Happy Thanksgiving

It’s hard to improve this. Credit goes to Michael D. McAuley of The Garrett McAuley Report. Thanks Michael! “How’s your health?  Not so good?  Give thanks you’ve lived this long. Are you hurting?  Millions are hurting more.  Visit a veterans’ hospital or a hospital for children to appreciate what you have.  When you woke up this morning, were you able to hear the birds sing, use your voice, walk to the breakfast table, read the paper?  There are a lot of people today who are deaf, blind, paralyzed, or unable to speak. How are your finances?  Not good?  Most people on this planet have no welfare.  No food stamps.  No pensions.  No health insurance or Social Security.  In fact, one third of the people in the world go to bed hungry every night. Are you lonely?  The way to have a friend is to be a friend.  If nobody calls, call someone.  Get out and do something nice for someone.  Are you unhappy?  Go out of your way to smile at people you bump into during the day.  Be kind to everyone, for everyone you meet might be fighting a hard, lonely battle of some kind. Are you unhappy with our government?  Don’t despair.  Our system has been saved over and over again by people who worried about our nation.  And worry not.  You can still worship at the place of your choice, cast a ballot in secret, and criticize your government.  Hundreds of millions of people live where this is not the case, where criticizing the government leads to amidnight knock on the door. ……………………..And let us also be thankful for our troublemakers and agitators, people like Patrick Henry, Tom Paine, Sam Adams, John Brown, Susan B. Anthony, and Martin Luther King.  Without them, we’d be a lesser country. Be thankful for the food before us and remember those who go without food. Be thankful for the friends we have and remember those who are friendless.  Be thankful for our health and remember those with poor health. Be thankful for our families, imperfect though they might be, and remember those without families. Let us be thankful for what we have, and not be unhappy with what we don’t have.  Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Do you “take care” of your customers?

I am in the business of helping people. In fact, that is what we all do or at least, should do for our customers. I get great satisfaction from this approach to business. It is simple and in just about every case, can be quantified by the revenue that is generated for your company, division, self, etc. Notice I said, “almost”? The problem is it is sometimes hard to convince a customer that is really what you’re doing and the stress of some situations or circumstances will keep it from being recognized.

The world has always been full of competition. Competition for the fastest, the brightest, the easiest, the most simple, even the first has always been part of the landscape of winning the trust of a customer. It is no different today and the stakes are just as high. So how does one win and then more importantly keep a customer in todays hyper-fast social, information driven economy?

The answer is the same as it has always been. The basic principle of taking care of a customer, doing what is in their best interest and showing them via the tools that are available is how. People still have all the same basic needs today as they did 20, 40, even 100 years ago. They need to eat, so take them out and buy them lunch. They have families, so make sure to ask them how their wife, spouse, significant other, partner or children are doing. The want to relax on occasion, so ask them how their weekend or vacation was. They enjoy being entertained, so buy them tickets to their favorite concert or show or movie or whatever thing you took the time to find out about them. Just be there and offer to help.

Remember they are not too different than you are. So think about the golden rule and apply….”is this something that you would like someone to do for you”?

Not too hard, really

Have fun, be vigilant and do not “slack off, because I promise, someone is always trying to earn the business away from you and believe me, they will if you are caught sleeping.

All the Best

Bo

“Life is short, art long, opportunity fleeting, experience

 

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Life is short, art long, opportunity fleeting, experience deceptive, judgment difficult

”- Hippocrates

All from the guy that gave us great philosophy, a moral code for physicians and a penchant for expressing even the most mundane in a very colorful and enlightening way. I read the above quote today and thought to myelf, “this statement is true even today”. It is timeless and apprpriate in just about any circumstance. We go through our lives from a very young age and forget that the reason we are here is to enjoy the journey. Yet we focus so much attention on the destination, we miss the point. That sounds cliche, but no less true.

I was having a discussion with a new friend the other day and of course I never miss an opportunity to “wax philosophic” about life and it’s strange everyday meanderings. We were discussing how we live in a judgmental world and how difficult it is to not think judgmentally, yet act nonjudgmentally; a life conundrum. How life presents us every single day with an opportunity to love someone without judgment and not be deceived by appearance. They are no less human than we are, they have feelings like we do and it is not our place to decide or judge their circumstances or how they arrived at their particular station in life. Every single moment is a chance to give the gift of ourselves.

