Author: louis

No, I’m not referring to Christmas.  I’m referring to the time of year we make “New Year’s Resolutions.”  The new year is a great time time evaluate, plan, and set goals or resolutions.  A quick Google search tells me 35% of resolutions are broken before the end of January and only 23% of resolutions are kept for the year. 

I received an email yesterday on the topic of resolutions and helpful hints to keep them.  The email claimed the real key is “advanced planning.”  Below are are few more helpful hints shared in the email:

-Build a plan

-Share it with those close to you

-Post the plan so you will see it regularly

-It all starts with one plan

I hope these tips are helpful as you make your resolutions!

Louis

During this busy Christmas season, my 5 year-old daughter has reminded me of what the true spirit of Christmas is all about – that it is better to give than to receive and that gifts from the heart are a part of the true spirit of Christmas.   She has went through countless sheets of paper, glue and tape over the past couple of weeks.  She has made more messes than I care to think about but it’s all been in the true spirit of Christmas.  She colors the paper and glues and/or tapes it over an item in her room.  Sometimes, she even finds bows in the house and tapes it on top.  She then proudly presents it to someone – beaming with excitement as she waits for them to open the present.  She worked especially hard on a gift that she took to her teacher this week.  I couldn’t help but laugh when her teacher opened it and saw that it contained Cinderella shoes, a crown, a necklace and princess gloves (all from Holly’s room).

As I was thinking about what she was doing, the thought occurred to me that we should all do the same for our co-workers.  Your budget may not allow you to do much, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find ways to show appreciation for them. Do some sleuthing to discover more about your co-workers. Learn their likes, interests, tastes, and hobbies. As 2013 approaches, repeatedly invest in your workplace relationships in small ways such as taking them out for lunch or remembering and celebrating their birthday. Over time, your consistent, intentional efforts will deepen your relationships with others, and you will gain greater influence and enjoyment at work.

I’ll close with three quotes I read this week that I thought were really good:

Christmas gift suggestions:  To your enemy, forgiveness.  To an opponent, tolerance.  To a friend, your heart.  To a customer, service.  To all, charity.  To every child, a good example.  To yourself, respect.  ~Oren Arnold

Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree.  In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall.  ~Larry Wilde, The Merry Book of Christmas

One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day.  Don’t clean it up too quickly.  ~Andy Rooney

Rachel

Have you ever set a goal and worked extremely hard on  it only to find out after achieving it you didn’t get the fulfillment that you expected?  If so, you are not alone.  I have experienced this many times.

We often blog about about the importance of setting goals and the action it takes to achieve these goals.  We sometimes fail to mention the importance of  “enjoying the journey” along the way.  As I look back at goals I have achieved, especially those achieved in a team or group enviroment, often times the journey or the process of working toward the goal is actually a more memorable experience than the moment the goal is achieved.   

I believe that goals are not only important but necessary.  I also know the importance of enjoying your daily activities at work as well as  being an enjoyable person to be around.  I think the key, as with most things in life, is finding the correct balance between working hard to achieve your goals as well as enjoying the daily activities along the path of achievement. 

Life is a journey, not a destination.

Ralph Waldo

Have a great day…Louis

For success, attitude is equally as important as ability.

Harry F. Banks

The world belongs to the energetic.

Ralph Walso Emerson

Few women and fewer men have enough character to be idle.

Edward V. Lucas

Our life is what our thoughts make it.

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

Have a great day..Louis

A friend of mine recently sent me a blog to read that I thought was really good so I wanted to summarize and share the main points with all of you….

As leaders, we all have bridges to our pasts. We have connections that reach across time, linking us to our previous experiences. These bridges can benefit us by providing access to a storehouse of pleasant memories and helpful lessons. However, these bridges can also harm us by keeping us in contact with traumatic events in our personal history.“The hardest thing to learn in life,” writes David Sanders, “is to know which bridge to cross and which bridge to burn.” Here are  four bridges to the past that a leader would be wise to set ablaze.

Bridge #1: Wrongs Done to Us

Be a good forgetter. Business dictates it, and success demands it.” Forgiveness allows you to be free from the nightmares of the past and to reclaim your dreams for the future.  We burn bridges to past injuries by taking the high road. Revenge may feel like the preferable path, but ultimately it keeps us bound to our hurt. If there are people who have wronged you, do yourself a favor and give them something they don’t deserve but desperately need: the gift of forgiveness. It’s a gift that, once given, offers something in return.

Bridge #2: The Unfairness of Life

Life’s circumstances aren’t equal for everyone. At times, we encounter bad luck; our lives are beset by hardships that our friends have the good fortune to avoid.  Rather than permitting misfortunes to drag us down, we ought to develop an attitude which takes them in stride as an inevitable part of life. In this way, we empower ourselves to rise above life’s difficulties instead of being passive victims of them.

Bridge #3: Growth Inhibitors

Bad habits serve as bridges to the past. We persist in them because they’re familiar and because it’s painful to part with them. However, they prevent us from growing to our potential.  Breaking unhealthy patterns of behavior requires making hard decisions. We have to  be willing to exchange short-term comfort for long-term gain.

Bridge #4: Our Own Stupidity

Some people cannot seem to let go of failure. Instead of learning from setbacks, they allow mistakes to define them. By forgiving ourselves, we burn the bridge to our past failures and free ourselves to move forward.

Rachel

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.  I’m glad to be back in the office this morning and be back in my normal routine.  As we often discuss, our business should pick up significantly over the next couple of weeks.  Please keep in mind this will allow us more opportunities to exemplify outstanding customer service.  I recently read a quote that said, ” The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”  In our business “The Main Thing” is our customers!

Have a great day…Louis

I recently read that the essence of Thanksgiving is the need to give thanks for the things in our  lives so I would like to use today’s blog to thank all of you at Montgomery Enterprises for your support and friendship over the past six months.  Starting a new job is not always easy.  You never know if you will “fit in” and you wonder if you’ll ever learn all that there is to know about the job.   I have recently had the privilege of meeting some of our newer employees like myself….Lakenya Harp, Kelly Arrington, Joyce Williams and Gladys Hutchison.  I hope you four ladies have felt as welcome as I have and I hope you know that you are doing an outstanding job!

Rachel

I hope that you and your families all have a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I found a poem about The First Thanksgiving that I thought I would share!

The First Thanksgiving

The Pilgrim Fathers began it all
This holiday that arrives in fall
On that first Thanksgiving Day
They celebrated a harvest and come what may
What was it like in the beginning
did they sit at a loom just spinning and spinning?
Could they even imagine holiday sales
Or were they too preoccupied with their own travails
Did they watch a football game?
Or perhaps lacrosse, of Indian fame
Did they attend the Macy’s Parade?
Or just spread their bread with marmalade
Things have changed from that first Thanksgiving
But still we strive to make a living
In order that we might receive
The blessings and bounty of the life we weave

Happy Thanksgiving…Louis

One of the most important aspects of our business is collections.  How well an office can collect usually determines the success of the office.  I would like to congratulate Christie Nuckols and Rachel Robertson from the Fayette store for having 3 Great months of collections on returned checks.  Great job ladies!

Continuous effort-not strength or intelligence-is the key to unlocking our potential.

Winston Churchill

Have a great day…Louis

We are preparing to go live with our new Money Matters website.  We thought it would be a good idea to have as many eyes as possible  proof the site before we launch it.  Please use the following link: http://mabushost.com/~moneymat/ to check out the new site.  Please pay special attention to your particular store under the locations tab and check the address and phone numbers as well as the location on the adjacent map.  Please email any errors you find to your area managers.  Thanks for the help!

Have a great day!

Louis