Help me get 1000 posts

[The Story Teller]

August 29
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The Automobile Radio
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“Now let’s use our nutpickers on this problem, and then we’ll decide what it is we have to do. Then let’s do it.”
—Paul Galvin
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Paul Galvin’s radio business was doing pretty well in 1929 until “Black Friday” hit. After the devastating stock market crash, larger manufacturers began dumping radios on the market, and Galvin’s retailers stopped orders and wanted to ship back products. Galvin found himself saddled with big shipments from suppliers for parts he could no longer use. Galvin traveled from Chicago to New York to work out a deal with one of his suppliers, and while there he heard about people who were putting radios in cars. They charged about $250, and each installation was a custom job. On his way back to Chicago, Galvin began to believe that his company could develop a lower-price automobile radio, one for the mass market.



The men at Galvin’s shop gave it a try, but the automobiles of the day were not designed to accommodate the bulky tuner, battery, and speaker. The antenna had to be placed in the headliner, requiring the liner to be torn out and then replaced. Installation could take two days. After convincing a banker to give him a loan, Galvin’s men installed a radio in the banker’s car—but the vehicle caught fire thirty minutes later. Galvin went to a radio convention, and having no exhibit booth, he drove his car around the convention center as his wife convinced potential customers to take a demonstration ride. Little by little, the car radio was perfected, and one morning while shaving, Galvin came up with a new name for his product: “Motorola.”



Consider This: In the face of disaster, some people will quit. Others will seek new ideas and new ways of meeting the challenge. Which one are you?



Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

August 30
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Marva Collins
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“You can’t weep or talk your way through a mess. When you come up against a problem, you have to work your way through it.”
—Marva Collins
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There are many excuses why Johnny can’t read. But to Marva Collins, Johnny can read—and if he is challenged, he can read far more than we would imagine. Educated in the South, Marva learned about teaching from caring and inspiring teachers and principals and from her own common sense. After moving to Chicago, she continued her teaching career. At first, she followed the recommended curriculum but came to believe that such stories as “Run, Spot, Run” had no meaning for children. She added Aesop’s Fables and other classic children’s stories to the classroom fare.



Marva told her students that they were the “brightest in the world.” While children in other classes were struggling to learn thirteen words in a basal reader, her students wrote about the brontosaurus and tyrannosaurus. Colleagues belittled Marva’s techniques, and she was eventually harassed out of the public school system. Convinced that her ideas about education were valid, Marva opened a private school, taking in problem children. She taught Shakespeare, Dickens, and other classics, and her students memorized quotations and poems, solved real mathematical word problems, and openly discussed the issues of life. Marva’s students responded with a hunger for knowledge, and when her first class of “misfits” took standardized achievement tests, they ranked well above the national average.



Consider This: What could we accomplish if we were truly inspired and pushed to meet our real potential?



Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

August 31
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Anne Sullivan
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“And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
—The Bible
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The story of Helen Keller is well known. She was born a normal baby but as a young child was stricken with a disease that left her blind and deaf. Her parents were unable to communicate with her or control her, and Helen grew up like an animal. In desperation, the family called for help, which arrived in the form of Anne Sullivan. Anne had the understanding and love to bring Helen “back into the real world.” How was it that she could perform such a miracle, when Helen’s parents and countless doctors had failed to make any progress? Where did Anne find such love and patience?



It all began at a mental institution in Boston, Massachusetts, where a young girl who exhibited violent behavior and was thought to be hopelessly insane, had been consigned by doctors to a “living death” in a cage in the facility’s basement. One elderly nurse, however, felt affection for the girl. She began to eat her lunch outside the youngster’s cage and sometimes left brownies within her reach. The girl seemed to ignore the brownies, but they would disappear as soon as the nurse left. Gradually, the little girl in the cage began to respond to the nurse’s love. She began to talk, became less violent, and started responding to other treatments. As her condition improved, the girl was removed from her cage and allowed to meet other patients, and quickly became a valued helper in the institution. She eventually was released from the facility and went on to lead a very productive life. That girl was Anne Sullivan.



Consider This: Everyone needs care and love. Without them, there can be no worthwhile dreams. What personal mountains could be moved if people really showed a nurturing love for one another?



Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

February 1
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The Risks of Leadership
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“When we think we lead, we most are led.”
—Lord Byron in The Two Foscari
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In emergency situations some people rise to the occasion. They think fast, bark orders, and get people to follow their lead. However, most other people would simply rather be followers. To find out why, Dean Frost, Fred Fiedler, and Jeff Anderson studied leadership in the military to determine the role of risk-taking in effective leadership. Bravery and courage are not generally thought of when defining leadership qualities in business; however, there are parallels. In the armed forces, those in command who are willing to take personal risks by exposing themselves to danger in combat gain high esteem among the troops. In business, the “theater of combat” may be at the corporate office, where bosses fight on behalf of their employees.

