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The Walsh Group https://thewalshgroup.com/ Orchestrated Marketing & Creative Services Thu, 06 Jun 2019 17:51:14 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.3 D-Day – A First Hand Account https://thewalshgroup.com/d-day-a-first-hand-account/ Thu, 06 Jun 2019 17:51:09 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=254 I found the following story among my Dad’s things after he passed. It is a blow by blow description of D-Day and the few days leading up to it. It is quite long, however it is worth the read. Hello. The story you are about to read is the personal observation and opinion of a […]

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I found the following story among my Dad’s things after he passed. It is a blow by blow description of D-Day and the few days leading up to it. It is quite long, however it is worth the read.

Hello. The story you are about to read is the personal observation and opinion of a Battalion HQ Co. Commander and Battalion Adjutant of the 1st Bn., 16th Inf. Regiment, 1st Division, regarding the landing in Normandy 6 June 1944.

At that time the 1st Infantry Division was composed of: 16th, 18th, and 26th Infantry Regiments; 2, 32, 33, 105 FA Battalion; 5th field, 155 FA Battalion 1st Eng Battalion; 1st Signal Co., ordinance and other support and attached elements.

The Infantry Regiment consisted of a Battalion HQ section. Battalion Sgt Major, Intelligence Sgt., Operations Sgt, Supply Sergeant, and clerk; Comm. Station with a wire section which layed and maintained wire communication. With rifle companies, radio section, operations radios in regiment net and battalion net, message center; ammo and pioneer platoon – ammo section supplied Rifle Company with ammo, pioneer platoon laid and picked up mines and any small construction jobs. AT platoon with 2 sections of 57mm AT guns. Also a group of about 20 men who were on limited duty but didn’t want to leave. In addition to being company Commanding Officer I was also Battalion Adjutant and took care of administration for the battalion.

My name is Charles Hangsterfer, Colonel, U.S. Army (Ret). Civilian soldier. I was born 31 October 1918 in Philadelphia PA, the year of the epidemic, and 11 days before Armistice of World War One. Halloween birthdays never allow for a birthday party – everybody is trick or treating and has no time for giving presents. Upon graduation from Gettysburg College I received a commission as 2nd Lt Infantry as a result of participation in the ROTC program. I went on active duty as a Thomason Act officer in June 1940 and was detailed to Fort Benning Officer’s Refresher Course and communications course. Upon completion I joined the 16th Infantry at Fort Jay NY. I never had a chance to become a “foot-soldier” as I was assigned to go on amphibious maneuvers with 3rd and 16th down in Puerto Rico. The army was short of supplies and equipment so we used row boats or made an outline of landing craft on the ground with rope, rocks, whatever was available so as to get the boat teams used to acting as a unit.After the maneuver were completed, the 3rd and 16th sailed to Britain and acted as quartering party for the entire division to assemble at Fort Devens, Mass.

When Pearl Harbor was bombed I was on detached service, to share communications with the navy, at N.O.B. observing ship to shore communications. Joint Operations are complex and even today from what I read of Grenada, it’s still a problem for the Navy, Army, and Air Force to communicate with each other. In June of 1942 I went with an advance party to Tidworth Barracks in England to quarter the division when it arrived overseas. In November 1942 I landed at Arza, North Africa and participated in the campaign in Algeria as Regiment Communications Officer. When this campaign was completed we thought we were going home but instead landed at Gela Sicily. I was then 1st Battalion H Co. CO. As the song goes – “We won’t come back till it’s over over there.”

So the division went to England to prepare for the invasion of Europe. Our training area was on the south of England in a town called Lyme Regis. A recent motion picture, The French Lieutenant’s Woman, was filmed there. Outside of laying a fake cobblestone street the town hasn’t changed for centuries. From Lyme Regis we made a practice landing on a beach in England called Slapton Sands. In the newspapers, Churchill was stating that in 100 days a second front would be opened. So our training was stepped up.

