Today, it is cold and rainy here in Tokyo. Most people would say the weather is terrible. Not me. I like this weather. The rain makes the air smell so clean and fresh!
Yesterday, I met a young woman who had just defeated cancer and returned to work. She was beaming!
Even though she wore a cap to cover her head, probably because she had lost all her hair due to chemotherapy, she was so happy to be back at work. When I met her for the first time, she was incredibly enthusiastic, like a sixteen-year-old, and just so happy to be there.
I said to her,
"So, are you happy to be back?"
She replied, "Oh you don't know the least of it, Mr. Rogers. I am just so happy to be back here. Some of my friends said to me, 'Why do you want to go back to work?' But I am just so happy and thankful to be here. What I went through was a massive shock."
I smiled at her and said, "Oh, I know exactly what you mean. It is wonderful just to wake up every morning and see the sun or the rain. It is wonderful just to be able to walk the streets and go about your business. Just being here is so wonderful."
"Oh? She replied, "You've had health problems too, Mr. Rogers?"
I smiled.
"People just don't know how well they have it. There are people who say they are afraid of dying but they get bored and don't know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon."
We both laughed. I continued,
"It's wonderful to just be here and to be wanted and to have a job and health. More people need to realize that."
"That's absolutely correct. Just being here is an incredible gift!" She replied.
Since she had cancer and the scare of her life and a brush with death, I know, because of that, she knows exactly what I mean. She knows I know, too. There is a sort of brotherhood to people who have this sort of shared experience.
Sometimes I meet people who tell me that they work constantly and never have the time to spend with their families. I think that is sad. Of course work is important, but don't lose sight of why you work.
It's wonderful to be alive today. Don't you think so?
Tell your family that you love them and, when you walk out the door, smell the fresh air and see something new. Be positive. It is great to be here.
Sometimes work just seems to get out of hand and, no matter what you do, it seems like there's not enough time in the day to get done all the things you need to. I've had this experience many times.
In fact, from the middle of 2011 to the end of the year, I felt this way constantly. I was carrying a heavy schedule and also had serious stress from dealing with partners and investors. Sometimes it seemed that I had no one to talk to.
I was doing my best to go out and make sales for my new company and, due to the nature of the business, that meant going out at night and drinking with clients and potential customers. That's really where the problem begins; I like to drink. Sometimes I like it too much.
In Japan, it is very common for business deals to be worked out, not at the office, but at a drinking establishment. I've concluded hundreds of deals this way.
I've concluded so many deals the good old Japanese drinking way that I don't even remember them all.
I also don't remember, often times, how I got home after making those deals. I just woke up the next morning, in bed, with a massive hangover. That's the problem with drinking; it's hard to be a social drinker for me. I like to drink and I like the feeling I get when the alcohol "warms me up." Especially if I am at a rock concert or dealing and meeting with music industry related people.
Even so, I've gone periods when I drank every night for months. I've also gone periods when I didn't drink at all for months. Alcohol is a very powerful drug and your body will still feel the effects of it long after you've stopped drinking. I noticed that, in the times I'd go for months without a drink that if I had even one beer, I'd feel tired the next morning. Really! Even one drink at night will have a sedative effect on you the next morning when you wake up.
If I don't drink for about three or four days, the tiredness feeling starts to go away. Seriously, that's how long it takes; three or four days. If you go without a drink for about a week or two, then you will have completely flushed the alcohol out of your system and start to feel much more energetic.
So, if you are a regular drinker, try that: one day without even a taste of alcohol will make you feel better the next morning. Two weeks will make you feel much better and younger. If you go on a raw food diet and don't drink for six months, you will lose 20 kilograms (44 pounds) and feel like you are 17 years old again. I know, I've done that. (Actually doing that again is my New Year's resolution - that is starting today!!!!)
When I stopped drinking and went completely raw food for six months, I lost 17 kilograms.
This photo was two years ago.
