by Kirby Hasseman
Recently, my lovely bride Amy, hurt her back. And this was not your normal, “Hey my back hurts,” kind of thing. She threw her back out and it locked up. For about a day, she was completely unable to be herself. Not only was this frustrating for her, but it was disconcerting for me as well. You see, Amy is a bit of a “Tonka Truck.” She is always moving, tough to hurt and hard to slow down.
It was tough to see her like that.
Though we did not tell a lot of people, we live in a small town, and word slowly got out. People heard that Amy had hurt her back (or some variation of that) and started to reach out. Some people called. Some people texted well wishes. One of our friends even insisted on bringing over dinner that night (it was delicious). And each time I got a message, my spirit was lifted. Someone out there not only cared, but wanted to see if they could help in some small way.
These small gestures of kindness matter. And THAT is the point of the story.
When you are going through a tough time, it is easy to feel frustrated and alone. And those simple gestures of care really matter. Sometimes people will take you up on your offer to help. Often they won’t. But that is not really the point. The point of the exercise is that those simple gestures are noticed and remembered.
I tell you this because I often struggle with it. When something happens I feel awkward and I don’t know what I will say. I think “Will they even notice” or if I am really trying to talk myself out of it I might tell myself “They have plenty of other stuff to deal with now.” Either way, I try to let myself off the hook for doing the right thing. I try to convince myself it doesn’t matter.
It matters.
So the next time you have the chance to reach out (even in a small way) to try and lift someone up…take the chance.
P.S. Amy is doing better, slowly but surely! She hopes to be back to her “Tonka Truck” status in no time.
Make sure you never miss an update! First, we have our blog page where we have all of our content here. Also, you can sign up to be one of our VIP’s! Each week we send one email out with all of our content in once place. You can sign up for that here.
by Kirby Hasseman
“Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain. And most fools do.” Dale Carnegie
There is a disease that is rampant in our culture right now. It decreases our happiness and our productivity and it affects nearly all of the population (at times). We don’t know how or when it started, but we think it started with a decrease in gratitude. You can see the symptoms everywhere you look. It’s rampant.
It’s the disease of complaining.
Complaining is a destroyer of productivity…and a thief of joy. And here’s the thing, even the most joyful person struggles with this sometimes. We might even think it can be helpful! I hear all of the time, “I just need to vent!” The idea, of course being, if I just get this off my chest I will feel better.
But here’s a secret. It doesn’t help. Let’s dig into the reasons you should (try to) cut complaining out of your life immediately.
Complaining begets Complaining
I think one of the challenges with complaining is we think that it’s harmless. We think that we just get something off our chest and move on. But we don’t actually just move on. You see, complaining is just like anything else we do over and over in our brain. It creates a neural pathway. The more we do it, the more that pathway becomes stronger. So the more we complain, the more it becomes easier for our brain to create that as a habit. And just like any other habit, once we create that behavior, it is really hard to stop! So when you are think you are harmlessly venting, you are actually creating habit to make you a lifelong complainer.
It Actually Does NOT Help
So often, we complain or vent because we feel like if we “get it off our chests” we will feel better and help us move on. Studies are actually starting to show that is not the case. It seems that those that were allowed to complain or scream or punch a punching bag (all things designed to release frustration) actually made study participants MORE aggressive later. So the very thing you think is making you feel better, is likely making you more angry.
You Are Part of the 90%
Studies tell us that approximately 89% of the world around us is negative. We are surrounded by it. It’s the reason we have to be so intentional about being positive. So when you complain you just contribute to the muck.
It Doesn’t Fix the Problem
The problem I have with most complaining is that it is completely devoid of solution. Most people want to bitch and moan about the problems that they see in their company, family or community. But they really don’t want to do anything to make them better. They have no (real) suggestions, and if they do, they don’t want to actually work on them. That, my friends, is the definition of a waste of time.
Takes Us Away From the Present
In the book “Solve For Happy” Mo Gawdat talks about the importance of being in the present moment if you want to experience more joy. Gawdat points out that nearly all negative emotions in our lives are rooted in either the past or the future. We are angry about something that happened yesterday or worried about something that could happen tomorrow (go ahead, think about it). What this does is take us away from our present moment. The most positive and productive people do one thing really well. They live in the “now.”
Look, in the interest of transparency, this is really hard for me too. In many ways, complaining comes very natural to us all. You should not beat yourself up if you catch yourself doing this from time to time. But the important thing here is the phrase “from time to time.” It is really easy to take it from occasionally to always.
We all know that person that is mad if they cannot find something to be pissed off about!
It’s time to shine a light on complaining. It steals your happiness. If you want a simple trick to break the cycle, consider taking a gratitude challenge. When you find yourself “needing to vent,” take a breath and consider something that makes your grateful. It can replace that negative emotion with one that can give you joy.
Regardless of how you do it, it’s time to take action.
Stop. Complaining.
As always, if you want to stay on top of all of our content, head to our blog page here! And you can always join our VIP list. We send out an email each week with all of our content in one place. You can sign up for that here.
by Kirby Hasseman
Every year for over 10 years, Hasseman Marketing has created an “End User” trade show and have invited our customers. It’s evolved and grown over the years and we are quite proud of it. This year’s event will be Thursday October 10th from Noon to 5pm at Coshocton County’s Lake Park!
