To regain some sanity in an insane world I return to some of Ludwig von Mises pithy comments.
There is no point in deceiving ourselves. American public opinion rejects the market economy, the capitalistic free enterprise system that provided the nation with the highest standard of living ever attained. Full government control of all activities of the individual is virtually the goal of both national parties.
Seen from the point of view of the particular group interests of the bureaucrats, every measure that makes the government payroll swell is progress.
The cyclical fluctuations of business are not an occurrence originating in the sphere of unhampered market, but a product of government interference with business conditions designed to lower the rate of interest below the height at which the free market would have fixed it.
A short time ago the demagogues blamed capitalism for the poverty of the masses. Today they rather blame capitalism for the “affluence” that it bestows upon the common man.
If one rejects laissez faire on account of man’s fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action.
Credit expansion is the governments’ foremost tool in their struggle against the market economy. In their hands it is the magic wand designed to conjure away the scarcity of capital goods, to lower the rate of interest or to abolish it altogether, to finance lavish government spending, to expropriate the capitalists, to contrive everlasting booms, and to make everybody prosperous.
The time is now.
Friday Filosophy v2013-13
Character is a diamond that scratches every other stone.
Cyrus A. Bartol
Storms make oaks take roots
Proverb
The most successful men in the end are those whose success is the result of steady accretion
Alexander Graham Bell
The time is now…..
WH Filosophy v1.8
Factories provide three things this country desperately needs: jobs, pride, and material for Bruce Springsteen songs
Jack, from the “Best ’30 Rock’ Quotes”
The time is now.
Thought of the Day #14
To regain some sanity in an insane world I return to some of Ludwig von Mises pithy comments.
There is no point in deceiving ourselves. American public opinion rejects the market economy, the capitalistic free enterprise system that provided the nation with the highest standard of living ever attained. Full government control of all activities of the individual is virtually the goal of both national parties.
Seen from the point of view of the particular group interests of the bureaucrats, every measure that makes the government payroll swell is progress.
The cyclical fluctuations of business are not an occurrence originating in the sphere of unhampered market, but a product of government interference with business conditions designed to lower the rate of interest below the height at which the free market would have fixed it.
A short time ago the demagogues blamed capitalism for the poverty of the masses. Today they rather blame capitalism for the “affluence” that it bestows upon the common man.
If one rejects laissez faire on account of man’s fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action.
Credit expansion is the governments’ foremost tool in their struggle against the market economy. In their hands it is the magic wand designed to conjure away the scarcity of capital goods, to lower the rate of interest or to abolish it altogether, to finance lavish government spending, to expropriate the capitalists, to contrive everlasting booms, and to make everybody prosperous.
The time is now.
Friday Filosophy v2013-12
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion If you want to be happy practice compassion
Dalai Lama
Confidence is the companion of success
Author Unknown
If you do not hope, you will not find what is beyond your hopes
St. Clement of Alexandra
The time is now…..
Musings & Words of Wisdom
Fredreich Hayek from Austria and Keynes from England have opposing views of economics among other things. The following is but a short expose.
Fiscal policy, Austrians: Lower Taxes (down-arrow T), reduce government spending (down-arrow G), and balance the budget (Taxes minus government spending equals zero). Note: Paul Krugman would likely condemn this policy as “fiscal austerity,” and it is – for the government. But obviously not for the taxpayers.
Fiscal policy, Keynesians: Lower taxes, increase government spending, and run deficits (government should spend more than it collects in taxes). Note: Lowering taxes in a recession is the one area where Austrians and Keynesians agree, though President Obama, who in other ways follows the Keynesian playbook, has raised taxes.
The time is now.
Parts Pondering v2.4
The more things change the more they stay the same. A common expression isn’t it? Well I also want to repeat that “continuing to do what you have always done while expecting different results is insanity.” We seem to have reached a level of social equilibrium in our parts businesses. We are continuing to do the same things and the results continue to be the same.
Isn’t it time we break out into new things?
We need talented people – so provide them training. Classroom training, webinars, self-study programs – either on the internet or from books are available at your suppliers, your business associations and other professional sources. Are you taking advantage of them?
The time is now.
Standards of Performance Webinar – March 20th 12:00 Noon Pacific
It is not too late to register at aednet.org/products/seminars.
