Message from the President

Message from the President

Thursday, 03 June 2010 10:08

July Message From the President

As we enter the busy month of July, it's never been fun to live through construction. The only consolation I can offer is: 1) it's necessary and 2) the same advice a friend gave me about our infant son not sleeping more than two hours consecutively. . ."This too shall pass." I remember driving down Blue Lakes Blvd. in Twin a year ago and wondering how a big city could tolerate this, now I wonder how they could live without the extra space and smooth roads. I see it as an investment in our future, but it comes at a price that each of us pay with every minute waiting. The truth is we've become used to zero traffic waits. . .except for an occasional train, a slow moving combine, or that one light on Overland that always makes everyone stop when there are no cars. And remember, if you think it's inconvenient for you, think of the businesses along North Overland that depend on the traffic for their customers, so maybe you don't have it all that bad.
As I was running some errands, I noticed a flagger yelling at a car that had disobeyed traffic and made a turn when not permitted. I felt badly for the flagger, and the position he must be in to try and keep things safe while some decide that they are above the law or on a different playing field altogether. Next time, I'll turn more carefully! Yes, it happened to be my car that he was yelling at. . .Which leads me into the leadership principle for this month from Dennis Perkins' book, Leading at the Edge,
"Minimize status differences and insist on courtesy and mutual respect."
Ernest Shackleton wasn't a graduate of the Royal Navy like so many of his peers; he was brought up on merchant ships literally working his way up. One of his key traits was his ability to befriend anyone, regardless of their position or rank. Even when their ship was stuck in the ice and 'swabbing the deck' became one of the routine chores, he led by example and took his turn, showing to all of the crew, that they were all in this together, and just because he was the expedition leader, didn't mean he was too good or too lofty to do the same type of chores. Ranks within the military have their place, who would want to wander into battle with an entire team of new recruits. However, in the business world, the more leaders try and separate themselves from other levels of labor, the more it breaks apart the team or group. In my position in the hospitality industry, my job description includes all of the jobs that happen at a hotel, and sometimes, I'm forced to fill in for that person. Luckily for the other employees and our guests, this doesn't happen very often, because my skill level at some tasks is not anywhere near their skill level. I must say that I have a much deeper appreciation for all of the employees at the hotel after I have tried to perform their tasks for a few hours.
One of the best examples from Shackleton leading his crew by example came about when they were leaving the ship to undertake their voyage across the ice with lifeboats and were dividing up sleeping bags. There were two choices; the warmer, more comfortable reindeer hide bags, or the simple heavy weight wool sleeping bags. As there weren't enough reindeer bags for everyone, Shackleton proposed a lottery, and to show his commitment to the crew, didn't submit his name into the lottery, and settled for a wool bag.
While we're not suffering the intense cold and ice that they faced—although some may disagree with our "Spring" weather—we are facing daily tasks that are challenging and difficult. As leaders in our communities, I hope we will embrace the opportunity to lead by example and not be afraid to 'walk in someone's shoes' for an hour or two to really increase team spirit and togetherness. And if we show common courtesy to everyone—even under stressful construction conditions—we show to them that we respect them and appreciate their contributions.
Tuesday, 25 May 2010 09:50

June's Message From the President

Ihad the privilege of attending the Idaho Convention for Recreation and Tourism last month held at the Doubletree convention center in Boise. Many new wonderful programs were discussed and introduced as a way to increase our outdoor recreation—both for locals and tourists. One of the programs that will be coming online soon will be the product of the Forest Service and BLM working together to unify and update the mapping of our off-road trails and pathways—both motorized and non-motorized. What a great opportunity to have an up-to-date map that will look the same no mater which county or city you may ride, thus helping landowners, ranchers, and recreationists all be on the same page.

Thursday, 06 May 2010 08:56

May's Message From the President

I've heard it said that one of the best ways to accomplish a goal is to tell a lot of people about your goal, and then they will hold you accountable to yourself. So with that in mind, I will share with you, the Mini-Cassia Chamber membership, one of my goals: To train sufficiently to complete the Spudman triathlon this year and to be in better shape.
Friday, 02 April 2010 09:28

April's Message From the President

I just had the unique opportunity to take part in a game called "The Futures Game" at the Burley City Council chambers. The University of Idaho, with the assistance of the Burley Public Library and Mayor Greenman and his office, conducted this game about making choices. In small groups, we were presented with a 'make believe' map of several towns and their populations and services. The decisions that we had to make were based on the environment, resource allocation, agriculture, education, housing development, taxes, etc. After each decision, we were given a new map that showed the outcome of our decisions in all of the different areas. I learned three very important principles: 1) there is no such thing as an easy answer to a community's problems, 2) You can't make everyone happy all of the time with every decision and 3) be more grateful for our elected officials in political office! For example, when our group tried to increase growth in one area, another area suffered economically—people lost jobs and moved away, and in another area, natural resources were consumed and almost depleted.

Tuesday, 23 February 2010 10:23

March's Message From the President

What a great Installation Banquet we enjoyed at the Best Western/Burley Inn Convention Center in February.  I want to personally thank each chamber member and their guests for attending, as well as the wonderful sponsors and table sponsors for being so generous.  I’d also like to thank the board of directors and staff at the Chamber for their hard work in making everything perfect.  I’d also like to congratulate the winners of the various awards for their efforts in our Chamber and community.

Friday, 01 January 2010 20:40

January's Message From the President

Dear Fellow Chamber Members,

It is my privilege to serve you as president of the Chamber Board in 2010.  As we start the New Year and look forward to a booming economy and steady employment, we would be remiss to not thank the leaders at the Chamber for their efforts for 2009.  Brent Tolman, last year’s president, of the Idaho Dept. of Labor,  dedicated hundreds of  hours to coordinate, train, and plan the activities and events with the help of some great committees to make last year such a success—even with a struggling local economy.    Kae Cameron, our Executive Director with a lot of help from Brent and others have done a fantastic job of streamlining our finances and the programs that we use to monitor and safeguard those finances.

Wednesday, 03 February 2010 19:49

February's Message From the President

February Chamber Newsletter

The New Year is off and just like that, the month is over.  It’s hard to believe how fast the time goes by.  As promised, I want to share a principle each month from the book, Leading at the Edge by Dennis Perkins, as it relates to the voyage of Ernest Shackleton and a hardy crew of 25 sailors that answered the following advertisement:

“Men wanted for Hazardous journey.  Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful.  Honor and recognition in case of success.”

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