I guess it’s up to us to do business in the right way so our actions and intentions spread.

Amazing Grace: The Nine Principles of Living in Natural Magic, by David Wolfe

Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive: Outsell, Outmanage, Outmotivate, and Outnegotiate Your Competition, by Harvey Mackay

I have read many articles stating that the connections are the ones who push the limits of understanding.

I just finished reading “Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and Six Degrees of Separation”.

The most profound comment, for me, was …

“We can set ourselves aside from our competition by knowing that being able to make successful connections is not an entitlement. Instead, it is a skill that only some actually develop.”

Good stuff!

~Melanie

So much of what people want to share with me isn’t worth a hill of beans!

Sounds like Dr. Misner and Michelle Donovan have put together some network marketing pearls of wisdom.

Thanks for passing this info along,

~Melanie

Steve writes: My wife came home from the store the other day, and having heard me describe the principles in “The Go Giver,” said she’d met a “go-giver” clerk at the store. When my wife had wondered out loud during checkout if the item she was buying was less expensive at the warehouse store next door, the clerk said that it was in fact carried next door and that it would, indeed, be cheaper to buy it there.

Now, I don’t know how the owner of the store would feel about a clerk being such a “go-giver,” or even how I would deal with the moral quandary of what’s appropriate when you are in the employ of someone else,

Bob responds: Yes, that is a quandary; not so much because of the acknowledgment of the lower price as much as whether he said it in a way that was disparaging to his own place of employ (as we know, it isn’t always what we say but how we say it) and whether – as you alluded to – he has the okay of his employer to say that. Of course, if he says, “Yes, that item is less expensive there. Each store has some items less expensive than the other. We appreciate your shopping here and hope the value of our service makes up for any price difference”, then that is perfect because he is then selling on value without putting down either store.

Steve writes: but I do know that I’ve long felt that the business behavior change depicted (maybe) as fantasy in “Miracle on 34th Street”–when Macy’s starts telling its shoppers about lower prices at Gimbel’s–has some deep kernel of truthfulness to it. The willingness to *not* allow profit based only on lack of customer knowledge would seem to lead to a sense of “wholeness” and “purpose,” something which could significantly empower a business to truly provide good or services for which customers are glad to pay a fair price for.

Bob: I don’t think it’s fantasy at all. I’ve seen it happen time and again. I think you make an excellent point.

(Here I edited out some of your excellent comments only due to space limitations. And we continue with) . . .

Steve writes: I’m gong to risk extending this comment even further. One of the downsides to capitalism, I think, is mistaking its value: we turn self-interest into a virtue, when I believe it’s actually *choice* that makes capitalism great. But in a system that carries the connotation of reward for greed, decisions to not help others (by being honest about value, or making money through inferior services by manipulative selling) carry the emotional cost brought by selfishness.

Bob: This is probably the one area in which we would disagree. Capitalism – by its very nature – sets up an environment where people are rewarded for adding value to people’s lives. Wherever there is Capitalism with minimal government interference (meaning protection from force and fraud) peoples’ lives get better. Not just the rich, but everyone. The middle class and, indeed, even the poor benefit from a truly Capitalistic society. (While I’ve made a fairly intense study of this topic I recommend – as my favorite – a book by Andrew Bernstein entitled, “The Capitalist Manifesto.)

I think a mistake people make is confusing “Capitalisim” with theft. (i.e., Mrs. Field’s Cookies is an excellent example of Capitalism while Enron is an excellent example of theft.)

The less Capitalistic a society, the worse the standard of living for everyone. Of course, there is no completetly Capitalistic society in the world right now but the degree of economic freedom a country has compared with other countries equals the degree in the quality of “standard of living” that country has compared with other countries.

Steve writes: Where I find this fascinating is from my reading of “The Anatomy of Peace,” and the idea that when we are unfair to someone else that we have to “justify” our actions by coming up with a rationale for our unfairness that blames *them*. In essence, we then have to denigrate the very customer we depend on.

Bob: Very true. And those who put the customer first in a Capitalistic society end up prospering the most. Even those who don’t do it out of love but – dare I say – out of excessive greed – still must put the customer first in order to get wealthy. That is true only in a Capitalistic society where no one is forced to buy from anyone else. In a socialistic society it is simply a matter of which thug can gain control of others. (And, to the degree that happens in an otherwise Capitalistic society - such as when a giant corporation “influences” politicians to grant them special rules and favors . . .that is indeed *not* Capitalism. Unfortunately, however, it is often confused as such.)

Steve writes: For those who read the Bible, “The Go Giver” and “The Anatomy of Peace” do a great deal for me in helping me to understand the spiritual and psychological underpinnings of the Sermon on the Mount. And thereby help to give a path for helping to bring our business lives in harmony with our spiritual beliefs.

Bob: Although I have not yet read “The Anatomy of Peace” I’m certainly honored for The Go-Giver to be included in the above mentioned books.

Steve writes: Sorry for the length! But this was obviously something I needed to think out loud about!

Bob: Are you kidding? Not at all! You’re awesome, and I appreciate your comments.

Now, I don’t know how the owner of the store would feel about a clerk being such a “go-giver,” or even how I would deal with the moral quandary of what’s appropriate when you are in the employ of someone else, but I do know that I’ve long felt that the business behavior change depicted (maybe) as fantasy in “Miracle on 34th Street”–when Macy’s starts telling its shoppers about lower prices at Gimbel’s–has some deep kernel of truthfulness to it. The willingness to *not* allow profit based only on lack of customer knowledge would seem to lead to a sense of “wholeness” and “purpose,” something which could significantly empower a business to truly provide good or services for which customers are glad to pay a fair price for.

Trader Joe’s, which is a unique grocery retailer that has stores in our area, is said to have a unique pricing strategy: all items, no matter what the profit margin the market might bear, have a fixed markup. I can’t say for sure this is true, but I know that one particular health item I depend on that they (used to) carry cost a third of the comparable product elsewhere. Their food is unique, good to often great, reasonably priced, and clearly customer-driven. And their employees are helpful and busy, and the shoppers are happy. From my perspective, possibly a great example of a “go-giver” business.

Maybe part of this is their willingness to not to try to be all things to all people in order to capture as much of their money as possible, but rather to be focused on quality and value–and thereby actually (I don’t know that this is true but I suspect it) making more profit. I believe the same could be said of Southwest Airllines. Maybe by be willing to serve particular or specific needs, a business is thereby encouraging their customers with the freedom and value of shopping elsewhere for other items that someone else supply better. In-N-Out Burger, with their super-simple menu, seems to do the same thing.

Am I on target here, do you think?

I’m gong to risk extending this comment even further. One of the downsides to capitalism, I think, is mistaking its value: we turn self-interest into a virtue, when I believe it’s actually *choice* that makes capitalism great. But in a system that carries the connotation of reward for greed, decisions to not help others (by being honest about value, or making money through inferior services by manipulative selling) carry the emotional cost brought by selfishness. Where I find this fascinating is from my reading of “The Anatomy of Peace,” and the idea that when we are unfair to someone else that we have to “justify” our actions by coming up with a rationale for our unfairness that blames *them*. In essence, we then have to denigrate the very customer we depend on.

For those who read the Bible, “The Go Giver” and “The Anatomy of Peace” do a great deal for me in helping me to understand the spiritual and psychological underpinnings of the Sermon on the Mount. And thereby help to give a path for helping to bring our business lives in harmony with our spiritual beliefs.

Sorry for the length! But this was obviously something I needed to think out loud about!