[February 03, 2015] I was watching a televisions special on Costco the other night with my wife. She was captivated by Costco with their employees being so loyal and customers so happy. What is it that makes Costco so successful? Is it their business model or is it something else? Warehouse clubs that sell merchandise at low cost… Read More »
[January 27, 2015] Core values tell us a lot about people and their culture. Ten American core values were proposed in Parts 1 and 2 previously, but how can we test them against what American’s respect and see as popular? Most people the world over would likely be able to identify what Americans like and do so for… Read More »
[January 26, 2015] American core values are not something we hear people talk about much these days. We do hear politicians talking about “fairness” and “equality”, yet the meanings do not always align with what most Americans think. Our leaders help set the tone for dialog and we look to them for how to treat others and for… Read More »
[January 25, 2015] A few days ago, I was invited to have lunch with about a dozen good friends; all retired from the U.S. military. While eating our pastrami sandwiches and drinking cream soda, the inevitable comment came up about how many young people in the U.S. are so different from us. American core values have not had… Read More »
[January 17, 2015] Growing up, all my friends and I talked about what we wanted to be as adults. What was going to be our job? Undeniably, we all wanted to be a fireman … after playing baseball. It is no wonder that we looked up to the men who did those jobs that serve and protect us.… Read More »
[December 16, 2014] To pay for college I worked on the Missouri Pacific Railroad (affectionately called the “MOP”) in the summer months in the early 1970s. I remember it being a tough, 6-day workweek job that paid well … and I belonged to the railroad union that ensured good pay as well. At the time there were negotiations… Read More »
[November 16, 2014] Most of us have never had the fortune to come into contact with people in the American Red Cross. Those who do, are likely to have experienced some critical emergency or disaster in their lives. The American Red Cross was an easy choice to show it as an example of an organization with core values… Read More »
[September 09, 2014] If you grew up in America, it was impossible not to have gone to a Sears and Roebuck store – they were just about everywhere. I always liked my mom buying “go to school jeans” for all of us children. The store workers then – and now – have always been friendly and helpful. Perhaps… Read More »
[July 25, 2014] In the late 1950s when our family traveled to a big southern city (population 10,000) to go shopping, there were two places we always went. We never missed a trip to the Piggly Wiggly grocery store and to Walgreens. I remember two things about each one. First, they each had air conditioning. Second, the workers… Read More »
[July 14, 2014] It was 1916. If you were part of General Pershing’s punitive expedition against Poncho Villa, you may have been riding one of the U.S. Army’s Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Motorization of bicycles in the early 1900s started a movement that has never gone away. Any person who has spent time on a motorcycle understands that “it gets… Read More »