Thinking about the end game
Jan. 4th, 2013 11:36 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
susandennisTully's Coffee is going under and the bankruptcy court is trying to sell it. Patrick Dempsey, the actor, is part of a group trying to buy it so there is great focus.
I just saw a tweet quoting him as saying "We're going to keep these jobs alive."
Really??? That's the reason for owning a business? I don't really believe that and if it is, I cannot imagine it is much of a successful business model.
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I just called the compound pharmacy about Betty's prescription. All I had was a phone number to start. But, from it I learned the name of the pharmacy and looked it up online. It looks to be a smallish independent chain (4 stores) selling vitamins and otc natural stuff in addition to filling prescriptions. Their website is all about discounts and save by giving us your prescriptions and shop with us... Their phone set us is very different.
Their telephone tree has many branches - none of which was what I wanted so I pushed 0 and got a dial tone. Try #2 netted me a person who couldn't find my prescription and finally did and then said she'd go ask when it would be ready. I was on hold for about 3 minutes when I got cut off. Try #3 got me another person who couldn't find the prescription. When I explained the other person had found it, she miraculously did find it and then proceeded to tell me how busy she was and she'd call me if I'd give her my number. When I asked if it would be today she said "I don't know, I'm so busy and there's only me and I just don't know... I can try..." And reiterated this about three times in a very whiny tone.
So... website wants my business but the pharmacist not so much. When is it ever good business to whine about workload to a first time customer?????
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I worked for a guy one time who called together his top staff (about 6 of us) to hammer out a mission statement. None of us thought this was fun, interesting, or anything much more than a giant, boring timesuck, but he was the boss so we splayed outsides out in a conference room for the long haul....
He stood up and said "I totally get that all of you think this exercise is a giant boring timesuck. So I'd like to spend a few minutes explaining why it is, instead, building the most valuable tool we will need to build this project."
And then he went on to really, thoroughly convince us that it was worthwhile and, over the course of the following 18 months, I learned he was oh so right.
When things get rough and decisions are hard, you need to know what you are doing and why and if your beating your brains out over something is really worth it. That mission statement was the key. Over and over again. If my beating my brains out got us to that end goal, great. If not then STOP it.
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I think all too often people lose sight of what they are doing and why they are doing it and veer off the road to a very bad ride or a major crash.
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Oh, Google just sent me an alert of my obituary!! Man, that kind of email just wakes you up. Turns out a Susan Dennis in Maryland died. Not me. Whew.
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So now I wait for the pharmacist to call. I could go do stuff but nothing on my list is near the pharmacist or interruptable but also no critical so I'll just stay here and wait. No biggie. Maybe I'll gather all my shit together for CES and put it in one place to be ready.
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Oh and Betty popped in the litter box again!! Yeah.
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And can I just say a profound thank you to Restore Draft? I hit the wrong key just now and this entire entry disappeared. But Restore Drafts? brought it back. So, thank you.
I just saw a tweet quoting him as saying "We're going to keep these jobs alive."
Really??? That's the reason for owning a business? I don't really believe that and if it is, I cannot imagine it is much of a successful business model.
---
I just called the compound pharmacy about Betty's prescription. All I had was a phone number to start. But, from it I learned the name of the pharmacy and looked it up online. It looks to be a smallish independent chain (4 stores) selling vitamins and otc natural stuff in addition to filling prescriptions. Their website is all about discounts and save by giving us your prescriptions and shop with us... Their phone set us is very different.
Their telephone tree has many branches - none of which was what I wanted so I pushed 0 and got a dial tone. Try #2 netted me a person who couldn't find my prescription and finally did and then said she'd go ask when it would be ready. I was on hold for about 3 minutes when I got cut off. Try #3 got me another person who couldn't find the prescription. When I explained the other person had found it, she miraculously did find it and then proceeded to tell me how busy she was and she'd call me if I'd give her my number. When I asked if it would be today she said "I don't know, I'm so busy and there's only me and I just don't know... I can try..." And reiterated this about three times in a very whiny tone.
So... website wants my business but the pharmacist not so much. When is it ever good business to whine about workload to a first time customer?????
---
I worked for a guy one time who called together his top staff (about 6 of us) to hammer out a mission statement. None of us thought this was fun, interesting, or anything much more than a giant, boring timesuck, but he was the boss so we splayed outsides out in a conference room for the long haul....
He stood up and said "I totally get that all of you think this exercise is a giant boring timesuck. So I'd like to spend a few minutes explaining why it is, instead, building the most valuable tool we will need to build this project."
And then he went on to really, thoroughly convince us that it was worthwhile and, over the course of the following 18 months, I learned he was oh so right.
When things get rough and decisions are hard, you need to know what you are doing and why and if your beating your brains out over something is really worth it. That mission statement was the key. Over and over again. If my beating my brains out got us to that end goal, great. If not then STOP it.
---
I think all too often people lose sight of what they are doing and why they are doing it and veer off the road to a very bad ride or a major crash.
---
Oh, Google just sent me an alert of my obituary!! Man, that kind of email just wakes you up. Turns out a Susan Dennis in Maryland died. Not me. Whew.
---
So now I wait for the pharmacist to call. I could go do stuff but nothing on my list is near the pharmacist or interruptable but also no critical so I'll just stay here and wait. No biggie. Maybe I'll gather all my shit together for CES and put it in one place to be ready.
---
Oh and Betty popped in the litter box again!! Yeah.
---
And can I just say a profound thank you to Restore Draft? I hit the wrong key just now and this entire entry disappeared. But Restore Drafts? brought it back. So, thank you.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-01-05 06:09 am (UTC)The only one which has stuck with me may actually be the one for the place I work now: "Delight the customer". It probably should be every company's motto.
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Interesting tidbit about Tully's. Serves them right for defacing the Rainier brewery.
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Surprised you did not point out the the whiner that she was not the only one working - you had just talked to someone else.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-01-05 06:20 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-01-05 07:08 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-01-05 07:13 am (UTC)