On Thanksgiving, Roll Out The Red Carpet For Everyone.

Good Morning Folks,

As the holiday season rolls into town, one word comes to mind: Gratitude.

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

We are thankful for our families, friends, clients and associates. We value our relationships with each of you.

Here are 7 ways that will can says thanks to your friends and customers every day of the year.

==>  It's Thanksgiving so Have You Thanked A Customer Today

1. Roll Out The Red Carpet For Everyone. 
If there's one thing people hate about poor service, it's getting treated differently from others. It makes them feel inferior and second-class. Gary Richter says you should roll out the red carpet for everyone, but particularly those who don't expect it. "I tell my employees, if we roll out the red carpet for a billionaire, they won't even notice. If we roll it out for millionaires, they expect it. If we roll it out for thousandaires, they appreciate it. And, if we roll out the red carpet for hundredaires, they'll tell everyone they know."

2. Take Time To Know Your Customers. 
The fast pace of modern living together with advances in technology have together put a non-human face on much of our customer service. If you can find a way to re-connect with your customers one-on-one, you'll strike a chord with your customers that will be like a streak of gold. Kathy Burns remembers a time when people took time to care and listen. "Some of you may remember, and others may have heard stories about, a time in life when the doctor would come to your home to check on you if you were ill. Or maybe you've heard about going down to your local pharmacy and having the owner greet you by name and ask how you're doing. Not only did they ask, but they really wanted to know the answer and they took the time to listen to what you had to say. That's customer service - taking the time to know your customers, really caring about how they feel, and wanting to go the extra mile to make sure they're happy."

3. Be Easy To Do Business With. 
One of the problems with modern businesses is that the systems we use to save time and money are often devised for the company's benefit and not the customers. As a result, the customer experience is frustrating and difficult. Tracey Lowrance says this needs to be reversed. "Customers expect single source service. Customers don't want to be transferred to every unit of your business to have their problems solved. They want to be able to do business with you with the slightest amount of discomfort. You must be easy to do business with."

4. Go Out Of Your Way To Make Sure They're Happy. 
One of the most important things your customers want from you is a guarantee that your product or service will work. So move heaven and earth to make sure it does. Bob Leduc suggests you shouldn't make people pay until they are fully happy. "Instead of offering a money back guarantee, a service business can provide a guarantee to solve the customer's problem. For example, a plumber can guarantee to come back without charge as often as necessary to stop the leak. A landscaper can replace without charge any plants that don't survive for at least 6 months. A sales consultant can continue working without charge until the promised sales results are achieved."

5. Notice What Customers See. 
A big part of what customers think about you comes from what they see and believe. Personal Selling Power noticed the following difference in two candy stores. "Although two competing candy stores had the same prices, neighborhood kids preferred one store to the other. When asked why, they said, "Because the person in the good store always gives us more candy. The girl in the other store takes candy away." True? Not really. In the good store the owner would always make sure to put a small amount of candy on the scale and then keep adding to it. In the bad store, the owner would pile a heaping amount of candy on the scale, and then take it off until it hit the right weight. The same amount of candy was sold, but perception is everything."

6. Work On Everything The Customer Experiences. 
The customer experience isn't just receiving the service or buying the goods. It's about all the other little bits and pieces in-between. Such as the manner of the receptionist, the state of the floors and tables, the attitude of other staff, the ease of parking, the tone of the notices, the smile or lack of it on the face of the checkout team. Be like the Mirage hotel in Las Vegas who have a slogan that says: "We spend 600 hours a week pampering the plants. Imagine what we'll do for our guests."

7. Believe In Customer Service From The Bottom Of Your Soul. 
To become a great service organization, you have to believe in customer service from the bottom of your soul. It has to be part of the way you work. Anita Roddick, founder of retail cosmetic franchise group Body Shop puts it like this: "I am still looking for the modern equivalent of those Quakers who ran successful businesses, made money because they offered honest products and treated people decently, worked hard, spent honestly, saved honestly, gave honest value for money, put back more than they took out and told no lies. This business creed, sadly, seems long forgotten."

You can find 465 more ways to express your gratitude here: 

And if you want to thank our troops, do so HERE.

