Be Better in Business

      Everyone wants to be better in business. Everyone. If someone doesn't want to be better in business, they're lying. I want to be better in business. I want to bring in 100,000 dollars a day, make those calls, make the decisions, make the big plays. But, I don't yet. What stops us from being great? Phenomenal, even, in business?
     Us. Well, me, or you.
     Not because we're stupid, not because we don't deserve a business. But it is those reasons. Well, indirectly. We've all thought those things once in our lives. Myself included, I'm not climbing to the top of any pedestal. It's those thoughts that hinder us from being great, simply because we don't believe that we deserve it. I'll see other men and women in business tearin' it up, blazing a trail in the professional world, makin' money and living large. I'm not there. Yet.
     And if you're not there yet, don't let it discourage you. There's a saying, I don't remember who said it, but I can't take credit for it. The saying is, "whether you think you can or you can't, you'll always be right." It's true. Don't waste time on negative thought. Be realistic, but positive too. Being positive doesn't always mean that you're naive, or you're doomed to fail. Quite the opposite, really. A lot of people are really negative, and what a better way to be a trail blazer than to be a positive light in a doubtful shadow?
     Think about it.

United States Free of Fossil Fuels?!

Free from the Fossil Fuel Burden?

     I saw this article during one of my many journeys, and I just had to blog about it. It seems pretty interesting to me, and I am not sure if we can do it. Don't get me wrong, I have hope. But...I'm not sure if enough people are on board for such a drastic change in how the United States of America runs its economy and industry. I mean, fossil fuel is the blood coursing through this continent. Are we ready for this?
     Me, I am. We may not be ready, but I am. I am totally ready. I have a hybrid car myself, and I tell you I've never saved so much money on gas. Right now my wife uses it, and I’ll be honest. I use another car (also fuel efficient, I wouldn't have it any other way) to go to and from work, but I still see the savings. It's dramatic. The car I drive now, too. I rarely have to fill up. Anyway, I digress. Green cleaning products are one thing. Starting up a recycling program another, but this? In twenty years?
     I'm excited. A future that's green? It's all I could hope for, at a lot of my generation (I'm 25) as well. I love this planet; after all it's my home. I don't consider a house a home in the grand scheme of things. We can take care of our houses, apartments, condos, mansions, whatever, but what is the damn thing built on? EARTH! That's my true home. That's every Earthling's true home. Are you ready to move off of fossil fuels?
     Think about it.

Joan Knechel Memorial Walk

    
     Budget is based out of Hackettstown in New Jersey, and right in our backyard is the Hackettstown Regional Medical Center, which houses the Joan Knechel Cancer Center. They are holding a special memorial walk to John Knechel, a nurse at H.R.M.C.. Budget is sponsoring the walk, and we are participating in the walk itself. Know why? It has nothing to do with publicity, or advertisement. It has everything to do with knowing how fantastic and incredible the center is, and how important it is to the residents of northern New Jersey. My grandmother was a patient there, and she is still alive. Oh yes, she conquered cancer twice. Yeah, twice. One was a bout of breast cancer, and the other colon.
     We got to see firsthand the facilities at the Joan Knechel Cancer Center (J.K.C.C.) and how they treat their patients. We were then, and still are, nothing but pleased with the incredible job they do. They were supportive, proactive, and professional. They didn't treat my grandmother (because of her age) as immediately terminal. They treated her with the same care and respect that my family would give her if we were treating her cancer.
     This walk is important. Very important. The annual event, this year held in Liberty Township on October 17th, raises funds for J.K.C.C., and helps keep it going. Helps it keep men and women strong in their fight against cancer. That's why we're walking. The publicity is a far second.
     Personally, I love writing about this stuff. I love telling you all that my grandma survived cancer twice, and I love telling the story of a fantastic local facility being a cornerstone for my grandmother's recovery. Positive is hard to find not because it is scarce. It's because the bad is so much more obvious. My grandmother could have resigned, and just silently slipped away. But no. She didn't. She chose to hunt for the positive, the good, and make sure it kept her alive, which is a good lesson to us all, really.
     So what do you think? Do you think the positive is hard to find because it's scarce, or because we're not looking hard enough? Food for thought, for sure. Think about it.