I want to do that again. But I digress....
This is a post about creating more time in your day by abstaining from alcohol. You really can lighten your work load and create more time by doing so.
Last year, in the middle of November, I went to work and saw an old friend of mine who was the founder of a multi-million dollar company and retired a millionaire before 50-years-old. We had a nice talk and I told him that I was extremely over worked, tired and hung-over (funny that, being tired and hung over is not conducive to efficient work and time usage). I told him that I was out with a business acquaintance of ours that we've both known for years. That business acquaintance's name is Ray.
Ray is a world famous concert promoter. He founded Beatink in Japan. That means he does live the life of "Sex, Drugs, and Rock n Roll" (no drugs in Japan, of course). Ray is a wild one. Wildly successful and wildly crazy sometimes. The night before I had dinner with Ray and we started at 5:00 and by 9:00 pm we had drank a few cocktails and (I think) four bottles of wine. After that, we went back to Ray's house and watched Japanese sixties Sci-Fi Horror flicks. There we drank at least another six bottles of wine. I lost count. The next thing I knew it was 3:30 am and I told Ray that I just had to go home. Ray started yelling,
"Mike Rogers you wimp! Get back here and let's drink some more wine!"
He was still yelling when I crawled out of the house and I am sure Ray and his girlfriend drank some more (well, actually she doesn't drink that much - Ray drank more)... Like I said, I stumbled out the door and slithered down the stairs to the street. I don't remember how I got home.... Typical.
The next day I had a hellacious hangover and four important meetings to attend to.
That brings me back to meeting and talking with my retired at 50-years-old millionaire friend in the middle of November. I told him about drinking with Ray and he laughed. He knew too well what drinking with Ray was like. I told my friend about how I was burning the candle at both ends and I asked for advice on how I could open up more time for myself. He smiled and laughed and said,
"Stop drinking."
I protested. How can I stop drinking in Japan? A country that has a culture of sales and personal business relationships built on deals made over drinks?
My friend smiled once again. He said,
"I know another extremely wealthy president of another company who had the same problem so he went to a retired businessman he greatly respected to ask for advice. The retired businessman told him to stop drinking. The wealthy president claimed the same as you do, 'impossible to stop drinking because of the ways of business in Japan.' The retired businessman said, 'Yes. That is true. But drinkers will also understand the sufferings of other drinkers. Tell your friends that you have some sort of illness that prevents you from drinking.'"
That was like a light going off in my head. It's true. I know from experience. When I had a terrible gout attack, and had to stop drinking, none of my friends pressured me to drink: they all felt really sorry for me! Really!
Trust me. Many (most?) guys who drink who are in their fifties or later have had drink-related problems or know someone very close to them who has. We do feel sorry for you if you don't want to drink.
Being a teetotaller has had a very uncool image for years!
The moral of the story? If you want to feel better and be more productive and wake up fresher, stop drinking. If your peers pressure you, I gave you a good excuse just now: Just say you have gout or border-line diabetes. They'll stop bothering you (or they're not your friends!) By feeling better and being more alert and alive, you will get more work done in a much faster and more efficient process. You probably can't cut down all those meetings, but you can help yourself to get a better rest and to feel younger and more energetic and clear-headed if you stop drinking for a few weeks.
Now, that's how you create more time and less stress for yourself.
Nah. I stopped that three years ago.
As for me, I'm getting ready to start working the new year in earnest from this Tuesday. It takes a lot to get myself ready and mentally prepared to go out and do my best. But I have decided to do it. I want to do it for work, for my health and to help me spend more time with my family.
I am going to eat raw foods only for a few months and stop drinking starting today. Wish me luck? Any readers out there who wish to join me for a cup of tea?
Thanks to: my dear friends Ray Hearn and Koji Kamibayashi
"Vacation used to be a luxury, but in today's world it is a necessity." - Unknown
Japan sure has a lot of holidays. I like that about Japan. I mean, who doesn't like holidays? "Holiday" means that it is time to spend away from work and with family.