Saying thanks isn't an operational overhead. It’s critical for business success.

To be part of a company where the employees LOVE what they do and the leaders CARE as much as they do, is such a blessing… we are VERY LUCKY to be a part of the FSO Family!”

Thank you for your continued confidence and support. 

We sincerely wish you and your families a festive and joyous Thanksgiving Holiday.

Have a GREAT WEEKEND! We'll be back blogging on Monday!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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"Kindness it is that brings forth kindness always."

-- Sophocles (447 BC)

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Donnelley & Sons Company; r.sea; Readers Digest; Reed Smith Llp (PA); Regus Business Centers, Research In Motion; Revenue Assurance Test; Richards Kibbe & Orbe Llp; Robins, Kaplan, Miller, & Cire; Robert Bosch Gmbh, Robins, Kaplan, Miller, & Cire, Rockefeller Group Technology Solutions; Rothschild, Row 44; Royal Bank Of Canada; Rutgers University; Safra National Bank Of New York; Salesforce.com; San Diego City Schools; San Francisco Marriott Marquis; Santa Clara County Office Of Education; Sarah Lawrence College; Scholastic; Sfr; Sedwick Llp, Sharp Electronics Corporation; Shearman & Sterling; Sidley Austin Brown & Wood; Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Llp; Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Llp; Social Law Library; Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis, Sify Limited, Smoothstone, Societe Generale; Socorro Independent School District; Softbank Bb Corp; Social Security Administration, Sony Pictures Entertainment; Soros Fund Management Llc, Spherion Corporation; src Federal Holding Company, Llc; Standard Motor Products; Starwood Hotels; State Of Minnesota , State Of Montana; Stinson Morrison Hecker Llp; Straub Clinic & Hospital; Sungard Availability Services Usa; Syracuse University; Systems Research And Applications Corp; Talktalk; Tadlock Law Firm Pllc, Target Corporation , Teco Energy; Tesoro; Companies; Texas Blending & Warehousing Corp; Texas Instruments; Texas Medical Center; The Chubb Corporation; The City Of New York; The Coca-cola Company; The Heritage Foundation; The Interpublic Group Of Companies; The Jnt Association; The Limited, The Metrohealth System; The Municipal Communications Utility Of The City O (Iowa); The New York Times Company; The Richard Stockton College Of New Jersey, Tiaa-cref , Time; Toronto District School Board; Tower Group Companies; Trlg – Hq, Ttx Company; Turner Broadcasting System,  U.s. 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LinkUP Thursday: “What if?”

"In fact, Orman might have become a restaurateur if not for a critical turn of events — she lost the $50,000 in a bad investment. The setback, Orman writes, helped launch “a new career passion: helping people take control of their financial lives.”

Good Morning Folks,

The Internet is such a great invention. So many wonderful, useful things that can be applied to our greatest challenges and opportunities in unexpected ways. Things they don't teach you in Harvard Business School. Things just waiting to be discovered or to be pointed out by a friend... which brings me to why we do these LinkUp's on most Thursdays on MitchWeiner.com.

What ties today's stories together with FSO is the movement of (re)IMAGINATION that is taking place in every company of every industry today. Forced to innovate or capitulate in a technology-leveled playing field, (re)IMAGINE is something so simple as it is Revolutionary, showing clients how to look at their business from a completely new perspective, that of a blank canvas. Looking not at “What is” but “What can be”.  But let's start with something more personal, something you can ask yourself....

“What if?”

Depending on where you are in your career, those two words have the ability to inspire — or haunt — you.

If life had taken a different turn and you weren’t in your role today, where would you be? What would you be doing instead? Or if you’ve already changed directions?

In this latest series on LinkedIn, “The Road Not Taken,” some of the world’s most successful professionals were asked to explain how their career paths might have turned out differently. From Suze Orman and Deepak Chopra to the World Bank’s Jim Kim and General Electric’s Beth Comstock, more than 60 Influencers chimed in with inspiring tales and reflections of what might’ve been. In some cases, as with Randi Zuckerberg, Influencers also revealed what’s on the horizon.

Read on to find out what might’ve been for Suze Orman, Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary, MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski, and others.

Some careers are made by turning misfortune into opportunity.

