’s Day, we must shout our love for our love from the top of the mountains!  Of course, we hope our women do the same for the men in their lives:

You know “That Look” women get when they want sex?  Me neither.

Steve Martin

Friday may be a special day in my marriage, but our relationship over the years has taken constant care (and patience).  Thankfully, my wife has patience:

Patience strengthens the spirit,

   sweetens the temper,

      stifles anger,

    extinguishes envy,

  subdues pride,

bridles the tongue,

   restrains the hand,

      and tramples upon temptation.

George Horne

It’s easier to be patient with the little things, I suppose.   But when times get tough, the most convenient person to argue with and take our frustrations out on is often our partner, true?

I don’t know; are meaningful, loving partnerships easier or harder to find these days?  With everything racing at a break-neck pace, who’s responsible for maintaining a healthy, loving, long-lasting relationship?  Here’s a view from Wyatt Webb:

You are 100 percent responsible for 50 percent of any relationship.

Carrying more than ½ the load you say?  Yep – you and my wife, too.

Thankfully, my wife and I are still in love after all of these years.  We will do something quiet this Valentine’s Day; we enjoy our quiet time together - always have. 

Like you, our conversations will span a variety of topics; children; friends; happy memories; love.  Of course, we will also synchronize our calendars; debate upcoming projects; disagree on priorities; and almost always review our finances.  Yuck!  Necessary I suppose, but not very romantic.

Yet this Valentine’s Day I will be reminded:

A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.

Mignon McLaughlin

So here’s to Valentine’s Day.  May you enjoy it with someone special in your life.  If you’re lucky enough to be in love, may you cherish your quiet time together; sharing common interests; being patient with life’s challenges; relishing the restorative results of romance.

And if you’re with someone but you’re not yet sure if he or she is “the one”, don’t worry – trust your gut feeling: 

Love is not finding someone you can live with; it’s finding someone you cannot live without.

Rafael Ortiz

Love rules without rules on Valentine’s Day – and every day.

GAP

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

 

Awkward…

Ever show up in the wrong attire?  I sure have.  My wife, too.  In kindergarten her Mom dressed her in a Halloween giraffe costume and sent her to school.  Problem was – it was on the wrong “wear your costume to school” day.  Awkward!

Speaking of grade school; picture a 5^th grade boy wearing black; thick-soled; round-toed; wingtip-type; orthopedic shoes to school every day.  That’s what I had to wear when going through a growth spurt that caused excruciating pain in the heels of my feet.  Boy, did I feel awkward.

That feeling out of place feeling can test our limits, for sure.  I bet you’ve experienced your share of awkward moments.  The good news is such experiences help us build a stronger foundation.  Ah yes – that growing up destination known as “confidence”.

Awkward experiences help with the “growing up” part because:

There is both peace and power in knowing and understanding who you are, where you're from and where you're going.    

Doug Burgum

“Peace and power”; I love that phrase!  Peace and power to overcome awkward; to develop confidence.

Confidence helped me throughout my sales career even when not properly attired.  I met a prospect once in Palm Springs, California.  There I was in a suit and tie.  He walked into the conference room wearing shorts and a golf shirt.  He greeted me with, “You’re not from around here are you?”  True enough LOL!

I closed a deal in Salt lake City once in spite of my attire.  The executive team at the awards company, O.C. Tanner invited me to join in their pick-up basketball game one morning.  Such an invitation was quite the compliment.  They played at their Latter Day Saints church every morning from 6:30 to 8am before going to the office.

Afterwards, we showered and dressed.  That’s when everyone knew “I wasn’t from around here.”  I wasn’t wearing sacred undergarments per their religious practice.   We finalized the contract back at their office nonetheless.  I think they respected that I knew who I was; where I’m from; and where I was going.

Fast forward to today… fashion and personal appearance is diverse, true?  For those remote workers, what is “appropriate business attire” in your home office?  Do your company and clients expect you to be on camera?

Being “remote” means much more than merely the geographic location of one’s desk.  It can really test one’s confidence.  If you’re feeling awkward in such a setting don’t worry:

Personal growth and increased confidence take place when we are testing the limits of our lives.

Tom Payne

When at our limits we can reach back and remember who we are and where we came from.  That’s a foundation of peace and power to carry us on to where we’re going. 

GAP

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.

Mementos and memories…

I like to keep a few keepsakes - makes me smile:

This was a gift from my ADP Major Accounts sales team.  I use it so often I’ve worn out the fingertip area.

Pens and pencils can bring back various kinds of memories, I suppose:

Consider the example of a fund-raiser for United Way who had to solicit contributions one day from a group of truck drivers as they showed up for work at six o'clock in the morning.  At that hour no one had the slightest interest in United Way, but the boss had ordered the drivers to attend the meeting.  As the fund-raiser was cheerily showing a videotape about the charity, the atmosphere in the room turned tense.  When he passed out yellow pencils and pledge cards, the truck drivers stared at them and did nothing.  Finally, one burly truck driver stood up, shook his pencil in a threatening fashion at the fund-raiser, and growled, 'I'll tell you what you can do with this pencil!'

     There was an awkward moment as everyone waited to see how the United Way representative would react.  The fund-raiser looked the truck driver straight in the eye and said calmly, 'Sir, I will be happy to do whatever you like with that pencil... after you sign the pledge card, of course.'

William Ury 

As a sales manager I was exceptional at recruiting exceptional salespeople.  People who were smart; driven; hard-working; I led ADP’s top sales team.  Perhaps my best managerial skill was staying out of their way. 

Like the United Way fundraiser, I wasn’t intimated by my team of “alphas”, but I did follow Casey Stengel’s advice:

The secret of managing is to keep the guys who hate you away from the guys who are undecided.

Just a few years ago I ran into one of those alpha salespeople, Dene.  She wasn’t in the “undecided” group.  Said she remembered me being a “pain in the ass”.  Guilty. 

Dene wasn’t a top producer right away.  But she was talented and driven and it was only a matter of time before she would excel.  In the meantime however, Dene was subjected to my two-pronged, managerial principle:

• 1.      When my sales rep was above quota I would support them however they preferred – including just staying out of their way.

• 2.      If my sales rep was below quota I expected them to do exactly what I told them to do; exactly how I told them to do it; no questions; no discussions.

Micro-manager! you say?  Guilty again – but only with under performers.  When an under-performing salesperson complained I simply suggested if they didn’t like doing things my way just stay above quota.

In reuniting with Dene, I couldn’t help but wonder if she was thinking what I could do with that pen back in the day.

                                                            GAP

When life gets tough we could get a helmet… or… we could leverage the peace and share the power of a positive perspective.