Reflections . . . on the POSSIBILITIES OF TOMORROW

“Every time you tear a leaf off a calendar you present a new place for new ideas and progress.” – Charles Kettering

To many people, the transition of the new year is an exciting time of reflection, renewal, resolve, and resurgence. Lamentably though, this eager spirit is often quenched within the first weeks of the new year as we get bogged down in old habits and life’s demands. Many then find themselves coasting for the year’s remaining months, resolving to achieve their progress next year.

Why wait?

In the spirit of Charles Kettering’s quote, I resolve to spend quality time within the last five days of each month to 1) reflect on that month’s progress with regard to my goals and objectives, 2) intentionally plan the coming month’s activities to continue to make progress on my goals, and 3) dream and brainstorm the future growth and development of my business.

I invite you to join me on this resolution. Can I count you in? Post a comment and tell us about your resolutions for the coming months and years.

Humor: Meet Murphy's Cousins

Most of us are familiar with Murphy’s law that if something can go wrong, it will. Perhaps in your case, you feel that Murphy is knocking at your door now, if he hasn’t already moved in to your spare bedroom to stay a while. Well, if you thought Murphy was bad, you don’t want to meet his cousins**(if you've recently made the acquaintance of Murphy or one of his cousins, we'd love you to tell us about it by commenting on this post) . . .

Murphy’s Cousin #1: Nothing is as easy as it looks.

Murphy’s Cousin #2: Everything takes longer than you think.

Murphy’s Cousin #3: In any field of scientific endeavor, anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

Murphy’s Cousin #4: If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong.

Murphy’s Cousin #5: If anything just cannot go wrong, it will anyway.

Murphy’s Cousin #6: If you perceive that there are four possible ways to which a procedure can go wrong and circumvent these, then a fifth way, unprepared for, will promptly develop.

Murphy’s Cousin #7: Left to themselves, things tend to go from bad to worse.

Murphy’s Cousin #8: If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.

Murphy’s Cousin #9: Nature always sides with the hidden flaws.

Murphy’s Cousin #10: It is impossible to make anything foolproof, because fools are so ingenious.

*adapted from John Peers’ humorous book “1001 Logical Laws . . .”

Insights: "Opportunity Knocks"

“Opportunity knocks” is a saying all too familiar. What one does with Opportunity is the key. Does one even open the door when Opportunity knocks? Does one open the door and turn her away? Or does one gently usher her in to one’s home, offer her a cup of tea, and begin to foster a relationship?


Of course, not all opportunities that knock at one’s door should be allowed into one’s home. No, indeed, but the door should, in the least, be opened to each. But in that brief moment of interaction on the doorstep one must evaluate Opportunity, one must stare deep into her eyes and peer into the depths of her heart before one turns her away empty-handed or gladly invites her in for tea. For one should not act one way or another, whether that be turning Opportunity away or inviting her in, by her appearance only. No, indeed, for many a misfortunate man has invited Opportunity, seductive as she appeared, into his home not knowing that her heart was one of selfishness, destruction, and pain. The poor man who offers her a cup of tea offers her his very being. For how can he resist her seductive ways, her pursing lips, her winking eye? Through seduction she makes him her slave. He is doomed. Though the man may eventually be rescued from her grip, usually by the aid of others, he is not without wounds, no without pain.

Of course, just the same, Opportunity may be legitimately beautiful in all ways, not just in form and feature, but all the more importantly, beautiful in spirit. If one was to turn her away simply because of her beauty, assuming that all beautiful opportunities were gift-wrapped seduction, one may turn away a great friendship.

Opportunity may also arrive at one’s doorstep modestly dressed, neither in poverty nor pomp. Or one may open the door to Opportunity and find her very strange in appearance, oddly ordained, even perhaps frightening. But one must not turn her away solely for lack of impressive feature or even for her frightening stead. Indeed, some of the most modest or frightening opportunity, through proper attention, has greatly blessed the homeowner who gave her even just a crumb of care.

So, my friend, I entreat you to neither usher in Opportunity nor turn her away without peering first into her heart.

Reflections . . . on PLANNING

"First-rate navigators always have in mind that other people are depending on them and their ability to chart a good course" (John Maxwell, "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership").

As 2008 closes, not only should we be looking back at the past 12 months in evaluation of our performance, results, successes, and shortcomings, but we should also be looking forward to 2009, charting the course for ourselves and, if we are business owners, for our businesses.

In his book, "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership", John Maxwell names one of his "irrefutable" laws "The Law of Navigation," and describes it by saying that "anyone can steer the ship, but it takes a leader to chart the course." As I begin to chart my business's course for 2009 and beyond, I'll be implementing John's acrostic PLANAHEAD to aid me in the process, and I encourage you in the same.