Every unit had to go through assault training near Ilfracombe, England. The rifle companies were divided into 30-man assault teams – consisting of pathfinder scouts to mark and blow a path through mine fields or barbed wire and to mark a way to a pillbox or strong point. They were supported by rifle, MG, and mortar fire, so as to maneuver a pole and satchel charge team who were to blow a hole in aperture of the pillbox. And then a flamethrower would finish off the job. It was a fire and maneuver plan which took time even when there was no hostile fire. A Russian General was observing our training and one of our staff officers asked the general how they did it in the Russian Army. He replied they keep rushing the area until the enemy runs out of ammo. I was happy I was in the U.S. Army when I heard this.

At the end of May the 100 days were nearly up and when we were told to load up. This time we were told to collect our laundry and pack up everything. Then we proceeded to the marshalling areas and were sealed in. A marshalling area consisted of Quonset huts and hard stands for our vehicle and enclosed with barbed wire and guards. (A soldier remarked he thought the island would sink under all the weight). We were crowded in a relatively small area which would have been a lucrative target for the Luftwaffe. Fortunately we never had an air raid.

In the marshalling area we were issued impregnated clothing as a protection against gas. The only good thing about this clothing was you didn’t have to worry about B.O. and the aroma from the impregnated clothing was stifling. We were given some invasion money in French Francs so we knew we were going to France.

One day General Omar Bradley called a regiment officer’s call and gave us a pep talk on the importance of our mission. I remember him saying he would give anything to be going in the assault waves with us. I was tempted when I shook hands with him at the conclusion of his talk to tell him I would sell him my place for 20 bucks.

About June 1st we were ordered to proceed to Weymouth and board our transport ship the “Samuel Chase.” Once aboard the ship we were issued the operations order “Overlord.” The big picture was – the British were to land on our left – our code name Sword and Gold Beach. The 4th Division was to land on our right at Utah Beach. The Rangers to land at Point du Hoc to our right, and the First Division and 29th were to land on Omaha Beach. General Clarence Herbert was the 1st Division CO and was in command of the initial assault on Omaha Beach.

The 16th Infantry and 116th and 29th were to be the task force and land first with General Norman Cata ADC 29th Operational Control. The 18th Infantry would follow the 16th, with the 26th Infantry following them.

Onboard ship was a sand table which portrayed the terrain of the beach and area where we were to land. The 16th Infantry was to land on Fox Green beach with the 3rd, and on Easy Red with the 2nd Bn. The 1st Bn. of which I was a part was to land in back of the 2nd Battalion, pass thru this Bn., and seize high ground. A and C companies to lead with B in reserve and D in support.

Since my company had a variety of jobs to do they were split up. My commands’ responsibility was delegated to the platoon leaders. My AT platoon was on an LST (Landing Ship Tank) which would unload the amphibious 2 ½ ton truck (DUCKS), carrying the 57mm AT guns at a different time from the rest of the company. The bulk of my company were on the Samuel Chase less the AT platoon, ammo section, and kitchen personnel; and were to go ashore in LCVPs (Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel).

Since I didn’t have too much to do until we hit the beach I was given the job to call out the boat team numbers and have them proceed to the debarkation stations at the proper time. While aboard ship we practiced this procedure to make sure all boats were loaded on time. Going through the companion way of a ship, especially with all the equipment the men carried, was slow going. The “Chase” was designed for amphibious landings – the LCVPs were loaded at deck level then lowered into the water through deck level thus eliminating climbing down the rope ladders or cargo nets. Even in practice, climbing down the side of a ship was a hazard. Someone always fell into the water, or if there were ocean swells, some got caught between the ship and the landing craft. A good many boat drills were carried out…. so when it was “for real” we would be ready.

Messages from President Roosevelt and Churchill and Eisenhower were given to me to be read over the loudspeaker system. I wasn’t much good at reading out-loud, and fortunately John McVain, a radio announcer who was covering the landings for ABC Radio was on board to give an eyewitness account for the folks back home. I prevailed upon him to read these historic messages. My company thought it was me and congratulated me on what a great job I did – I never did tell them it was John McVain.

It was very disturbing to finally learn the landing was to take place in the daylight. The landings in Africa and Sicily were at night. I recall how naked I felt in Sicily when a searchlight picked up our landing craft. However, the navy knocked out the searchlight battery on the first salvo. However, our fears were somewhat allayed when we received the concept of the operation with all the support we were to have.

