When Going After New Business May Not Be A Good Idea

Cheyenne Wyoming had a hailstorm on July 12. There was over $120 million in damage. Many roofs, including mine, need replacement. To fill the gap there are many transient roofing companies that have arrived on the scene. They may or may not be reputable. Let's look though at the established roofing companies.

The local established businesses do not depend on catastrophes. They have steady on-going business with new homes, homes being sold, normal repairs and aging roofs that need replacement.

In one way of looking at it the established local roofers should not be involved with catastrophe business.

I have asked three reputable local roofers to give me an estimate.

One of them replaced my roof in the hail storm of 2003. That company should be able to take out the previous invoice, update prices and give me a new quote. I was happy with their work and so am an existing customer. They do not know when they can talk to me

Another one was highly recommended. The owner came out and did a quote. There is a need for him to contact my insurance company regarding some changes to their estimate. After two weeks I discovered that he had made no contact. He was too busy. If he cannot follow through with me then why is he out doing more quotes?

The third one sometime back invited me to a dinner at their facility. It was on the basis of meeting them and learning of their service that I called them for the new roof. I have mentioned that each time I called. They are busy and do not know when they can come to my home.

All three of these firms have plenty of business without the hailstorm. Why do they not see that they are alienating high quality existing customers who can refer them during calm times?

I can see the possibility that I may engage one of the transient companies and not give any referrals even about the local company that did a good job in 2003.

I can imagine that there are some roofers who are quietly staying out of the storm frenzy and are picking up the more lucrative steady market business.

David Sneed

A Real Example This Day Today of God's Type of Giving

Someone made a comment about my entry of Wednesday August 24. The comment was related to where I said "God does not need anyone's money." The comment was to explain why the concept of tithing is so rampant.

Tithing today is an unintended con game by men who do not know their Bible, who may not want to know their Bible, and who Paul called "disorderly" in II Thessalonians 3:6-15.

To say that tithing is a requirement and that we should turn a tenth of our income over to our pastor in the offering plate we have to commit the blasphemy of saying that God changed his mind. First there are three tithes: the tithe for the festivals, the tithe to maintain the Levites and the temple and the tithe every three years for the poor. That's 23 1/3 percent. More important is that the Bible is quite clear that the tithe is to be paid to the Levites, the sons of Levi, who own nothing. Does your pastor claim to be a descendent of Levi? Does your pastor own any property in his own name? If he is so concerned about fulfilling the Bible, does he perform the required blood sacrifices at the altar? If he answers no to any of these questions, where is his scriptural basis to change the tithe to 10%, have it paid to him so that he does not have to get a job to support himself, and possibly use your tithe to buy luxuries for himself? If the duty of the Levite has been transferred to him why does he not do the other duties of the Levites that are closely tied to the tithing? What is his scriptural basis for doing the Levitical duty of collecting the tithes yet changing the requirement of owning nothing?

The Macedonians were desirous, quite possibly after much prayer, of giving money to Paul to aid in Jerusalem. There was no sermon of requirement to do so. We do not know the whole story but we do know that the Macedonians were poor and quite likely their own needs were met in ways that were miraculous but which could have been explained away as something that would have happened anyway.

Today I went to a hot air balloon festival in Loveland Colorado. I went with my daughter, her husband Matt, and the children Amber, age 10 and Jacob almost 2. We arrived early. Many people were already there. A truck with a balloon trailer arrived and parked right in front of us. The driver, a balloon pilot, did not see his ground crew. He asked for someone to help. Matt volunteered. The man could have waited for his crew or he could have searched for people who had already volunteered to help. Matt got in the truck and he and the pilot went to another part of the park. After watching a balloon ascend, Amber walked over to where Matt was helping. The pilot made an offer to take Amber in the balloon. There was himself and another adult. He did not have room for another adult due to weight yet he could take a child. Amber got her first balloon ride. Let's look closely at what happened.

1. Balloon rides were being offered for $200. This man was not selling rides because he was sponsored to display an ad.
2. There were volunteers already on a list to assist as volunteer ground crews.
3. This pilot happened to stop right in front of us. He needed help. There were 14 other pilots there.
4. Matt volunteered with no other motive than to be of assistance where he could. He gave of his ability to move things with his hands.
5. Matt was able to provide an opportunity for Amber that was worth $200 yet the pilot did not lose as he had already been paid.
6. Amber walked over to that balloon rather than staying with the rest of us. Normally she might not have done that. Had she not gone over to be with Matt the balloon pilot would not have known of her.

It is possible to explain away these circumstances as coincidence and chance. I believe that God provided a giving opportunity for both Matt and the balloon pilot. This is an example of God's type of giving. Matt could have easily paid for her seat but of all the 15 balloons a seat on this balloon was not for sale at any price.

This example also becomes a way of answering the person who made the comment.