Too bad not enough people take advantage of that.
It's a Saturday and the start of a three-day weekend here in Japan. I hope that I can take this holiday and use it to rest more and spend more time with my son and other children....
I shouldn't say "hope. I should say, "I will." I must have the state of mind that "I do" and not "I hope."
"I hope" is a pretty terrible business plan.
Barbecuing trout that we caught fishing near Atsugi
This post is for you good folks with children. Everyone who has children thinks, "Our children grow up so fast." But I think, more often than not, that's where the thinking stops. We should add to that thinking, "How can I add to what little time I have left with these kids?" We must always remember to stop and smell the roses along the way.
My son is now 8-years-old. Why, just the other day, it seems, he was a baby.
Heck, it seems just like yesterday, he was born. I can remember it well. He was born at about 2:30 in the morning at a hospital in Tokyo. My wife's parents were both there. My son being born was a big deal for them as he is the first and only boy in the entire family. Everyone else has had girls. Being "number one son" is a very important and traditional role in Asian societies.
Within three months of first grade, he was jumped up to second grade and his school work load increased and, with that, time with dad decreased. That was almost two years ago. Now, he is in 3rd grade at school.
Everyone has memories like this about their kids too.
My son and second daughter, Sheena
Now I look at him and I just sigh. He will soon be nine. He has his own iPad, computer, friends at school... He goes to Karate class, takes music and piano lessons and spends time with friends. Heck, he has an hour or more of homework every night and piano practice too! Sure, he still likes to spend time with mom and dad, but I know from experience that, from 4th grade, kids really start to spread their wings and will, little by little, stop spending so much time with mom and dad.
Time goes by so fast.
One thing that I saw in his room last night that made me chuckle and remember my own experiences as a child and times with my own father, rest in peace, was a book that he had checked out from the school library. It was entitled "How to Beat Your Dad at Chess." I picked the book up and laughed. Surely, beating your dad at chess is a mountain to climb when you are a boy. Once you do it, you will see other mountains to climb. But this book shows that still dad is #1... But not for long.
I write this blog post now because I want to stress to you fathers out there and remind you that, even though Christmas just ended and the New Year's Holidays are over, that doesn't mean that we should go back to "business as usual." Yes, of course we must work and feed our families, but isn't it also a good time to access what we have and to try to appreciate it more?
Isn't it a good time to slow down and to try to enjoy what we have while we have it?
Yesterday, I met a friend at the grocery store whom I hadn't seen for quite a while. We exchanged pleasantries and he asked about my work and I asked about his. The part of the conversation that really stuck in my mind was his final comment,
"At least we both have jobs. I know a lot of people who are out of work." Come to think of it, I reckon that I do too. We are lucky, we have jobs and we have families.
I know, though, far too many fathers who are chasing the all mighty dollar and exchanging their time with their families for money. I don't mean some of their time, I mean all of their time. I know fathers who are away from their families for months, even years. I think they have lost sight of the purpose of work.
In Japan, we have what is called "Tanshin Funin." Father's are transferred away from their families and miss out on seeing their children grow up. I even know one family where the father lived away for over ten years! Does it surprise dear reader that, ultimately, those parents divorced?
I'd never do that. While I might transfer for a few months or maybe six, I quit I'd quit my job instead of living away from my family on a semi-permanent basis. Why? Heck, the kids are only children once. What is the price of missing out on seeing them and growing with them?
Of course, the example above is an extreme case, but how many of us dads leave for work from early in the morning and do not come home until after the kids are asleep and we do that six days a week? On Sundays, we are so dead tired that we sleep all day? How is that enjoying life and spending time with the kids?
What do we work for? We work to feed and house our families so that they can be happy. How can a family truly be happy without the father around to enjoy all the fruits life gives us daily?
