Category: On The Bricks

Do you consider some people leaders and some to not have leadership qualities?

Mandy Stewart is a teacher in Roanoke, Texas, who wrote an article in the August 2017 Toastmaster magazine about such that was quite interesting.

“In our society,” she wrote, “we are conditioned to categorize people. We perceive some as ‘natural leaders’ while believing others just don’t quite fit the bill. We may come to this conclusion because of an aspect of their personality, lack of previous experience, educational level, socio – economic status, physical appearance or the way they speak.

“I was guilty of this. But this past year, I developed a different lens through which I view my students, whether they are pursuing a Ph.D. or a master’s or bachelor’s degree. I see them all as leaders and I provide them … a place to develop public speaking skills, to speak with confidence, persuade with authority, and influence through words.

“Even the quietest person in the room, the one sitting in the back who rarely share an opinion, has much to contribute – unique ideas, diverse perspectives, and alternative ways of looking at problems. Unfortunately, many of the people with the most – needed perspectives learn to be silent. They internalize notions reinforced by society that their opinions do not matter that much, there is nothing they can do to fix a problem, or leadership is not for them.

“Now I view the people entrusted to me as leadership with limitless potential.”

We should all remember this. Everyone has potential and what are we doing to encourage the development of that potential in ourselves and others?

Join a Toastmasters group. We have a club that meets in the mornings and one that meets in the evenings, once a week. They would love to have you there to work on your speaking and presentation skills. They are kind and helpful and positive. Don’t be afraid to face your fear. Call Dianna Brown at 580-338-7270 to find out more about the club.

There are a couple other meetings worth mentioning that are coming up.

To learn information on the Medicare Prescription Enrollment, go to the Guymon Public Library between 10 am and 3 pm on Oct. 28 or Nov. 4 to visit.

And the TCEC Town Hall meeting is at 5:30 at the Library on Oct. 30. Open to everyone!

For fun, to the OPSU play “No One Cries in this Play” on Nov. 5 at 3 pm; Nov. 6 and 7 at 7 pm in the Centennial Theatre. It is free admission.

See you on the bricks!

The last of the Breakfast and Business classes has happened and the whole series of eight meetings were great. I loved those who came to them because it shows people who want to get better, to do better, to learn. And the speakers were all class acts. They weren’t there to bring attention to themselves, but to bring attention to good decisions for the business owners and managers and teachers in the group.

“Visit with your local insurance agent,” said each of the four insurance speakers. Dianna Brown, Ken Lane, Warner McKinnon, and Charles White all stressed working with your insurance agent, not trying to steal clients from anyone.

“Talk to your local bank,” said Sally Hawkins. She was adamant that the local banks in town could help on the same things she was talking about.

This just goes to show one of the many reasons that I love working with Panhandle folks. They have a strong sense of honesty and work hard to live with integrity. And they know how to work. Did I mention that every single one of the speakers at the classes does so as a volunteer. They not only take away from their time in the office, but they also don’t get paid to do it.

I love them for this absence of greed and for having reasonable egos. Almost every single person I work with, this is the case. Good people.

And as I was there with the four insurance folks today, they spoke so calmly and didn’t get excited. They went with the flow. And it reminded me of the Ernest Hemingway quote, “Never mistake motion for action.” This still folks all get a lot done.

Do you know of anyone that might want to be a volunteer at Dunaway Manor nursing home helping with doing hair. They need helpers who can push wheelchairs, some who can cut and style hair, others willing to shampoo hair, and those to help clean up. This all happens on the second and fourth Monday of each month beginning at 9 am. Contact Barbara Campbell at 580-338-7781 if you can help.

Americans eat way too much salt, as a rule. And I just read in the September Rotarian magazine that nearly half the salt in the U.S. diet comes from just 10 food, all according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control. Bread, pizza, sandwiches, cold cuts / cured meats, and soup make up the top five, followed by burritos and tacos, savory snacks, chicken, cheese, and eggs / omelets. The recommended intake of salt is 1,500 mg a day, and American consume 3,400. That increases the risk of hypertension.

On the others side of health, the August Rotarian, says the healthiest arteries of any population ever studied belong to the Tsimane people of the Bolivian Amazon. The Tsimane hunt, father, fish, and farm; men are physically active six to seven hours a day, and women four to six hours. Diet consists of 72% non – processed, high – fiber carbohydrates such as rice, nuts, and fruit and 14% protein (game and fish) and fats. Close to nine of 10 Tsimane aged 40 to 94 had no heart disease risk. Only 14% of American had no risk in similar studies. I bet the Tsimane don’t eat those 10 foods in the previous paragraph.

Don’t miss the OPSU Homecoming this weekend. The volleyball team plays at 1 on Friday afternoon and at noon on Saturday. The football game against Langston starts at 1 on Saturday. There are all sorts of other activities to go with the games and you can find those at www.opsu.edu.
Panhandle Services for Children has their masquerade ball that same Saturday, in the evening.

Another Saturday activity is the Archaeology Talk by Dr. Leland Bement from 2 to 3 at the Guymon Public Library, a Main Street Guymon event.

