Seat Belt Mortification

Girl Fastening Airplane Seat BeltIt was less than one year ago that I was riding in this same seat in an American eagle plane.

I squeezed my ample sized hips into the seat and then squirmed around to get the seat belt in position to fasten.  Much to my horror there was no way the buckle part of the seat belt was going to meet the other end.

I considered just throwing a blanket over my lap and risking whatever happens if you don’t buckle up. I was completely wedged into position and pretty confident that I was in no danger of falling out of the seat.

The rules got the best of me so gathered my courage and summoned the flight attendant. With as much pride as I could muster I mumbled, “I need a seat belt extender”. She didn’t hear me, and so I had to repeat those humiliating words again.

And then the strangest thing happened. The flight attendant made it seem like that was a very common thing for any passenger. As a matter of fact she convinced me that some of the darned seat belts are just ridiculously short.

Her support did not help the fact that in that moment I was totally depressed about coming to terms with knowing that I was indeed a morbidly obese middle aged woman. However her kindness did quell the humiliation of having to ask for the extender.

That day was pretty significant to say the least.  I did not start dieting right away.  However I did have one of those full blown, in the  moment, reality checks that make you stop and contemplate, what the heck am I doing?

It was a very different type of contemplation.  Typically I’m just hard on myself.  However that particular day I did not beat on me for being fat. Instead I just found that I was really sad and embarrassed.

Fast forward about 10 months and 45 pounds thinner. I glide into my seat … 1A  on an American Eagle. Grabbed both ends of the seat belt… buckled up and even cinched up the excess.

I can hardly express the joy of what seems to be such a little thing.  I can use the tray table.  Nothing is jamming into my leg or hip. It’s just awesome.

If you’ve never been overweight or in a position where you felt like you just didn’t fit… then this story probably doesn’t mean much to you.

I suspect though, that most people have had times in their life where they found themselves stuck in a very uncomfortable and potentially embarrassing situation. The sheer unknown of needing to ask for help of any kind can be so terrifying.  And yet, for me, that flight attendant,  a stranger,  took it upon herself to make a very awkward moment OK. And somehow since then I have found a way to slowly but surely change my physical situation so that I never have to utter the words  “I need a seat belt extender” ever again.

As a matter of fact… I trade humiliation for joy every single time I buckle up.

Listen, If you are waiting to ask for the help you need to take the next step in your life, your career, or just what needs to be done today, I encourage you to quit waiting. If you won’t start today, then decide when-what day?

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Relationship Status-it doesn’t have to be complicated

image_relationship_statusWe recently attended the East Coast Bowling Center Convention in Atlantic City where I heard Bart Burger talk about Bowling 2.0. It’s a great program designed to get new people interested in the game of bowling, which I thought was awesome. In all these years I’ve spent around the family entertainment center industry, I confess I haven’t gotten to be any good at bowling and thought this would be a great opportunity for me. And maybe after I do that, I can work hard and actually hit someone in laser tag!  Who knows, I might even be able to skate backwards sometime this decade. The sky’s the limit!

When I got home from the convention, I called my local bowling center they didn’t answer. So I went out to Facebook and saw that they indeed had a page. I ‘liked’ their page and noticed that they mostly put ads on there.  Interesting.  At any rate, I posted a message to their wall asking if they were going to be running Bowling 2.0. It got deleted. I thought maybe I had done something wrong and hadn’t submitted my comment so I sent another one a few days later.  This time I asked specifically if they were going to run the program and that if so I was interested in joining. No response. That message, too, got deleted. Now I knew that it wasn’t a fluke. And I knew that this center has no interest in engaging with its customers. I also know that I will not be going to the center. Ever. And just like that I’ve deleted their number from my phone like a bad ex you never even want to accidentally pocket call.  Ah, customers can be so fickle, can’t they?

But in my mind (and I’m not so different than millions of others), not only did they ignore a request from a potential customer, they deleted it, TWICE, as if the customer were an inconvenience to them.  Not good customer service at all.