Before Suze Orman became “the Money Lady,” she worked as a waitress who aspired to open a neighborhood restaurant. In an amazing display of generosity, Orman’s loyal customers rallied behind her: “When [Fred, a beloved customer] finished his breakfast, he didn’t just leave a tip. He gave me a $2,000 check and commitments from other diners/friends that totaled $50,000 (the equivalent of nearly $150,000 today) along with a note:

As a teenager, Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary worked at an ice cream parlor. One day, his boss ordered him to scrape gum off the floor. “That’s not my job,” I said. “My job’s to scoop ice cream.” Next thing out of my boss’s mouth was: “You’re fired. Get out of my store.”

This early experience was all the inspiration O’Leary needed to become his own boss.

Though Randi Zuckerberg loved to sing, she abandoned her love of singing for more “professional” endeavors at Facebook. “I learned quickly that in the corporate world, it’s ‘distracting’ for women to have side interests, aside from work and family – and that if I wanted to be taken seriously in my career, I would need to shelve my passion for performing,” Zuckerberg writes.

Now years (and one Broadway stint) later, Zuckerberg says she’s ready for her second act.

Other career crises may feel as if the universe is conspiring against you.

MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski describes getting fired from CBS as an “out-of-body experience. I sent my work to other networks and the response was… crickets. I went from everything to everyone to nothing to no one.”


As her severance pay and job prospects dwindled, Brzezinski reluctantly broadened her job search: “I’ll never forget the moment. Driving my pickup up the hill near my house, the ’93 Ford 150 with roll-up windows just stopped… Stalled out and died. I knew that meant another $500 at the shop. $500 that I did not have. Then my cell phone rings. It’s the PR firm. Wanting to know if I can come in this week…”

Should she leap at the much-needed job opportunity? Or should she stay the course?

But whether reflecting on the road not taken brings angst or clarity, it’s what you do next that matters.

In the coming days, don’t miss these other “The Road Not Taken” stories, and more:

Deepak Chopra on how he learned self-awareness the hard way (note to self: never dump a pile of papers over your boss’s head and storm out…)

eBay CEO John Donahoe on the PayPal split and why he’s stepping aside next year
World Bank President Jim Kim on what he’d be doing as a doctor on the front lines of the Ebola crisis

Shark Tank’s Robert Herjavec on when he realized he needed to be the supplier, not the seller

Looking not at “What is” but “What can be”, is what sets FSO apart from the other outsourcing companies and what has made us the fastest growing outsourcing company in the nation.

It is woven into the culture of who we are, it is part of everything we do. (re)IMAGINE allows us to uncover those hidden cost savings every company is looking for, identify innovative ways to improve their business, and inspire those who take care of them. 

If your outsourcer is not keeping their commitments nor fulfilling the promise of all the advancements and new technology at its hand, I invite to you call me directly and I'll set up a time for you meet with a member of our (re)IMAGINE team and learn why of 250 companies have made the switch to FSO in the past 4 years.

TALK TO US. WITNESS US. AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, EXPERIENCE US! 

Call me directly at 212.204.1193.

BTW, You can write your own "What If" post; be sure to include the hashtag #RoadNotTaken in the body of your post so LinkedIn can find your great stories.

Thanks to Amy Chen at LinkedIn and thanks to you, for listening.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

Learn more about what DIFFERENTIATES FSO here

Inspire ME Friday: Don Adams- "I Am A Champion"

Don Adams w/ Other FSO Champions

"I will acknowledge the fact that I am an elite warrior who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by any means at my disposal. I accept the fact that my team expects me to move further, faster and fight harder than our competitors . Never shall I fail my comrades. "

Good Morning Folks,

Get ready to be fired up today from Experience Director Don Adams, my selection for the best of the best internal posts to share. Don....

Good Morning and welcome to a brand new day at the happiest place on the plant. I thought I'd start the day with a simple question....are you a champion?

I will conquer what has never been conquered. Defeat will not be in my creed. I will believe where all those before me have doubted. I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor and respect of my team. I have trained my mind and now my body will follow! 

==> WHO AM I? …. I AM A CHAMPION!!!
I will acknowledge the fact that I am an elite warrior who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by any means at my disposal. I accept the fact that my team expects me to move further, faster and fight harder than our competitors . Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be. One hundred percent and more. 