I write down my goals every day religiously in the morning when I wake up and, not only does doing so help me to achieve them, it also helps me to relax and stay much more focused through the day. Who doesn't want to stay more focused in this day and age when our "in-box" includes, for most people, several e-mail accounts that are constantly filling up as the day goes by and consistently altering our priorities? Add on an Internet world filled with Social Media like Facebook and Linkedin accounts to attend? Twitter is no longer for just sending messages to your friends, but it too, has been co-opted into the business world and your boss orders you to use them, or blogs and SNS, to get the company message out...
How in the world can anyone today get ahead of the pile in the "in-box"? Any person in their right mind would be stressed.
.....let me point out that writing down your goals and purposes is like having a sort of road map to where you want to go. When you write them down, they enter your subconsciousness and they cause your inner brain to focus upon the Law of Attraction. If you do not write down where you want to go — if you do not have a map — then how will you know where you are going?
I recently have started writing down two more things in my daily notes. I wouldn't call them "goals" necessarily, but in the effort to create the "Law of Attraction," I write them down to try to make sure they come true. Those two goals are:
1) Thank you god for all the wonderful things I have and all the truly wonderful things I am about to receive.
2) All my loved ones are healthy and prosper.
From today, I think I am again going to add something more:
3) I spend one hour today with my son playing a game or reading a book together.
Dads (and working moms) remember that family fun and spirit of Christmas you had the other day? Remember the warmth and feeling of "family" when you share time together? Isn't there a song that says, "I wish everyday could be like Christmas?" Of course, we have jobs to do and bills to pay, but remember over this weekend and at every chance you get with your kids to make those moments special.
Like I said, I know everyone is busy, so lastly, here's a quick tip to help you:
Trying to spend more time with your kids is tough, but here's a simple way to do that better. Here is a good way to better the time that you do spend together and it's so simple, if even for only a few moments a day:
Whenever your child talks to you give them your total attention; put down that newspaper or cellphone; Close the computer laptop. Look them straight in the eye and show complete interest in what they say when they are talking. Give your child your total self and complete undivided attention. Give them your all. Listen - really listen - to what your child has to say.
Share time now with your children because now isn't coming back ever again. Give your child a hug and spend time with them while you can.
The future is coming sooner than you can imagine. Don't kid yourself. No matter how much time you spend with your children, one day, you'll wish you had spent more. Do it now.
Today is the start of a wonderful weekend. Start making great memories and spending more time with your children today.
NOTE: Lastly to help you more appreciate what we have, please enjoy this wonderful short video sent to me by my dear friend Paul Kitabayashi. It brought a tear to my eye.
... They die that way because they became fathers and then, one day, they realize that they missed out on their child's childhood. My 80-year-old father mentioned this to me before he died this year.
What a waste.
Most men don't realize this until they are in their late 50s through 80s - until they die.
I am one of the lucky few. I realized it when I was in my mid thirties. The reason why I was lucky enough to realize it is because most dads get married and then they have two or three children within a few years. They also consistently repeat the same mistakes with the second and third child that they made with the first child. Then they don't get a second chance. They raise the children together, of course. Not me, my kids are 20 years apart in age.
I have four children. Julie (27) and Sheena (22) were born to my first wife. That wife and I divorced after seven years of marriage and I raised those two girls by myself. I remarried three years later and Wendy was born. When Wendy (17) got sick as a baby and then recovered from cancer, she wasn't able to live with her sisters for at least 6 years due to chemo-therapy treatments so her mother and I divorced and Wendy went away to live with her mother.
I remarried again for the third time and Wray (8) was born.
Julie and Sheena often had trouble at school and sometimes with the police when they were teenagers. I regret that I didn't spend enough time with them, but with trying to pay to raise them, I didn't have the time I needed. I hired several nannies and they raised them. One nanny was the main one, but she wasn't full-time. I will always regret that I missed their childhood and didn't spend the time with them that I should have.
So, one day, my second wife, a wonderful woman, married me and my two daughters and Wendy was born.