David Sneed

How to Move a Mountain

Today we went to a hot air balloon festival in Loveland Colorado. It was held at the city park and ball field complex. Right along the edge of the parking lot there is a sign and a map. The sign tells about a number of things including a mention of Long's Peak. Long's Peak is one of the 53 mountains in Colorado with an altitude  of more than 14,000 feet. According to the sign:

"Long's Peak is visible from the west side of Loveland along the recreation trail where it meanders through grassy fields."

My daughter Debby, an English major and grad school student said that because there is no change of subject, "it" refers to Long's Peak and so according to the sign board Long's Peak must "meander through grassy fields."

Debby said that if it meant the trail meanders the sentence would say "Long's Peak is visible from the west side of Loveland along the recreation trail which meanders through grassy fields.

By saying "where it" instead of "which" the Loveland Recreation Department is attempting to move a mountain by speaking in a manner similar to what God did in Genesis Chapter 1 when  he spoke Creation into existence. 

"Mountain moving" is an aspect of Cowboy Safety though does not involve the most unsafe practice of having a mountain "meander through grassy fields."

"Mountain moving" is when there is a challenge, a decision is made to do something, and a solution is found. The presence of the mountain must be acknowledged. The decision to move it must be made and the decision to "move that mountain" must be expressed verbally or in writing. The mountain will not go away all by itself. While the mountain will probably not be a 14,000 foot high piece of rock it will be something that can cause great harm.

By all means get involved in mountain moving. Be specific and definite. 

David Sneed

Weather Risk Mitigation

After the collapse of the stage at the Indiana State Fair due to high winds, Mike Smith the Senior Vice President of Accu Weather Enterprise Solutions made an interesting comment:

"You get people out of there before the high winds occur. This is going ti happen again and again until people start taking weather risk mitigation seriously."

Weather risk mitigation is a new term at least to me. I understand the concept but had not had a name for it. In the winter I do check road conditions and weather conditions in trip planning. I recheck just prior to departure and along the way.

Years ago I took flying lessons with the plan of having an airplane for my business travel. Time could be saved by flying a small plane within a certain area. Too close then drive. Too far then fly commercial jet. The economics related to weather risk killed it. The probabilities of thunderstorms and the related cost of delays exceeded the time cost of driving.

Area specific weather risk mitigation should be a part of every plan.

David Sneed

God's Economy: Poverty + Joy = Adequate $

Look at II Corinthians 8:2. In King James it reads "How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their generosity." 


What was going on was that Paul was telling the Corinthians about the Macedonians. Even though they had little they wanted to give to aid the people at Jerusalem who had lost all to the Romans. 


Paul was not commanding them to give. That would have been a type of taxation. The people were actually begging Paul to take their offerings. The actual amount they had to give was not large. These people gave according to their ability. 


God does not need anyone's money. The One who spoke the world into existence can speak anything into existence at any time. 


When giving is done freely the resource is adequate to meet the needs. 


We all know what happens to taxes. Someone once said that government is taking money from the left pocket, transferring it to the right and losing half of it on the way. Taxes are never adequate to meet needs. 


Giving from the heart is God's plan. And it is not just money. Giving can be of whatever resource one may have. Yes this is a great mystery. 

David Sneed

Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate Social Responsibility. CSR. I wish there was a better term for it.

CSR means to look past profit in the short run.

CSR means to put the interests of customers, shareholders, environment and other stakeholders in the business strategy.

Years ago I knew a man who ran a charter airplane business with one airplane. He was the pilot. This man was one of the most miserable and unhappy people I have ever known. He would frequently do things like beckon with his fingers towards himself and in a solemn manner say "Money coming this way. That's what it's all about." He was a bit extreme or was he?

A common philosophy has been:

"Get all you can, can all you get, sit on the lid, poison the rest."

CSR, or a better term if you can think of one, is a way of making more money by making it not just for yourself but for others at the same time. Resources are better used.

CSR is a basic of anything that is sustainable in the long run. A Cowboy Safety plan measures the use of all resources, in money terms and in some exciting new non-money terms. It also measures value created for society at large.

If I had to pick the opposite of CSR it might be Creative Destruction. Originally this was a word from Marxism. Then later it began to refer to things like downsizing. In today's economy I think it is evolving into the destruction of businesses that become obsolete due to inefficiencies. Inefficiencies that come from a totally selfish make all you can now approach.

CSR is becoming the standard even when the term is not used as such.

David Sneed

Missed Opportunity - Almost

My wife and I were in a certain industrial area last week. We were in my daughter's car as mine was in the shop for service. My wife asked me to check with our windshield repair place that was there to see if a crack, that was caused by hail, could be fixed. I knew it could not but asked anyway. A new windshield would be needed.