==> WHO AM I? …. I AM A CHAMPION!!!
Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well trained warrior. My heart and my soul will be the fuel to carry my body when my limbs are to weary. I will never falter, I will never lose focus as long as there is hope in my mind and my heart still beats. I will never give in to the evil that is weakness and I will fight that evil with my dying breath. 

==> WHO AM I? …. I AM A CHAMPION!!!
Energetically will I meet our competitors, no one will challenge me, none will stop me from my goal. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Champion's word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of our competitors and under no circumstances will I ever surrender. 

==> WHO AM I? …. I AM A CHAMPION!!!
Readily will I display the discipline and strength required to fight on to my objective and I will complete my mission. I will rise when I fallen.  My competitors need not fear me but he will respect me and if he does not. I will make him respect me with all that I have to give. 

==> WHO AM I? …. I AM A CHAMPION!!!
History will remember my name and he will not have to be kind. For I will have denied his criticisms and put in my own praise, No one will define me, no one will tell me what I can achieve, none will say I have not given all I have to give and none will take my glory.

WHO AM I? ….  I AM FSO/USA and FSO/USA is ME!!! .....Don

Neal Michael shared another fantastic email yesterday talking about our competitive differences and the lack of care for our new client from the haphazard way they maintained the space and cleanliness, to how they failed to provide any process improvement, innovation and can’t even think about what (re)IMAGINE looks or feels like. None of our competitors can and they just don’t get it.

More than the passion to care about ourselves and our client's welfare so deeply, it's all the happy, inspired people like Don Adams and Neal Michael who do a great job supporting us every day that have made FSO the unstoppable force in outsourcing. Thanks for all you do.

Be Inspired Today as I am and Make a Difference!!!!!!!  

To fully enjoy your weekend let go of the working week. There are times to work, rest and play. Weekends are for all of the above but in a relaxing way.

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

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"Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten" 
~ David Ogden

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Read more inspiring messages from our employees HERE

Only 51 More Days Till The Happiest Time of The Year... Unless...

Photo: BitterSweetColours

"There'll be parties for hosting

Marshmallows for toasting

And caroling out in the snow

There'll be scary ghost stories

And tales of the glories

Of Christmases long, long ago

It's the most wonderful time of the year"

Good Morning Folks,

It's love at first chill with Christmas already in the air. 

New York City is always great but I think it's magical on Christmas! It's bustling with so much energy and life. Everyone is walking briskly, smiling, saying hello, preparing to tip and thank the service people who support and make possible the great lives they enjoy in a very special place.

Such expressions of gratitude are an emotion so powerful it can transform ones mood from darkness to healing light and renew our zest for life.

Being grateful is an attitude of deep appreciation for the realities that surround us "moment to moment"...each day of our life.

But you don 't have to wait for Christmas to be happy. If you are stuck in a dead end job or responsible for back office support and get greeted in the morning by the Debbie Downer receptionist face, find deadlines unmet, critical support staff calling in sick, criticism rather than compliments from the boss, voice mail loops and layers of management bureaucracy instead of answers, FSO can change your destiny. Because happiness lives, breathes and starts everyday with you smiling right here. 

FSO is driven by passionate people and the value they create. They are passionate about their work. Their passion and enthusiasm are the fuel that ignites our success. If there's one thing that FSO lives and breathes everyday – it's the employee experience. We focus on motivating and driving the hourly employee to deliver great service with a skip to their step, twinkle in the eye and fire in the belly.

Growing our folks is my legacy. My care. And my passion. 

Such happiness is contagious –– when the boss has it, it trickles down throughout the entire organization and beyond to its clients. Happiness can spread to everyone who has a dream, a goal, and the will to change. Happiness can elevate and inspire people to make real and lasting changes in their own lives. Today, an enormous opportunity exists to (re) imagine and reinvigorate your workplace and workforce with FSO.

Clients like to think of FSO as the Ritz Carlton of the outsourcing business. Our team takes great pride in all that we do for you. We're all about making the Hospitality service, a pleasant and seamless experience, every single day. Whenever, wherever and however, our Team we'll always be there. 

