If you want to have hope for the world, hang around with a bunch of Girl Scouts- I mean a lot of Girl Scouts.  I did at the Centennial Great Girl Gathering Event for Girl Scouts at Mall of America March 11 & 12.  It was one of the best run events I have ever been involved in.  We cannot thank the teams from Girl Scouts River Valleys and Mall of America enough.  They were fantastic.

Our Company was lucky enough to assist with opening, operating and development of branded merchandise for the Great Girl Gathering Retail Store.  The store was the largest ever Girl Scouts Store in the world-over 6,000 square feet on the North side of MOA, including four kiosks throughout the mall.

We knew we would be very busy.  The guess was we might have around 50,000 Girl Scouts and folks associated with Girl Scouts that weekend.  Boy, or should I say Girl, were we wrong.  We ended up with 140,000 over two days!  As you can imagine our stores were utterly mobbed.  And that leads me to this story:

At 9:15 am Saturday there was a crowd of nearly 200 waiting for the store to open.  We opened early and in the Girls Scouts poured.  We had over 400 people in the store with more streaming in.  There were thousands ready to descend.  It was chaos and everyone’s blood pressure was on high alert.

The problem was it was getting dangerous and unworkable and the fire marshal could possibly shut us down.   That is when the unflappable Juliette Francis, an executive with the Girl Scouts of River Valleys Council, did something amazing.  And of course it worked.  We are talking about Girl Scouts here.

After some consulting with her volunteer team, Juliette turned to one of our managers,  who was ringing furiously at the cash register and said, “Watch this”.  Juliette,  who is elegantly tall, jumped up on top of the cash wrap counter standing tall with her arm in the air, (the sign for Girl Scout silence), and said very firmly, yet  calmly-( I am paraphrasing here):

“Girl Scouts.”  Pause. “Girl Scouts.   I want to thank you for being here.  We are so happy to see such a great turnout for our big event.  It’s time to listen and I need you to use all your patience and politeness.  We need you to quietly and calmly follow the volunteers with the flags and form lines….”

Our manager said it went from a rock concert to a church in about 10 seconds.  All the girls, and adults with them, put their arms in the air to match Juliette’s.  They became instantly silent.  Without fan-fair or whining the crowd intently listened and followed Juliette’s instructions.  It was pure magic.

Then, with the crowd tamed and order restored, Juliette jumped off the counter looked at our manager with a twinkle in her eye and said:  “And that is the power of Girl Scouts!” 

100 years ago on March 10, 1912,  Juliette Gordon Lowe founded Girl Scouts in Savannah, Georgia.  Her famous quote of that day is: “Come right over, I’ve got something for the girls of Savannah and all America and all the world and we’re going to start it tonight!”

Juliette Gordon Low would have very proud of he Girl Scouts 100 years later at MOA and the modern day Juliette from River Valleys Council.

I was once a Girl Scout too and it all came flooding back when I saw the patches, the sashes, the giggles and the girls just being together having fun.   My little 14 month old granddaughter Haley better start wearing her new “Future Girls Scout” onsie.   I want her to experience the power of Girl Scouts too.

Many, many thanks to our St. Croix wonderful amazing team for all your hard work, great fun and the professionalism you all displayed.  It was a blast and I couldn’t have been more proud of all of you! 

Check out the sea of Girl Scouts in front of our store in this video.   IMG_3608

Great job organizing the party Mary. What an amazing crew you have and hearty congratulations on how you have built this wonderful, productive happy team.  Julie and I are so proud of your accomplishments and we have seen unbelievable personal and professional growth you have embraced.  You know how to have fun and stay engaged… you have figured out that when your team does well so do you..

Look at how you have been able to control payroll costs by reducing turnover to practically zero.   You now have ease of mind with great backup and no worries every time you leave the store.  Look at the happy faces and the new opportunities you are responsible for… Shelby – CM.. Ricky- Asst.. Alex.. helping him grow and providing him a terrific working experience he will value the rest of his life.  Alex, the first 16 year old Bloomington Diamond Service Award- WOW!  Part of that award belongs to you;  Merrilee who thrives around a happy, organized environment… all your joyful team member.  I am so proud.  

