| September 1, 2005 In this issue... A BE NICE Story Monthly Audio Message People Profile Do Something! Corporate Corner Quote of the Month And on BeNiceOrElse.com: Featured Article No Regrets Past Newsletters August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 Send this newsletter to everyone you know or mean people will track you down! Listen to Finalist — "A famous swami once told me years ago that someone who’s nice always gains... Winn Claybaugh is a remarkable guy and one of the best motivational speakers in the country. In this terrific work, he brings you easy-to-use concepts that could bring interesting rewards." |
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Remembering September 11th
 Hi Everyone,Just a few days ago, Hurricane Katrina came barreling through the southeastern United States, leaving a trail of devastation in her wake. It may seem strange that my topic this month is “Remembering September 11,” but I believe the lessons we learned from that event are more important than ever right now. Like many people, the tragic events of September 11, 2001 had a profound effect on me. What I used to think I knew completely changed that day, and my life will be forever divided into two segments: before 9/11 and after 9/11. There are so many parts of that tragic story that you could choose to focus on—the airline crewmembers who were killed, the terror of the passengers during those horrifying flights, the people on all the floors of those buildings. Parts of the story could make you angry, confused, and fearful, but the stories I’ve chosen to focus on are about those individuals who were either in the towers or on a plane, who suddenly knew they had a brief chance to make a phone call. Now here’s the deal: They didn’t call their boss to say, “How dare you not give me that raise!” They didn’t call an old enemy to fight it out one more time. None of those things mattered. They called someone they loved—most often someone they’d had a lifetime family relationship with—and they had just one message: I love you. That was it. Nothing else mattered, and nothing more needed to be said. I’ve thought about those people and replayed their stories in my mind over and over again. For me, they didn’t die in vain, and I’ve learned a valuable lesson. For now, today, I get it. No regrets. Rather than waiting until your final moments, you can send your love to someone today. If you’re feeling lost, confused, and hopeless about Hurricane Katrina, remember this: Those people who stand on the outside of a crisis feel hopeless. The minute you get involved, your hopelessness will disappear. XOXO, Winn
A BE NICE Story Do you have a BE NICE story to share? Send it to editor@BeNiceOrElse.com. If it appears in the newsletter, you’ll receive a BE NICE T-shirt and CD! This month’s story came from Meagan Russell, a learning leader at The Fila Academy—A Paul Mitchell Partner School. It’s excerpted from Ben Stein’s last column, "Monday Night at Morton’s” (www.eonline.com, Dec. 20, 2003). Morton's is a famous chain of steakhouses frequented by movie stars and famous people. After writing the column for several years, Stein explained why he would no longer continue. To read the full article, go to www.eonline.com/Gossip/Morton/Archive/2003/031220b.html  HOW CAN SOMEONE WHO LIVES IN INSANE LUXURY BE A STAR IN TODAY'S WORLD?By Ben Stein . . . We put couples with incomes of $100 million a year on the covers of our magazines. The noncoms and officers who barely scrape by on military pay but stand on guard in Afghanistan and Iraq and on ships and in submarines and near the Arctic Circle are anonymous as they live and die. I am no longer comfortable being a part of the system that has such poor values, and I do not want to perpetuate those values by pretending that who is eating at Morton's is a big subject. There are plenty of other stars in the American firmament. The policemen and women who go off on patrol in South Central and have no idea if they will return alive. The orderlies and paramedics who bring in people who have been in terrible accidents and prepare them for surgery. The teachers and nurses who throw their whole spirits into caring for autistic children. The kind men and women who work in hospices and in cancer wards. Think of each and every fireman who was running up the stairs at the World Trade Center as the towers began to collapse. Now you have my idea of a real hero. . . .  Years ago, I realized I could never be as great an actor as Olivier or as good a comic as Steve Martin . . . But I could be a devoted father to my son, husband to my wife and, above all, a good son to the parents who had done so much for me. . . . I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters and that it is my duty, in return for the lavish life God has devolved upon me, to help others He has placed in my path. This is my highest and best use as a human.As so many of you know, I am an avid Bush fan and a Republican. But I think the best guidance I ever got was from the inauguration speech of Democrat John F. Kennedy in January of 1961. On a very cold and bright day in D.C., he said, "With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth . . . asking His blessing and His help but knowing that here on Earth, God's work must surely be our own." Monthly Audio Message This month’s audio message features several icons from the beauty industry as they remember the events of September 11, 2001.