Life is beautiful and should be recognized as such. A friend once told me, “if everyone hung there problems on a line, we would run toward our own”. Be proud you are here and if you are healthy, count it a bonus. And if you run across someone not so fortunate, remember they are a sibling on a journey that is not our place to judge.

Peace

Bo

Achieving immortality

What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal – Albert Pine

I heard this today and was moved by it. In fact, I was energized by it. I thought to myself that even though I will turn half a century at the end of this year, I have a lot more to offer to the world and then I was suddenly struck with this overwhelming need to do something for someone. So I put a leash on Bongo – my awesome yellow lab and commenced to walk around the block. It was an exceptional morning and I just knew that given the opportunity, I might be able to accomplish my objective.

Sure enough as we walked, I passed several neighbors and lifted my hand, waved, smiled and then said, hello. And each one reciprocated with the same. Not only did it make me feel good, but my hope was it gave them something to smile about, as well.

We are all here for only a brief time. Why not fill it with smiles and friendly waves and something that we can all be proud to leave behind. After all, it is the best way to achieve immortality. Don’t pass up an opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life. You never know what beauty may come of it.

So, what are you going to do for someone today?

Have fun!

Bo

Love will save the day!

It seems that Love is the theme of the day. Yeah, I know, where the heck did I get that idea? Every headline seems to say the opposite; war, fighting, death, bullying, political tension, religious conflict, misunderstanding, racial divides, the list is endless….But in spite of all the tragedy and heart ache that surrounds us everyday, I see it as a challenge to do what we were charged to do even before we all were destined to be here….We are here to Love!….It knows no limits, no boundaries, no color or race or creed, no religious barriers, no political differences, no sexual preferences -nothing!

And it takes on many forms; a handshake, a hug, a kind word, a pat on the back, a smile, even a friendly wave to someone that you don’t know. A gentle and caring gesture to one in need, a tear of joy or sadness. Love is everywhere and it really doesn’t take much to open our hearts and minds to see it.

We are here because of a long legacy of spirit – those spirits that preceded us; our family and friends and the souls that directly and indirectly touched each and every one of our lives and passed their legacy to us. It is the salve that smooths out the rough edges of an otherwise very challenging journey and it is the link to our hearts that binds us together and hopefully make this world a little more tolerable, a little more peaceful and left in a way that is better than the way we inherited it.

Love is our legacy,

Love is truly all we need and Love will save the day. 

Peace,

Bo

Contacts, acquaintances and friends….what’s the deal?

Hi everyone, nice to be back….many, many thoughts have accumulated since I was last here…so to keep my brain from exploding, this should be one of many posts to come. 

I had a friend ask me the other day, “do you really know all those people that your connected to?” The short answer was yes, I do. But after some contemplation, I had to say, yes but…some more than others. And I was left wondering, why I am so enamored by all this social media that I connect with and what am I doing with all those people with which I am connected? More importantly, why do I or better yet, why should I? Is it for business?…is it personal? or is it some combination of the two?…or is it something altogether different……of course, my answer is yes, all the above! 

I am sure you have heard the adage, “it’s not what you know, but who you know”. The only caveat to that is what do you do with all those people that you claim to know. Whether through business, personal, social, one-on-one interactions or social media engagement and discussions, I am proud to say, in one way or another, I know them all in some way. And I am proud to say that no matter what, I call them all friends. In fact, isn’t that the essence of why we really are here? The natural law is that we can only quantify our existence by the amount of love we receive relative the the amount we give.

I have been so fortunate in my life and so many people have been there to help me navigate the good and the bad, that the least I can do is reach out and share that love. I am grateful and looking forward to more friendships, interactions, discussions and sharing! 

Until next time and warm regards,

Bo

 

Regaining our sense of community…….