The Israeli military, generally considered to be among the best in the world, requires its commanders to be the point men of an attack, where the danger is greatest. American Gen. George S. Patton knew the value of having a leader in the thick of the action. During his World War II campaigns in North Africa and Europe, Patton’s jeep often could be seen moving toward the fighting. Many times he joined his troops at the very point of attack. Patton understood that the soldiers under his command would interpret such action as a vote of confidence in them and thus would maintain good morale.

Consider This: Are you seen as a leader who goes to bat for your “troops”? When things are rough, do you take the heat yourself? If you desire to be a leader, then expose yourself to risks that will help build confidence and morale in those working for you.

Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

February 2
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The Band-Aid
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“To accept good advice is but to increase one’s own ability.”
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
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Even when hundreds or thousands of people hear a good idea, it is the rare individual who does something about it. Robert Johnson was a co-owner of the Seabury & Johnson company when he attended a meeting during which Joseph Lister describe the science of bacteriology and made a plea for sanitary conditions in hospitals. The year was 1876, and most of those in attendance listened with skepticism. It was hard to imagine those little “bugs” causing problems. However, Johnson was convinced that Lister was on to something, and he talked his brothers Edward and James into developing products that would help make hospitals more sanitary.

In 1886 the brothers formed their own company, Johnson & Johnson, and began promoting their sterilized gauze. By 1910 the company needed forty buildings to produce a growing line of medical products. One day Earle E. Dickson, a cotton buyer in the company’s purchasing department, showed a co-worker a self-stick bandage he had developed and was using at home. Earle had put a dab of sterile cotton and gauze on a strip of surgical tape to create a bandage that he could use to take care of his family’s cuts and scrapes. He placed a crinoline fabric on the sticky parts of the bandage until it was needed. James Johnson saw one of the bandages and immediately recognized its potential in the marketplace. The invention was dubbed the “Band-Aid,” and it soon became one of the world’s most recognized trademarks.

Consider This: Listen to the ideas of those around you. New ideas are often the basis of new products and perhaps new companies.

Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

February 3
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Peter Jennings
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“If a man bites a dog, this is news.”
—John Bogart
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Although Peter Jennings’ father (who was a distinguished broadcast journalist for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) may have helped him get his first broadcasting job, Peter still had to prove that he could be a first-class journalist. His early chance came at CBC, where he hosted a half-hour radio show for children. Peter showed promise and dedication, and was soon allowed to host several public affairs programs. Eventually, he became a special events commentator and the host of Vue, a late-night talk show. In 1964 Peter’s coverage of the Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City impressed ABC News President Elmer Lower. Lower immediately offered Peter a job as an ABC correspondent, but he turned it down. Three months later, Peter woke up in a cold sweat one night and thought, “What have I done?” He wrote Lower back and got the job.

In 1965, in an effort to boost their national broadcast ratings, ABC made Jennings the anchor of their nightly newscast. Although he did a good job, he did not have the qualifications to compete with Cronkite and Huntley and Brinkley. Jennings returned to reporting in 1968 and established himself as one of the foremost foreign correspondents. His in-depth analysis of the news gained him award after award. In 1983 Jennings was named sole anchor for the ABC Nightly News. As he looks back on his career, Jennings admits that it was the role model of his father that pushed him to continue, to strive to be the best. “I’m still trying to live up to my father’s standards.”

Consider This: Pick a mentor with the kinds of attributes you desire. An example of excellence can give you the motivation to do and become your best.

Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

February 4
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Face Your Troubles Squarely
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“Three things give hardy strength: sleeping on hairy mattresses, breathing cold air, and eating dry food.”
—Welsh proverb
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Theodore Roosevelt was a weakling. Does that surprise you? As a child, Roosevelt was thin, in poor health, timid, and afraid of getting hurt. The Roosevelt family took trips to find places more amenable to young “Teddy’s” ailments. When he became a teenager, Teddy decided to conquer his frailty. After traveling to parts of America and Europe, it was apparent that a simple change of climate would not cure the adolescent’s health problems. Teddy decided to immerse himself in physical activity.

His formula was to do things he was afraid of doing, so he became a cowboy in the Dakotas. In that campaign to improve his strength and courage, Teddy at one time or another broke his wrist, his arm, his nose, his ribs, and his shoulder. After entering Harvard, he took up boxing. Although Teddy was often “beat to a pulp,” he became an adequate fighter and even fought in a championship match (he lost). In the Spanish-American War, Teddy was a lieutenant colonel in the “Rough Riders,” where he became a hero for his exploits at the battle of San Juan Hill. It was because of his “Rough Rider” image that Roosevelt became a popular military and political figure, and was elected governor of New York in 1898. He was elected vice president of the United States in 1900, and after President McKinley died in 1901, Roosevelt became president.