So much to do on October 28! Hope you have fun this weekend.

See you on the bricks!

This is one seriously interesting article I recently read. The message, according to Robby Manullang about why people quit their jobs “is so simple, full of truth and direction, yet it is consistently ignored by human resource departments, managers and owners alike and they wonder why their turnover is so high or they are always having to look for new people. The problem is with the managers – and seldom the employee or the quality of the workforce. This has been proven and well documented by study after study.

“I don’t think this happens on purpose, most managers have never been taught the art of developing people. Many rose to the rank of managers simply because they outlasted the last one. This lack of people training leaves the new manager with the only experience they know – to mimic the old boss.

“If you or your organization is experiencing more turnover than you would like, start with examining yourself and how you interact with your team. Here are nine proven reasons guaranteed to cause good employees to quit. Any one of them alone starts the process – if you find three or more you have some serious work ahead of you to correct.

“1. The Employees are Over Worked. In start-ups this happens all of the time and the managers simply do not see the handwriting on the wall. Talented employees love to contribute and will produce more, however if you plan on having them do more you best be prepared to increase their status as well.

“2. Employee’s Contributions Are Not Recognized or Good Work Rewarded. I cannot emphasize this one enough. Never underestimate the power of a pat on the back, a thank you, or a ‘great job’ comment. This is especially true with your top performers who are self – motivated.

“3. The Wrong People Are Hired or Promoted. Good, hard working employees want to work with like – minded professionals at all levels. Promoting the wrong person is one of the worse mistakes that can be made. When employees work their tails off only to get passed over by someone who glad – handed their way to the top, it is a massive insult to the good employees.

“4. Employers Who Don’t Care About Their Employees. More than half of people who leave their jobs do so because of their relationship with their boss. Bosses who fail to really care will always have high turnover rates.

“5. Employer Fails to Develop Their People. When managers are lucky enough to have talented employees, it is up to the manager to keep finding areas in which they can improve and expand their skill set. This developmental process does not belong with the human resource department; it falls squarely on your shoulders as the manager. You have a responsibility to continually challenge and grow that person. Failure to do so and your once talented employee will become bored and grow complacent.

“6. Employees Creativity is Not Engaged. Talented employees seek to improve just about everything they touch. They take pride in what they create. The moment their ability to change and improve things is removed they begin to hate their jobs. You are caging up this innate desire to create and contribute. This limitation not only limits the employees – it limits managers and companies as well.

“7. Employers Are Not Challenging People Intellectually. A great boss will challenge their employees to accomplish things that may at first seem inconceivable. Rather than setting mundane, incremental goals, the great manager will set lofty goals that will push people out of their comfort zones.

“8. Employers Don’t Honor Their Commitments. Integrity and honesty are two traits that every employee will expect of their managers. If you say you will do something – do it.

“9. They Don’t Let People Pursue Their Passions. Of all of these, this is the most simple and can mean the most, but it does require that you listen to your employees and observe. Talented employees are passionate. Find out what those passions are and work towards giving them challenges that fill their passionate needs. It just may surprise you what they can do when you let them out of that little box you have kept them in.

“If all else fails, simply remember this: ‘People work for people – they do not work for businesses.’”

Just had to share this one, even if it is so long that there’s no room for upcoming things in town.

See you on the bricks!

Breakfast and Business, Part Seven

PTCI Channel 2 video

October 18, 2017

Managing to Retire with Kyle Hawkins

Jennie TeBeest said, “Just do the right thing.” We were young girls sitting in a Bible study and the question came up on how you make good choices. Jennie was in her 70s and we all knew she had lived through some tough times. That was her advice. I’ve always thought it was probably the smartest advice I ever heard. Good chance I’ve been given lots of good advice, but I wasn’t always listening.

Last weekend Main Street partnered with OPSU Baseball players and Coach Keith and with Monica Ronne and the Oklahoma Family Network to put on the Special Game Day. Sponsors blessed us, volunteers helped us, families played with us, and spectators cheered us. It was truly a special day for a lot of special people. I was humbled. It was the right thing to do.
There were so many heroes on the field that day. Caregivers were heroes. Players were heroes. To be among that many caring and giving people brings all sorts of emotions to the front. Love is the main emotion.

And pride. I am so proud to be part of the group of people that was there that day.

Lately there have been so many things of which to be proud. Ami Torres Acuna, an OPSU student from Guymon, won the National Hispanic College Quiz. I got to go to the Premiere Party and watch her on television. I watched her just stomp on the other contestants. It was amazing and it was wonderful. What was almost as good was the fabulous party that her employers put on for her. And it was Ami’s party. Brown and Associates did a great job. And Ami is a champion. Wow.

The school bond issue passed. Some people stepped up and gave the issue some priority in town. They stepped out and they stepped up and people listened because they’re people we trust. Sally Hawkins and Mike Ray said we needed to invest in our youth and 71% of the voters heard them.

This makes me recall something someone in our Sept. 2017 Living Lutheran magazine said, “I try to change lives through education. Education is key to improving life, fostering understanding, and creating problem – solvers.” We need to all remember how important education is.