And there’s the real lesson.  I mean, at first glance, having social media for business sounds like a terrific way for us to push out promotions and specials to our customers. And it is.  But it’s also, and perhaps more so, a way for us to engage with our customers, find out what they think and what they like and what they want (so we can, ahem, sell them that).  Think about being on a date. You’re sitting in the restaurant trying to suck in and make sure you don’t have food in your teeth and be charming, alluring and sound intelligent.  But if your date doesn’t ever ask you anything and talks constantly about him or herself the entire time, do you want to continue the relationship? Of course not.  (PS, if you’re that guy who talks about yourself constantly, I can provide some coaching :).

 

Social media provides us the opportunity to build authentic relationships with our customers that will inspire them to be loyal patrons for years to come.  During that relationship, we’ll prove ourselves to be charming and alluring, so they’ll, naturally, want no one else. But I also mentioned customer service.  I gave the center I called an opportunity to make a brand new customer out of me. They failed once by not answering the phone.  And honestly, who doesn’t have voicemail? I provided them a second and a third opportunity by contacting them through Facebook.  And they failed.  I see this a lot. Airlines will get complaints about food and they’ll respond back with totally unrelated answers.  Restaurants and stores will ignore negative feedback instead of using it to turn a bad experience positive and show how well you solve problems and the lengths you will go to in order to create great memories for your customers.  In today’s instant gratification, “I’m reviewing your place while I’m sitting in it eating your food” society we need to understand that conversations are happening, and we have the unique opportunity…and obligation… to be a part of them.  Think of social media as a guest standing in front of you asking, praising, or complaining. Because the better you engage them virtually, the more likely you’ll be seeing them instore one day very soon.

Of course you’re going to use strategic marketing campaigns to advertise and promote specials in store via your social media.  And your customers want that!  Just remember it’s about the person sitting across the table from you, too.  It’s time to take the relationship to the next level. How ready are you?

 

33 Years

happy annivToday marks the 33rd year that I’ve been lucky enough to be married to the man of my dreams! In a world where it’s difficult to make a 33 minute commitment, I’m pretty proud that Jerry has put up with me for all these years! Happy Anniversary honey.

As always, I get up at the “B-crack” of dawn-this is not my comment but rather my daughter’s. You see things in the early morning that you just can’t see other times of the day. I don’t know if I was just in a celebratory mood or if this morning was indeed a “congratulatory” day set out just for me and my groom! Wouldn’t it be fun if the world worked that way? At 5:30 a.m. it’s still very dark; but this morning the moon was full and bright. It just made me smile. I had a great work out and celebrated with a hot tea.

I share this with you because it’s important to celebrate. I’m real conscience of celebration today because it’s my wedding anniversary but honestly, there’s something to celebrate everyday if we just pay attention. I think I’ve mentioned that I’m reading a book, 8 To Great by MK Mueller,and the author encourages the reader to create a gratitude journal. You are to jot down 3 things you are grateful for each day with no repeats! I haven’t filled this journal in everyday but I have been mindful of that attitude of gratitude and when I do write it down it makes me smile inside and out!

I’ll keep it short today and leave you with this thought…What could you celebrate today? What 3 things are you grateful for? I’d love to know. I’m celebrating all day and would love to share in yours!

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ft smith ar, 1980   paris france 2013

 

Ft. Smith AR, 1980                                      Paris France, Eiffel Tower-2013

 

Dream Big – Time is Ticking On!

dreamHere we are-the last quarter of 2013. This is it! In less than 90 days 2013 will be no more.

Did you get everything that was available to you this year? It’s not too late. Did you dream big or did this year just happen to you?

It may seem crazy but it’s time to start dreaming about what you want 2014 to be. I’ll share with you that “dream time” for me is the way I begin to set new goals.

When dreaming these top ideas come to mind:

1.  I NEVER allow the word “but” to be a part of my “dream time.” This is a time where anything is possible. Nothing is off limits. I choose to think in a way that suggests that there are no limitations and that all things are possible.

2.  I tend to start each thought with “what if”. Here’s an example… What if we helped 8 new centers grand open next year? What happens when I have this thought is I begin to get a vision of the possibilities. I think of who and in what cities, and how we would have a ton of fun with product development, job fair, auditions, and more!

3. Dream big. For me, it can be a blessing and a curse to be over optimistic. However, I’m going to choose to go big over small every time ; ).