At home we looked up where we could get a replacement windshield. My windshield repair place was listed. I had not known that they also replaced windshields. I called and talked to the owner. "Why didn't you sell me a windshield?" He told me that he didn't think about it. 

Why are people today order takers? Why can't they sell? 

I did take the vehicle back to him to get a replacement. 

Missed opportunities are injuries to businesses. They can be fatal.

Today I had an issue with one supplier about $200. Nothing adverse. It was just a matter of information about who pays for it.  The company in question saw a view that  I should pay it. No problem. The relationship is not harmed. I did give him certain information that, had he been thinking, would have showed him that he was missing a great opportunity that would be worth many times the $200. Maybe I need to be more of a salesman. 

David Sneed

God's Economics vs Man's Economics

Economics is defined as the science of matching unlimited needs with limited resources.

In a simple way we can all understand that no matter how much money is available there is never enough to buy what we want. There is something worse.

We all know people who want more and more money. They give up their life for the accumulation of money. They have much more money than they can ever spend.

God's economy works differently. God's economics is defined as the matching of unlimited resources with what is actually needed.

In the Bible in II Kings 4:1-17 we have the story of the widow with a great need. Her husband had died. There was an unpaid debt and the creditor was planning to take her two sons to work off the debt. She cried out to Elisha. He asked what she wanted him to do. She told him that all she had was a pot of oil. Elisha told her to go and borrow empty vessels from her neighbors. "Borrow not a few" he said. Then he told her to go into her house, shut the door and begin to fill the vessels from her pot. She filled them all. When all the vessels were filled her pot was still full. She went to Elisha and he told her to sell the oil, pay the debt and then live off the rest. This woman first had a need. She had nothing to fill that need. She was desperate when she went to Elisha who she knew was a man of God. She was in dependence on her husband's fear of the Lord. She did as she was instructed and was delivered. It is important to note that she stopped borrowing vessels before greed set in. Then she was alone in her house, away from Elisha, and alone with God. There with what resource she had God dealt with her need.

Why is that principle so difficult to understand and to obey? We live in fear of not having enough money. Money becomes our deliverer. Government exploits that knowledge by promising us more money, money that can only be obtained by taking from someone else.

 God is our Provider if we but trust Him. He can do the impossible if we seek Him and not view Him as a genie in a pot ready to grant our wishes. He can take whatever resources we have and multiply them if we but bring those resources to Him and seek Him in faith.

David Sneed

A Reason not to Paint a House

A Change and a Parting is a book published by the Iowa State University Press. It is a first person account of the Amana colonies that started in the mid 1800s.

The homes were unpainted for economic reasons and not religious.

According to the account of the author. "The elders (our governors) considered rebuilding to be more economical than painting since we had an abundance of free labor and free lumber but very little capital."

Extended a bit further they had no need for retail bakeries, or groceries or meat markets. And "we had no individual problems of housing, food, clothing,sickness or funeral expense, nor did we pay for education, recreation, church, nor for any part of our maintenance."

Our modern society has added costs for cell phones, internet, cable tv, car payments.

Did we go wrong somewhere?

There is much to be said for having all variable costs and no fixed costs. The idea of not painting a house is most unique. How long does a house last that is not painted? How much time and paint cost would there be during the life time of the house? Did it get repaired along the way?

With everything we do we should look at all the alternatives. A new pickup can easily cost more than $50,000. Add to that sales tax, annual ad valorem taxes and fees, and insurance. Would a succession of older vehicles, maybe even very old, be advantageous?

How much of our life is consumed earning the cost of our fixed cost items?

Cowboy Safety is a way of developing work-life balance. Traditional safety is limited to preserving our whole life at all ages. Why not consider things that "kill" part of our life somewhere in the middle?

David Sneed

Are You Dealing with Effects Rather Than Causes?

Today my wife and I read I Kings Chapter 18. It is long but a captivating story.

Ahab was a man who dealt with effects and not causes. He solved problem symptoms and accused Elijah of making the problems.

In this chapter we see that Elijah was confident of his God and of his relationship with God. He knew that his God was the only God. He did not do as many preachers do today. He did not say that all religions are valid. He did not do comparative sermons. He did not suggest tolerance. Elijah was not looking for the approval of men.

What Elijah did was set up a test of which God was real. When Baal did not respond he mocked those who believed in Baal. At the end he killed the priests of Baal.

I won't spoil it for you but go read the chapter and think of how confident you are in solutions that you have been sold. Look at what Ahab was doing. Look at the steps that Elijah took and commanded. Think of what you believe about God. If Jesus is the one are you putting all of your confidence in His words? Or are you worshipping other gods and following them?

David Sneed

Time to Rethink Fall Hazards

I have had two falls in the last two days. Yesterday I was moving some things, leaned too far back on the second step from the bottom and fell flat on my back. I woke this morning sore all over. Then this morning I ran into a warehouse door that was only partially raised and went down on my side with a bump on the head.