We continually strive to go "above and beyond" with our clients to provide the most enjoyable experience with the finest personal service and facilities and fulfilling even the unexpressed wishes and needs.

And we always deliver the rare, exceptional level of service that is really worthy of your gratitude. Unlike those Christmas envelopes you'll soon be delivering then shaking your head pondering "for what"?

There is  a poem. by an unknown author I discovered on Kate's site...

Smiling is infectious
You can catch it like the flu.
When someone smiled at me today
I started smiling too.

I passed around the corner
And someone saw my grin.
When he smiled I realized
I’d passed it on to him.

I thought about that smile,
Then I realized it’s worth.
A single smile just like mine
Could travel round the world.

So, if you feel a smile begin,
Don’t leave it undetected,
Let’s start an epidemic quick
And get the world infected!

That in mind please enjoy with my compliments this amazing version of the #1 Christmas anthem of all-time, based on the movie of the same name, It's the Most Wonderful Time featuring Natalie Cole and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

If you'd like the words from the song, go here. If you'd really like to get into the spirit f the season by viewing photos of New York at it's finest from the source of the one featured above go here.

And if you'd like to turn those outsourcing frowns to smiles, talk to us, witness us. We'll   take you on a tour of client sites and and let you taste the FSO experience first-hand where you'll see how different life has become for some of the best known-brands in the world.

Call me personally at 212-204-1193.

Feel the FSO Experience - and ensure everyone around you does too. 

Here's to a wonderful week!

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

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"The moments of happiness we enjoy take us by surprise. 
It is not that we seize them, but that they seize us.” 
~~ Ashley Montagu

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InspireME Friday: Nothing Makes You Happy; You Have to Decide to be Happy.

"The thrill of creative effort gives a slightly different type of happiness. It is a feeling of action, rather than completion. Putting effort into making something potentially beautiful from random thoughts, ideas, and raw inspiration is really quite a rush. 

Good Morning Folks and Happy Friday!!  

Since its Friday and we all enjoy, and are moved by quotes, I decided to start this morning message with a quote about how we should be at work and in life…HAPPY.

“Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.” Franklin Roosevelt

Which leads me to this week's pick of the best of our employee communications. Today our always best-dressed Regional Director, Shawn Curwen
, returns to knock it out of the park a second time with a post titled "Nothing Makes You Happy; You Have to Decide to be Happy":

"This quote means a lot to me and says that the joy of achievement is one pathway to happiness. How do you feel when you achieve something? I tend to make me feel happy, especially when it was an achievement that means something to me.  Working for FSO means you always have the potential to be happy and share it with others.  Achievement is all around us waiting to be experienced.   

At the top, signifying this potential is our very own CHO- Chief Happiness Officer, Mitch Weiner!  The “smile” is always there because he sees achievement all around him. Not just in the success of a business that has “only just begun” but in the people that support this business. The Power of Focus…the vision, the strategy and the execution were all involved and are the building blocks to this success and Happiness! 

Ironically, this quote also mentions the thrill of creative effort as another path to happiness. Do you enjoy the creative process, and the effort involved? At the best Onsite Outsourcing Company in the nation, you have every opportunity to show your creativity!  

It’s one of the biggest differentiators in working for FSO and biggest reasons we have been successful. Because of YOU, we can share in the happiness.  Coming up with crazy ideas to please a client or giving kudos to an employee who has done an exceptional job should inspire us to inspire others to be creative.  I believe this is part of the reason I love where I am and what I do. The other half is that I truly believe that i 

I’m not having fun what am I doing any of this for. The thrill of creative effort gives a slightly different type of happiness. It is a feeling of action, rather than completion. Putting effort into making something potentially beautiful from random thoughts, ideas, and raw inspiration is really quite a rush. At FSO you can quench your creativity by writing a blog, a newsletter, a morning message, creating something graphically, creating or improving an innovative way to process something electronically. These are just some small examples how we create “the happiest place to work” at FSO USA. 

Remember, nothing makes you happy; you have to decide to be happy. There is a satisfaction in accomplishing or creating something. It’s what we continue to do at FSO every day. Always have fun as you do the things that bring joy and thrills to your work and life.

All the best to you, today and always!