We can always count on you to drive your business and that is very, very important to us.   Mary you know your business!   Julie knows you will ask for and hound her to get what you need and we I have noticed how prepared you are when we try new things.. the Name Game..  Margin Up.. all these things you take to heart and execute.  We love the feedback you give us and we never have to worry about you not doing what you say you are going to do.   In other words Mary..  you have grown up soooo much since that fateful day you met with Dennis and he said to me.. “you know what let’s take a chance on this young lady.  I like her and think she has a fire in her belly.” 

So thanks for a spectacular year.. it has been so much fun watching you grow.. watching you build your team.  We recognize your contributions and we look forward to more to come.   Mary,  it is a pleasure to work and know you!   Pady 

My favorite place is a beautiful small chapel nestled on a hill in the woods next to the river.  For me it is  a place of silence, reflection and peace.    I love hearing the latin chants.  It is  magically for this St. Paul Irish Catholic girl.  I have linked the Abbey’s website below so you can see.

Father Peter is not the Abbot, that is his brother Father Xavier, who was recently named to the post after the death of Father Gabriel.  Father Peter I would describe as the point man:  the face and joy of the place running around the country fundraising, managing projects for the Abbey and ministering to all who the Abbey welcomes.   There is nothing like the thrill and life threatening experience of driving with  Father Peter in the massive donated truck to go to the ice cream store.  Part of the ministry of St. Benedict’s Abby is just plain being there for anyone.  The people of the area and other visitors far and wide celebrate Mass, Sacraments, Retreats.

I got to know Father Peter and Father Tony when they would visit my parents on their yearly fundraising trip to Minnesota. The story goes that over 20 years ago these Irish priests set out to sell their bibles and drove around the Twin Cities stopping at businesses with Irish names.  Sell to your sweet spot is what I always say.

They stopped at my family’s business, Flaherty’s Arden Bowl, the longest family owned Bowling Center, (never call our place a Bowling Alley).   Eventually the Fathers found their way to my Mom and Dad through my Uncle who ran Flaherty’s.  Father Peter is an amazing source of comfort for me and my family when my Dad was diagosed with ALS.  He came to be with us when Dad passed away.   We love him in our family for his simple presence at this difficult time.

Now to the Christmas Hoodie.  One of the ways I wanted to thank Father Peter was to make up some logo products for him, hoodies, teeshirts, a couple of jackets.  I think I also did some coffee mugs with the Abbey logo.   I thought the monks would get a kick out of wearing their logo and perhaps they could earn some extra money selling them to vistors.   I sent them off last year for Christmas.

I didn’t hear back for a while from Father Peter.  I knew how busy they were with a new Abbot and all the daily life of the Abbey.  I hoped they like the products.  Then one day out of the blue I received a impassioned call from Father Peter.  He not only thanked me but told me this story:

Father Peter had been ministering to a young father who had lost his baby in a terrible accident.  This young man was tormented with anger and hate and really having a difficult time with God and life and the reasons why his baby was gone.  After spending many days with him Father Peter felt he was getting better, feeling acceptance and a bit of peace.   He gave him a logo hoodie and told him perhaps when he wore this he would remember the peace he was trying to achieve.   Father Peter called to tell me he had just heard back from the young father and was sending him another hoodie.  He wore it constantly and it helped him cope.  The Abbey logo that he could see and touch brought him back to that Chapel on the hill next to the river.   The very place I love in Still River.   http://www.abbey.org/

I was there with Marnie Wells, Camp Fire USA, MN Chapter CEO and Gary Reisdorph, Camp facilities Volunteer Extraordinaire to meet and greet some of the great folks of Grand Rapids.  We are getting the word out that Camp Bluewater, a Camp Fire Camp about 13 miles north of Grand Rapids is reopening this summer after closing 7 years ago.

This Camp holds a very special, amazing place in our family and for the folks of Grand Rapids.  This is where for years the Flaherty family had a  chance to really get away, be together, experience a touch of wilderness with the whole crew. Every year the Camp Bluewater trip was planned by my Dad, Patrick Fox Flaherty with his usual flair, fun and of course the embellished campfire stories.

Camp Bluewater is a perfect facility for a families, groups or kid camps. The grounds, spectacular lake and great facilities really make this place a jewel.  It has been a Grand Rapids institution for decades and we are so thrilled the community wants it open again too!

Our family is approaching the first anniversary of my Dad’s death.  It has been a very difficult year for me.  One goal was to get this dormant Camp used again for family and kids.