What does it looks like when it is right? Performance in a Parts Department must maximize productivity, manage assets and satisfy customers. The first step to understanding and accepting what needs to be done is to have meaningful, measureable and achievable standards. How to develop your own standards and yet continue to reach for excellence is the theme in this webinar.
Individual employees want to do a good job yet many do not know what doing a good job entails. This is a fundamental requirement of good management, communicating performance expectations and measures to the employees. In this webinar we will cover the fundamentals exposed by Patrick Lencioni in his important book “The Three Signs of a Miserable Job.” Anonymity, Irrelevance and Immeasureability are the three symptoms of this disease which leads to the “Sunday Blues.”
Each employee can also deliver more than they think they are can yet each is fundamentally lazy. Leadership methods to entice or motivate employees to deliver good performance for coworkers, customers and the Company will be discussed in this extremely important webinar.
The time is now.
Parts Best Practices Webinar – March 20th @ 9:00 AM Pacific
Wednesday is when the action is on best practices. Don’t miss it.
With standards of performance we dealt with what it looks like when it is right. With Best Practices we aim for performance excellence. What is it that the most successful dealers are doing to achieve excellence? This is discussed in detail in this webinar to allow dealers to see optional approaches to processes and systems. From using the telephone as a sales tool to inventory turnover; from customer retention to sales/employee everything is discussed.
We cover all aspects of the processes required in a parts business; from dealer business systems to telephone systems to warehousing storage systems. People and system productivity and effectiveness are critical in any business today but this is especially true within the equipment business where the gross margin on the prime products continue to erode. There are many aspects within a parts business that must be covered that can make a significant difference in either cost or market positioning and competitive.
Process manuals, electronic or paper, and procedures as well as training methods to employ become critical to the consistent delivery of excellent customer service. How to measure your success in the area of customer satisfaction as well as all operational processes becomes part of this webinar. Anyone interested in achieving the best possible level of performance within the parts business will gain insight from this webinar.
Register now at aednet.org/products/seminars.
The time is now.
Purchasing & Expediting Webinar – March 19th @ 12:00 PM Noon Pacific
It is not too late to registyer for tomorrows dynamic webinar.
When you have the part in stock you are the same as everyone else. The only part that matters is the one you don’t have in stock. The equipment and parts suppliers have made the ordering process so simple we have lost sight of expediting and the purchasing function. If a machine is down the customer wants the part now.
The first rule for a successful parts business is that the employees will not go home until every part that every customer, or mechanic, ordered is either supplied or the location from which it can be shipped is located. That doesn’t mean leaving it with a supplier that does not have the part on hand. This is expediting with a purpose and we deal with what to do’s and how to do it to satisfy “Rule #1.”
Purchasing becomes the court of last resort as we will deal with the prospect that the part is not available in your supply chain. Finding alternate sources is not easy. Communicating with the customer on their options and penalties is even more challenging. All of the “in’s and out’s” of purchasing and the liabilities associated with supplying a part which is not from your original equipment manufacturer is discussed in detail.
Learn new methods to solve this age old problem of finding every part that every customer or mechanic wants to have – the same day they want it – and doing that before you go home EVERY night – that is what is at stake in this important webinar.
Go to aednet.org/products/seminars to register.
The time is now.
Instore Merchanidising Webinar – March 19th @ 9:00 AM Pacific
Don’t miss this lively event.
The days of your customers walking into your business have long since passed. This is truly a shame. Some thirty to forty years ago we taught our customers that our inventory management meant that those parts that the customer wanted would not all be available when they came to our store. So they started to use the telephone and we didn’t see the customer on our store very much at all.
Yet it still continues to be true that you have an opportunity to create an interesting and successful retail store. This is the first step in becoming a retail operation. From Harley-Davidson to Ski-doo to Artic Cat there are specialty suppliers that have made merchandising an art form. We will look into the successes in other Industries and how we can learn from them. The layout of your merchandising area, the methods to keep it fresh and appealing, will go a long way to determining your success. All of this and much more will be covered in this fast paced webinar.
Others dealerships and other Industries have turned this into a customer convenience and money making proposition. This is much more than just setting up shelves and displays. They have made the store a pleasing environment for both employees and customers. Learn the ins and outs of successful Instore Merchandising with this comprehensive webinar.
You can register at aednet.org search products and then seminars to register.
The time is now.