This is how it was suppose to go: The Air Force was to bomb the beaches, Navy gunfire was to bombard, and we had 100 self-propelled tanks in the water to provide initial artillery support. A special amphibious Engineer Group were to remove the obstacles and mines on the beach, and of course we were hardened, seasoned soldiers, trained, in which “No mission was too difficult, No sacrifice too great, Duty first”. Nothing in heaven or hell could stop the Big Red One.

So being the reserve Bn., I thought all we have to do was to show our Big Red One and the enemy would run. Besides, it was Easy Red Beach, a good omen. On the sand table and in photos it showed the obstacles the Engineers were to remove. They were utility poles planted in the sand on an angle with a mine attached to the front to blow up the landing craft, and railroad tracks welded together and placed on a concrete base to stop tanks. Since 1st battalion was to land after the 2nd battalion, I gave little thought to the obstacles. I thought whenever we landed, approximately 1 hour after H-Hour; it would be another day’s outing at the sea shore.

On the evening of 4 June we were told D-Day was going to be on the 5th. The ships mess consisted of steak and ice cream for dinner. Giving a condemned man his last good meal on earth ran through my mind. However, shortly after the evening meal, word came down there would be a delay of one day. I remember how let down everyone seemed. On one hand nobody wants to expose themselves to danger but this was main reason everyone was fighting… lets get it over so we all could go home. This would be another day away from home and another day of anxiety and sweating out what might happen.

To fill my spare time I read an account of the Marines landing somewhere in the South Pacific and what a miserable time they had landing in the daylight. To get my mind off that I got someone to play chess with me. For the evening meal on the 5th we had a duplication of the night before – steak and ice cream. Breakfast seemed like a couple of minutes after dinner.

I went to the battalion CO Quarters – Lt Col Ed Driscoll, for last minute instructions and to wish each other luck, then went up to the loudspeaker on the ship’s bridge to call the boat teams to proceed to the debarking stations. I enjoyed this detail because I recalled on the other invasions waiting for my boat number to be called and how uncomfortable it was. Also I would be the last boat to be loaded and lowered into the water which meant the rest of the group would be circling in the water, which often caused the troops to get seasick. Just as we had practiced, the boat teams got off in time. Then I said goodbye to the people on the bridge and proceeded to my LCVP.

As far as I could see there were all types of ships, but it was surprisingly quiet. As we got in view of the shore, some of the landing craft from the first wave were returning to the transports. They waved to us, we waved back just like you would do on a pleasure boat ride. As we approached the beach I could see the water obstacles still in place. It appeared to be high tide so it was perilous trying to land. I could see landing craft being blown up by mines and could hear machine gun fire. I yelled to the coxswain to let down the ramp but Major Al Smith, battalion executive officer in front of the boat could hear machine gun rounds hitting the front of the craft and until it was all clear he didn’t give the signal to lower the ramp.

When the ramp was lowered the troops ran off in a hurry, but not before we were raked with machine gun fire which hit a few men. I helped one of them to shore and looked for Major Smith. There were so many troops on the beach it was difficult to find a space to take cover from the enemy small arms fire. There was one path through the barbed wire which led to what appeared to be a swamp. This swamp didn’t show up on our photo so it must have been excess rain water. However, it was over waist deep so the troops had to hold their rifles overhead. It was just like a movie I had seen where some troops making a surprise attack through a swamp had done.

I was concerned about a paper bag with an apple and orange I had take at breakfast. It got wet and the orange fell out but I still had the apple. When we got out of the water I stopped with Major Smith who had a small bottle of scotch. He gave me a drink and I ate my apple. He told me to go back to the beach and pick up anybody I could find from our battalion.

When I got back on the beach I saw Bob Capa, a combat photographer for a magazine taking pictures of the carnage. He was behind one of the self-propelled tanks which had been knocked out. I found out later that only three of the 100 tanks ever made it to shore, the rest sunk. Also, somebody goofed up Capa’s pictures when they were being developed…those moments are lost forever!