Some falls are easy to understand. On August 21, at a Michigan air show, wing walker Todd Green fell 200 feet to his death as he was trying to move from an airplane to a helicopter.

Some falls are more common than one might think. The September 2011 issue of Pediatrics reports that the rate of childrens' falls from windows is down but still there were 5,000 deaths last year. And the most common injury for a welder is a fall from an elevated surface.

Falls can be on a level surface, from an elevated surface and, as I just re-discovered, on a level surface from running into an elevated surface.

Height becomes an issue only because of the severity of the potential injury or fatality from a fall.

It is not a bad idea to look at your workspace for fall potentials and fall probabilities. It might also be a good idea to look at who is in the area and find out if they are covered by your insurance in the event of a fall. Employees are one thing but I'm thinking of volunteers, family members, customers, vendors, trash collectors and others who might have a risk of a fall.

David Sneed

Why Giving is Better

There is a story in the Financial Times of Aug 20/21 titled "The 600 Million Dollar Man." It is about Robert Wilson who has given away $600 million in the past 25 years much of it to conservation and preservation. Why conservation and preservation? "The idea of 'But for my money it would be gone forever' appeals," he says.

"Yabbut he has a lot of money," many will say. Let's try it another way.

Megan McArdle is a writer for the Atlantic. In one of her recent articles she wrote "When I was interviewing for my first job with the Economist, they asked me flat out why an MBA would be wiling to take a job that paid $40,000, Part of the answer was, of course, that I needed a job. But that's not what I said. What I was was also true: 'I'm only going to be on the planet for a few short years. I want to do something that's a lot more important to me than making money.' I got the job. It now occurs to me that I might not, if my answer had sounded anything like I need a job."

By giving we can get so much more.

David Sneed

Simplicity is Better

The comic strip Pearls Before Swine today is about safety. There are eight valid safety rules that are presented. In the last frame the mouse says "I've never been so afraid of a toaster."

Do these rules really make a difference?

Several weeks ago at Yosemite National Park, three people in their 20s, not under the influence of alcohol or drugs, in the presence of about 100 others in their group, ignored the signs and the barriers, fell into the water and were swept over the falls to their death. Some are calling for more signs and barriers. The usual response to any incident is that the victims were not at fault. That attitude is why safety costs escalate.

At Vedauwoo near Laramie Wyoming there is a simple sign that basically says that if you want to climb the rocks go ahead but you could get hurt or killed. There is really no need to talk about personal protective equipment (PPE), training, classification of skills needed on each rock, guards, guides, or whatever.

David Sneed

A Better Way to Have a Pension

In the New York Time of August 15, 2011, Warren Buffet has an Op-Ed piece called "Stop Coddling the Super-Rich." Some will grab onto this and with a great deal of handwringing blame everyone in Washington for their own circumstances. 

I went back over this piece several times. Buffett in numerous places points out that the wealthy are adept at avoiding payroll taxes. He says that his own total tax for 2010 was but 17.4% of his taxable income while the other 20 in his office, presumably all W-2 folks, were taxed from 33% to 41% and averaged 36%. As someone commented recently "When Warren Buffett says that his secretary pays more tax than he does you'd better believe him."

Could it be that Buffet's Op-Ed is actually a piece to encourage people to start their own business?

If so it would not just be any form of business. 

I know someone who operates as a sole proprietor. She gets 1099s and is taxed as an individual. She is a member of a union so that she can have a pension. She is limited in the plan to a certain percentage of her contribution. That will of course affect her pension amount as will her lack of ability to control investments and fees. What is worse is that she is indirectly paying an added percentage of her income to the union as dues. Her client employers must pay the union and consequently they must pay her less for the value she creates. 

How secure is the pension? Her union, like so many other entities with pension plans, has ceased making contributions. The expectation is that the Federal Government will bail out their plan at some point. Meanwhile this union has a new headquarters building with no mortgage. The union paid cash for the building in a costly downtown area and then paid cash for extensive rehab and remodeling. How many businesses would or could do that?

Wouldn't she be better off to have a business like Warren Buffett has with minimal payroll tax and the ability to create long term capital gains? She could make just about any kind of pension plan and have control over it.  Why will she not listen to the logic of doing so? She, like many employees, view that they have a duty to pay taxes and that a C-corp would somehow be dishonest. At the same time she jumps through the hoops to get the spurious office at home deduction. Many entrepreneurs these days with C corporations legally deduct their entire housing costs plus get many other benefits. At the same time they do pay ever-increasing taxes as their profits grow in unfettered ways. So it could be said that their tax is a tax on chosen productivity. In effect it is a variable cost of doing business. They can expand or contract the business as they like to achieve desired balance. An employee is committed full-time and taxes not only are higher but are a fixed cost. 