4.  Write it down. This is not a new idea. It’s absolute truth in my book. Since I was a kid, I’ve been writing down my goals/dreams and have many many examples of the power of getting my goals in written form. It’s like a magnet for getting what you want.

5.  Get ready to succeed and win often. When you make a commitment to dreaming big with no limitations, writing it down, and getting intentional about your desire to succeed you can begin to imagine the great 2014 you’ll create!

I’m sure there are many other steps I could list but honestly there’s a ton of great books out there that can help you with this kind of focus. Currently I’m reading 8 to Great and am richly inspired!

I challenge you to look at these last 90 days. Assess what you wanted this year to look like. Know that you still have time to get some of the things you meant to do done.

Then look forward. Get ahead of 2014. Dream Big. You know it’s like this, if you wanted to date everyone in the room and knew that each time you ask someone out they would say yes… then you’d start planning dates right now! You wouldn’t wait.

Hey, we have a 90 day goal of attracting 8-10 new sales coaching clients at TrainerTainment. This program is so powerful. We have a weekly coaching call with your sales and operations team, (if you don’t have a sales person, we’ll help you hire someone), proprietary software to help you track and forecast group and party sales, secret shopping calls to enforce the sales training we deliver and more. (insert the pdf of the flyer)… If part of your 2014 dreams include increasing your group and party sales 20% or more then let us help you with that! We can start now and get you on the way.

To help you get on track, click here is a FREE S.M.A.R.T Goal Worksheet. Plan on how you are going to reach your goals!

Have a great 4th quarter!

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Weight Loss and Life

2013-09-17 11.28.31We have so much going on right now at TrainerTainment and it’s all I can do to keep up! Thank you.

Listen, it’s important to me to communicate with you each week. I missed getting an article together last week and am rushing to get this one out today. Have you ever felt like that’s how you were attacking your work? Regardless, I wanted to take the time to share a couple of things with you.

First, my husband and I just got back from an amazing trip to Paris-FRANCE, not Texas! It struck me again and again that the miracle of construction was something I just could not understand. How in the world did they build those beautiful churches, castles, monuments, and statues? The human mind and the vision that went along with the architecture alone was truly something to behold.

We became metro experts and took the subway or the bus anywhere we wanted to go. For a couple who lives in the very spread out independent nation of Texas, that was a big deal. Finally, it was such an honor to speak for IAAPA Europe. I believe the presentation that I gave was translated into three languages. I certainly worried whether or not this hillbilly from the states would be accepted or not and no worry was needed at all. The European Family Entertainment Center community is just as excited about making money with birthday parties and group events as anyone I know!

The second thing I wanted to share with you has to do with this journey that I’m on with losing weight. To date, I’m 45 pounds down. Those of you that I’ve seen in recent weeks have been so kind to give me wonderful words of encouragement. Thank you for noticing. It amazes me that this weight loss process is so much like everything else we do in life. I’m no stranger to dieting. I’ve been ‘going to lose weight’ most of my adult life. Heck I may have already gained and lost 200 or 300 pounds in the last 25 years! Again, I’ll say, isn’t that so much like everything else we do in life?

Here’s what I mean… It is a day to day challenge to stay focused. I get the best results when I plan. When things don’t go well I want to quit. There are things that have to be done that I’d rather not do. Sometimes it’s really great and even fun to diet and exercise and sometimes it’s not. It’s good to feel good. I really want some things that just are not good for me. Immediate results make it easier to stay on track. When progress is very slow it’s easy to give up. Making a mistake doesn’t mean the entire effort has been demolished. Perfection is not a realistic strategy.

I’m sure there are a million more insights that have come up for me since I started this journey this time. I did find it very interesting that as I made this “insight” list that with the exception of the diet and exercise comment, all of the other thoughts could apply to a job, a relationship, a project, being part of a committee or really anything. So my hope is that by really getting my head wrapped around this long life weight challenge, maybe just maybe I’ll conquer a couple of other areas in my life as well.

You all have a good rest of the week. I look forward to seeing our East Coast friends in Atlantic City in a few days.

We would love to hear your comments and feedback! Be sure to share with us here or on Facebook.

Beth

 

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