I found the Beach Master station and borrowed his loudspeaker to call for troops of the 1st battalion to report to me. A few did and helped me round up more. I notice a mortar crew getting set up to fire and I asked them if they had observation on what they were firing at. They didn’t, so I told them to stop until our troops were up over the top of the ridge, besides, I was going up there myself in a few minutes and I didn’t want to hit by friendly fire. Then an enemy mortar shell hit nearby me and I was pelted with stones, fortunately not a shell fragment, I so I was bruised.

After I assembled a sizeable group of the battalion I led them through the swamp back to where Major Smith’s position. Our company A, Captain Jim Pence commanding, led his company across the beach and through the barbed wire and swamp and up the steep ridge. This made it possible for the group I was with to get off the beach. On the hill up the ridge was evidence of the price that was paid. Dead bodies either shot or blown up by personnel mines.

It’s hard to express the feeling I had when I saw these dead soldiers I knew. There wasn’t anything to help there; there wasn’t anything with which to cover their bodies. I remember seeing them in training and at other occasions but you can’t let it bother you too much because of other considerations. When I reached the top of the ridge I got my first sight of hedge rows. The hedge rows were dirt mounds about 4 feet high and 3 to 4 feet wide which were boundary fences between fields. Difficult for tanks and vehicles, but afforded cover and concealment for personnel. In back of one of these hedge rows our battalion command post was established.

One of our attached groups – naval gun fire observer – reported to the command post and was looking for a fire mission. It was the first outgoing fire I heard all morning. However, it was of short duration because no more fire missions could be made unless observation of shots could be determined. Since there was limited visibility on account of the hedge rows our attached navy fire support couldn’t fire.

From our vantage point on the ridge we could see one U.S. destroyer very close to shore firing directly at a pillbox which had not been neutralized. After a few salvos the pillbox was knocked out of action. It is difficult to put a timeframe on what happened on D-Day. First of all, if there were any, the pre-shelling and bombing had no effect on the enemy. The lack of this bombardment and heavy enemy fire made it impossible for the engineers to remove obstacles and mines from the beach, which slowed our movement. The special 100 amphibious tanks were a disaster. Of the few that reached shore, were quickly knocked out. Also, an additional enemy regiment was on maneuver behind Omaha Beach which allied intelligence didn’t uncover. So instead of the 1st battalion landing on a secure beach, passing through the 2nd battalion and moving inland it was more confusion on the beach. Countless dead and wounded, wrecked landing craft, blown up tanks, enemy fire of all types. One thing I was thankful for was the lack of enemy aircraft. The balance of the first day was spent in establishing our command post, establishing communication with regiment and rifle companies, and rounding up stragglers. The only enemy fire came from isolated snipers in the surrounding hedge rows. The special MP platoon silenced them so it was rather quite in our area. The enemy was concentrating their artillery fire on the beach and some of our artillery was now ashore returning the fire. The battalion Motor Sergeant, while looking for a location for the Motor Pool, ran into about 60 Germans who surrendered to him and the prisoners were taken back to the beach. My AT platoons had less guns because had been sunk. At nightfall, all around our position, we heard German machine gun pistols were being fired, but none close to our command post behind the hedge row. If you ever saw the motion picture, “The Longest Day,” it had an excellent depiction of D-Day, June 6th, 1944. On the 40th Anniversary of D-Day, I was at Slapton Sands and heard the story of a fisherman who had been having his nets fouled by an underwater obstacle. He sent a diver to find out why, and discovered it was a WWII tank. The fisherman bought the tank from the U.S. and had it salvaged. On the day I arrived at Slapton Sands the tank was repainted and on a concrete pedestal. There were crowds of people there to see the tank, when they found out I was an American Solider they talked with me and expressed their appreciation to me for the U.S. effort in WWII. It was gratifying, that after 40 years, someone appreciated and remembered our participation. In civilian life you get dressed, eat breakfast, go to work, have lunch, work some more, go home, have dinner then relax and read, watch TV, listen to the radio, then go to bed. To compare a day in civilian life with D-Day: first, getting dressed – my uniform was the impregnated underwear, wool trousers, shirt, combat boots, field jacket, raincoat carried on pistol belt, along with 2 canteens of water, pistol and ammo clips, and first aid packet. Musset bag with cans of C-Rations, K-Rations, D-Rations, 2 changes of socks, underwear, cigarettes and candy bars, chewing gun, map case with maps, various types of documents, gas mask and steel helmet. After breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon and coffee around 4AM I started my day, first checking with battalion CO then riding to work in a landing craft for a day on the beach, wading through a swamp, climbing a hill, finding a safe place to work and sleep. After all this was done, I opened my canned food C-Rations, hash and biscuits and coffee, the first I had eaten since my apple and breakfast. We had a few small Coleman stoves so I heated the hash and water for coffee. This was about 6PM. Then I rested in a fox hole behind a hedge row trying to go to sleep No one was there to ask if I “had a good day.” If they did my reply would have been yes – I was alive. Was I scared? I was always afraid and more afraid to let my company know I was scared. How scared was I? Several years after the war I had part of my intestines removed due to cancer. While having barium X-Ray the nurse commented to the doctor, “You can hardly tell that any of his intestines were removed.” I told them that for nearly 3 years of my life, I kept a anus so tight that it probably stretched my intestines an extra 2 feet.. I once heard the statement, “It takes more courage to hide and go to Canada instead of serving in the Army or any of the services.” I witnessed many acts of bravery and courage on D-Day. For example, a wire-man making several trips to the landing craft to get off equipment under fire and eventually being killed. The many dead who gave their lives blazing a trail up the steep slopes from the beach area are examples of true courage. After being in combat for over two years I considered myself a fugitive from the “law-of-averages” when I came out unscathed from the D-Day landing on Omaha Beach. Charles M. Hangsterfer died at age 93 on March 10th 2012