I want to thank , my Uncle Ron Radecki, his amazing wife Anne and Gene and Pat Radecki for their help and connections to the wonderful Grand Rapids community. A special thanks Randy and Kathy McCarty our new Rotary friends for their great help.

Camp Bluewater will be open this summer.  Thanks Grand Rapids for welcoming Camp Bluewater back.  Your response has been nothing short of amazing.

While at Camp this weekend I read Gary this poem I found in my Dad’s things when he passed away.  I carry it around.  I still get such a kick out of it and Gary did too.  So I told him I would make sure he got a copy.  Well here it is:

A Prayer

Lord, Thou knowest better than I know myself that I am growing older and will someday be old.  Keep me from the fatal habit of thinking I must say something on every subject and on every occasion.

Release me from the craving to straighten out everybody’s affairs.  Make me thoughtful but not moody; helpful by not bossy.   With my vast store of wisdom, it seems a pity not to use it all.. but thou knowest, Lord, that I want a few friends at the end.

Keep my mind free from the recital of endless details… give me wings to get to the point.  Seal my lips on my aches and pains.  They are increasing and the love of rehearing them is becoming sweeter as the years go by.

I dare not ask for improved memory but a growing humility and a lessening cock sureness when my memory seems to clash with the memories of others.  Teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally I may be mistaken.

Keep me reasonably sweet. I do not want to be a saint – some of them are so hard to live with- but a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the devil.

Give me the ability to see good things in unexpected places and talents in unexpected people.  Give me the grace to tell them so.   Amen

We had three finalist this year at the Bloomington Convention & Visitors Bureau Diamond Service Awards and a BIG award was given to one of our own.   This prestigious Academy Awards of customer service had another sell out crowd of nearly 900 at the Sheraton Bloomington. It is such an honor to be nominated and in the finalist round with hundreds of nominations. Our finalist were:

Julie Furu, nominated for “Heart of the House”.  Julie is our Warehouse Supervisor and everything sort of begins and sometimes end with the endless flow or product and details she handles for us.  All with great spirit, a sense of fun and energy that makes your head spin.

Tonya Ullrich, nominated for Best Retail Associate, is    the lovely young mother is our SeaLife Assistant Manager.  She has the most welcoming smile and truly cannot help our customer more.  She genuinely loves her job and it shows through entire being.

Alex Price, nominated for “Best Retail Associate”, is a high school junior and is perhaps the most “can do”, happy and genuine young man you are likely to meet.  He sees something that needs to be done and he does it with a smile and energy.

And the winner is: Alex! The first 17 year old high school student to ever win this award.  Congratulations, Alex, Julie and Tonya.

Now to Lillie Johnson.  Lillie has worked for our Company going on seven years and she is simply the Gold Standard of Customer Service.  She works at our MSP Airport locations of Sports Minnesota and Sugar Pop.  Lillie has earned an astounding eight 100% secret shops.  And she is currently on a tear.  She has received 4, count ‘em, 4 perfect scores.   This is really unheard of, yet she has done it- over and over again.  To enter Lillie’s customer service world you are embraced by a professionalism and care you rarely, if ever, experience.

We are blessed to have a wonderful team of customer service professionals who always go out of their way to help our guests and make us better everyday.  Way to go St. Croix team!

http://hbr.org/2010/07/how-will-you-measure-your-life/ar/1

Thanks to my friend Tom who forwarded to me this great article about how you plan your life instead of just your career. This book illustrates how to use our principles for even the smallest decisions. There is so much pressure to tip toe across those lines and daily living can overwhelm us.

How many of us could have stayed our personal course the way the author did to not play on a Sunday for his college basketball championship, (and he was the center!). Could you have withstood the pressure to give in just this once? I am not sure I could have. Yet, this one decision early on in the authors life really set the course for the rest of it.

Daily contemplation of a core set of “how I want to live my life” set early in the author’s life seems to have been his answer. Now it’s up to me to find an hour each day to think those thoughts and I am not exactly college age.. but hey, its never too late!

My experience is that folks who own and run businesses large and small not only really care about their employees and communities they are the first to sponsor the kids baseball leagues, various charities and raise their hands to help out. 

I have watched a few of the Undercover Boss episodes and it all boils down to the same thing.   How easy it is for good bosses to lose the opportunity everyday to do simple, inexpensive things to engage and recognize their employees.  I am as guilty as anyone.  And we are in the rewards and recognition business, so really I have no darn excuse. 

