Well, as I sit here writing this blog I am about 11 feet away from the Hooters calendar girls, who are signing and selling copies of this year’s calendar.  I’m at a truck show displaying our MPG Rewards product. When we picked our booth, I agreed that it would be a good idea to be close to the Hooters girls so that we could benefit from the added traffic they would bring. 

We have a great product that saves companies a TON of money.  But guess what truck drivers and transportation industry executives like more than money.  You guessed it……girls in Hooters uniforms.  I have heard from people on an average of 40 times a day that they will buy the rights to this booth from us for next year.  Well, I am selling it to the highest bidder.  Don’t get me wrong.  It’s still been a great show and we do have a ton of leads; I mean who wouldn’t want to run a program that costs you nothing and could move tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars to their bottom line? 

But, we have to find these leads AWAY from our booth.  Kind of weird and definitely a learning experience. I like pretty women as well as the next guy, but I already told our new friends at Hooters that we will not be next to them next year.  They can walk down to say hello to us from 5 booths down.  I think that is the right distance to benefit from their presence but not suffer from it. 

So I learned from the experience and I would love to show you MPG Rewards so you can learn a new way to make your company more profitable.

Have a great day, and go see the world.

I was sitting on the stairs at my home this morning with my youngest son who just turned three last month.  We were killing time waiting for my mother to come and pick him up to take him to his pre-school.  I was taking short video’s on my phone of him singing ABC’s and “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”.  Of course, with Gavin being Gavin, he wanted to see the video immediately after I got finished with each one.  Well, I joined the evil empire about two years ago and got an iPhone, so that is what I was using to make the videos.  As he sat next to me, I was amazed at how well he used the phone.  I knew he could use one and he can use an iPad as well, but the level of detail that he knew and could accomplish was quite impressive.  He knew how to load the video, he knew how to start the video, and he knew to tap the screen to make the controls for the video disappear.  It was actually pretty cool to watch.  I’ve been involved in IT for a very long time.  I wrote my first “program” when I was 8 years old as part of a pilot program at my school to see if children were capable of interacting and embracing computers back when the top of the line was a TRS-80.  THAT was a long time ago; especially when you are talking technical years.  I also remember, when the home PC first really started to become widespread and I would try to teach family members that were older than me how to use a mouse, that it was a terribly difficult concept for many of them.  So to see my son adapt to something that he was never “taught” to do, but that he observed and absorbed was eye opening.  Technical advances grow exponentially on a daily basis.  And it is an entertaining, and educational thing to watch.

WOW, what a year!

Things are going great around here.  I almost hate to even write that down, but it is true.  We are growing; expanding in both our services and our team member base.  It seems that smart businesses realize that to come out strong in a bad economy, and to do it with fewer people, they need programs that will help distinguish them from their competition, and that is Galactic has done in 2011.

So as we launch into a new year, full of optimism and hope, I just want to say thank you to our vendor partners, our client partners and to our team members, who I truly believe are the best in the business.

You all make me proud of who we are and where we can go.  A very personal thank you to each of you for all that you do. 

To sum things up, this post is really just about wishing everyone a fantastic 2012.  So if you are reading this, I wish you “all the best."

Take care of yourself, and go see the world.

I haven’t written a blog in way too long, so I thought I would force myself to take some time to do just that.  Things are really busy around here right now and that is SUCH a good thing, but it does take time away from the little things like blogging and catching up on details that do indeed need to be handled. 

I recently attended a couple of trade events for the Incentive Industry and I was shocked at how many people I didn’t know, came up to me and started talking about the company, or my family, or who I am as a person, all because they had read the blog or an article about me and the company.  It really was rewarding and refreshing.

