As long as I can remember I’ve been in and out of my parents’ offices on a weekly to daily basis. Part of everyday life, from dinner table conversations to talk of me going into the family business, it’s been in my blood for quite some time. It wasn’t until last week, starting as an intern, that I really started to understand the work of the Strategy Group.
Not only was the first week nerve-racking it was a week of enlightenment. Let’s get one thing straight: my mom used to call me to ask how to turn the TV on, now she is sitting in my office showing me how to navigate the servers. Let’s just say I felt like I dropped down a peg or two.
At a young age I saw team members coming and going and work being done and never understood the system behind it. I always thought that mom or dad just told them what to do, they did it, and it was done. I was wrong. As I learned the trafficking system here I got a brand new understanding of how things get done, and it definitely isn’t dad or mom issuing commands. Teamwork is huge here and it’s actually one of the coolest things to see in motion. One job could be worked on by several people until it’s complete; it’s this kind of teamwork that goes unseen in the finished product.
It’s hard starting at square one at a place I thought I knew so well. My eyes are open to this new world, and I’m doing everything I can to embrace it.
I wrote a while back about David Foster and his gratuitous use of “F-bombs” in his memoir. At the time I indicated I had thoughts on people who have this propensity and would comment soon. But I quickly lost my mojo and didn’t follow through.
Well I got my mojo back. I took the family to see Nickelback, the popular Canadian rock group, last Friday night and the “F-bombs” were flying. The crowd erupted in a veritable frenzy every time Chad Kroeger (lead singer and Laurie’s musical crush) spake the sacred word. Believe me, it was early and often.
There must be serious power in that word. I remember hearing it for the first time when I was about 4 years old. I asked my mother what it meant and she smacked me. Pretty powerful.
So I began to wonder how much more powerful some of the all time great communicators could have been with a few strategic “F-bombs”:
“The “F’n” British are coming!”
—Paul Revere
“Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this “F’n” wall!”
—President Ronald Reagan
“Speak softly and carry a big “F’n” stick; you will go far.”
—President Theodore Roosevelt
Okay. I don’t believe it would have made any of these moments any more historic. Nor does it make any movie more watchable (save maybe Die Hard: “Yippe-ki-yay Hanz!” doesn’t quite have the impact), any novel more readable, any rock star more famous, any stand-up comedian more funny, any golf shot fly straighter or any casual conversation more enjoyable.
So do all your friends and family a favor and remove the word from your repertoire. And if you just can’t seem to help yourself, call me and I’ll send mom over.
Cheers!