Business ownership and executive duties can be an all consuming life and carving out that time to really, really listen, recognize and value the little things staff does each day is something that absolutely should not, but sometimes does fall to the bottom of the list.   I promise to do better!

Last nights show featured 1-800-flowers President trying lamely to do the little things that his company employees have to do each day to make the business work.  The lesson was the same in this week’s episode as in others I have seen:  the power of recognition and small, immediate rewards. 

Two of the employees were moved to tears when one was asked to help design Mother’s Day arrangements, and another was visibly shaking with emotion when the Undercover Boss named an arrangement in their permanent line for her because of her exceptional customer service he witnessed. 

And that cute 19 year old kid the Undercover Boss decided to mentor, well, even my husband did an “aahhh, that is so cool”, response.  (He generally dislikes these reality shows.)  These are super easy, inexpensive things to do.

An article in this month’s Fortune reinforced this idea of incremental and immediate rewards.  Below is the link.  The challenge us and for all in business is having a systematic, yet spontaneous  rewards and recognition program that measure results.

Sometime throwing a gift card at someone is really nice but how do you sustain it, budget for it,  program it and measure it.   As this article shows the reward “thing” is secondary.  It is the thought that counts, just like our mom’s taught us.   And that thought is very, very powerful.   http://tinyurl.com/yjmbbad

This next article is interesting too.  It talks about the damage a “superstar” can do to an organization when employees, or in this case the entire professional golf field, ala TW (Tiger Woods), feels when someone talent is unattainable for them to reach.  

Very interesting statistics and very counter-intuitive.  Apparently in golf, superstar performers do not raise others game.  Do you agree?

The moral of this story is:  superstars can kill productivity, creativity and efficiency.  And when taking a big test with many people, always sit at the front of class.  Check it out:   http://tinyurl.com/yfojwpj

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j4uqn3DUgc

http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2009/11/30/focus1.html?b=1259557200^2507321

I had a minor but aggravating hip injury and it has been such a hassle to get an appointment at Park Nicollet.  You hope you call the right “general number”, sit on hold and then get transferred.  If you do get an appointment in this century it is a stepping stone appointment to nowhere.  You will more than likely go one place for one thing, another place for xray or mri, different days, yadda, yadda.   What a royal pain and in the meantime you limp.

I decided to just stop at this beautiful Tria building I have watched rise from the frontage road dust at 494 and France driving  to work everyday.  I will just stop by and try to set up an appointment instead of navagating some robo-phone system.   Did their tv ad’s influence me?  Its possible.

I walked in the door and saw a lovely retail store on the right, huge, bright, modern yet warm  reception area with a great snackbar.   (Fix your hip and eat a chocolate chip cookie- my kind of place.)  The picture wall of the Doc’s and associates all wearing black casual shirts, not a stethoscope or white jackets, was contemporary and cool, even though some of these Doc’s looked like they were 12 years old to me.   Full disclosure:  Doc’s do wear white jackets when they see you.

Sport memorabilia was everywhere and the whole feel was very sports, youth oriented yet you saw older folks with walkers and who looked perfectly comfortable.  There are elegant, yet quirky displays of sports memorabilia that have the appearance of an art gallery- ok, that might be a stretch.

They definitely want you to know they work on the best.  The signed Adrian Peterson poster caught my eye.   If they are good enough for #28, they must be able to fix me, is the psychological jump you make.   I know better but can’t help it.  

I was immediately greeted by another black clad receptionist (is this the Lancome counter at Macy’s, or what?) and as she smiled she said the Tria mantra:  “We are so glad you came ” It may sound trite, but every single person I encountered at Tria said this to me, and after a while you really did feel they were glad to see you.   Trained and measured customer service at a Doctor’s office, pretty cool.  

The receptionist told me I could be seen not only that day, but that minute.  She walked me upstairs to the check in receptionist, in black, and within 30 minutes I had a workup, xray and was seen by a Doctor who did not look 12, but maybe 19 years old.  All was well, a little shot to help with swelling and then out the door I went, limping no more.

So not only was Tria efficient, pleasant, welcoming they got the job done on demand.  It was a WOW experience.   And inspirational challenge for our company to execute this kind of WOW everyday with our On Demand products and retail customer service.   

Now we will see if the Tria bill is a WOW.