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The Power of the LOGO! https://thewalshgroup.com/the-power-of-the-logo/ https://thewalshgroup.com/the-power-of-the-logo/#respond Tue, 10 Apr 2018 19:47:28 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/?p=2307 I really do love logos, as corny as the logo is to the right. I have loved logos since long before I ever became a designer. Do you remember shopping with Mom as a kid and seeing the logo of your favorite candy bar or cereal? It could conjure up all kinds of emotions… now […]

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I really do love logos, as corny as the logo is to the right. I have loved logos since long before I ever became a designer. Do you remember shopping with Mom as a kid and seeing the logo of your favorite candy bar or cereal? It could conjure up all kinds of emotions… now that is power.

I believe that is what a logo is supposed to do – evoke an instant image in your mind about the company it represents. Prior to starting a logo project, we ask our clients to brainstorm on a “word-association” list.  For example, if you want to be known as the most cost effective bargain brand out there, we will not create a high end, sophisticated logo. Think about it you would not confuse Target with Tiffanys!

I have several books on logos that demonstrate how the visual logo has morphed from very decorative to simplistic. Even the actual image, like the Starbucks mermaid has gone through several updates.

One of the books I own group logos into various clever visual themes such as, Cubist, Spores, Ghosts, Tendrils? Whatever? We don’t have our logos broken down into “clever theme-names” such as these. Our design style is to try out various shapes, sizes, and appearances based on the actual industry, the company’s values, the client’s likes and dislikes, and our own talent!

We recently designed a series of logos for a client, Griff Paper & Film.

The client, like many others, maintains separate corporate divisions, yet we wanted a consistent visual identity throughout. 

If we can help you narrow down a logo for your company, or if you want a new look, please contact us.

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Another Meeting! Why Bother? https://thewalshgroup.com/another-meeting-why-bother/ https://thewalshgroup.com/another-meeting-why-bother/#respond Tue, 10 Apr 2018 19:31:16 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/?p=2302 Adapted from an article by Seth Godin Somewhere along the way meetings changed into EVENTS where we wait for someone to take responsibility…while everyone else dives for cover! To quote Al Pittampalli, “Why bother going to a meeting if you’re not prepared to change your mind?” To which [Seth] adds, “Don’t bother having a meeting […]

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Adapted from an article by Seth Godin

Somewhere along the way meetings changed into EVENTS where we wait for someone to take responsibility…while everyone else dives for cover!