 Listen to Beth and Carmine Minardi, Vivienne Mackinder, Richard Calcasola, and James Morrison as they remember September 11.If you enjoyed this month’s audio message, you’ll love our MASTERS Audio Club. CLICK HERE for more information. People Profile  Years ago, a couple of stewardesses took a little boy into the first-class lounge for a hot fudge sundae. That’s the day Michael Broadhead got hooked on flying. Today as a Southwest Airlines flight attendant, Michael still remembers how special that felt. In the aftermath of 9/11, he’s more committed than ever to sharing the magic of flying.“I will never forget my fellow crewmembers and the sacrifice they made that day while taking care of others,” he explains. “Every time I put my wings and my 9/11 pin on my uniform, I remember those souls who were lost that day. Though some might argue the method, I also chose to get a tattoo. It’s a combination of classic aviation wings, the outline of four aircraft fuselages, and a crest in the middle with the number 33, for the 33 crewmembers killed that day.” Michael has made it his mission to share his love of flying with his youngest passengers. “Kids need extra attention,” he says. “The ones who were old enough to know what happened are now scared to fly. If the timing is right, I let them pass out peanuts, take pictures of them on the plane or next to the engine, get them postcards, and let them feel special. Watching them pass out peanuts after we’ve introduced them to all the customers is priceless. I often tell the parents to get the cameras out and take pictures. Everyone has a great time—including me! I do this to help them know that flying truly is magic and an adventure.” On a recent flight, Michael noticed a family with two children. The daughter had a stuffed animal, and Michael asked his usual question, “Does your dog like to fly?” When he asked the son where his pet was, the little boy began to cry. He’d accidentally left his stuffed cat at the terminal. Michael did everything he could to find the missing toy, but with no luck. Finally, he asked the mother for their address, and when he got home, he sent the little boy a new stuffed cat. “Several weeks later,” Michael reports, “I received a letter from the mom and artwork from her son. She said he’d named his new stuffed animal Michael, after me. My eyes filled with tears. Kids deserve that kind of experience when they fly!” Thank you, Michael, for sharing your love of flying and helping to make the skies just a little bit nicer! Do Something! Use Your Business to Make a Difference All too often, we look to the biggest corporations and the wealthiest individuals to “do something”—to fund the arts, endow universities, and solve society’s problems by making large donations. If you think your business is too small to make a difference, think again! Three years ago, as a tribute to firefighters everywhere and to remember the events of September 11, 2001, students at Paul Mitchell The School in Costa Mesa, California, decided to donate a day’s profits to their local firefighters’ widows and orphans fund. When they discovered that there was no fund, they offered to start one and sponsor an annual event. This year, they opened the event to other Costa Mesa businesses, and the firefighters are participating as well. Firefighter Paul Kim explains: “We send down firefighters from our department who voluntarily spend the day at the school, talking and visiting with the future professionals and clients. This year was a first for both of us, going out and actually distributing material through the city businesses to help promote Casual for a Cause.” During the week of September 5–11, 2005, the city’s stores, shops, and offices will participate in “Costa Mesa Goes Casual.” In exchange for a donation, staff members can wear casual clothes to work that day. The future professionals and firefighters distributed “Ask Me Why I’m Dressed Casual” stickers, signs to display in the reception and cashier areas, and other materials that help explain the event and encourage customers to donate. At first glance, the individual donations may not seem like much, but when they’re added together they make a big difference. “We have a lot of charity organizations that we donate money to,” Paul Kim explains. “This is the first one that’s been specifically designated for our firefighters. We feel kind of uncomfortable because we’re not used to it. We do this job because we enjoy it, not because we want somebody to give us something in return. It’s kind of bittersweet, but we enjoy the fact that somebody’s gone out of their way to set something up like this.” CLICK HERE to download a PDF of “Casual for a Cause” materials. You can use them to jumpstart your thinking, or copy and use them for your own event! CLICK HERE to see how the beauty industry is helping the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Corporate Corner Making a difference isn’t always about donating time or money to a cause. As a business owner, you don’t have to wait for a charitable fundraising event. You can offer the products and services of your business to support, serve, and give back to people in your community on a daily basis. On a typical day, if a hundred clients come in, perhaps two of them can receive something extra, or not pay at all. You can volunteer to make those kinds of decisions, so why not? Even if you’re not a business owner, you can use your place of employment as a vehicle to make a difference in your community. If you’re a waiter or waitress, your smiles, kind words, and calling total strangers “darling” can make a difference and heal someone in need, whether you realize it or not. I can count numerous times when a waitress was my “angel of mercy,” so to speak, on a particular day when I needed a little boost. If you’re a grocery bagger or checkout clerk, you have the opportunity every single day to tell hundreds of people to have a good day, and to truly mean it. Bestselling author and lecturer Marianne Williamson used to say that every business is a front for a church, and I don’t think she was referring to a place of worship or a religion. What I translated that to mean for me is that every business—whether it be a pizza parlor, an accounting firm, a hospital, or a beauty salon—can be a place where both customers and employees feel accepted, loved, cared for, and safe. CLICK HERE to learn more ways you can make a difference. Quote of the Month “From the ashes of destruction, I hope the outpouring of kindness and commitment that arose after 9/11/2001 continues. There could be no better monument than increasing our positive intentions and actions toward our fellow human beings. This has the power to change the world. Let the difference begin with us.” – Cathryn Golden
Winn Claybaugh’s Be Nice (Or Else!) The Newsletter! |
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Beth and Carmine Minardi are stylists to the stars. Their clients include celebrities such as Cameron Diaz, Brad Pitt, and Sarah Jessica Parker. Hear what September 11 meant to them, their company, and their beloved New York City.