Predetermine a course of action.
Lay out your goals.
Adjust your priorities.
Notify key personnel.
Allow time for acceptance.
Head into action.
Expect problems.
Always point to the successes.
Daily review your plan.

Best of luck in 2009!

Insights: "Ideas are Like Rabbits"

Ideas are like captured rabbits. They are all within the pen of your mind. They multiply two ways: 1) by being introduced into the pen by outside sources (i.e. experiences), and 2) by giving birth (i.e. new ideas created through association).
We start life with no rabbits in the pen, but then through external sources (experiences) a few rabbits are dropped over the pen’s fenced walls. Bit by bit, the number of rabbits grows through more outside sources and through giving birth to other rabbits (association of ideas).

So here they are, all of these rabbits within the pen of your mind, that is, your imagination. So many different kinds of rabbits: some big, others small; some brown, others white; some lop-eared, others pointy-eared; some slow, others quick . . . you get the idea. So it is with the creative ideas penned up in our imaginations. So many different kinds of ideas, so many different applications, so many solutions.

And, boy, are they hard to catch! If you chase after these rabbits full steam, you will find it very difficult to catch one. But, by dint of perseverance, you will finally exhaust a rabbit and will soon find it easy to lay hold of the little ball of fluff. So it is with creative ideas; never give up; if it seems to elude you, chase it until it becomes to exhausted to hide anymore. But, you have to be in good enough shape to outlast the rabbit. It is no good if you wear out first. So make sure your mind is highly trained, prepared for the chase.

You will also have a better chance of catching one of these rabbits the more there are in the pen. So it is with creative ideas. Cultivate them. . . seek experiences. . . allow the ideas to give birth to new ideas through association. Soon there will be so many ideas in the pen of your imagination that it will be easy to catch one. The difficult part here is choosing the correct and useful one out of the bunch.

Sometimes, these rabbits are easier to catch if you simply stay still. Sit down, relax, let the rabbits become so comfortable with you that they come to you. So it is with creative ideas. Perhaps you should stop striving so painstakingly after the solution and just relax. Let the ideas come to you. While you are relaxing, why not lure the rabbits to you with a carrot? So it is with ideas. Lure them to you. Bait them. Draw them to you with a nice walk, a warm bath, the sound of running water. Don’t worry, they will come.

Reflections . . . on THANKS

"And you and the Levites and the aliens among you shall rejoice in all the good things the LORD your God has given to you and your household" (Deuteronomy 26:11, italics mine).

Daily the good LORD humbles me with His perfect provision. He has blessed me immensely, though I deserve not an ounce of His good gifts. So far be it from me to ever fail to give God thanks and properly attribute all the good I have to His gracious hand.

With regard to business, I firmly believe the LORD has blessed me with each and every client. I pray I will always keep this in the forefront of my consciousness, and in so doing, somehow extend the light of Christ to those with whom I work. To all my clients, current and past, I say "Thank you" for your business. It is always an honor to work with you and help your business operate more efficiently. I look forward to continuing to serve you with your data systems' needs.

Case Study: Helping a Local Parents' Magazine

“Landon did a terrific job working with our current FileMaker database and customizing to better serve our needs. He listened to our requests and executed in a timely manner. His customization of FileMaker has already helped our company run more smoothly!" - Susan Gimotty, Publisher, KC Parent Magazine

Obstacle:
Kansas City Parent Magazine desired to further develop and streamline its existing FileMaker Pro database to enhance the capabilities of its sales team and improve its day-to-day operations.

Solution:
Honeycomb owner, Landon Porter, worked closely with KC Parent publishers to target sources of inefficiencies and develop and implement specific solutions to those obstacles.

Analysis:
Serving Kansas City since 1985, Kansas City Parent Magazine is locally owned, written and published, offering a community perspective on issues affecting families in Kansas City. The magazine is distributed in over 725 locations and has over 114,000 readers per month.


For many years, KC Parent has been using a custom built FileMaker Pro database to manage its monthly advertising schedules and clients. Although functional, the database was ripe for some additional features and changes that would allow the sales team to work more effectively and efficiently. Working closely with the publishers and sales team, we developed and implemented several database features and functionalities that would benefit the magazine in its daily operations.

KC Parent Magazine, Susan Gimotty, had this to say: “Landon did a terrific job working with our current FileMaker database and customizing to better serve our needs. He listened to our requests and executed in a timely manner. His customization of FileMaker has already helped our company run more smoothly!"

Whatever your area of business, be certain Honeycomb can develop and implement a fully customized database system that will not only give you your time back, but help make you money.