***Reposting from 2010***
It was 5:00 pm Christmas Eve 1989, and I was locking the front door of the supermarket where I was Store Manager.
Over the years, I had made it a tradition for me to be the "closer" of the store on Christmas Eve.
Inside the store, my employees were rushing around counting their register tills, sweeping the floor, and generally preparing the store for closing down, so they all could rush home to their families for Christmas.
At approximately 5:30pm, I heard someone tapping on the front door.
“I just got off work and I need to shop for my family", the gentleman on the other side of the glass door shouted.
“Sorry, we are closed.” I answered.
“Please, I really need to shop and you are the only grocery store open.”
In the background several of my employees yelled out to me… “Mr. Gambone, I hope you don’t let him in, we all want to go home.”
I turned to my office manager and said , “Cindy, I feel bad for this guy…will you stick around with me until we get him checked out.”
She looked at me with a frown, “Well, I hope he only needs a few things, OK.”
We let him in…he was very gracious, grabbed a buggy and started to shop.
“I’ll only take a few minutes,” he said.
Then all of a sudden, he turned around and looked at Cindy and me in desperation… “Shit!..I’m sorry for swearing, but I left my wallet in my overalls at work….I can’t believe this!!!”
He abandoned the buggy and started walking towards the front door to leave.
Cindy looked at me and said… “Well, I guess we can leave now.”
“Hold on!” I said… “Sir, you pick up what you need and come back the day after Christmas and pay us.”
Cindy looked at me as if I was crazy. The gentleman was overjoyed and continued to shop.
When he completed his shopping, Cindy and I checked him out and bagged his groceries. He purchased lots of milk, cereal, bread and basic groceries along with some gift-wrap and children’s toys.
We wished him a Merry Christmas as he left and Cindy and I locked up and went home to our families.
...............the gentleman never returned...................
Yes, I took some heat from my boss when he found out…but that’s okay. I knew in my heart that it was right thing to do at the time.
It is moments like this is my life when I am reminded of the words a mentor of mine once shared with me early in my career...“The good you do, will come back to you.” Lou Z.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and may you and your family have a glorious New Year.
Bob Gambone, The Pecan Pie Guy!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Saturday, December 10, 2011
"It’s Not What Life Makes of You; It's What You Make of Life."
---Some of my favorites---
"There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle."
Albert Einstein
"Let us live so that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry."
Mark Twain
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."
Mohandas Gandhi
"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Work as if you were to live a hundred years. Pray as if you were to die tomorrow."
Benjamin Franklin
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."
John F. Kennedy
"It’s not what life makes of you; it's what you make of life."
Unknown
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read more "Pecans of Wisdom" from Bob Gambone in his book:
"Pecan Pie, 32 Business Success Strategies Passionately Baked to Order" buy it NOW! on Amazon.com
Copyright (12-10-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
"There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle; you can live as if everything is a miracle."
Albert Einstein
"Let us live so that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry."
Mark Twain
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."
Mohandas Gandhi
"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Work as if you were to live a hundred years. Pray as if you were to die tomorrow."
Benjamin Franklin
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."
John F. Kennedy
"It’s not what life makes of you; it's what you make of life."
Unknown
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read more "Pecans of Wisdom" from Bob Gambone in his book:
"Pecan Pie, 32 Business Success Strategies Passionately Baked to Order" buy it NOW! on Amazon.com
Copyright (12-10-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Lou, The Nabisco Guy
*** In Memory of Lou ***
Lou the Nabisco Guy never used selling strategies …Lou had a culture of “selling.”
I was 23 years old when I first met Lou. He was the region’s number one salesman for Nabisco from 1974 to 1985.
One day I was eating lunch with Lou and asked,
“Lou, so what do you do, to be so good at selling?....can you share some tips?”
Lou replied, shaking his head and smiling, “Bob there is really no magic tips, but I do have five core beliefs about selling.”
1.) Love and believe in your product.
