Lawrence Fine

You need a new desk for work. There are two options available. An inexpensive one that will suffice but probably will only last a year or two. The second option costs three times more and will last a lifetime.

Many people will buy the less expensive option because it’s easier to afford and will work just the same. Others realize that while they might have to make some sacrifices in order to buy the better one, in the long run it will be much cheaper from not having to buy replacements every few years.

A week ago I had dinner with friends and they mentioned the dining room table we were sitting at was their very first purchase as a married couple 34 years ago. Back then they didn’t have much money so they had to work hard and save in order to buy this table but 34 years later it’s still in great shape. It would have been easier (and cheaper) to buy a lesser table but how many tables do you think they would have bought since that one?

It’s not about buying the most expensive or buying the big name brand. It’s about buying the best quality you can afford (and if you can’t afford it, hold off till you can save enough to buy it). It will pay off in the long run

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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You can teach skills.

You can teach technique

You can teach math

You can teach physics

You can teach languages

You can teach many things but one thing it’s very difficult to do is teach someone who is stupid. You can help make someone better at things but it’s extremely difficult to take someone who is stupid and make them smart.

Trying to take a mentally slow person and teach them do things that require a great deal of intelligence is difficult if not impossible. The question is, why do we try to do this so often?

How often have we tried putting a person in a position that is over their head with the idea of “they will figure it out” or “I can teach them”? If they have the ability that is one thing but to put someone in a position that is beyond them mentally is to put them in a position to fail. It’s done all the time and simply doesn’t make sense.

Remember, you can’t teach stupid so instead put people in a position for them to succeed, given their capabilities and things will work out much better

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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It’s easy to look at things and see the negatives. The challenge is to look at things and see the positives.

There are positives all around us, we just have to be willing to see them.

If you are determined to find the negatives…you will.

If you are determined to find the positives…you will.

Which do you choose to find?

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Do you fit in?

Are you part of the “in crowd”?

Is your boss regularly pleased with your performance?

Do your peers see you as “one of them”?

If so, are you doing anything that makes you special?

If you fit in then you must not be outstanding.

If your boss is regularly pleased it most likely means you aren’t trying to raise the bar (and as a result occasionally stepping outside the lines).

Be willing to take chances. Be willing to stand out. Be willing to not fit in. You might surprise yourself and others and actually do something special.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Will you allow reality to alter your perception?

The other night I checked into a hotel in Richmond VA. I booked the room online and the pictures of the hotel looked wonderful. They took some old row houses and turned them into one hotel.

When I arrived it was too early to check in so I waited in the lounge area. This area was furnished with items from the 1950′s and it looked like nothing had been reupholstered since being bought new.

When it was time to check in they informed me the elevator was broken so I would have to take the stairs to the 4th floor. I was fine with this but was a bit surprised when they handed me a key to my room (I can’t remember the last time I stayed somewhere which still used keys instead of a card).

I went to my room and the first thing I noticed is the TV was 15 inches and the reception was somewhat fuzzy.

Throughout this process I was thinking “should I check out and go somewhere nicer?”

I have to admit I was exhausted when I checked into the hotel so I took a short nap before dinner and after asking the person at the front desk for a recommendation I went to dinner and upon returning I started looking around a bit further.

On each floor there were numerous sitting areas (indoors as well as outdoors). Many of these included comfortable rocking chairs and small tables.

The room I was in was absolutely huge. It was one of the largest non suite rooms I have ever stayed in. The beds were extremely comfortable. The towels were large and lush.

There was an outdoor courtyard which, in nicer weather, would have been wonderful to sit in and relax.

The people at the front desk were always smiling and friendly (and they had offered to have someone take everyones luggage to their rooms for them and to bring it down for checkout).

They offered a complimentary pass to the local YMCA for anyone who wanted to work out and had a complimentary shuttle to get around the area if a place was too far to walk.

Basically, once I truly opened my eyes and stopped looking at the negatives I noticed all of the positives and my perception changed to closer match the reality

Initially I considered checking out and finding a better place to stay. Eventually, I realized if I come back to this area I would definitely want to stay there again

Be willing to change your perception based on the reality

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Are there a few people whose opinion you respect so much that they influence your opinions in certain matters?

Do you look to these people for recommendations and suggestions?

If so, you are like many people. These people you look to are “influencers”.

If you look to influencers for recommendations don’t you think others do the same?

When marketing your product or service, if you can get to these influencers you can get through to many others as well. Ignore these influencers and it’s hard to be successful

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Local vs National is an interesting topic to look at because it’s easy to assume how things work locally is also how they work nationally and how things work nationally is how things work locally.

The other day I was down in South Carolina visiting with friends and they were hosting a meet and greet for one of the presidential candidates. The advance team for the candidate was insisting on a certain size room for the event based on the areas demographics, the number of registered voters etc. They were looking for a room that would hold 75-100. The local hosts tried explaining that they were expecting much more than that based on their previous events in the area etc. The national people insisted they knew more so it was put in a room that seats 100. This was a bit of a problem when over 750 people showed up. The problem was the national people were basing things on their experience and not based on the experience for that locale

In the same way, assuming that what works locally will also work nationally can cause the same type of situation

Realize that what works locally doesn’t always work nationally and what works nationally doesn’t always work locally

Have a great day

Lawrence

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We set goals

We set timelines

We have objectives

Then when we least expect it, something happens.

If we aren’t willing to be flexible this could be a lost opportunity. Be flexible, consider changing your plans and see what might develop
There is a big difference between being flexible and being unprepared. One will result in failure and the other opportunities for great success

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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When people look for partners it’s typically because they are looking for additional resources (money, infrastructure etc). It’s important to realize that some times a partner is valuable for other reasons.

A partner who can introduce you to the right people or can help with sales or can help with in other ways can be just as valuable, or more valuable than those who can provide money or infrastructure.

Look for the total package and not just the obvious and you might find that partnerships can be more valuable than originally anticipated

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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A few days ago I went to the Andy Warhol Museum up in Pittsburgh. While I like art his type of art isn’t exactly my style but one thing was very apparent. Warhol didn’t try to do something slightly better than others. Instead, he would take a completely different approach and be the best at his approach. I guess it’s easy to be the best if you create the style.

The next day I received an email looking for help with a new type of social networking site. It may or may not have a slightly different twist than what what is currently out there but it’s certainly not different enough to make people leave what they are currently using.

If you want to do something, either be MUCH BETTER than the status quo or do something MUCH DIFFERENT.

If you choose the much different maybe you will get your 15 minutes of fame!

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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