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Captain Jack’s Column
A repentant Captain Jack
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Favorite Christmas Movies and a Ho Ho Ho Merry Christmas
I’d like to take this moment to extend a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of my family, friends, and community.
This is a time that I hope wish filled with joy, love, family, friends, and food. It’s always been my favorite time of year. It’s a little bittersweet this year for our family. My Dad is gone and our daughter Mindy had to stay on the East Coast due to work commitments (happy she is working, though). We certainly understand how blessed we are and are grateful for that.
Okay…my gift to you today (easy to wrap and send via cyberspace) is my Top 10 Christmas Movies of all time…
1. It’s a Wonderful Life (C’mon – there’s no discussion, right?)
2. Christmas Carol (George C. Scott version)
3. Miracle on 34th Street (Newer version – sorry old schoolers)
4. White Christmas
5. Elf
6. The Santa Clause
7. Christmas Carol (Patrick Stewart version)
8. The Santa Clause 2
9. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (Love Burl Ives)
10. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (cartoon)
Yes, I know there are some honorable mentions like National Lampoon and Christmas with the Kranks. But…I only had room for 10!
Best wishes to you and yours for a very Merry Christmas from the Weedin family. Ho Ho Ho…
© 2011 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved
Happy HalloWeedin!
A special video from the Weedin Family on HalloWeedin. Click here (for some reason it wouldn’t embed!)
Resilient
If there is one thing a Jack Russell terrier is, it’s resilient.
There is a noise emanating from my office wall. I can’t hear it, but obviously Captain Jack does. At first I thought it might be a mouse in the wall. I looked outside and perused the area, without trace of a rodent. Now, I’m thinking it’s a mole. We have a small deck that leads up to the door. Untill (or unless) I go under there, I may never know. But Jack knows.
He’s been driving me to utter distraction the past few days. He howls, he barks, and he scratches at the wall. I finally caught him putting his own hole in the wall. I barricaded it yesterday, which seemed to befuddle him. He figured it out today. I put the gate up so he can’t reach it and he only barks. Captain Jack refuses to be deterred. His is the poster child of “resilient.”
What about you?
How do you handle rejection? I don’t know a lot of people who really like it, but you must change your mindset in business. If you are good, you will get about a 70% rejection rate. If you are good. Every rejection should get you fired up because that means you’re one step closer to an acceptance. Rejection is part of the deal. It’s not personal (most of the time) and it certainly doesn’t reflect on your self-worth. Unfortunately for many people, it radically affects their self-confidence. This leads to dejection, depression, and quitting too soon.
Take a cue from Captain Jack. You may get rejected, rebuffed, and have barriers put in your way, but never stop being resilient. Carry on with a positive attitude and a hearty “woof.”
Now, I just have to figure out how to get that mole (or whatever it is) out of my wall before Captain Jack “resilient-ly” does it for me!
© 2010 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved
Steubenville Journal #1
Our stop on the way to Pittsburgh was through Minneapolis. My wife and I found a Quizno’s and decided to split a hoagie sandwich. As the young woman behind the counter added all the condiments and finished, I asked her to cut the sandwich in half so Barb and I could share.
She looked at me and bluntly said, “No.” Upon seeing the sheer shock on my face, she explained that the cutting knife she had couldn’t possibly cut through the sandwich. I looked at it and it was an enormous cutting knife with a very sharp-looking serrated side. She pointed over to the plastic utensils and said, “But, you could cut it yourself.” With a plastic knife! Really?
I repeated this process asking how I could possibly cut a sandwich with a plastic knife when a real cutting knife couldn’t. I wasn’t sure I wanted to EAT a sandwich that this knife couldn’t cut. She relented and said she’d give it a try. What do you know, it worked!
You can’t make this up.
I just hope we all don’t make our clients work that hard for what would be considered regular service! Think about that next time you’re asked for something by a client. Will you be ready to cut the sandwich?
© 2010 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved
The Captains Chair
My family spent most of Sunday re-arranging our house. My wife Barb, for reasons I still don’t understand and probably shouldn’t, changed our living room and dining rooms around. This arrangement has created a problem for Captain Jack, our Jack Russell terrorist. You see, Jack loved staring out the window into the front yard. His duty is to protect our house from the crazy rabbits and he does a fine job. Now that the sofa is no longer there, this has become an issue.
Today, I find that Barb has placed a chair right at the middle window. This has now become the “Captain’s Chair.” Life is again good for Captain Jack and rabbits be warned. Ah, to be a dog. Free rent, free food, free health care, and now his own chair at the window.
I’m not sure how yet, but this will at some point turn into a story I will use in a speech somewhere. I don’t know what the message will be, or who will be the audience. I do know I like the story and can make it humorous.
What about you? What personal stories pop up in your everyday life? The audiences you speak to – employees, prospects, Toastmasters, service clubs, associations – all prefer hearing a personal story that becomes a metaphor for a message. It sure beats PowerPoint, handouts, and bad jokes. If you want to transform your speech or presentation, create a story file where you can pull out your best personal stories to include in your speech. They will add humor and become memorable to your audience.
You will undoubtedly have your audience as enthralled with you as Captain Jack is with rabbits. And THAT is a good thing!
Cheers,
(c) 2009 Dan Weedin – All Rights Reserved
Bob Newhart Classic
Somehow he gets right to the point. Maybe we as consultants can learn a thing or two:)
40 Great Inspirational Speeches in 2 Minutes
Love inspirational speeches? Love the movies? Check this out…
You can’t Make This Up!
Have you heard of Otto the Octopus? If not, check out this story about a juggling octopus. Talk about presentation skills!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3328480/Otto-the-octopus-wrecks-havoc.html
Ever Had One of These Clients?
Unfortunately…this happens! Don’t let it happen to you…
