Congress Fiddles While America Burns

I am scratching my head lately at what Congress calls productivity. I question their priorities.

Here are some things that I am thinking our leaders should be working on:

1) Our educational system - other countries are investing in their youth while our schools are crumbling and closing. A recent educational ranking put our kids at 18th in the world. 18th? We're spending billions in Iraq and our kids are not the #1 on the list?
2) Savings - the government has to give us a "stimulus package" so that we can pump more money into the economy? Where is the "savings package?" The majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Very different than 50 years ago...
3) The housing market - Foreclosure rates are up 40-50 % in the past year, much due to unscrupulous bankers feasting on a hot market and the naivety of some.
4) Credit - The average American has approximately $9000 of credit card debt; and no savings. You think the mortgage crisis is bad, just wait until this one falls out. The mortgage bankers will look like saints to the credit card companies.
5) Eating Habits - Americans are digging their graves with their mouths; eating the crappiest food ever made on earth. If you want to get a idea of how some restaurants are slowly killing us, read this article from MSNBC called "The 16 Secrets the Restaurant Industry doesn't Want You to Know" http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22220895/ It is a SCARY.
6) Behind bars - Did you know that now 1 out of every 100 Americans is behind bars? Annual prison spending went from $11 billion to $49 billion in 2 decades. This is called a "clue" that something is fundamentally wrong with our society.

We need leaders that will attack these issues with vigor and repair the heart and soul of America.

And here is what they are currently working on:

THE NEW YORK TIMES
By RICHARD SANDOMIR and MICHAEL S. SCHMIDTPublished: February 28, 2008

WASHINGTON — A Congressional committee asked the Justice Department on Wednesday to investigate whether Roger Clemens made false statements under oath about his suspected use of steroids and human growth hormone, strengthening the possibility that he could be charged with perjury.


Now, not to knock baseball. It's a great sport. One of my favorite childhood memories is meeting Hank Aaron in Atlanta and having my photo taken with him.

But let's call baseball what it is - a game. It's a game where men are dressed up in cute little uniforms, take a piece of wood and try to hit a ball with it.

Now I ask you, why the hell is Congress spending valuable time investigating baseball players?! Did I miss learning about the baseball branch of government when I was growing up?

Once again, God Bless baseball, but if the game were to stop forever tomorrow, America would be bummed, but we would go on. We would not shut down and the American way would not collapse.

My point is that Congress has many other priorities to work on. Our country is a freight train heading for God knows what and our leaders are interrogating Roger Clemens?

The spirit of Nero is living in Washington.

Business Brilliance from The Godfather

Some say that I have an unhealthy obsession with The Godfather movies. Well, at least with the first two. And I can't entirely disagree.

I have seen them hundreds of times and still stop the clicker when I see a Godfather clip while flipping through the cable stations. "Leave the gun and take the canoli" gets me to stop every time.

I also own the DVD box set.

I think I realized I had a problem a few years ago when one of my employees disagreed with me on a customer conference call. I hit mute and said "Santino, never go against the family!"

He looked at me like I was a complete freak show.

Then I made him an offer he couldn't refuse and we were Ok with each other again.

But seriously, I think the reason I like the Godfather movies so much is because there are so many great business lessons in it. Ok, not the killing. That's not really a great lesson. But if you replace "kill" with "fire," well then, you might be on to something.

Now, on to Dave's top 10 list of business brilliance from The Godfather.

1) “I'll make him an offer he can't refuse” - Putting a gun to someone's head during negotiations is usually frowned upon in corporate America. But effective negotiating is still essential for getting ahead. If you can't negotiate well, you will have trouble getting ahead, so learn how to do it.

2) “Come with friendship, not with dollar bills.” Business is 99% about relationships. This is why business is done at meals, on the golf course, or in the case of Next Step’s saleswoman Amy Costanza, shopping for shoes with her clients. This form of bonding ensures that even if another company offers a better price, the customer will still go with you; the trusted friend who she spent “leisure” time with.

3) The Don's men understood the power of branding. They let others spread their name for them. It all starts from the top down, goes to the team and then the customers. When you get your customers spreading the good word, your brand just got made.

4) “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.” - Good advice for all walks of life but especially for the business owner trying to stay on top of his competition who is trying to undermine him. The best strategy to deal with these people is to not let them know you are their enemy.