As Stacey wrote to me recently, "When I think of hospitality, I think of hotels and when I think of the most hospitable hotel in the world, the Ritz Carlton comes immediately to mind. I like to think of FSO as the Ritz Carlton of the outsourcing business. 

We continually strive to go "above and beyond" with our clients to provide the most enjoyable experience. 

Many of the Ritz's beliefs mirror the beliefs of Mitch and FSO. "Provide genuine care and comfort for your guests; provide the finest personal service and facilities and fulfill even the unexpressed wishes and needs of our guests" (clients)."

My dream of building the best outsourcing company in the world is unfolding right before our eyes. Let's jump on board and be a part of the journey at the happiest place to work in the nation.

Cheers and have a HAPPY, SAFE and JOYOUS weekend.

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Read more inspiring messages from our employees HERE

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"The higher you climb the better the view"

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Inspire ME Friday: Where Are You Running To?

"There’s a wonderful Future Leaders Program on this course that I’ve had to pleasure to be a part of. In just my first 8 months here I was given many challenges and ultimately awarded my first promotion."

Good Morning Folks, 

Before I reveal my pick from this week's inspiring, internal communiques, I wanted to share some thoughts.

As you know, FSO’s Future Leaders (FLP) are among our greatest assets. The primary intention of our FLP is to know who our top performing employees are so that we can cultivate a deep bench of great talent to keep pace with our galactic growth. 

Nothing is more important than having great people who care about the service and experiences they provide to our customers. Our Future Leaders have the desire to grow and be a part of something amazing, something BIGGER. We have 260 employees in the FLP and I expect see at least 45 more promotions before the end of the year.

All of which leads me to my pick for today's inspiring share from our internal employee communications this week. It's authored by Peter, an Experience Associate Director based out of one of FSO's Boston client sites. Peter is a shining example of the success of our Future Leaders Program. Here's Peter:

"I joined FSO 11 months ago as an Experience Manager after working for our client directly for 8 years. I am truly honored to deliver this message, my first, to you today.

One thing that I enjoy very much is getting up each morning before the sun comes out and hitting the streets for a morning run. I use that time to organize my thoughts and compile the tasks that I’d like to complete over the course of the day. I decide how I’m going to use the next 24 hours to grow personally and professionally and then feed off of that energy to get out there and make every minute count.

I think of my career at FSO as the ultimate marathon. The start gun went off nearly 4 years ago with a small group of elite runners. Along the course hundreds of other hard working colleagues recruited by our amazing People Solutions team joined into this exciting race. There’s a wonderful Future Leaders Program on this course that I’ve had to pleasure to be a part of. Our leaders are committed to our development and growth and in just my first 8 months here I was given many challenges and ultimately awarded my first promotion. We have our Sales and Marketing teams that climb up the hills making calls, getting proposals together, doing site visits and securing new business to get to the top. At the top of those hills there are rows of clients ringing cowbells cheering us on realizing that we were the best decision.

Who is that elite runner at the front of the pack that shows no signs of slowing?  Mitch Weiner!!! He broke through the finish line that our competitors wish they could make it to, created a new course and refuses to slow down. And why would he? There is no better brand in the entire business and he will continue to conquer.

For the rest of you I ask… As you begin your marathon today, what are you going to do to make it a personal, passionate and productive journey? LET YOUR LEADERS KNOW!!! Mitch, Jim and the rest of the ELT are personally committed to helping each and every one of us succeed.

So folks, there’s a lot of time between now and the end of the day. I personally challenge you to use it well. 3...2...1…GO! FSO  USA"

These future leaders, like Peter, from mail room clerks to front of house to our Sr. Management team are driven by one simple goal: make today better than it was yesterday. 

Everyday we open our eyes to see what's else we can do to serve, to make our presence known, to solve problems, to help the client. Everyday we smile, say good morning, and make someone feel good about themselves. Our people never stop looking for ways to make our clients life better. 

Your energy, enthusiasm and professionalism are always greatly appreciated. 

Have a wonderful fun weekend!

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Read more inspiring messages from our employees HERE

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"You are never a loser until you quit trying”- Mike Ditka                                                                                                                                  

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A Better Way To Fly

FSO is growing at an extremely fast pace. Outsiders want to know the keys to that success -- the driving force behind the ambition. We know it's our people that make the difference. 