For the United States to get back on track and have real growth there should be new emphasis on capitalism. 

People should be encouraged and taught how to have a business and how to run it as a business. There are increasing opportunities to start a business. One of the characteristics of the new economy is outsourcing to minimize fixed costs. Mu8ch of that outsourcing is insourcing to small business. In many cases, an employee leaves, starts a business and the first client is the prior employer. 

The four Bric economies work that way and their growth in the next decade is projected to be twice that of the United States and the Eurozone combined. Other developing nations are growing as well. South Africa is one of the countries that has become friendly to business and to having real growth. When even a senior housing project and a farm is more doable in a stable developing nation than in the United States guess where investment capital will go. 

David Sneed

Why Johnny Depp May Not Play the Part of Tonto

Walt Disney Studios has shut down production of The Lone Ranger that was due to have Johnny Depp as Tonto. The reason given is that if the Directors cannot cut the budget to $200 million from $250 million, Disney would rather limit its risk with fewer movies.

Movies, like farms, can be high on fixed costs. Fixed costs are incurred even if no one ever sees the film. A farm has a large fixed cost even if nothing is ever planted. Every venture has some amount of fixed costs. Risk is minimized by keeping the fixed cost as low as possible.

That fixed cost has to be amortized over time from the margin on revenues from sale of products and services.

Margin is the total sale less the direct costs of making that sale. In the grocery business the margin on a can of beans is the sale price minus what it cost to buy the can of beans wholesale. In the movie business the margin for the studio is whatever percentage it gets of the ticket price. Sometimes it is most of it. The theaters have to make it on popcorn.

The point at which the fixed costs equals the total margin is the break-even point.

After the break-even point is reached all of the margin is profit.

Is Disney concerned about margins? The Lone Ranger was due to be released in December of 2012. Does Disney have a concern about ticket sales in the future?

There is some belief that there are some structural issues in the economy that will affect margins. For many years the major factor affecting margin has been competition. There are new unknowns about cost of money, inflation, labor, commodities and taxes. Mandatory health insurance will soon be a factor.

It is true that in the long run all costs are variable and that in the very short run all costs are fixed. The new economy is making us rethink everything we have ever known. Is it better to be in a low margin venture with low fixed costs or a high margin venture with high fixed costs and bear the risk of not getting high margins?

There are tremendous opportunities today to minimize fixed costs and at the same time to have high margins with minimal risk. The ability to do just that has become a competitive advantage.

A Cowboy Safety business is open to understanding how this can be done.

David Sneed

How to Bargain With Life

This is an oldie. Author unknown.

"I bargained with Life for a penny,
And Life would pay no more,
However I begged at evening
When I counted my scanty store.
For Life is a just employer,
He gives you what you ask,
But once you have set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.
I worked for a menial's hire,
Only to learn,dismayed,
That any wage I had asked of Life,
Life would have willingly paid."

Why the Golden Rule?

Everyone knows the Golden Rule. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." This rule appears in eight religions. Why should we do this?

Go to Luke 6:38 in the Bible. "Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again."

Plain and simple whatever you do unto others will be done unto you only more so.

David Sneed

Duke's Chowder House Has An Idea

Duke's Chowder House in Seattle has an idea. They have made a list of what they view as six dangers to avoid when dining out. It is clever for a number of reasons. Quite simply it is a Cowboy Safety strategy that solves a customer need in a sustainable way. These six do not apply to them. Hopefully they will continue with this idea.

1) Don’t go anywhere that has farmed salmon.
Farming salmon requires dumping antibiotics and unnatural foods into our waterways; this pollutes the water used by native species and exposes wild salmon populations to infections and extra competition. The farmed salmon excrete a lot of wastes from their pens, further polluting the water. 

2) Don’t eat Chowder unless it is all natural.
Almost every Chowder has sodium nitrite which is highly carcinogenic or tripolyphosphate. The name alone will scare you.

3) Don’t eat beef unless it is natural.
Most beef is filled with antibiotics and growth hormones, dangerous chemicals that should not wind up in your body.

4) Don’t go anywhere where they have transfats.
They are unnatural. Pure chemistry and usually found in oils for French fries, coatings and sauces. 

5) Don’t go anywhere where the people are unfriendly.

It’s dangerous for your mental and emotional health.

6) Don’t go anywhere where the food has no flavor.
It’s astounding how many restaurants forget to put all natural herbs and spices along with fresh and nutritious food. This could ruin your whole night.
 

When you are in Seattle I highly recommend you give them a try. The best bargais are at either of their happy hours.

David Sneed

Six Dangers to Avoid When Dining Out

Duke's Chowder House in Seattle has made a list of six dangers to avoid when dining out. It is clever for a number of reasons. Quite simply it is a Cowboy Safety strategy that solves a customer need in a sustainable way. These six do not apply to them. Hopefully they will continue with this idea.