To quote Al Pittampalli, “Why bother going to a meeting if you’re not prepared to change your mind?” To which [Seth] adds, “Don’t bother having a meeting if you’re not there to change your mind or make a decision right now.”

Think of it this way:  When a building is burning down, firemen coordinate their actions, make decisions, and save lives.  They do it without Aeron desk chairs or Dunkin Donuts. They do it without subcommittees, McKinsey studies or input from the boss in another city. How would you do it differently if the building were burning down?

(End of Seth’s article)

I loved this because it explains WHY meetings DON’T work. It gives a strong argument as to why you need to have a facilitator at your meeting. It will keep the meeting focused and action-oriented. It is that someone to help you get into the burning building and put out the fire.

Instead of just sitting around with the usual … “let-someone-else-handle-it” or “let-it-burn-I-can’t-do-anything anyway”… attitude. When a meeting has guidelines, objectives and goals with personal accountability, fires can be put out. Once the action is done, much like the fireman, action/creativity/movement become spontaneous. For your next meeting try a different approach; try The Walsh Group approach to a more successful, action-oriented, a measured-results meeting.

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What Makes a Good Tagline? https://thewalshgroup.com/what-makes-a-good-tagline/ Wed, 05 Sep 2012 19:38:27 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=309 When a tagline is good, it is very good. Like: “Just Do It” “Think Different” “Reach out and touch someone” “Put a Tiger in Your Tank” However, not every business needs a tagline, and not having one is better than a bad one. So take your time and don’t rush the process. Refine your choices to […]

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When a tagline is good, it is very good. Like: “Just Do It” “Think Different” “Reach out and touch someone” “Put a Tiger in Your Tank” However, not every business needs a tagline, and not having one is better than a bad one. So take your time and don’t rush the process. Refine your choices to come up with the perfect descriptor for your business. We suggest running the top two or three choices by your clients, potential clients, and even acquaintances outside of your business to see if they get it! At The Walsh Group, we suggest to our clients that creating a tagline, even for a new product or service, will help them focus on their key features and benefits. This allows them to stay on track with their marketing efforts. Here is how we approach the creative brainstorming of a tagline: Keep it Short: Try to limit it to no more than six or seven words; three or four is even better. Don’t start off with “clever” right away, just words.

“Soothes. Cleanses. Refreshes.” Keep it Simple: Use everyday words that your customers will understand.
Avoid industry jargon. Great Example: “The World on Time.” Do you even need to ask who and what? Be Specific: “We’re the best” doesn’t actually say anything. Tell your prospects why they should choose you over your competition, preferably before they even think to ask the question. Good example: “Because So Much is Riding on Your Tires.” Keep it Positive: Project a positive image.  Negative taglines don’t work any better than negative campaign ads. And face it, your tagline is a small Ad you display everywhere! Speak to your target audience: Even if your tagline is short, simple and specific, it won’t help you if it speaks to the middle-aged man and your audience is a young preteen female. As with all advertising, identify your audience and then focus on their needs and wants. Brainstorm keywords: This is just like doing keyword research for any Web site. Write down every word you can think of that is related to any aspect of your business, product or service.

Include synonyms and even homophones (words that sound alike but are spelled differently).

At this point, the more words you have, the better, so don’t limit yourself. Brainstorm about the benefits and values: Now make a list of words or phrases that describe the benefits of your product or service, along with things a client might value about it. Is your product exclusive, contemporary or classic? Combine words to see if you can combine two or more keywords plus benefits and values to create a descriptive phrase. Write down anything you can think of, again without limiting yourself. Pulling it all together: Pick your favorites and start editing. Go through your phrases and consider how you can make them into a tagline, or if any of them work without modification. Narrow it down to two or three favorites. And finally, Test your favorites: It’s important to get opinions, not only of your customers, but of people outside your industry. Make sure they both like it and actually understand it. Your final tagline should be specific enough to say something meaningful, but general enough to remain relevant as your business grows.

