Career Advancement Newsletter

On March 14, 1974,?

??? Chick-fil-A opened its 22nd restaurant …?

????? ????in Paramus Park Mall, Paramus, NJ.?

Truett Cathy was in his usual role at openings, offering samples of Chick-fil-A to shoppers in the mall.?

As he returned to the kitchen to get a fresh plate of samples, he said to me,?

??? “That girl is not smiling.”??

He had pointed to Martha.? She seemed to be having a bad day, and certainly was not smiling.?

I went to Martha and told her she was to smile at the customers and walked away expecting her to smile.?

When Truett returned for another plate of samples, he said,

??? ?“She is still not smiling.”?

I told him, I will see that she does it this time. ?He stopped me and said,?

???? “I’ll take care of it.”?

I was puzzled.? What did he intend to do that he thought would be better than the instruction I was giving her???

I watched.?

Truett walked up to Martha and said,?

??? “Why is it ... every time I look at you …?

???? ???????you are smiling?”??

She did give him a little grin, but it didn’t last.?

I thought … that is not going to work …?

???? but kept my eye on Martha and Truett.??

The next time he passed her, as he went into the kitchen, he said,?

??? “There you are smiling again.”?

She gave him a bigger smile … that lasted a little longer.??

By this time, I was giving my full attention to watching Martha and Truett.? He would often turn from sampling to smile at Martha.?

???? Every time he smiled at her … she would smile!?

Soon Martha was wearing a beautiful big smile that lasted the rest of the day.?

That day I learned a great lesson. ?The use of ...?

???? personal power is so much more effective than ...?

??????????? position power.?

I learned from a master … Truett Cathy.??

Truett never told Martha what to do, but he clearly and simply made it attractive for her to do what he expected.? As I thought about it …

????? I realized ... that was how ... Truett led all of us!

What fascinated me about the event was that my use of position power, telling Martha what to do, did not work.? I did tell her ... more than once to smile and ... explained why she should ... but writing it all makes this story too long.??

Truett used his personal power.??

He never told her what to do, but ...?

???? she did exactly what he expected.??

Many times, I have thought through that lesson, preparing for ways that I could use my personal power.?

I had learned an important principle of Creative Followership.??

Use Your Personal Power!?

I think of those times when I used my position power and reached the limit of my authority, and it did not work.? What could I do then?? There was no reserve.?

However, when I follow Truett’s example and use it my ...?

???? Personal Power …?

???? ?????Is Never Exhausted!?

That is why long ago …?

???? I resolved to use my personal power.?

???? ?????You can do it too.?

Use Your Personal Power!?

--- Jimmy Collins, Career Advancement Newsletter?

Like stories? My latest book?Jimmy’s Stories?is available on Biblio.com.? https://www.biblio.com/book/jimmys-stories-jimmy-collins/d/1604855871?

Career advancement principles are in my book,?Creative Followership? ?also available on Biblio.com.??? https://www.biblio.com/book/creative-followership-jimmy-collins/d/1604564938?

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