I want to tell a story. Actually I want to tell 2 stories. One involves a little history lesson and the other is one that underscores the first one. I have done a little research and although not nearly complete and probably full of some holes , it starts from a place about 75 years ago in a small community outside of Nashville, Tennessee. It was a true sustainable community of citizens and neighbors, businesses, industry, schools, retail stores, places to eat, services and an overall place to call home with a true sense of community. There was a Coca-Cola bottling plant outside of town, at least 3 manufacturing plants that delivered dry goods to various faraway destinations, three banks and grocery stores. Insurance agents, doctors, lawyers, dentists, pharmacists, mechanics, more than 5 gas stations, a car dealership and an overall thriving sustainable economy. The police and fire departments were well funded, the churches were well attended and people walked everywhere….everyone knew everyone. However, over a period of many years, things started to decay, businesses and industry closed, jobs moved elsewhere, people moved and shopped in other cities and the economy slowly deteriorated. The community seemed to no longer have the sense of cohesiveness that it once had in its heyday.

I know many of you will read this with a sense of irony or remiss, perhaps even some nostalgia for what once was. I see it from a point of view as an outsider looking in. I have been welcomed and feel that true pride still there. Watertown, TN and many communities like it were once that place. It once was a thriving sustainable community where everyone relied on each other to thrive and succeed. That getting ahead had less to do with how we acquired and more to do with helping their community succeed as a whole by keeping everything local. What was good for the community was good for everyone. Our current economic environment is forcing many of us to rethink how business is done now. The vision for Watertown and many communities like ours hinges upon the willingness to work together to see a vision for what our future success must look like, how that vision is articulated and how it can be achieved. I believe we are right at that precipice of really doing some very special things, but that is going to require some change and the complete participation of every member of our small community to take advantage of the opportunities that are ahead of us. There will be challenges to be sure and there will be many projects that will require some tough decisions, in order to be able to continue to provide the services and improvements that go along with maintaining that quality of life we have grown accustomed.

A new East Wilson County high school breaks ground in less than 2 months and new businesses are already looking to expand and/or move to this area. New neighbors are looking at our area for growth and our enviable way of life. We have something in our area to be proud. However there will be challenges and responsibilities that come along with it. It is up to our leaders to bring forth a plan and vision so that we control our future. I will be working as promised at the beginning of my term with our county, city, business and civic leaders so that we can carefully craft a plan and vision for Watertown and I will be relying heavily on input to properly put together a cohesive plan.

This brings me to my second story. As many of you know, I speak often of how our community works together despite our differences. I recently had the pleasure of chairing the Music and Arts festival earlier this month. It was a spectacular event that was well attended. The music was fantastic with a great mix of blues, jazz and rock and roll. We had great artists on display and our guests were treated to some real Watertown hospitality. Additionally, the 4th of July festivities were a perfect reflection of how a community can come together for a great cause and show how much fun and pride we take in showing our true American spirit. Both of these events came together primarily because of the commitment of members of our community and their willingness to work hard to make both of these events a tremendous success.

Finally, I wanted to point out some of the merchants in town and their willingness to go the extra mile to help. I recently have had several personal experiences for which I am very grateful. Fletcher Tire, M&C Tire, Three Forks Market, Watertown Hardware, The Drug Store, Pam at the Library, Brenda @ Gypsy Moon, Lynn and the girls at Wilson Bank, Jim’s Antiques, Pat and Donna @ Sun Graphics, Michael and Colette and Visionary Design, Mi Ranchito, Nona Lisa Pizzeria, Greg and Linda @ Mom’s Place, Loretta @ Town Square Antiques, Watertown Hardware, Robin Vance and The Shippers have all been generous with either their time and /or kindness to help me and I know many others in town. They should be recognized for going the extra mile and making sure their customers always come first and lending a helping hand for so many in an otherwise tough time. Please take the time to visit and thank them and all the businesses in town for their kindness and generosity. We thrive in large part because of their stewardship. I offer each of them my personal thanks for providing the foundation to help make this a great community!

Until next time

Bo Hussung
Email: bohussung@gmail.com

Catharsis and contemplation

Karsten!
I have spent many hours contemplating you! The gamut of emotions like a deluge, a flood. My heart hurts, my mind is empty, my eyes are wet. I really don’t know how to miss you because I still can’t even wrap my head around all the whys, all the unanswered questions. The irony is that you would have been the first person I would have called in this exact situation, a friend to lean on. Goddamnit!