Upon my return from Las Vegas I had the opportunity to spend a little one on one time with each of my sons.  There is nothing in my life that energizes, and re-charges me like my family.  My 18 year old is away at college right now and I miss her more than I could ever put into words.  My 6 year old is getting to the point where we can hang out as “guys” together, and he is starting to confide in me about what is going on inside of his new world of school and sports and social activities.  There is no better feeling than to feel as if your child views you as someone that can be trusted absolutely and completely with anything.  The two year old is still finding his way and his place in the family.  He is the comedian.  And he is the one who just throws himself into any situation; literally.  He seems to be growing up faster than my other two did at his age, and I think that is because he is close in age to his big brother and wants to do and be everything that his big brother is. 

Anyway, as I was standing in the kitchen making a snack for the 6 year old, I felt a tug on my shorts and looked down.  It was the two year old looking up and he just said, “I luu you daddeee”, then he hugged my leg and walked away to go play.  I of course pulled him to me, hugged him back and told him that I loved him too.  And as he toddled off to go put together a puzzle or play with a car or something. I stood there and realized that it was the first time that he told me that he loved me FIRST.  And that made me realize that we had taught him what love meant and how to feel it.  Talk about grabbing you right in a moment.  If a situation like that doesn’t incent you to be a better person; more than you could be without them in your life, nothing will. 

Different things incent and inspire different people in different ways.  My incentive to do more and to be more is my family.  My wife, kids, mother, brother, sister, and the loved ones who don’t share blood with me, but who I love just as much as if they did.  What inspires you?  Whether personally, in business, or in any way? 

I am proud to be a part of a company that helps people be more than they are.  And I am thankful that my family inspires me to not only be a better person, but to do a better job helping those who need inspiration, whether that is through incentives, or training, or loyalty.   Find your inspiration and if you need help setting that direction for your company, we are here for you.

Please have a great day, and go see the world.

Were you shaped by your childhood, or early years?  Of course you were, even if you don’t realize how. 

As my children grow and move through different phases of their lives, I am seeing more and more how my experiences at their age shaped not only who I am, but how I am trying to help them navigate through the early stages of their lives.  It’s an amazing journey.  And every step of the way I wonder if I am doing the right thing, saying the right thing, feeling the right thing, or reacting the right way.  At the end of the day, I think we will figure it out and end up in a great place.  I hope that someday they realize I wasn’t just being “Dad” when I said or did certain things.  I actually had a reason or a method to my madness and it was always with their best interest at heart. 

It’s funny how your perspective on things changes as you age.  And how what you think you know now, isn’t really what you will know 10 years from now.  I think that is true at ANY age.  A little over 10 years ago, for example, I didn’t really know what an incentive was.  And when it was described to me, I actually thought it was the dumbest idea I had ever heard of.  You see, I owned a trucking company at the time and I was of the school of thought that I shouldn’t give someone something for doing the job I was already paying them to do.  Well, I was educated by a couple of very smart men, in that, we weren’t giving anyone anything.  We paid them a salary to do their job; plain and simple.  But if we wanted the best out of our employees, we would need to incent them to go above and beyond what their salary was motivating them to do.  It all made sense and I have seen it work time and time again.  As a matter of fact I have seen how effectively using different kinds of incentives will get you a greater return on your investment than if you had simply increased an employee’s salary by that same amount. 

The first step though, was getting past those "old school" values and realizing, as well as admitting to myself, that I was wrong, so that I could move forward.  I’ve tried those same philosophies with my children as well, and let me tell you, it works!!!  A little positive reinforcement, coupled with the negative reinforcement that fathers sometimes have to employ, has helped shape and mold a family that my wife and I can be proud of.  My 17 year old and I don’t always see eye to eye, but the reality of the matter is that she makes me proud to be her father.  I hope someday she sees why I am the way I am.  I hope that she can someday be to her children what I have tried to be for her and her brothers, whether I am successful in her eyes right now or not.  I realize that I am not always right.  Lord knows my daughter Brooke would agree with that statement as well.  But I have learned to be the kind of person who can admit when I am wrong and learn to move forward. 

So if you are from the "old school" and think that incentives are a waste of time and or money, give me a call.  I would be happy to let you in on a few secrets.  It will vastly improve your life, and the lives of those around you.

Have a great day, and go see the world.