When Wendy got cancer, I was devastated. One day she was fine. The next day she couldn't walk. A few days later she was in the hospital for the next 2 years. Then, when she was released she had to move away to save her life. I will always regret that I missed her childhood and didn't spend the time with her that I could have.
But, like I said, I am lucky. God gave me more chances (so, perhaps there is a silver lining to divorce). I don't want to miss Wray's childhood. When he was born, I often took care of him. I spent time with him and took him for walks everyday for the first two years in his baby carriage. Then, from age 1 1/2 until 7, I went to bed with him every night at 8 pm and we read books together before going to sleep. I make his breakfast at least 320 days a year and eat dinner with him at least 3 or 4 nights a week. I still do.
I always try to come home before 5:30 pm.
I want to live with Wray with no regrets. God gave me another chance I won't waste it. I cannot get back the time with my other children but I can make sure that I don't repeat my mistakes. I will always regret about my first three daughters, but I am trying not to regret with Wray.
You fathers please listen to me. Take my advice.
Yesterday, Sunday afternoon, the piano school Wray goes to had a Christmas piano concert. I looked at the crowd in attendance. I estimated that there were 27 moms and about 5 grandmas there. The dads? A pretty poor showing. Seemed like 7 fathers and 4 grandfathers. With 27 moms, there should have been 27 dads but there were only 7. Where were the others? What is so important that they miss their child's performance?
The children all performed their hearts out and smiled brightly when their performances ended. Even when it wasn't my son playing, I cried at some of the performances.
Here were these innocent, pure and bright young children playing their hearts out for their moms and dads and grandmas and grandpas. Oh what a joyous occasion it was.
What an even more joyous occasion it could have been had those other 20 fathers bothered to attend. I wonder if any of those fathers were you, dear reader? Or were they you at a different time at a different occasion?
Where were those fathers? Were they Golfing? At home sleeping? Working? Like I said, ultimately what is more important to all of us than our children?
Think about it my friends, what do we work for? Why do we chase the all mighty dollar?
We do it to give our families a place to live and a roof over their heads and food and a happy family.
Think about that last part, "... a happy family." Is a family truly happy when the father is not around? Take, for example this Christmas concert. How many Christmas concerts will your 8-year-old son or daughter perform at? Well, when you stop to think about it, kids are only eight once and Christmas comes only once a year.... That means once.
How often can you go golfing or work or sleep on the couch?
I hope that you, in the New Year, will think about what I am saying. Like I wrote, very few people have the luck to have raised children that are 20 years apart in age. I do. Listen to what I say.
Share time now with your children because now isn't coming back ever again. Give your child a hug and spend time with them while you can.
The future is coming sooner than you can imagine. Don't kid yourself. No matter how much time you spend with your children, one day, you'll wish you had spent more. Do it now.
I know way too many people who play all the time. Of course, like anyone else, I like playing too. But there comes a time when we must all "do" and not "play."
I suppose, in this example, my use of the word, "play" could also be used interchangeably with "pose." There are far too many poseurs around.
People think they understand the difference between "do" and "play." But allow me to explain the big difference here.
I learned a great lesson about not "playing" when I was a student. In High School, I was president of the Science Club. I don't really remember how I got that title, it's just that a Biology teacher thought my grades were good enough and the other geeks decided that they'd vote me in as president.
Being president of the Science Club was sort of fun, I guess.
As president of the Science Club, I was King Geek. In Science classes and Biology, I didn't have to attend classes like the other kids did. I was the guy who assisted the Science instructor with handing out Petri dishes and feeding the pets in the Science Department.
I also learned that the cutest girls in my school were basically stupid in Biology so they were nice to me so that I would tell them the answers to test questions. I thought that this would translate to me being popular outside of Science class but I was totally wrong on that front.
