Our Industry Needs to Have More Fun. Kudos to NAED For Giving It To Us.
Bill Floyd
THD Rocks NAED. Click here to view.
Years ago an important part of our job was building relationships. We knew everybody. We worked hard and partied hard. Knowing everybody meant spending time with each other beyond just the nuts and bolts tasks of selling products and having business meetings. In short, having fun was part of what we did. Thankfully, I was part of the very end of that generation. That group made relationship-building an art.
With all the company rollups and much of today's impersonal technology, a lot of that has gone away. Everybody is scheduled to the nth degree. Many feel that if they are not in a meeting at every moment and talking business, they are wasting time. As an industry we say we're in a "people business" but too often people remain at arm's length. Well kudos to NAED (National Association of Electrical Distributors) for going in the opposite direction at their recent national conference. NAED let their hair down by assembling a rock band (Total Harmonic Distortion) made up of association members. Like in any group of NAED's size there is talent of all kind to go around. At the closing session the group brought the house down with their versions of several classic songs and had the audience up on their feet clapping, dancing and singing along. The event was creative, a lot of fun and gave the attendees a relaxed venue to mix 'n match and get to know each other away for their daily challenges.
George Burns used to say, "Find a job you love to do and you'll never work a day in your life." Events like this offer moments and memories that help people to love their job. It can't be overstated that sprinkling in some fun gives balance to the workload. I'm for making this thought process a real trend going forward. How about you?
Make sure you click above to watch the video. And, if you agree, send NAED a quick note to give them a high five. They deserve it.
Tell us what you think. Email us today: BFloyd@ElectricSmarts.com.
Years ago an important part of our job was building relationships. We knew everybody. We worked hard and partied hard. Knowing everybody meant spending time with each other beyond just the nuts and bolts tasks of selling products and having business meetings. In short, having fun was part of what we did. Thankfully, I was part of the very end of that generation. That group made relationship-building an art.
With all the company rollups and much of today's impersonal technology, a lot of that has gone away. Everybody is scheduled to the nth degree. Many feel that if they are not in a meeting at every moment and talking business, they are wasting time. As an industry we say we're in a "people business" but too often people remain at arm's length. Well kudos to NAED (National Association of Electrical Distributors) for going in the opposite direction at their recent national conference. NAED let their hair down by assembling a rock band (Total Harmonic Distortion) made up of association members. Like in any group of NAED's size there is talent of all kind to go around. At the closing session the group brought the house down with their versions of several classic songs and had the audience up on their feet clapping, dancing and singing along. The event was creative, a lot of fun and gave the attendees a relaxed venue to mix 'n match and get to know each other away for their daily challenges.
George Burns used to say, "Find a job you love to do and you'll never work a day in your life." Events like this offer moments and memories that help people to love their job. It can't be overstated that sprinkling in some fun gives balance to the workload. I'm for making this thought process a real trend going forward. How about you?
Make sure you click above to watch the video. And, if you agree, send NAED a quick note to give them a high five. They deserve it.
Tell us what you think. Email us today: BFloyd@ElectricSmarts.com.