2.) People like to buy, but not to be sold to.
3.) I never sell anything, I solve people’s problems.
4.) Never talk yourself out of a sale.
5.) and….Never close a sale, open an opportunity.
Lou died in 1985 from a heart attack at the early age of 63.
Lou’s culture of selling has lived on. Those who adopt it become very successful.
To be the best, you need to have more than just strategies, you first need a culture, a core belief.
Dr.Ivan Misner, New York Times best selling author and founder of BNI (Business Network International) says it best, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”
Today when I enjoy my favorite Nabisco crackers I always think of Lou…Lou the Nabisco Guy.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Fundamentals...Don't Leave Home Without Them
From the book, The Last Lecture...author Randy Pausch reflects on his "old school" football coach.
On the first day of practice, we were all scared to death. Plus he (the coach) hadn't brought along any footballs. One kid finally spoke up for all of us.
"Excuse me, Coach. There are no footballs."
And Coach Graham responded, "We don't need any footballs."
There was a silence, while we thought about that...
"How many men are on the football field at a time?" he asked us.
Eleven on a team, we answered, So that makes twenty-two.
"And how many people are touching the football at any given time?"
One of them.
"Right!" he said.
"So we're going to work on what the other twenty-one guys are doing."
Asked yourself the following question: What are the three basic business fundamentals?
Not sure? Contact me at bobgambone@bobgambone.com for the answer.
“Copyright (11-26-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
On the first day of practice, we were all scared to death. Plus he (the coach) hadn't brought along any footballs. One kid finally spoke up for all of us.
"Excuse me, Coach. There are no footballs."
And Coach Graham responded, "We don't need any footballs."
There was a silence, while we thought about that...
"How many men are on the football field at a time?" he asked us.
Eleven on a team, we answered, So that makes twenty-two.
"And how many people are touching the football at any given time?"
One of them.
"Right!" he said.
"So we're going to work on what the other twenty-one guys are doing."
Asked yourself the following question: What are the three basic business fundamentals?
Not sure? Contact me at bobgambone@bobgambone.com for the answer.
“Copyright (11-26-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Make ‘em Laugh…But Don’t Tell Jokes!
Yes, laughter is the best medicine.
And yes, laughter is a great icebreaker when you are speaking to an audience.
HOWEVER… in today’s politically correct climate and social sensitivity, telling jokes is not the way to go.
Why? Odds are you might offend someone.
I suggest telling funny stories about you, we all have them.
“Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused.”…or amusing. :)
Read more "Pecans of Wisdom" from Bob Gambone in his book:
"Pecan Pie, 32 Business Success Strategies Passionately Baked to Order" buy it NOW! on Amazon.com
“Copyright (11-13-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And yes, laughter is a great icebreaker when you are speaking to an audience.
HOWEVER… in today’s politically correct climate and social sensitivity, telling jokes is not the way to go.
Why? Odds are you might offend someone.
I suggest telling funny stories about you, we all have them.
“Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused.”…or amusing. :)
Read more "Pecans of Wisdom" from Bob Gambone in his book:
"Pecan Pie, 32 Business Success Strategies Passionately Baked to Order" buy it NOW! on Amazon.com
“Copyright (11-13-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
When Are YOU Going To Get A REAL Job?!
Entrepreneurs!....how many times have you heard this?!
...and to make it worse, most of the time, the question comes from our family and loved ones.
Well, it is time to fight back!
Here are Seven inspirational quotes from entrepreneurs , just like yourself, to use as ammo against the pessimists that challenge you.
"When you reach an obstacle, turn it into an opportunity. You have the choice. You can overcome and be a winner, or you can allow it to overcome you and be a loser. The choice is yours and yours alone. Refuse to throw in the towel. Go that extra mile that failures refuse to travel. It is far better to be exhausted from success than to be rested from failure."
- Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics
"The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It's as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer."
- Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese's
"Innovation is the specific tool of entrepreneurs, the means by which they exploit change as an opportunity for a different business or a different service. It is capable of being presented as a discipline, capable of being learned, capable of being practiced. Entrepreneurs need to search purposefully for the sources of innovation, the changes and their symptoms that indicate opportunities for successful innovation. And they need to know and to apply the principles of successful innovation."
- Peter F. Drucker, "The Father of Modern Management"
"Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you're generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don't make."
- Donald Trump, real estate and entertainment mogul
"The important thing is not being afraid to take a chance. Remember, the greatest failure is to not try. Once you find something you love to do, be the best at doing it."
- Debbi Fields, founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies
"We were young, but we had good advice and good ideas and lots of enthusiasm. Our success has really been based on partnerships from the very beginning."
- Bill Gates
"I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others... I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent."
- Thomas Edison
AND....Just in case someone says (like my niece did to me)
"Well Uncle Bob, you're no Thomas Edison"
"You're right", I said, "but who was Thomas Edison before he became "Thomas Edison?! "
...and to make it worse, most of the time, the question comes from our family and loved ones.
Well, it is time to fight back!
Here are Seven inspirational quotes from entrepreneurs , just like yourself, to use as ammo against the pessimists that challenge you.
"When you reach an obstacle, turn it into an opportunity. You have the choice. You can overcome and be a winner, or you can allow it to overcome you and be a loser. The choice is yours and yours alone. Refuse to throw in the towel. Go that extra mile that failures refuse to travel. It is far better to be exhausted from success than to be rested from failure."
- Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics
"The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It's as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer."
- Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese's
"Innovation is the specific tool of entrepreneurs, the means by which they exploit change as an opportunity for a different business or a different service. It is capable of being presented as a discipline, capable of being learned, capable of being practiced. Entrepreneurs need to search purposefully for the sources of innovation, the changes and their symptoms that indicate opportunities for successful innovation. And they need to know and to apply the principles of successful innovation."
- Peter F. Drucker, "The Father of Modern Management"
"Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you're generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don't make."
- Donald Trump, real estate and entertainment mogul
"The important thing is not being afraid to take a chance. Remember, the greatest failure is to not try. Once you find something you love to do, be the best at doing it."
- Debbi Fields, founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies
"We were young, but we had good advice and good ideas and lots of enthusiasm. Our success has really been based on partnerships from the very beginning."
- Bill Gates
"I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others... I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent."
- Thomas Edison
AND....Just in case someone says (like my niece did to me)
"Well Uncle Bob, you're no Thomas Edison"
"You're right", I said, "but who was Thomas Edison before he became "Thomas Edison?! "
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
I’m Sorry, He is With a Client Right Now!
Don’t you hate that?!
Your appointment (as a client / customer) was for 3:00pm and it’s now 3:20.
You ask the receptionist if he / she is available and you get… “I’m sorry, she is with a client right now.”
AND you would love to say… “So, what am I ???”
Whether you are a CPA , a doctor, a financial advisor, or a contractor…if you have people working your front desk, PLEASE never-ever have them just say “….you are with a client.”
Better answer: “I’m sorry, I will let _(name)_ know that you are waiting, he /she is with another client / customer and I apologize.
Remember….don’t let your ‘front line’ weaken your ‘bottom line.’
“Copyright (10-19-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
Your appointment (as a client / customer) was for 3:00pm and it’s now 3:20.
You ask the receptionist if he / she is available and you get… “I’m sorry, she is with a client right now.”
AND you would love to say… “So, what am I ???”
Whether you are a CPA , a doctor, a financial advisor, or a contractor…if you have people working your front desk, PLEASE never-ever have them just say “….you are with a client.”
Better answer: “I’m sorry, I will let _(name)_ know that you are waiting, he /she is with another client / customer and I apologize.
Remember….don’t let your ‘front line’ weaken your ‘bottom line.’
“Copyright (10-19-2011) by Robert V. Gambone Sr.”
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