While the classes were going on, I'd get to sit in the back room and do "experiments." Mr. Holts, my biology instructor allowed me to do any sort of experiments that I wanted to. I grew plants, did experiments with bacteria and learned all sorts of things about feeding and breeding animals and fish.
I learned stuff like most lizards won't eat food when they are in captivity so you have to force feed them. I also learned that mice are so freaked out by snakes that if you put a mouse in a snakes cage or terrarium, often times the mouse will freeze up and just sit there in fear.
Well, back to the difference between "do" and "play"....
One day, I was bored out of my wits as I sat in the back room at the Science department. There, I spied a cockroach and some silverfish. I captured them as I intended to use them for lizard or fish food... As I was searching for a container to put them in, I spotted a large glass beaker and, to my surprise, a bottle of Hydrochloric acid.
That gave me an idea... The devil horns slowly creeped up on the sides of my head.
I put the insects in the large beaker and saw that they could not climb up the sides. They were trapped. I then pulled up a chair and took an eyedropper and squeezed out a drop of acid and dropped it into the beaker.
The cockroaches and silverfish would run as mightily as they could towards the top of the beaker trying to get out. But run as hard as they may, they would give up and slowly slide back down the sides of the glass until their tails hit the acid at which time they'd take off again, full speed, up the sides of the glass.
They did this over and over.
To make a lame o excuse for my deliberately torturing some of god's creatures, I found it interesting how and why the insects seemed to run as hard as they could up the glass but then "get tired," give up and slide back down. I mean, insects don't have muscles! How can they get tired.
Well, as a twisted little high school brat (and president of the Science Club) I got my jollies torturing these insects (I was probably laughing like a mad scientist too) when a big hand slapped right down on my shoulder. It was Mr. Holts. He said to me,
"Mister Rogers! You have so much talent and ability but you waste it. Do you know what your problem is? Your problem is that you don't want to "do" science; you want to "play" science. There is a big difference."
He was right. I have never forgotten that moment.
I think about that and I can see his face whenever I see people doing crappy work. Or people whose primary concern at work (mostly middle management people) having the protection of their position as the number one priority over the success of the project. I can also hear his words whenever I feel that I am not doing my best and letting other people down.
Life is too short for us to waste it on dead end efforts. In my thinking, there is no such thing as a dead-end job. A job is a dead-end if you make it that way. If you view it as a opportunity, then how can it be a dead-end if you use it to motivate yourself for bigger and better things?
...If You're Not Going to Try to Do Great Work, Why Bother?
There are way too many people in jobs just doing the minimum they can do to get by. What a waste of a life. It's not just a waste of their life, it's a waste of the other people who get pulled down by them. I hate that. I hate working with those kinds of people and I'm doing everything I can to stop it.
Life is too short to be filled with frustration or to waste time doing and creating half-assed crap and second grade work.
No matter what the job, it seems to me that it behooves that person to try to get into a higher position at that job and be their best. Heck, even if you work at a McJob, at least make the effort to become the McManager and not just the McPeon.
If you are going to be there you might as well try to do the best and at least get more money for the same amount of time spent. Why people don't do that has always seemed a mystery to me.
At every job I've ever had, whenever I got the job, when I saw the bosses office or chair, I always thought, "I'm going to be sitting there in 6 months." I usually did, too.
People who just slide by doing the minimum just irritate me to no end.
At a broadcasting station that I currently produce a program at, the guy who is ostensibly in charge of Program Planning Department - he's what we would call a "Program Director" in the west - asked me if my company staff would do a "New Year's Show" Of course, I agreed.
It seems, though, that this guy's idea of what a "New Year's Show" is and my idea of what a "New Year's Show" is are two totally different things.
Eiji Wentz
I think that it is obvious that a "New Year's Show" is a "special" program. You know, being New Year's and all. I had this idea that times of the year like New Year's was a special time and that if you were going to program a one-time show for that time, it would have to be something really great and special. I mean, if it is New Year's vacation and I turn on the TV and my regular show is not on and the schedule has been changed for "something else," then I expect that the "something else" must be a special show. Isn't that obvious? Isn't that what everyone would expect?