1) Don’t go anywhere that has farmed salmon.
Farming salmon requires dumping antibiotics and unnatural foods into our waterways; this pollutes the water used by native species and exposes wild salmon populations to infections and extra competition. The farmed salmon excrete a lot of wastes from their pens, further polluting the water. 


2) Don’t eat Chowder unless it is all natural.
Almost every Chowder has sodium nitrite which is highly carcinogenic or tripolyphosphate. The name alone will scare you.


3) Don’t eat beef unless it is natural.
Most beef is filled with antibiotics and growth hormones, dangerous chemicals that should not wind up in your body.

4) Don’t go anywhere where they have transfats.
They are unnatural. Pure chemistry and usually found in oils for French fries, coatings and sauces. 


5) Don’t go anywhere where the people are unfriendly.
It’s dangerous for your mental and emotional health.


6) Don’t go anywhere where the food has no flavor.
It’s astounding how many restaurants forget to put all natural herbs and spices along with fresh and nutritious food. This could ruin your whole night.
 
When you are in Seattle I highly recommend you give Duke's Chowder House a try. The best bargains are at either of their happy hours.

David Sneed

Free Education Plan

There is a free education plan that was used by George Washington Carver to be able to know all about peanuts and bring to the world uses of peanuts that had not been known.

The plan is succinctly described in the Bible in Jeremiah 33:3:

"Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. "

David Sneed

Passing Through Deep Waters

Often in life the floodgates of distress are suddenly opened and we are overwhelmed by trials. We echo with new understanding the words of the psalmist as he exclaimed in anxiety, "Save me, O God for the waters are come in unto my soul." (Psalms 69:1) Yet we need not fear for our loving Heavenly Father holds the waters in the hollow of His hand. He measures them out in sufficient quantities to cleanse us, but He will never allow them to drown us. In our time of grief, we are never without His abiding presence and constant help.

Not long after arriving in the New Hebrides as a pioneer missionary, John G Paton and his wife rejoiced in the coming of a baby son to gladden their home. But the joy was short-lived. Soon death took both his wife and child, and Dr Paton had to dig their graves and bury his loved ones with his own hands. In writing of this experience he testified, "If it had not been for Jesus and the fellowship and grace He afforded me, I am certain I would have gone mad or died of grief beside their lonely graves." Marvelously strengthened from above, the bereaved servant of God found that the promises of the Word were able to sustain him through the heartache and sorrow of his tragic loss.

Have you been going through deep waters, Christian? The Lord is near and He beckons you to walk close to Him. His sovereign purpose in these trials is not to let you drown but to help you pass through the waters of woe and on to higher ground! H.G.B

In His Word there is a promise
Like the promise in the bow
That however deep the waters
They shall never overflow.
Anon.

There is nothing like the high tide of trial to test our spiritual stature.

This particular piece helped to sustain my wife and me during a time of grief many years back.

David Sneed

Jerry Lewis and Hail Damage to my Truck

At some point in the life cycle of any organization its ability to succeed in spite of itself fails.

It is often difficult to know when this point occurs even in an owner-operated business. That is one reason to consult an outsider and not to trust our own feelings. I had a client several years ago who was having some problems with sales. He was planning to invest another $2 million of his own money. I showed him why he should let that business die. It was painful for me to tell him and to show him. It was painful for him as the founder to hear. The business had done its job. The business had now become obsolete.

The politician approach, and I don't just mean from elected officials, is to make it difficult to know when something is happening. The politician approach is to pretend that nothing has happened. No matter who is in the White House I really enjoy the press conferences. The Press Secretaries are the ultimate politicians. They can take any question and instantly spin it in the Administration's favor. If the DOW went to zero, unemployment was at 100% and the Chinese wanted their money back right now, a Press Secretary would have a smart positive answer.

Jerry Lewis is "suddenly" out of the 2011 Muscular Dystrophy Telethon after a half century. This year there will be several unknowns hosting it and it will only be for six hours instead of twenty. What exactly happened behind the scenes we do not know. We can say for sure that there will not be any $53 million in donations this year. Do not be surprised if there are no future telethons after 2011. The idea may be worn out.

I live in Cheyenne Wyoming, the hail capital of the United States. Hail is frequent but usually causes little if any damage. In 2002 we had a biggie. Again in 2011 on July 12. In 2002 the repairs to my truck cost $2,244. In 2011, at the same dealership body shop to repair the same damage to the same truck is right at $6,000.

A business that was doing $1,000,000 in 2002 needs to do almost $2,500,000 just to be equal to what it did in 2002.

Often I may find that someone is quite boastful that they have increased sales by 50% in that period of time. They are not pleased to learn that their sales have actually gone down about 50%. What is worse is that with the same number of units of service overhead has gone up and profit is non-existent.