Cleaning and Sales

     I was a salesman for a brief time last year, and I gotta say it was one of the most difficult jobs I have ever undertaken. Kudos to those in sales, really. I faced a lot of sharp comments from complete strangers when all I was trying to do was present an opportunity. Just one opportunity. You don't have to be rude, just say yes, or no. There's only so much I can push before I feel I'm being a bully, so I'll take my leave, trust me.
     Recently, I've been doing cold calls for Budget, going from business to business, trying to see if people are interested in getting their offices cleaned. Some are some aren't. But honestly, there has been a whole new attitude there, and I think it's because of the service I was offering.
     There is no product with Budget. We are the product, but you can't buy us right then and there. With the other sales job, the pressure from the higher ups was to sell, sell, sell, and people don’t respond to that like they used to, now with the internet, online research, buying online, oh the list is endless. So why the change in results?
     Well, once again, I believe because it is a service industry. Now, by a rule, I think having a no soliciting sign on your establishment is silly. It is! Why? Because who knows what you could be missing out on? Who knows what you may want, or not want? Not you. Certainly not me, so I hear all serious propositions, and I entertain them simply because of that "X" factor. If we are not open to opportunity, how can we expect to recognize it when it appears?
     The whole point of this article is to let you know that not every salesman is hocking hardware and encyclopedias. And even if they are, why stop them? They're just trying to make a living, and if they are unprofessional, give them the treatment that you think they deserve. However. There are a lot of guys and gals in sales (I'm one of those guys in fact) that are honest, hardworking, and want to help you find a product that works for you. If you have a no soliciting sign, take it off. Let a sales rep come in to your establishment, and just hear what they have to say. Even if you don't buy, you may be the only pleasant encounter that person may have that day.
     Think about it.

Change is Good for Green

     Believe it or not, I have a lot of fun here at Budget. Yeah, really. I know, I thought the same thing when I first came into it. I was unsure of how much there would be to do, unsure if I would even enjoy it. But after just two months of working here when this entry was written? I love it. Bored already? Don't be. It gets better, give me a second.

     The whole point of all that self indulgent blather is to make a point. That point is change. Change. Ooooh! Scary word, big word! This biggest six letter word there is. It can spark fights, even wars, destroy lives, create lives, it is one of the most powerful things in the universe. So why am I talking about it? Rough crowd...rough crowd.

     Because it's essential. Even the small stuff. Like a toothpaste brand. I know people that have been brushing with the same damn toothpaste brand for decades. Decades! And they never get sick of it! I change every time I get a new tube, I can't stand the stagnation. That goes for everything.

     Next point, here we go. Cleaning is change. I've heard for quite some time now, oh, green cleaning doesn't work, I like the smell of bleach and ammonia that's how I know it's clean! Alright then. You've forced me to do this. No, no! There's no turning back now. Answer this question honestly, you non-believers. Would you pour bleach into an open cut to disinfect it? Not a solution, mind you. Straight out of the flippin' bottle. Of course not! If you seriously said yes, please navigate here. Well, what about peroxide? You know, good old bubblin', foamin' hydrogen peroxide? Of course you would! Here's a fact for you. Bleach destroys 100.00% of germs when placed on a surface. Hydrogen peroxide kills 99.99% of germs when placed on surface. Hydrogen peroxide just so happens to be the main ingredient in the cleaning solution we use the most here at Budget. Now. One last question.

     If you wouldn't pour bleach on an open wound to clean it, why would you eat off a surface that was cleaned with it? All because of 00.01%? Unless you work in a hospital, or similar situation where sterility is a must and not a desire, I'm pretty sure your immune system can handle it. Know what else works really well? White distilled vinegar. Oh yeah. Fantastic cleaner, and the odor dissipates faster than bleach or ammonia ever will.

     So the next time you go to clean with bleach, or want us to clean with bleach, remember what I wrote and go to this website, or this one. Try it out, make the change! Forget what you know, or think you know, and just give it a try. You won't regret it, I promise.

Being Green

What can I say about going green? Well, it isn't incredibly easy to go completely green, but there are many smaller steps we all can take to make our impact on the environment less. This isn’t a soapbox speech, honestly. We all know what we should be, and won't be doing, but it's more...commentary than anything else. Why run the water when brushing your teeth? Why take a two hour long shower? Why water the lawn in a time of drought? These are all simple things that you shouldn't do, but may. Same with recycling, why not recycle? We never had a recycling program at Budget, and we are sorry to admit that. Now? We do. I'll personally be taking our office paper and cans, plastics, and glassware to the appropriate disposal receptacles. Bragging? No. I'm trying to lead by example.
     We are all busy. Really busy. But, think of it this way. Are you telling me that during your day you are so busy that you cannot spare one second to turn the faucet off when you are brushing your teeth? Or you cannot spare ten seconds to throw a piece of trash in the garbage opposed to letting it fall on the ground? If you said no, that means you literally never stop working. Truly. You work for sixteen hours a day, and then you immediately fall asleep and start all over again. No-one is that busy. It's impossible.
     This isn't a scolding. This is merely one person making some commentary. Budget wants to be more green, and we are trying. Surprisingly, the cost hasn't been very high, if anything at all. We've had to take a few extra measures here and there, but we haven't had to drop a thousand dollars to start a recycling program. Know what I mean? Anyway, if I got too soap boxy, I'm sorry. You live your life how you want to. Me? I just like to add a perspective, just like all the things in my life add perspective for me. And isn’t' that what it's all about? Growing, changing, learning? Give it a try. Just start turning off the faucet when you brush your teeth, and use it only at the end when you have to rinse, and all that other oral hygiene stuff. Why not? You've got nothing to lose.

---Will J. Truex