Funny that. How in the world that I got an idea like that is a mystery, eh? (Cynicism).
So, in that order, I approached some famous people to be guests on the show like the main star of the new Tiger Mask movie, Eiji Wentz and several others.
I had a solid concept for a "Retro-themed" show and I also went to a big advertising agency and talked about my idea and asked for their help in sales and getting sponsors. They were eager to join in and loved my show concept (of which I won't divulge at this time because I hope I can use it and make money with it someday)...
Me? It's New Year's! I wanted to make a really special program that was fun and exciting and memorable - and made lots of money at the same time.
The Program Director of the broadcasting station? Nope. All he wants to do, according to one of the sales people that works at that station is, "A regular show, nothing special. All he really wants is time so that the staff can have a vacation. He is not interested in making anything special." The salesman seems like he was frustrated and disappointed (disillusioned) by all this too.
program... Cool and easy to understand for sponsors!
Who wouldn't lose their motivation for work when the boss doesn't have any? Why should the staff do great work when their boss isn't inspiring them to do great things? Why work hard when all the boss wants to do is to do the minimum?
Can you believe that? What kind of a broadcasting station has a guy in charge of programming and all he wants to do is to do the minimum so that his staff can take more time off?
What the hell are this guy's priorities? Jesus! Life is short. Everyday should be special.
Not only that but here it was December 8th and the show he asked us to do was January 3rd, yet he said that they "Hadn't decided if they were going to make the show or not."
Unbelievable! Three weeks before the date, and the boss doesn't know what they are going to do for an special campaign.
"Everyday is special" a sign on the wall at
another big Tokyo broadcasting station. This is the way it should be.
Jeez! You wouldn't run a sale at a hamburger stand like that, I don't know how in the hell they expect to run a major broadcasting station in Tokyo like that.
I told him that if they hadn't decided to do the show by then, then it was too late for me to get sponsors and to make a good show so I wasn't interested in it and so I declined.
Hell, if we are not going to make something great, then why bother?
Sometimes, the jobs you reject are just as important as the jobs you choose to keep. Remember, quality is what sets you apart from the competition.
If thing are not a competition for quality, then we are in a competition for quantity. When it comes to quantity, we cannot beat places like McDonalds, so we shouldn't even try.
Taste beats numbers. Always strive to make the best.
My life's motto is "Everyday is an Adventure." That's the way it should be. Everyday should be special.
We all know bad bosses. What makes them bad? I think it is something like comparing lies to the truth. There is always only one truth. There are many lies. So, there are many reasons a bad boss is bad.
Bad bosses are never cute... Excepting in Japanese anime.
What makes a good boss? Being a nice person? Perhaps. But what makes a great boss? I mean a really great boss?
Actually, this post is about a TV producer but it is interchangeable with any boss at any occupation. So, instead of just referring to a "producer," a title that doesn't strike a chord with most people, let me refer to this person as a "boss"
There are a lot of bad, stupid bosses.
JIMMY REED - BIG BOSS MAN
But first, let me tell you what a producer does. A TV producer is a person who coordinates everything concerning the production of a TV program or movie. Many people confuse "TV Producer" with "Director" but they are two distinctly different things. In many cases a producer lines up sponsors and stars to appear on shows and also hires directors and staff. They are the people who set up the over all view of how a program is to be run. The director, on the other hand, is the person who is actually in-charge of the shooting and is the boss at the set.
The producer has a lot of say in what goes on and can give his opinion to the director in how s/he thinks the production and editing should be done, but the final say goes to the director. If the producer, or producers, don't like what they see in the director, they can fire that director and hire another one.
Producers of TV shows are much like people on the Board of Directors at a company; they can advise on policy and choose a CEO but the actual daily running of the company is left up to the CEO. If the Board of Directors doesn't like the direction in which the company is going, they can remove the CEO and get another one.