Consider This: Struggle often provides us with our most productive times of growth. The caterpillar gains strength in its struggle to tear out of its cocoon. Without the struggle, it does not have the strength to fly. Can we step back while we are in the midst of a struggle and see how it will give us strength and insight for the future?

Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

February 5
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Ole Evinrude
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“Everything that is new or uncommon raises a pleasure in the imagination, because it fills the soul with an agreeable surprise.”
—Joseph Addison
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One hot, lazy August afternoon, Bess Cary, Ole Evinrude, and friends picnicked on an island two miles from shore. The sweltering heat made Bess think about one thing: ice cream. Ole was deeply in love and would do anything for Bess. Jumping into the rowboat, he made it to shore quickly. On the way back, however, the breeze was against him, and the ice cream was melting fast. When Ole finally made it back and he and his friends were drinking the melted ice cream, Ole’s mind focused on something else. The big Norwegian had owned a company that made small gasoline engines, but the enterprise had failed. He had also helped Harley and Davidson develop an air-cooled engine. Now, Ole began to consider ways to build a small engine to propel a rowboat.

Bess and Ole were married in 1906, and Ole worked on his project. In 1909 he built his first outboard motor. Bess thought it looked like a coffee grinder, but when Ole took it down to the river, he amazed the deckhands by skimming around the water at five miles per hour. Confident in his design, Ole made a few cosmetic changes, and built engine number two. This time he loaned it to a friend, who promptly ordered ten and paid in cash. Bess and Ole went into business, with Bess handling the correspondence. She analyzed the market and wrote an advertisement that began “DON’T ROW, use the Evinrude Detachable Row Boat Motor.” With Ole in the shop, and Bess in the office, the Evinrude outboard motor became a success.

Consider This: How often has a product been made that takes away drudgery? That is the kind of machines Americans want.



Submitted by Richard

 

[The Story Teller]

February 6
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Sewell’s Customers for Life
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“Keeping your word is worth more than all the empathy, smiles, and chocolates on your pillow in the world.”
—Carl Sewell
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A customer entering a Sewell automobile dealership may be impressed by the atmosphere of the showroom—antique furniture, fresh flowers, and soothing music. However, it takes more than good looks to entice and keep the car-buying public. Sewell’s goal is not only to make a sale, but to create a “Customer for Life.” To rise above the crowd, Sewell has developed a reputation for taking care of more details than any other dealership—including keeping promises to fix problems the first time, never exceeding an estimated price, and providing exceptional customer service where “yes” is always the answer. When a customer calls for help, a Sewell employee rushes to the rescue in a specially equipped Suburban—making a key, fixing a flat, providing a jump-start, or providing whatever the customer requires to get back on the road.

Carl Sewell Sr. learned selling from his family’s first “dealership,” which was actually a livery stable and movie theater. When the Sewell family began selling Model T’s, the cars arrived in boxes. The final assembly was done at the dealership, and customers were taught how to drive. Like many other families with successful businesses, the Sewells adopted the motto “Treat people like you want to be treated.” It has served them well. Today, Carl Jr.’s relentless and systematic demand for his employees to meet the highest standards in service, sales, and friendliness has made his dealerships among the most successful and emulated in the country.

Consider This: Quality is difficult to obtain and it will never develop by chance. Superior service requires a powerful commitment to a systematic plan of constant and long-term improvement.

Submitted by Richard

 

[Biarien]

Wow, this is quite a big topic.

But how many posts does the creator have as a result of it?

 

[jaimegerise]

I really and truly am still lost...

 

[NewSong]

Way to go with these posts! Bet we can make that goal...

God Bless

NewSong

 

[SnowDove]

That's a happy thought...I wonder where the OP is?

 

[bubblefish]

yay we are getting there...only what 266 posts left?
Keep posting everyone

 

[SnowDove]

Post-its are great for notes...but these posts are great for this thread! That was lame...and retarded...I'm sorry to subject you all to it.

 

[NewSong]

Post-its are great for notes...but these posts are great for this thread! That was lame...and retarded...I'm sorry to subject you all to it.

That wasn't that bad...I thought it was actually kind of funny and after all we are just trying to go up to the 1000 and you are doing a wonderful thing to post at all!

NewSong

I really need to go to bed but I can't quite do it yet....

BUT I think this my last post for this thread tonight.

 

[bubblefish]

its not that bad...i found it quite funny as well...and this is basically a random nonsense thread anyway so you can say whatever you want
Anyways i will stop now...i really should be finishing my speech but it can wait until tomorrow....

 

[bubblefish]

Bye NewSong

 

[kissybug27]

howdy howdy howdy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bubblefish]

Hi kissybug27