Have you ever said to yourself; “what a doofus I was!”? Ever happen to you? Happened to me. Yes folks, I was a doofus. I suffered from doofinium, a common disease caused by peer pressure and short-sighted decisions.
Back in the late 80’s I wanted to be a rock star. I played guitar, had big “Bon-Jovi” hair – the whole bit. Around that time the movie “Thelma & Louise” came out. In it, one of the ladies drank Wild Turkey bourbon straight from the bottle. At the time, rum & coke was all I drank, and I was ready for a more “manly” drink – and if Thelma and Louise were man enough to drink Wild Turkey straight – then I should be too, so I bought a bottle. Here is where my doofinium came in. Friends told me to hold straight Wild Turkey in my mouth until my teeth and gums started to tingle and go numb.
The next morning my tongue was completely stuck to the roof of my mouth! I pried open my jaw and reached inside my mouth and pulled my tongue off the roof of my mouth. To my horror, huge gooey ?” thick chunks of the roof of my mouth came off with my tongue. Talk about pain! Then the blood started flowing! I had to bite down on hand towels to stem the flow – but that led to more chunks of the roof of my mouth falling out which led to more blood loss! Talk about being a doofus. If I knew then what I know now – it’s this: Don’t let people convince you to hold Wild Turkey in your mouth.
The “Bon Jovi” hairdo I was sporting didn’t happen by itself. It took a vat of hair gel, hair spray, and a hot hair dryer to burn it all together. My friends told me I looked pretty cool back then, but now my hair is falling out like I’ve been exposed to nuclear waste. Peer pressure made me put all that junk in my hair simply because everyone else was doing it! If I only knew then what I know now.
What does all this have to do with the pond industry? Today, industry peer pressure tells you to participate in marketing gimmicks that promise fast, easy profits with little or no effort that result in the long-term degradation of your reputation and of the industry as a whole. Doing what others are doing just because they’re doing it and making short-sighted decisions is a sure sign of being a doofus. Peer pressure made me hold Wild Turkey in my mouth and gave me big hair. As a result, my hair is falling out of my head and I have scars and overly sensitive gums. I didn’t think about how my actions and decisions back then would affect my body, health, sanity, and position today. Peer pressures come and go, but honest fundamentals always hold true. Think about the long term effects that a decision you might make today may have on you later in life and business. Just because it “feels” good now doesn’t mean it’s the best thing you could have done 20 years from now. Making a “quick buck” on a marketing scheme today will almost always jeopardize your earning potential in the future. Stand up, be your own person – even if it means going against the crowd and saying “no” to marketing gimmicks. Think about how a decision you make today can affect you and your business in the future. I do, and that’s why I’m no longer a doofus.
About the Author:
John Russell is president of: Russell Watergardens Franchise Corp.
RW Distributing, Inc., Russell Watergardens Flagship Store Inc.
Based in Redmond, WA
John designed the revolutionary and industry changing Hydro Vortex™ biological waterfall filtration system and invented the Hybrid Pond™ concept. John also engineered the world’s first partnership that joins the koi industry and the water gardening industry with an exclusive business partnership between Russell Watergardens, Mr. Mamoru Kodama and the Kodama Koi Farm in the Russell Watergardens Franchise Corp.
www.russellwatergardens.com
john@russellwatergardens.com
