Commentary From Our Chairman / CEO
A New Year’s Resolution Check-list
Michael D. Sleeper, Chief Executive Officer, Imperial Distributors, Inc.
It has been said that New Year’s resolutions are a lot like babies. “They are fun to have, but extremely difficult to maintain.”
New Years is a time for reflection and evaluation. A chance to access what worked, what didn’t, and what is needed to change in the coming year so we can be happier, healthier, more productive and better persons.
In many cases, it is a time not necessarily to re-invent ourselves, but to re-confirm and re-commit ourselves to those values and life-practices that have been successful.
Recently, I received a note from Jay Campbell, a good friend and well respected leader in our industry. Jay is CEO of Associated Grocers of Baton Rouge. He included in his message a “New Year’s Check-list” to share as we begin 2015.
- Treat every person (including customers and co-workers) as they wish to be treated with the utmost of respect, dignity and courtesy
- Remember the three R’s: Respect for Self; Respect for Others; and Responsibility for all our actions.
- Promote goodwill to all, and handle customer concerns personally with a “sense of urgency” and the attitude that the customer deserves our complete “attention to detail”.
- Practice productive job behavior at work on time, following all rules even when unsupervised, or in other words: “doing the right thing when no one else is watching”.
- Do what should, and needs to be done, to the best of our ability at all times.
- Uphold the standards of morality and business ethics by promoting respect for life and property and the rights of others.
- Uphold the company image through our personal grooming habits, dress and language.
- Be thankful for what we have (and not what we may have lost, or no longer have, or ever had).
- Be thankful and appreciative for the freedoms and opportunities that we enjoy in this country and that we have at work.
- Care for, and be attentive to, the needs of our family, friends and associates
- Remember to forgive, count our blessings, be appreciative, and not complain.
- Always try to be of service and helpful to another by being a part of the solution, rather than some or all of the problem.
- Be generous with our time and our resources so that others in need can share in our bounty.
And, as someone once wrote:
“Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
For as long as you ever can!”
Thank you Jay for sharing these words of wisdom. They provide a powerful message for all of us.
For comments or questions, contact us by phone at 508-756-5156, or e-mail: msleeper@imperialdistributors.com