thestoryofjory.com

Take a look at this lovely periodical I found at the local convenience store:

So now you know where to go for the latest news/mugshots for wanted criminals, missing persons, and sex offenders. Oh, joy.

So, about a year ago, I was in the local Mail Boxes, Etc. store mailing off one of my key-art projects when I was approached by a woman standing in line next to me.  She introduced herself as Jeretta Horn Nord, and she asked lots of questions about my key art.  I was happy to talk to her about it, and she seemed really interested.  Nord told me that she was editing a book series about entrepreneurship and would like me to contribute my story.  So I went home and wrote a short one or two page summary of my key-art story and emailed it to her.  I didn’t figure I’d ever hear anything about it again because 1) I didn’t think the series had a publisher yet and 2) the title of the series is kind of lame in my opinion: A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit.

I figured the story would end there.  Wrong.  In January, Nord emailed me to tell me that my story would be published in her upcoming book, A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit: Women Entrepreneurs’ Edition.

And, to top it off, there will be a book launch event on June 10 at the Barnes & Noble on 66th & Broadway in New York City. Nord emailed me again yesterday to pass along more information about the event, which I have re-posted below:

The Women Entrepreneurs’ Edition of A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit will be launched at the largest Barnes and Noble in the nation on Thursday, June 10 at 7:30 p.m. (66th and Broadway–Lincoln Triangle, New York City).  Lou Kerr and I would love for you to join us in the celebration of the publication of 58 phenomenal stories from extraordinary women entrepreneurs from five countries and eighteen states.

We will have a panel of  eight featured women entrepreneurs who will tell their stories and answer questions.  If you are an entrepreneur featured in one of the books, you will have an opportunity to ’sign’ your story and meet other like minded individuals.  It’s truly an opportunity of a lifetime to have people ask for your ‘autograph’ on Broadway in NYC.  J A flier is attached with all of the details.

Volumes I and II of A Cup of Cappuccino for the Entrepreneur’s Spirit will also be available at this event.

Just in case you need more encouragement–we will have free bookmarks, pens, door hangers and a drawing to give away a Barnes and Noble nook e-reader valued at $250.

Jeretta Horn Nord
CEO, Entrepreneur Enterprises LLC

Consider this flyer for the event:

It’s kind of crazy, considering that I never even thought anything would ever come of this.  No, I won’t be going to New York City for the book event.  I can’t really afford to. For my participation in this book, I believe I will be receiving… a free copy of the book.  However, if you purchase this book, I will be more than happy to sign it for you.  Also, if you buy the book, I encourage you to go write a review of it on Amazon.com for me.

Despite my evident sarcasm in this particular post, I have to admit that I do think this cool.  I secretly wish I could go to NYC to this event, just to see what it would be like.  It’s kind of exciting to think that Jorydotcom’s Epic Key Emporium will be saved forever in a book.  Even if it doesn’t result in extra traffic at ye olde shoppe, at the very least, it’s a cool story to tell my kids one day.

Edited: Sarcasm removed.

But it was only for pretend.

The Stillwater Convention and Visitors Bureau sponsored a leadership luncheon and seminar, and my boss’s assistant put me on the list to go.  In my 25 short years, I’ve become a veteran of functions like this thanks to FFA & 4-H.  And, because I’m a bit of a freak of nature, I like motivational seminars. It helped that the whole thing cost $15 for a 3 course lunch, the seminar, and autographed hardback book.

And so I went to Meditations Motivational Seminar Banquet Facility & Wedding Chapel to see Kyle Eastham give a presentation aptly titled, “Good Enough For Government Work.” We ate salad, followed by ham served with a pineapple and chili powder chutney, mashed potatoes and assorted vegetables, with a piece of chocolate cake for desert. Kyle came next.

Kyle first told us how the phrase “good enough for government work” used to mean that a product or service was of very high quality.  Apparently, this term originated from the war effort during and after WWII; the men and women called to service were very proud of the work they did and thus standards were very high.  Having worked over a year for a government agency, I can tell you that this isn’t the case anymore.

First, Kyle said, to combat complacency and inefficiency you need to fire someone.  Don’t be afraid to set standards and fire the offending employees when those standards aren’t met, Kyle said.  I agree.  Then Kyle wanted a volunteer.  Who amongst this sea of 35+ year-old Stillwater business professionals would like to help?

Kyle shook my hand and said my name like 5 times to make sure he was pronouncing it correctly.  You are now the CEO of this seminar, he said, and all the people here are your employees.  My boss, Stan Clark, is sitting at the table directly to my right.  There are 15 people here from my company.  Right on, I said.  Then Kyle says the economy is pretty bad, and apparently so are my employees, so I have to fire 10% of them. That’s six people at this party.  Go pick six people to fire.  How are you going to do it, how will you decide?

I think Kyle expected me to be a bit more reluctant and shy.  One of the people I “fired” was the president of BancFirst Stillwater.  I DJ’d his daughter’s wedding.  President said, You can’t fire me! He stood up and gave me a hug.  I said okay, you’re not fired.  I fired the lady sitting next to him instead.

By the time this exercise was finished, everyone was laughing, and I don’t think Kyle got to make his point about how hard it is to fire someone.  But everyone in that room had fired someone before; it wasn’t a newsflash for anyone.

The rest of the presentation went by pretty quickly.  Kyle said he was giving us a presentation in 45 minutes that he usually gives in a day.  Given more time, I think I would have really enjoyed his points more.  But, the presentation suffered from the brevity; and I can’t recall very many details about the last six points.  However, I think Kyle’s tenets make a lot of sense for both leadership and business, so I’ll list the rest of them here:

• Hire Character, Train for Skill – Hire someone who has the characteristics you’re looking for, not someone who is a character;
• Insist on and Reward Excellence – Make it a big deal, and employees will treat it as such;
• Develop Emerging Leaders – Pay attention influential employees, as they greatly affect their peers;
• Instill Pride – Ensure accountability for good and bad performance;
• Find a Mentor, Be A Mentor;
• Stop Lying to Employees on Performance Appraisals – Managers and supervisors say that as many as 35% of their employees are performing at a “Below Average” rate, but only 1% are actually marked as such on their performance evaluations;*

Whether I end up in management or not, I think these are good points to keep in mind.  Even though we’ve all heard some iteration of this before, it never hurts to have a refresher or hear the material presented in a different way.  It’s not like we’re ever going to “get it all right” as bosses or leaders; and I’ve come to understand that’s why Stan always goes to these events too.  To me, Stan is the epitome of leadership and mentorship, and I’d be happy being half the leader he is.  For Stan, these 45-minute luncheons offer a chance for self-reflection and evaluation.  Plus, the chocolate cake is really, really good.

*Statistical statement made by Kyle that I have in no way vetted out. Remember that 90% of all statistics are 67% made up 55% of the time.