Good Morning Folks,

FSO is driven by passionate people and the value they create. They are passionate about their work. Their passion and enthusiasm are the fuel that ignites our success,

With that in mind, the best way to get to know the size, scope and spirit of FSO is to hear what our employees have to say, and every Friday right here, I share my favorite of the employee internal communications motivational messages from the week.

This week however, the messages were so good, I have two to share, so be inspired on a Thursday by this analogy from @AlexVizcarra 
(FSO Experience Manager
, PWC, Chicago).

There was a time when the lone eagle on the mountain was a popular symbol for leadership. But in a fast-moving organization such as FSO, we should have – MUST HAVE – leaders at EVERY position. If you want a better metaphor than the eagle, consider the wild and wily Great Northern Geese.  

EVERYONE is ALIGNED: A flock of Great Northern Geese will fly thousands of miles in a perfect V formation – and therein lies the secret: As each bird moves its great wings, it creates an uplift for the bird following.  Formation flying is 70 percent more efficient than flying alone. If every associate at every site is aligned and FOCUSED  on delivering the hospitality experience, we will create an uplift for each other to continue delivering white glove service as a unit.  

EVERYONE LEADS: At a distance, the flock appears to be guided by a single leader. The lead bird does in fact guide the formation, winging smoothly and confidently through the oncoming elements.  If the lead bird tires, however, it rotates back into formation and another bird moves quickly to the point position. Leadership is willingly shared, and each bird knows exactly where the entire group is headed. At FSO, every associate knows where we are headed and can see 2020 clearly. Each one of our teammates should be able to wing smoothly and confidently through any and all challenges they may face on a daily basis.   

EVERYONE INSPIRES: Each flock finds its own unique rhythm and spirit. The pulsating sound of the huge wings beating together excites and energizes the entire formation. The geese enthusiastically honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up with their speed.  Likewise, inspire and encourage your teams, “honk” by recognizing and rewarding an employee with a pat on the back, a kudo, a special mention during the daily huddle, it will go a long way to making everyone feel appreciated as well as promote camaraderie and teamwork.  

EVERYONE CARES: In good time or bad, Great Northern Geese stand by each other.  When a member of the flock gets sick, wounded or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it is able to fly again. Then they soar off together to catch up with their flock. Know that you have easy access to an entire NATION of counterparts that can support you and guide you at any time…  all you have to do is reach out and they will help and support you to soar along with the rest, the best, FSO. If WE have as much sense as geese, we TOO will share the leadership and stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we are strong.

Alex wrote another piece on Leadership titled "Everybody Leads" that was so good I published it on Pulse, LinkedIn's publishing platform. According to a hot-off-the press piece from ReadWrite "LinkedIn's publishing platform began as an idea roughly three years ago. Initially, Roslansky, the content-products chief, wanted to make every LinkedIn member a publisher with the flip of a switch. But Weiner advised him to hold off and start with famous businesspeople first. 

Weiner hired Dan Roth, a former editor at Fortune and Wired, as LinkedIn's executive editor. (Roth, who's based in New York and has an editorial team there, has a few editors reporting to him in the new San Francisco office. Full disclosure: Roth and I worked together at Time Inc.) Roth went about recruiting LinkedIn's first publishers—the Influencers—and hired a team of editors to pick headlines for LinkedIn's homepage.

From those 150 Influencers, LinkedIn gradually expanded its publishing tool, from 25,000 members in February to 15 million in July. Now, in the U.S., all 100 million members now have the ability to publish longer pieces to the site, and LinkedIn will expand that to other English-speaking countries by the end of this year. 

In total, those using the tool are producing 7,000 pieces on an average weekday, a LinkedIn spokesperson told ReadWrite. By comparison, The 1,330-person newsroom of the New York Times publishes 700 articles a day.

Behold the power of the Internet. Now we can take you inside the hearts, minds and souls of our employees, and that' the best way to judge the character of our company.

Make a difference - catch someone doing something good… make it count.. make it great and always SMILE!

Enjoy your weekend and Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Read more inspiring messages from our employees HERE