It started as a “Customer Appreciation Show” and it still has those elements. But we have expanded it and now call it our annual Trade Show (you can register here). This year the theme is “Christmas in October! Why? Because it’s a Trade Show build for our customers and prospects.
But why should you come? We want this event to be fun AND add a ton of value. Here are a few reasons why we think you should attend.
Incredible Product Access: We invite some of our top (and favorite) supplier reps to showcase their lines at the show. I like to say “There is no way I could fit all of this in my trunk.” You get to see and touch and feel the product and see what it’s really like. We all know that many products look the same online or in a catalog. But when you get them up close you can really see a difference. This is the perfect place to make sure your brand materials are on point.
Idea Generation: As you walk around and see the latest and greatest in Promo, you will come up with some great ideas for upcoming projects. The reality is, the show is at a great time of year for year end gifts for your team or customers. But some of our best customers come every year and start to plan their marketing for the next year and beyond.
Great SWAG: Nobody leaves empty handed! We put on a fun event where (with the help of our suppliers) we invest in putting some really cool SWAG in your hands. In addition, we build the event around a theme so you can see how we use a bunch of different items around a theme!
Additional Services: You may think you know all that we do at Hasseman Marketing, but we find that most people discover some new ways to promote their organization! By having all of the ideas in one place, it can be very illuminating!
Tasty Food: You have to eat right? We have food and drinks as well. Each year we get compliments about the tasty treats and we know this year will be no different. The event this year is on Thursday October 10 from Noon to 5pm at the Lake Park Pavilion (in Coshocton). Our goal is to create an event that provides value and fun…and you never want to miss.
So if you want to join us (and you do), please feel free to to RSVP here. We are actually going to build in some extra value for those that RSVP!
Make sure you never miss an update by signing up for our VIP newsletter here. Oh…and as always, we have all of our content here on our blog page…check it out!
by Kirby Hasseman
It’s time for the 18th episode of the He Said/She Said Podcast with Hasseman Marketing! This podcast is designed to give an inside look at being married and being entrepreneurs and the projects we are working on and the challenges we are facing! We talk about business, family, community and more. So listen in and let us know what you think!
On this episode we talk about…
Trending Topic
This week Kirby and Amy talk about talk about the idea of discussing politics at work. Is that a taboo topic or a great place to learn from co-workers? They might not agree on this one. Listen in.
Weekly Whirlwind
This week in the Weekly Whirlwind Amy chats about the deconstruction (which is big progress) at the building project. You can see the latest video about that here. Kirby talks about a new book he is working on…and the July hum-drums. Is it because clients are out of the office, or is he just lazy? 🙂
Lesson In Life
This week Kirby and Amy talk about the crippling power of comparing yourself to others. They discuss the prevalence of this in social media…but that it’s not a new phenomenon. How can you overcome it? How can you use comparison to help you? Listen in!
Shout Outs
Each week we want to give a shout out to an organization or an individual doing good work. This week Amy gives a shout out to the volunteers that work so hard from the Coshocton in Bloom organization. Local people work very hard to help to beautify the area and the judges were in town this week. This is a part of the America in Bloom organization. For more information about that…check out their website here. Kirby mentioned the volunteers in West Lafayette that put on the West Lafayette Homecoming. This is a great local festival…so go check it out!
So that’s a wrap! We will be back…and we will continue to improve. Any feedback will be welcome as we try to provide you value! If you want to subscribe you can do that where you normally get podcasts…or you can head here to follow on Soundcloud.
Thanks so much for listening! If you have any topics you want Kirby and Amy to cover, please comment and let us know! Oh…and if you like this content, check out this page where you can find all of the content we create!
by Kirby Hasseman
It’s time for the 16th episode of the He Said/She Said Podcast with Hasseman Marketing! This podcast is designed to give an inside look at being married and being entrepreneurs and the projects we are working on and the challenges we are facing! We talk about business, family, community and more. So listen in and let us know what you think!
On this episode we talk about…
Trending Topic
This week Kirby and Amy talk about the idea that Sunday evenings are becoming the new Monday mornings. Is our work life overlapping too much into our personal time? Is that overlap creating undue stress on your life? They tackle this topic here.
Weekly Whirlwind
This week in the Weekly Whirlwind Amy talks about getting ready to the construction to begin and what she is doing to get ready. Kirby talks about a program where he is speaking called PromoMBA. If you are in the Promotional Product industry and need more information head here.
Lesson In Life
This week Kirby and Amy talk about why taking action is so powerful. Way too many people are being held hostage by perfection. By simply taking action and moving forward, you put yourself further ahead of the game. Listen into more on the podcast.
Shout Outs
Each week we want to give a shout out to an organization or an individual doing good work. This week Kirby talks about the young phenom at Wimbledon Coco Gauff. She took the All England club by storm and made the tournament fun to watch this year. Amy’s shout out this week was the United States World Cup team! What a big victory! Oh…and here is the Nike ad that was discussed. Enjoy.
So that’s a wrap! We will be back…and we will continue to improve. Any feedback will be welcome as we try to provide you value! If you want to subscribe you can do that where you normally get podcasts…or you can head here to follow on Soundcloud.
Thanks so much for listening! If you have any topics you want Kirby and Amy to cover, please comment and let us know! Oh…and if you like this content, check out this page where you can find all of the content we create!