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RULES Kids won’t learn in school that could help them in life! https://thewalshgroup.com/some-rules-kids-wont-learn-in-school-that-would-help-so-much-in-life/ Sun, 02 Sep 2012 22:22:44 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=269 I’ve attended 3 graduation parties for various high school and college kids in my family. In doing so, I get to listen to their voices.  And I want to support their dreams. Yet, sometimes I bite my tongue. So, it’s no surprise that as an owner of a small business, this piece strongly resonated with […]

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I’ve attended 3 graduation parties for various high school and college kids in my family. In doing so, I get to listen to their voices.  And I want to support their dreams. Yet, sometimes I bite my tongue. So, it’s no surprise that as an owner of a small business, this piece strongly resonated with me. It rings with such truth and brings a few smiles. These rules were put forth by Charles Sykes in his book “Dumbing Down America.” They have been falsely attributed to Bill Gates in chain emails passed through the Internet. Most often they appear with 11 rules, leaving off three that the original author had written.

Here is the full list:

Rule 1: Life is not fair – get used to it

Rule 2: The world won’t care about your self-esteem.
The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $40,000 a year right out of high school. You won’t be a vice-president with an expense account until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping – they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault, so don’t whine about mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes, and listening to you talk about how cool you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent’s generation, try delousing the closet in your room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they’ll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you find yourself. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shot to go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one!

Rule 12: Smoking does not make you look cool.  It makes you look moronic. Next time you’re out cruising, watch an 11-year-old with a butt in his mouth.That’s what you look like to anyone over 20. Ditto for “expressing yourself” with purple hair and/or pierced body parts.

Rule 13: You are not immortal. If you are under the impression that living fast, dying young and leaving a beautiful corpse is romantic, you obviously haven’t seen one of your peers at room temperature lately.

Rule 14: Enjoy this while you can. Sure parents are a pain, school’s a bother, and life is depressing. But someday you’ll realize how wonderful it was to be a kid. Maybe you should start now. You’re welcome. Got that off my chest. Now back to work.

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Social Media Role in Business-to-Business https://thewalshgroup.com/social-media-role-in-business-to-business/ https://thewalshgroup.com/social-media-role-in-business-to-business/#respond Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:25:09 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=201 I must get at least 15 emails a day about “social media” and how it’s changing the landscape of marketing. Yikes! I don’t want to get left behind. Yet, in the last two social media seminars I attended, almost all of the examples shown were consumer products and services. Most of my clients sell to other […]

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I must get at least 15 emails a day about “social media” and how it’s changing the landscape of marketing. Yikes! I don’t want to get left behind.

Yet, in the last two social media seminars I attended, almost all of the examples shown were consumer products and services. Most of my clients sell to other businesses. So we’re still finding our way. That doesn’t mean social media has no role for business-to-business. One area that stands out for my clients is using a blog, or even facebook as a support service medium. Posting articles, photos, quick how-to videos, and answering questions can all happen in real time.  You don’t have to wait to go thru the webmaster to post an article to your blog.

And a big bonus is you can have your customers help each other. Now you’re creating a community. The most important thing to do is to listen to the dialogue.

Reply. Get involved.

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What Small Businesses Ought to Know About Blogging https://thewalshgroup.com/what-small-businesses-ought-to-know-about-blogging/ https://thewalshgroup.com/what-small-businesses-ought-to-know-about-blogging/#respond Wed, 02 Nov 2011 19:46:30 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=19 Learn the benefits of blogging for small business.

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Pat Walsh, Marketing Director and Consultant

If your business hasn’t jumped aboard the blogging train yet, you’re missing out on a wonderful opportunity! As you can see, I decided to hop on the train, and my motivation came from watching this video of Seth Godin, author of several books I respect, and Tom Peters, a best-selling author.

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Support Small Business: Always Buy Lemonade From A Kid’s Lemonade Stand https://thewalshgroup.com/support-small-business-always-buy-lemonade-from-a-kids-lemonade-stand/ https://thewalshgroup.com/support-small-business-always-buy-lemonade-from-a-kids-lemonade-stand/#respond Mon, 17 Oct 2011 22:45:52 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=181 While I was driving the other day, I passed through a residential area and two boys were sitting at a table with a pitcher and large styrofoam cups.  It’s not a well trafficked road, and I could feel their eyes on me as I approached.  Of course, for me it was a nostalgic flashback to […]

