You Can't Teach a Good Attitude

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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the economy and how business has changed over the more than 20 years I’ve been plugging away at it. It seems to me that during tough times there are people who struggle and people who do well and I’m trying to figure out how they’re different. I think I’ve decided it’s their attitude. I’ve concluded that people aren’t happier and more at ease with things because they’re doing well…they’re doing well because they’re already happier and more at ease. It’s like the choice we have when hiring new talent. You might be able to buy talent, experience and expertise but you can’t buy and you can’t teach a good attitude. And, without a good attitude all the other qualities of a great candidate diminish. So, I remembered a story I was told more than 20 years ago by a super successful entrepreneur:

There was a man who lived by the side of the road and sold hot dogs. He was hard of hearing, so he had no radio. He had trouble with his eyes, so he read no newspapers. But he sold good hot dogs. He put up signs on the highway telling how good they were. He stood by the side of the road and cried, "buy a hot dog, mister?" People bought.

He increased his meat and roll orders. He bought a bigger stove to take care of his trade. He finally got his son from college to help him out. But then something happened. His son said: "Father haven't you been listening to the radio? There's a big recession coming. The Middle East situation is terrible, the domestic situation is worse." That made his father think: "Well, my son's been to college, he reads the papers, and he listens to the radio, He ought to know." So, the father cut down his meat and roll orders, took down his advertising signs, and no longer bothered to stand on the highway to sell his good hot dogs. Sales fell almost overnight. "You're right, son" the father said to the boy. "We certainly are in the middle of a great recession. There just isn't any business."

So, I guess the question is…you wanna sell some hot dogs or would you rather stay home and watch Oprah?