I’ve read all the heart felt tributes and beautifully crafted words about him. Chris Wage was so eloquent and spot on about the elusiveness of our closeness with him and how it was so hard to identify. Jim Reams wrote beautifully of Karsten’s love and how he wasn’t just lucky but “good” at how he snagged such a beautiful person in Kate. We were all envious. So many others have lamented the loss of such a unique, artistic, giving, unselfish, inquisitive person and every single account has been right. We all experience our relationships in our own sui generis. And so…here I am and I debate. I hesitate to write how I experienced Karsten. I debate writing such a personal account of my sui generis. This is personal and it is far from easy, but I have to trust that when these things happen, when we loose someone that has such an impact on our lives, we all need a catharsis….a release. We need sanctuary of time and place to contemplate our personal and solitary loss of such an incredible spirit. Friday’ celebration was beautiful and a fitting start on this journey!

The thing is that what I had, what we all had with Karsten belongs to us and we’ve all had a piece of us torn a little, fractured in a small way. The fact that we are talking and sharing helps heal our wounds and begins the process of easing the pain. In true Karsten fashion, we have become the artists of our own broken hearts….Ironic! Karsten loved us in his own unique way and for that I think we find our solace. We slowly begin to answer the questions, the whys and hopefully find our own peace.

He will forever be my nuk nuk, surrealist partner of surrealism, my zipper fuk, prog rock, cosmic primate, Bulleitt bourbon imbibing bohemian and my very dear friend. I love you Karsten…..save me a spot where ever you are!

Peace, my friend

Bo

Who you know…5 things that can help to network better

I learned many years ago, that in business and as it later turned out in life, it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Until I got out in the real world to fend for myself, I never appreciated how true and relevant that adage really was. I kinda consider myself old school. I am in that weird sort of right on the cusp era between being on the tail end of the baby boomers and right before the Gen-xers. And therefore consider myself fortunate to communicate and network well with the generation ahead of me and the one behind me.

It is true that everyone knows someone. So in business, the question then becomes how do I leverage the people that I currently know to meet the people that I want to know. It really is that simple. However to do this requires a little of strategy and a lot of patience, particularly when trying to do business with someone. And the vehicles to facilitate this are more efficient than ever. Sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook put you in front of people not only quickly, but very efficiently.

So here are a few things that might help in your efforts:

1. Be an expert in your field and make sure your profile matches your expertise. Remember other will be looking you up too. And you want to make sure that you control what they see and how they see it.

2. Engage: Make sure to utilize the group and discussions within those groups to not only start a conversation, but to comment as well. This will not only let people know that you are an expert, but will show that you are making your presence known in a real way, not a boastful one

3. Use these sites to research. If you have found a company you would like to work with, then look up the people that work there and then look to see if you are connected to anyone either at the company or know someone that can introduce you

4. Always be yourself. Let people know you have a “human side”. They will appreciate that you are not just all business., all the time.

5. Be humble and be patient …don’t go in “guns a blazing” right off the bat. Think of it this way – If you were invited to a party, the last thing you would do is introduce yourself, talk about all your accomplishments and then immediately go into a sales pitch. Take the time to get to know someone first.

5.1 Be youself: People still like doing business with people and when you take the time to introduce yourself and more importantly get to know them, you will have a better frame of reference when it is time to ask for an order and you might make a friend along the way.

Good luck and happy networking!

Until next time, your happy people connector

Bo Hussung

It’s about the relationship

Actually, it’s all about the relationship! In business as in life, relationships are the cornerstone of everything we do. It is why we are here and what we should strive for. Here’s the deal though,,,,it takes time…sometimes lots of it and it never seems like we have much and in today’s world, it is become almost passe. Famed motivator, Zig Ziglar used to say, “we get what we want when we help someone get what they want”. Pretty simple. That is not a platitude, it is a realism. By developing and maintaining relationships, we learn about our customers. When we know our customers and their likes and dislikes, then we are better equipped to help them get what they want. So the next time you start growing impatient because your customer is rambling about his family or brother or friend or colleague, remember his ramblings are the basis for helping him. The seeds of that sale are in that rambling. Listen, take notes and remember he is a person that has a life out of his everyday work life and knowing a little bit about him will endear him to you and you to him. So the next time you ask for the sale, it won’t seem disingenuous.

Happy relationship building

Until next time,

Bo