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While I was driving the other day, I passed through a residential area and two boys were sitting at a table with a pitcher and large styrofoam cups.  It’s not a well trafficked road, and I could feel their eyes on me as I approached.  Of course, for me it was a nostalgic flashback to my sister and I sitting in front of our house with our own lemonade stand, waiting for the magic moment when we would land a sale.  We’d wait till we made 50 cents (10 glasses at 5 cents each), then we’d close up shop and go down to the Dairy Queen to eat our spoils. Naturally, I pulled over.  It was inevitable.  I had to pull over. I could not pass by the dreams, and the hopes. I pulled up to the curb and one of the boys, ran right up to the car and said, “Would you like a small or large?” Impressed with their sense of product offerings and different price points, I asked, “What is the price difference?” 50 cents for small, $1 for large. I’ll take a small (I don’t even like lemonade). With a look of seriousness and determination, he went back to the table to give his partner the order.

I watched as, with great purpose, they poured lemonade into half of the cup and then delivered it carefully to my car. I paid the boy 50 cents. “Thank you,” he said.  As I looked in my rear view mirror, they were both gathered around the two quarters like magic had just happened.

I was flooded with genuine emotion, as I thought of all the adults who stopped to buy my ragtag lemonade.  Knowing now they didn’t do it for the lemonade, (God knows they had Kool-Aid at home), but to support my sister and I. Just like I was doing for the two boys. And for that reason, I entreat you to never pass up a kid’s lemonade stand.

You could be nurturing the next Bill Gates.

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More on Color… The Psychology of Color https://thewalshgroup.com/more-on-color-the-psychology-of-color/ https://thewalshgroup.com/more-on-color-the-psychology-of-color/#respond Thu, 13 Oct 2011 19:11:36 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=164 I am often asked what certain colors “mean.” Or, what kind of emotional reaction do people experience when they see certain colors? Personally I use colors and color combinations that I like so I could not be objective in answering these questions, therefore I did my research. I purchased several books on color usage, for […]

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I am often asked what certain colors “mean.” Or, what kind of emotional reaction do people experience when they see certain colors? Personally I use colors and color combinations that I like so I could not be objective in answering these questions, therefore I did my research. I purchased several books on color usage, for print and for the web.

Daniel Fells One book that caught my attention put colors into “emotional categories.” It is called Color Harmony by Cailin Boyle.

I have pulled a few examples from this book to share with you how various color combinations have been classified into these emotions. Here are just a few I felt were right on! I would love to hear your feedback.

Bottom line…

I think colors are a personal preference that each person associates with their own likes or dislikes. Oh, there is a “Color Story” I have to share.  St. Patrick’s Day my Mother-in-Law had a great idea and made scrambled eggs with green food coloring.Now, scrambled eggs were a really big treat in a family with 12 kids.

However, not one kid touched these “green eggs.” No matter how many times she read Green Eggs and Ham, the entire batch went in the trash! So, what did we learn about color…

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Humor in the Workplace https://thewalshgroup.com/humor-in-the-workplace/ https://thewalshgroup.com/humor-in-the-workplace/#respond Thu, 13 Oct 2011 19:11:18 +0000 http://thewalshgroup.com/blog/?p=166 We all love a good joke or story. Think about all “forwards” you get during any given week. How many do you pass on to your coworkers and friends? Sometimes humor can get an idea across faster then a lengthy narrative. Here is a cartoon we recently created. The concept is for a webinar. The topic […]

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We all love a good joke or story.

Think about all “forwards” you get during any given week.

How many do you pass on to your coworkers and friends? Sometimes humor can get an idea across faster then a lengthy narrative. Here is a cartoon we recently created. The concept is for a webinar. The topic is about the unnecessary added costs to your pharmacy benefit plan, and how you can get control and reduce these costs. The cartoonist, Pat Achilles, has worked with us for years, actually as long as we’ve been in business.

Here are the first caricatures she did of Pat and me when we first started in the 80’s. Notice, I’m still on the drawing board, rubber cement and all.

Pat has an electric typewriter…do they even make them anymore??

It is great to work directly with such a talent. If you subscribe to her email, she will send you a weekly cartoon.

Also, check out her line of greeting cards.

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