"Mourning Hair" Blog #4: Mitch Steinberg
The Learning Experience Doylestown, PA
The Learning Experience Doylestown
"Mourning Hair" Blog #4: Mitch Steinberg
I woke up this morning (actually slept most of the night) thinking about my grandfather. I don't usually remember my dreams but he must have been hanging out and visiting me while I slept. Mitch was one of a kind and I miss him as much today as the day I lost him.
This 30 day blog challenge is going to be exactly that; a challenge. Since I have decided to free-blog I am going to write whatever is on my mind. Normally when I write, I do so with purpose and structure so I am feeling a bit insecure with the idea of just letting my brain explode all over the place.
I will however, try to keep things on track with my themes: "putting yourself out there", care and kindness, emotional intelligence, growth, and change, and growing your business.
So back to Mitch. My grandfather was 4 when he immigrated to this glorious country. A little boy from Russia, not able to speak a word of English. His family was one of the more fortunate one's, living a well-off life-style in Kiev until they were forced out of their home and their country. My grandfather had to flee to Italy until his family could save enough money to come to The United States of America.
He, like so many others, sat on a ship as it rolled into the harbor. Greeted by the majestic lady liberty, I can't imagine the overwhelming feelings of terror and excitement that met him? You may be thinking, how is this remotely on topic thus far? Well it's about putting yourself "out there". Maybe it's about work ethic and the hustle? It may even be the question; Is work ethic a learned behavior or is it something innate????
My great grandfather, my grandfather, and my uncle were Haberdashers. They lived in South Philly and worked in the garment district. I remember Mitch telling me stories of how he would stand on the side of the road, by road I mean The Roosevelt Boulevard and Interstate 95, and sell shirts. Eventually they moved to The Northeast and opened a men's clothing store in The Normandy Mart. Anyone that remembers the mart should have a smile on their face right now. I loved that place! It is where I have so many of my childhood memories. Dozens of shops and people bustling around. Everyone knew me as Mitch's granddaughter so everyone always gave me candy or something of the like. It was directly across the street from The Nabisco factory and you could smell the deliciousness baking all day long! I can almost still smell it in my head! Anyone that grew up driving past the factory misses that smell today! Digressing I know! Anyway The Mart...
When I was little my parents worked, sometimes 2 jobs each, so my grandparents had me a lot! We would drive, me in the front seat, on my grandmother's lap, no seat belt, while she smoked a cigarette, in my grandfather's beloved 1972 Navy Blue Lincoln Continental (never drove anything else) to the mart. He would sit me on the glass counter and let me play with the cash register and bag purchases. I would roam, yes roam, around the mart at 3 and 4 years of age and say hello to people and hang out in their shoppes. Now remember this was a different time. No one was every worried or afraid of me getting lost. People were more thoughtful and present than they are today.
So that brings me to my question; Is work ethic and hustle something you learn or something you are born with? My grandfather had it and my mom has it (not her father)?
My grandfather knew everyone and I mean everyone. There wasn't a place we would go that he didn't know someone, talk to someone, or make a new friend. He was ALWAYS putting himself "out there". My grandmother would sit there quietly with a smile on her face and most of the time shake her head at something Mitch would say to someone (usually it was funny and not appropriate).
I think that was a huge part of his success and yes he was incredibly successful. In a time with no computers, emails, text messages, on-line shopping/advertising, and MAC machines (yes I know people actually had to go to the bank for cash and then carry it around in their wallets); my grandfather did it the "old fashioned way". He worked, hard, played hard, and always hustled.
So here I sit. The question still unanswered. Did I learn this behavior or is it something I was born with? I still believe in a handshake, the look you in the eye, the hello to strangers, the giving an extra hand to someone, and if I say I will do it then I will get it done. I believe in follow through and if you can't get it done, at the very least follow up. I believe in the sentence, "I don't know, but I will find out and get back to you." This is crucial to building your business.
For those who know me well, know I talk to everyone and I love the hustle. I am truly a workhorse! It is something I struggle with in my personal life; you know juggling your business with your family. I fail most of the time at it. I am fortunate to have a partner that works from home so sadly I take advantage of my husband Steve at times and work more. It's really a double edged sword. You start a business you love to build it and to contribute towards your family and then you struggle to juggle it all. Maybe that will be my next blog? Trying to do it all! Doing too much???
Are my blogs too long? In long, I thank Mitch Steinberg everyday for the man he was. He taught me a lifetime if lessons by modeling behaviors. I am saddened EVERYDAY that my son Jack did not get the opportunity to meet his Poppy, he would have been over the moon about his grandson. I see a lot of my grandfather in Micha (Jack).
I will continue to ask the question as well as I will continue to evolve, grow, and change. All of these things can only continue to help me grow my business. One of the best things someone ever said to me was, "If you have nothing, you have nothing to lose." It is so simple and yet is has resonated with me for years and I repeat it often. Put yourself out there, even if you didn't have a Mitch, or someone modeling these behaviors, or you're not born with it. If you have nothing, you have nothing to lose.
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