Many people like to take the politician approach and tell themselves that their business has been growing. In fact they may be on their way out. What makes it worse is that they not only have lost money they have lost an amount of life time. We'll cover life time in another session. It is a very important concept that is unfortunately best viewed in hindsight.

For today, please understand that considering the time value of money is an element of understanding when an organization may be on the downside of its life cycle.

David Sneed

Gordon Stoker and Tony Bennett Have Birthdays Today

Yesterday, August 3, Gordon Stoker was 87 and Tony Bennett 85. Always looking for irony I noted the difference in these two singers. I mentioned it at a meeting where the ages of the attendees ranged from 12 to 89. The young folks knew nothing about either of these men. The older ones needed a reminder about Gordon Stoker and his quartet the Jordanaires.

Tony Bennett, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco," is a well known singer. He is known for a distinct style that is not easy to duplicate. Using business terms, he is known for delivery of a consistent product experience that appeals to a certain demographic.

What is perhaps not so well known is that Gordon Stoker has at least 100 times as many recordings as Bennet and many more personal appearances. At one point in the 1960s Stoker and his Jordanaires were on 80 of the then current top 100 record singles.

Because my focus is on how to function in the new economy I spotted something here.

Jerry Garcia once said "Don't be the best at what you do. Be the only one who does what you do." I have always interpreted that as being the best in a unique way. Maybe that interpretation is too narrow.

Gordon Stoker and his male quartet the Jordanaires had started as a country gospel group. There were many such groups at that time. All were good though perhaps not "world class" quality. The market was becoming saturated with gospel singers, records and performances. Market share of any one singer or group was small.

The Jordanaires became backup for many "stars" over 45 years. They were with Elvis Presley during his most important first 14 years. When  Elvis began nightly performances in Las Vegas the Jordanaires could not meet the required schedule and still have diversity.

In one way of looking at it Gordon Stoker and the Jordanaires became unique in not aiming to become known for themselves and by diversifying inside of backup music. They did not have to incur large marketing costs.

In today's meta markets the Jordanaires business model is a good model.

David Sneed

Is this the Great Commission in Practice?

When Jesus gave the Great Commission, Matthew 28:19, did he intend that we dress up dark-skinned people in warm climates in coats and ties, and teach them to sing white country gospel songs from the 50s in English?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikpiRn0MyXg

Appropriate Technology - Part 1

I think it was Arthur C Clarke who said "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

By all means use whatever technology is appropriate to meet the customer need for a product or a service and to meet the desire for an experience.

I have hiked the Samaria Gorge on the island of Crete. The first mile is a switchback drop of about 4,500 feet. There there is a 10 mile walk through the bed of an extinct river and through a gorge that at the end is only 6 feet wide. Even starting early the path can become quite hot from the sun near the end.  Part way into town there is a small not so modern roadhouse that served cold beer. Not warm beer. Not cool beer. COLD beer. Why should that be such a problem in other places? The technology is fairly simple and has been around for a long time. No need for fancy taps, or lights or tvs or anything else. At that point everyone wants a cold beer. They get it.

Cowboy Safety developed during a time of shortages, no electricity, and the absence of many things. It became a way of meeting needs with whatever was at hand. Technology may have been crude but there was an application to meet every need.

In part two we will get into more detail about "appropriate technology" as distinguished from "technology."

David Sneed

You Won't Go Broke If You Do This

H.L. Mencken, G.K. Chesterton or someone else said something that is most memorable though perhaps a bit cynical and yet quite true.

"No one ever went broke underestimating the taste or intelligence of the American public."

This tells us so much.

Anything can be marketed. The stupidest things often sell the best.

High quality is not always and maybe not often expected. Consider the cost before going too far with quality. Consider what the customer would call quality. It may be to make it short and sweet. It may be to make it quick. It maybe to make it cheap. Is a McDonald's hamburger a quality product? Does high quality take away ambience?

If intelligence is low can your product make up for it?

Cowboy Safety means thinking from the viewpoint of the other folks.

David Sneed

Good Question from Jay Leno

"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control,
mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms 
tearing up the country from one end to another,
and with the threat of swine flu 
and terrorist attacks.
Are we sure this is a good time 
to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?"



Jay Leno

Pancake Days

As a part of the Cheyenne Frontier Days, there are three mornings when a free pancake breakfast is served by the Kiwanis Club and other volunteers. Completely free. Donations are not requested.

In 2011, 27,267 people were served. That's an average of 4,545 people per hour and more than 75 per minute. Pancakes (how many do you want?) put on the plate by a server, syrup poured by another server, ham put on the plate by another server, napkins passed out by another server, coffee, milk or water poured by other servers. Refills if you want. The line is long yet moves rapidly. There are bands, speakers, performers, church people giving out Bibles and bottles of water to those in line and other folks with some ad handouts. Great camaraderie and order. No one butts in line.