5) “Never dishonor those who helped you” When someone helps you out, or stands up for you, thank him. You owe him one, even if he is too decent to tell you that. If you dishonor that person, others will take note. They will know that if they do business with you, they might very well be your next victim, and will steer clear of you.

6) “It’s not personal, it’s business.” Some people think Donald Trump invented this phrase. Sorry folks, it was the original Don. When you boil this phrase down, it simply means that if you have to make a decision, you need to emotionally detach yourself from it to make sure it makes the best business sense.

7) They’re flexible. They don’t stick with a product or service that isn’t profitable. Times change. Running alcohol during prohibition was profitable for only so long. Don Corleone was adaptable and changed his product line to adapt with the times while holding firm to his values.

8) They make it easy to buy. For those that did business with the Corleone family, it was a pleasure. They got a good product and were treated with respect. It was easy to do business with them because of the simplicity of their business model!

9) “Don’t discuss business at the dinner table.” A big thing in the mafia was not discussing business at the table. Give your family a break from business talk during the most important bonding time - dinner. Have fun and laugh with your kids. Teach them life’s lessons; not how to worry about business.

10) "Never go against the family." My reaction on that conference call may have a bit of an overreaction but there is some merit to this quote. Good bosses certainly encourage an open dialogue and encourage feedback. Great bosses surround themselves with "no" men instead of traditional "yes." men (and women). If they have their ego in check they won't have to surround themselves with a bunch of minions that bobble their heads all day long. But the important thing is that disagreements should be discussed internally. Otherwise the company looks confused and without a solid, firm direction.

I hope you have enjoyed my top 10 list of business brilliance from The Godfather. To be clear, I do not condone the violence that the mafia uses in their methods of "negotiation." But be honest, haven't you wanted to "whack" a coworker at some point?

Arrivederci,
Davide

My favorite company serves corned beef

Besides Next Step, I'll put Zingerman's at the top of the list for favorite companies. (www.zingermans.com)

Haven't heard of it? It's the best deli I've ever been to. I can still taste the corned beef; in a good way! I am now a reuben convert.

Why is this favorite business? Because of how they've grown it. The owners, Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig opened this deli in Ann Arbor, Michigan in March of 1982. The reason? They couldn’t find a good corned beef sandwich there.

Within 10 years, their reputation had spanned epic proportions. Big franchise people approached them, wanting to take Zingerman's all over the country. Most people would have taken the ride and gotten rich.

Instead, Paul and Ari stopped and thought.

These surmised that nobody would ever care as much as them about a sandwich. Did they really want sub-standard Zingerman's sandwiches across the country?

The answer was no.

Instead they created a vision for a company that included opening a community of businesses around the Ann Arbor area. And they have succeeded!

The called their vision the “The Zingerman’s Community of Businesses.”

Today, their businesses include a catering business, a bakehouse, a creamery, a coffee company, a restaurant, a catering business, mail order, a training company and more to come.

Ari and Paul still steer the mother ship, but there is a managing partner(s) for each business.

It's literally the coolest business in America - just ask Inc. Magazine!
http://www.inc.com/magazine/20030101/25036.html

I met these guys last month at one of their ZingTrain seminars (www.zingtrain.com)
It was the best training I have ever received.

It really added some clarity to Next Step’s future for me. Every successful entrepreneur at some point reaches a point where they ask themselves, "Do I sell? Do I raise money? Do I get into bed with evil venture capitalists?

My questions were answered.

Look for "The Next Step Family of Businesses" coming soon to your area.

My Favorite Blog

Ok, I kind of need to be a little bogus right now.

I promised my thousands of subscribers (mom) that I would do a blog a week. Since I am leaving for a flight to NYC at 6am tomorrow and have tons of appointments when I am there and won't be back until late Thursday, I am going to drive you to MY favorite blog.

It's awesome and calming. And I am the furthest thing from a Zen guy, but the Zen Habits blog is great to soothe the soul!

Check it out at:

http://zenhabits.net/

Here's a really great one to help you have a peaceful, yet productive workday:
http://zenhabits.net/2008/02/17-unbeatable-ways-to-create-a-peaceful-relaxed-workday/#more-635

Wish me luck in NYC!

Stay Calm,
David