There are also heroes on some of our Main Street banners now. Mayor Jim Norris and the American Legion Post 31 members have the Guymon Military Banner Program where for $150 you can purchase a banner to honor a friend or family member from Texas County who served our country in the military. You can go to www.TroopBanners.com/Guymon to see what they look like.
One more hero that needs to be mentioned. Addison Helton is the cover of the Bountiful Blessings 2017 calendar put out by the Down Syndrome Association of Central Oklahoma. A cover girl hero right here in Guymon, Oklahoma. Another proud moment for this community.

Time to stop bragging on ourselves and our neighbors and talk about what’s happening in town.

• Harvest Fest is Sat., Oct. 14, from 4 – 10 pm and happens downtown. This is an event put on by the Guymon Cultural Downtown District Committee.
• Breakfast and Business: Managing to Retire is a class on Wed., Oct. 18, and will be taught by Kyle Hawkins. The class series is sponsored by Main Street, Chamber, and PREDCI and hosted by Bank of the Panhandle.
• The HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) class is Tues., Oct. 24, at the Guymon Fire Department classroom with the first class from 9 – 10 and the second class from 10:15 – 11:15. It is free to Main Street Guymon members and cost $5 for non – members. There is a limit of 25 per class, so call in your reservation to 338-6246.
• Nov. 1 is the grand opening of Inspirations at 1102 N. Main. Fran Berry and Kay Herald are bringing this place to shop, to create, and to meet. You can shop for home décor, seasonal decorations, antiques, gift items, and they offer consignments. Hours are 9:00 to 6:00. Love when new shops open.
• Just south of Inspirations and across the street is the great new shop, Whispering Bliss, which has clothing and gift items. It is at 1009 N. Main.
• And just one house over from Whispering Bliss is By His Hands, a health food store where Todd Johnson’s chiropractic office used to be at 1001 N. Main. That block looks like a place to explore on November 1.

It’s a great time to be from Guymon and a great place to live.

See you on the bricks!

Breakfast and Business, Part Six

PTCI Channel 2 video

October 11, 2017

Hiring and Retaining Employees with Liz McCulloch

Breakfast and Business, Part Five

PTCI Channel 2 video

October 4, 2017

Shopping Local Conversation with Local Business Owners

Breakfast and Business, Part Four

PTCI Channel 2 video

September 27, 2017

Make Banking Work for You with Paul Montgomery

Read this article in the September 2017 Toastmaster magazine and thought it to be pretty funny. If you like words, and I figure someone reading a newspaper might well be someone who enjoys words, then you’ll find it humorous, too.

The article Malapropisms was written by John Cadley and under the headline it says, “These examples come free with your conscription to this magazine.” And it just gets better.

“I used to live across the street from a woman named Helen, who had a wonderful way with words. Noticing the ground cover surrounding my home she complimented me on my beautiful patch of ‘pachydandruff.’ Another time she asked if I had any ‘duck tape’ she could borrow. I briefly thought to correct here – the image of a duck wrapped in tape being slightly disconcerting – but I didn’t because I realized that here before me stood a source of entertainment far more creative than anything on television. And free!

“Mistaking pachydandruff for pachysandra and duck for duct are linguistic mash – ups known as malapropisms. Grammarians call it the ‘use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound.’ I call it fall – down – funny and I can’t get enough. I wish I had collected all of Helen’s malaprops, but there is no shortage to draw from. Look no further than the world champion of twisted syntax, Yogi Bera, to hear that, when it comes to American presidential elections, ‘the state of Texas has a lot of electrical votes.’ Or the former prime minister of Australia, Tony Abbott, who expressed, with all the gravitas of a respected head of state, that ‘no one, however smart, however well educated, however experienced, is the suppository of all wisdom.’ Suppositories have their use, of course – and a valuable one it is – but they are a far cry from the intended ‘repository,’ which holds things rather than loosens them.

“… The comic gold inherent in malaprops is not lost on the professionals. Stan Laurel of the famous American comedy team Laurel and Hardy worried that his partner was having a ‘nervous shakedown’ because he kept referring to the Exalted Leader of a group they belong to as their ‘exhausted’ leader (which may have been true; just not what was intended).

“… Back in the gold old USA, Richard J. Daley, the infamous late mayor of Chicago, was not one to mince words, except when he turned them into mincemeat. To Mayor Daley, a tandem bicycle was a ‘tantrum bicycle’ and no one could tell him otherwise. As for those with a weakness for strong drink, Alcoholics Unanimous was the mayor’s sage recommendation.

“… For instance, there’s the man who saving one wife is called monotony.’ He meant monogamy. Or did he? And the woman who remarked, ‘I have a very photogenic memory.’ Photographic is the correct word, of course, but perhaps she was looking for a modeling job.

“… My all – time winner came when I took my then six – year – old son to Starbucks for breakfast. As he drank his chocolate milk he asked me if I was drinking decapitated coffee. Beat that. I dare you.”

And here is wishing you some entertaining conversation this week!

See you on the bricks.