I have been a producer of programs many times. I have only been a director a few times. Being a director is a tough job. Being a producer is an easier job, I think. Why? Because a good producer doesn't really have to do much excepting make sure that there is an atmosphere whereby everyone, including the director, can be and do their best.
In other words, in many cases, producers are glorified "coffee boys."
As a producer (and I think I am a good one) I make sure that everyone is happy and is enjoying their work. I try to prevent tensions and disagreements. I always try to make sure that there are enough refreshments and coffee back stage for everyone. I try to make sure the "talent" or sponsors and staff of the program know that they are well respected and cared for.
Of course, though, there are times when I must put my foot down; but I like to think that when I do, it is for what is best for the show or the people who appear on the show. It is never for what is best for me.
The great producers are humble and are, like I said, de facto servants to the staff and talent. Everyone needs to know that they are needed and everyone needs to know that their opinion's are heard. Everyone needs to like the producer and want to work hard for him because he is such a good person and an inspirational leader.
That's the key here: The great producer's make everyone want to work hard and do their best. The great producers are able to make an atmosphere whereby everyone feels important and everyone feels that they are respected and they know that they can blossom and bloom to be their very best.
If you, as a producer or boss, can create the atmosphere where everyone knows they are respected, where their opinion counts, where they are somebody important, where they can be their absolute "best" then you have real power.
Once again, the truly great producers (and directors) are able to create an atmosphere whereby everyone can be their best. That is the key to success. They are also the ones that, when praise does come, the first thing out of their mouth's is something like,
"Well. I have a great team!"
Great producers never take credit for themselves. They always thank the team first... Bad producers suck up praise like Spongebob sucks up water. (I like Spongebob!)
Alas, there are far too many bad producers (bosses) who get confused and start to think of themselves as superior to their staff. They take all the credit for success and blame others for failures. They talk down to their staff and belittle them. They start to believe that all the success that has been gained so far is 100% due to themselves and not to the hard efforts of those around them.
Those are the bad producers.
The bad producer yells at people in a disrespectful manner. The bad producer treats people with little respect. The bad producer will belittle people in front of others. The bad producer will not motivate people to be their best.
The bad producer is his own worst enemy. The bad producer is a fool.
There are a very many bad producers and bosses in this world.
Think about it; which is better? Motivating people to do their best and to grow and achieve or to disrespect them and demotivate them to do the minimum required? When the staff are not doing their best, who suffers? Of course, as workers, the staff do, but also the producer does.
Who loses money when the staff don't perform up to the best of their abilities? The producer (boss) does. So why does the bad producer continue with these bad habits? Isn't it self-defeating? It sure is.
Long ago, I had a boss who was an excellent producer. His name was Kiyoshi Mizuno. He produced many films in Japan and has won famous awards. One day he was talking to me when I was a 25 some year old. He was talking to me about what a good producer was. He told me a story that I realized was a sort of parable. He pointed to an old dirty ashtray and he said to me,
"Mike. Imagine you were a famous and wealthy producer and you wanted this ashtray from me. You came and asked me for it and I said I would give it to you if you got on your knees and kissed my feet. Would you do it?"
"Of course not!" I replied.
"Well, then, you will never become a good producer." He replied, "A good producer will be humble and lower his head and do whatever is necessary to get the job done. All you would need to do is to get on your knees and kiss my feet. That would take just ten seconds of your time. But for that ten seconds, you'd have this ashtray forever. That's the difference between a great producer and a bad one. The bad producer has too much pride."
He was right. The bad producer (boss) has too much pride. He is arrogant and talk down to people and belittles his staff in front of others. He doesn't make an atmosphere whereby everyone can do and become their best.
Only a fool is a bad producer. Don't be a fool.
Any intelligent person can become a great producer (boss)...
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For more on becoming a great boss or producer, I recommend reading:
