Recovery Reader The November 2018
www.bridgefirmrecovery.com (269) 359-0814
FROM THE DESK OF Dan
GRATITUDE.
Wishing all of you a great thanks for your support and business all these years. I am occasionally asked how we keep a great attitude with all that “negativity” relating to collections. The answer is perspective. We provide services that must be done to keep the financial balance positive. With our background checks, we help our clients, and their perspective tenants or employees find a good fit for everyone. Proper screening ensures the right tenants are in the right property at the right price. This makes for good tenants and good landlords who can enjoy good returns on investment and good tenant relationships. Recovery of outstanding receivables is what keeps your business growing and successful. We often consult on receivable management to keep “bad debt” at manageable levels. I have often consulted with new entrepreneurs who get so excited about the new business they are getting that they extend credit for their services, only to discover that some of those customers don’t pay anybody. Ouch! No need to be a victim; that’s why we are here. A little preventative screening
GRATITUDE IN THE WORKPLACE Should Be aYear-Round Initiative
Odds are that your company hosts some type of Thanksgiving festivity. Office potlucks are delicious and great for camaraderie, but there’s one element of the holiday that should be part of your company culture year-round: gratitude. “If we think about gratitude only once a year,” notes author David Horsager, “we overlook the immense power of practicing it daily, especially in a business context.” A study from the University of Warwick found that happier employees are 12 percent more productive. One of the easiest ways to put a smile on the faces of your team is to express your gratitude for them. It sounds simple, but it’s something far too many entrepreneurs, executives, and managers overlook. The holiday season is the perfect time of year to reflect on whether or not you’re saying thanks enough. Over the course of his career as CEO of Campbell Soup Company, Scott R. Conant wrote more than 30,000 notes to employees expressing gratitude and appreciation to them. “On the face of it, writing handwritten notes may seem like a waste of time,” Conant told Harvard Business Review. “But in my experience, they build goodwill and lead to higher productivity.” The number of studies that confirm Conant’s assumption are too numerous to list here, but there are a few that should raise the eyebrows of any business owner. A study from the University of Pennsylvania, for example, found that grateful leaders motivate their employees to be up to 50 percent more productive. Gratitude and acknowledgment have THE BENEFITS OF GRATITUDE
will bring you good business with clients who actually pay for your services.
Thank you all,
Dan Larson
Continued on page 2 ...
cash@bridgefirmrecovery.com • 269-359-0814 • 1
Cover story, continued ...
During the holidays, there’s so much you can do for those in need in your area. Simply raising money for a local food bank or donating turkeys will go a long way for a family during Thanksgiving. Holding a company-wide fundraiser brings your team together and gives them a sense of purpose that’s much more powerful than a paycheck alone. Certainly, the power of donating to a worthy cause is reason enough to participate in some philanthropy this holiday season. As a bonus, companies that engage in outreach projects consistently demonstrate higher levels of employee engagement and retention, which goes to show what happens when you get the upward spiral of gratitude in motion.
week,” says Badger Maps CEO Steven Benson. “Anyone on the team can give props to anyone else on the team, which fosters an atmosphere of appreciation and teamwork.” Other companies have a thank-you wall or shoutout email chain where employees can share their kudos. The most important thing isn’t the method you use, but that you make it an important part of company culture. It starts with leadership. If you aren’t taking the time to recognize and appreciate people, how can you expect that anyone else will? Instilling a culture of gratitude within your company doesn’t require intensive training or extensive investment. All you need to do is encourage a certain perspective and approach.
also been linked to increased self-esteem, happiness, empathy, and a better response to stress and negative feedback. And the benefits affect both the person expressing their gratitude and the person receiving it.
EVERYDAY APPRECIATION
During the holidays, it’s easy to take a moment to say thank you to the people who’ve made a difference in our lives over the past year. Sharing your appreciation, however, is just as important in March or August as it is in November. Gratitude begets more gratitude, creating what researchers Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough call an “upward spiral.”Once you set the spiral in motion at your workplace, you’ll see an attitude of gratitude multiply and spread. The easiest way to start is to create a public forum where employees can acknowledge one another. “We have an all-hands meeting once a week, and we finish the meeting by ‘giving props,’ which is recognizing people on the team for their accomplishments that
GO FORTH GRATEFULLY
OUTSIDE THE OFFICE
Creating a culture of gratitude and appreciation will benefit your company long after the last piece of pumpkin pie has been eaten. So take a moment this year to say thanks and show love to your team. And don’t stop doing it, even after the holidays have passed.
Businesses don’t operate in a vacuum. They’re all part of the communities they inhabit, and your company’s sense of gratitude should reach beyond your staff and customers. Community outreach is the best way to show your neighbors that you care about them.
Experience vs. Potential What Matters More in New Hires?
working knowledge of their craft can provide a sense of security when hiring. With new employees playing such a pivotal role in growth, many employers want to limit uncertainty and ensure they aren’t gambling with their company’s future. But experience doesn’t equate to competency, which is why some employers elect to hire for potential.
Scaling a business is one of the most complicated challenges for entrepreneurs. Developing a model that allows for consistent growth while maintaining profit margins and effective systems is a substantial task for business owners. But once the proper blueprint is in place, a new test presents itself, and how well you perform will undoubtedly define the future success of your company. Hiring plays a significant role along a company’s path to success. It’s not a landmark or a checkpoint on the map; it’s the vehicle that takes you to your destination. Your business is only as good as the people who propel it forward. You need individuals who fit into your culture, possess the necessary skills to be effective, and have a desire to continue learning best practices if you’re ever going to achieve your goals. Some qualities are universally known to be linked to good hiring practices, but there’s still one important question that divides the masses: Do I hire for experience or potential?
POTENTIAL
The argument for hiring based on potential centers around two concepts. One is that by hiring someone with a bright future and helping them achieve their goals, you could gain the loyalty of that person and thus retain that employee for a longer time. This comes with the caveat that those who have potential also look for potential, so as an employer, it’s important to provide opportunities for advancement. The other argument is that potential combined with training can equate to a more effective employee in the long run. In truth, the disagreement that transpires is a moot point. You can hire someone with experience or an individual with potential and strike out just the same. All successful employees will have one important trait: passion. You can’t teach passion, but you can hire for it.
EXPERIENCE
A degree- or trade-specific education can certainly lay a foundation for an employee to be successful, but experience provides specialized training that cannot be found anywhere else. An employee who has a
2 • www.bridgefirmrecovery.com • cash@bridgefirmrecovery.com
Shou l d Las t Beyond Thanksg i v i ng An Attitude of Gratitude
insignificant, but you’d be surprised what a difference it makes. When you approach the world with the perspective that every day is Thanksgiving, it’s only natural to be grateful. We all have moments when we want to curse the world, especially as we get older, and those experiences are perfectly normal. Just as frequently, though, we have moments that are worth celebrating, often with people who are worth appreciating. Which will you think about more?
practice grateful thinking do reap emotional, physical, and interpersonal benefits. Adults who keep gratitude journals on a regular basis exercise more regularly, report fewer illness symptoms, feel better about their lives as a whole, and are more optimistic about the future.” HOW TO PRACTICE GRATITUDE In the above quotation from Dr. Emmons, he mentions the practice of keeping a gratitude journal. This activity is a great way to start seeing the world with a more positive, appreciative eye. As often as you can, take a few minutes to write down the acts, people, and moments that you’re grateful for. Some will be big, others small — but all will have an impact on your mood and bring a smile to your face. Before you know it, you’ll have an entire book full of good memories and warm feelings. While keeping a journal is great, there are other ways to go about cultivating and expressing gratitude. The easiest one is simply to say “Thanks”whenever you can. It may seem
Taking the time to acknowledge who and what you’re grateful for is a Thanksgiving tradition far more important than turkey or football. It’s the cornerstone of the holiday and the reason we feast together in the first place. But when you really think about it, should expressing our gratitude and appreciation for others be limited to one day every year? Of course not! WHY GRATITUDE MATTERS As we get older, it’s easy to succumb to negativity and pessimism—“Kids these days,” “The world isn’t what it used to be,” etc. The crabby grandparent and angry old neighbor are archetypal depictions of later life. But these fictions don’t have to be your reality. Recognizing and acknowledging gratitude will help you take stock of the positive aspects of your life and dwell less on unhappy thoughts. Being grateful has also been linked to significant health benefits. According to gratitude expert and author Dr. Robert A. Emmons,“Preliminary findings suggest that those who regularly
Take a Break!
Spicy, Creamy
SWEET POTATOES
Ingredients
•
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
•
5 pounds sweet potatoes
•
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
•
1 cup canned coconut milk
•
1 tablespoon kosher salt
•
1 tablespoonThai red curry paste
Directions
4. sugar, and half the butter to potatoes. 5. 30 minutes before serving, heat oven to 425 F. Spread potatoes in a baking dish,
1. Heat oven to 375 F. On a large sheet pan, bake potatoes until very soft, approximately 75 minutes. 2. Let potatoes cool until they are safe to handle, then peel andmash. 3. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine coconut milk and curry paste. Once mixed, add the mixture, salt, half the
cover with foil, and bake for 20 minutes.
6. Uncover potatoes and dot with remaining butter and
sugar. Broil until brown, crusty, and delicious. Serve hot.
Recipe courtesy of Bon Appetit Magazine
cash@bridgefirmrecovery.com • 269-359-0814 • 3
Bridge Firm Recovery www.bridgefirmrecovery.com (269) 359-0814 cash@bridgefirmrecovery.com
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
PO Box 24 Grandville, MI 49468
INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the Desk of Dan PAGE 1 The Importance of Gratitude at Work PAGE 1 Debunking Experience vs. Potential in New Hires PAGE 2 How to GiveThanks Year-Round PAGE 3 Take a Break PAGE 3 Spicy, Creamy Sweet Potatoes PAGE 3 A Historic Veterans Day PAGE 4
A HISTORIC VETERANS DAY Commemorating the 100 th Anniversary of the End of World War I
This year, Veterans Day takes on particular historic significance: Nov. 11, 2018, marks the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended the First WorldWar. Countries around the world will commemorate the signing of this peace agreement with moments of silence, centennial ceremonies, and historical exhibits. Unlike Memorial Day, Veterans Day is a celebration of life. It’s a day to honor the power of peace and the living veterans across the globe who have served their countries. This November, take a moment to remember the war that helped shape the international community’s dedication to peace and thank the individuals who served to defend it. THE GREAT WAR By 1914, a world war had been years in the making, but the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of the Austro-Hungarian Empire by a Serbian nationalist provided the spark that would eventually burn down much
of Versailles the following July. An estimated 16 million soldiers and civilians died in just four years, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in modern history. VETERANS DAY Originally called Armistice Day, Veterans Day was first observed on Nov. 11, 1919, to honor the one-year anniversary of the armistice, and it became a U.S. holiday in 1938. Today, Veterans Day celebrates veterans who served their country honorably. The U.K., France, Australia, and Canada also commemorate their veterans in November. If you know a veteran, thank them for their service this month.
of Europe. A chain reaction of land disputes, pre-emptive attacks, and strategic alliances brought over 30 countries into WorldWar I. The Great War that ravaged Europe resulted in a devastating loss of life, but from those ashes rose a renewed appreciation for the importance of peace and a global effort to ensure its place in the future.
THE RESTORATION OF PEACE In 1918, Germany surrendered
unconditionally, and the armistice ended the fighting at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, though the war did not officially end until the signing of the Treaty
4 • www.bridgefirmrecovery.com • cash@bridgefirmrecovery.com
Published by The Newsletter Pro • www.TheNewsletterPro.com
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4Made with FlippingBook Learn more on our blog