All of this tells us something.

Not many businesses are serving 75 people per minute. Usually not even 1 a minute. Why are there slow-moving lines everywhere to get served food or whatever? Why is there a wait even when there are no other customers?  I see so many events where there is only a certain amount of customer face time. Sales are lost because the event is over before the people can be served. At how many restaurants can a diner have the opportunity to buy a second drink. Not just an unhappy patron but the loss of an 85% margin? More than $5 on a cocktail and a $1 or more tip.

There is tremendous demand for most goods and services. Being able to solve the time problem is key to success. There are a variety of time issues in every business. Buy a membership and look how long it takes to get a membership card. It takes less than  30 seconds to key in a name and address, print a card and mail it. Why does it take two months? There are lead times. Turnaround times. All kinds of times.

The Cowboy Safety approach allows you to deal with times and solves the related problems.

David Sneed

The Old Model of Safety

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED THE
1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's!! 

First, we survived being born to mothers
Who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, 
Tuna from a can and didn't get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies

in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-base paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, 
Locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode 
Our bikes, we had baseball caps not helmets on our heads.

As infants & children, 
We would ride in cars with no car seats, 
No booster seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes.

Riding in the back of a pick-up truck on a warm day 
Was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, 
From one bottle and no one actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter and bacon. 
We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar. 
And, we weren't overweight. 
WHY?

Because we were always outside playing..that's why!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, 
As long as we were back when the street lights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day. And, we were O.K. 

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps 
And then ride them down the hill, only to find out 
We forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes
a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Play Stations, Nintendo's and X-boxes.
There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable,
No video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's, 
No cell phones, No personal computers, no Internet and no chat rooms. 
WE HAD FRIENDS 
And we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth
And there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, 
And the worms did not live in us Forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, 
Made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, 
Although we were told it would happen, 
We did not put out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and 
Knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just 
Walked in and talked to them. 

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. 
Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.
Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. 
They actually sided with the law! 

These generations have produced some of the best 
Risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.

The past 50 years 
Have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, 
and we learned how to deal with it all. 



Author unknown

Goal Setting in Sustainable Safe Business

This is an old piece that summarizes goal-setting and faith in a sustainable safe business.

"I bargained with Life for a penny,
And Life would pay no more.
However I begged at evening
When I counted my scanty store.
For Life is a just employer,
He gives you what you ask,
But once you have set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.
I worked or a menial's hire,
Only to learn, dismayed,
That any wage I had asked if Life,
Life would have willingly paid."

Author unknown

This Does Not Bother Me As A Christian

I read something in a letter to the Editor in the Wyoming Tribune Eagle on July 29, 2011. It could all be false. I don't know. It's part of a subject that bothers many Americans, Christian and otherwise.

According to the letter, one Jean Paul Ludwig emigrated from France to the United States in 1924. About March of 1977, while he was residing in Connecticut, Ludwig was assigned social security number 042-68-4425. Several of my children got their social security cards in Connecticut and their cards have the same first three digits. The numbers are assigned based on location where issued. This Ludwig spent the last few months of his life living in Hawaii. He never collected social security benefits and so his death was not reported to Social Security. One Madalyn Payne Dunham worked in the Probate Office in the Honolulu Hawaii Courthouse and had access to the social security numbers of the deceased. Dunham is the grandmother of Barak Obama. Obama, according to the letter, has that same social security number though he never lived in Connecticut. Did his grandmother provide him a number because he could not get one?  If Obama has a social security number starting with 042, he could explain. Investigations of this are not being done officially. Eyes are blinded for a reason. As a Christian I don't have a problem with this.

Good or bad, Obama and anyone else can only be President if God allows it to be. There is good reason to believe that our elected officials of both parties are leading us to ruin by voting us money from the public treasury albeit borrowed money. There is some reason to believe that Obama is leading the United States to ruin at a faster rate than anyone else might do it. If it is so it is not because of him being a legal citizen or an illegal alien but of God allowing him to be in that position. The United States could well be under judgment. The uniqueness of all the circumstances around Obama could possibly be so that God is letting us to know that He allowed it. If this is so then God may have given us enough clues so that we could take steps to deal with our sins before total destruction ensues. God gave Ninevah a second chance.

Jonah arrived in Ninevah and let the people there know that God would destroy them in 40 days. The people believed God and were spared because they repented.

The Northern Kingdom of Judah was destroyed by the Assyrians because God allowed it to be.

I cannot predict the future nor do I know God's plan for the United States. I do know that if God does not judge the United States then perhaps He owes apologies to Sodom and Gomorrah, to the Northern Kingdom of Judah and to others.

If Obama leaves The United States in ruin, as Clint Eastwood in the High Plains Drifter did to the town that did not repent, history could well show that the United States had the opportunity and the legal means to stop it.

David Sneed