The Go-Giver Scrapbook » Organizations

Owen McCarthy

John David Mann — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 12:57:21 +0000

We recently received a note from a young man in Maine, Owen McCarthy, who works as an account rep for Ashland Hercules Water Technologies. “I am writing to you today to sincerely thank you for writing the book The Go Giver,” he began. “This book has reaffirmed everything I have been trying to do in my life since a young age. I am so passionate about the Five Laws I have now referred it to more than fifty people.

“Most recently, I encouraged my whole sales team to read the book. They did, and now it has become commonplace for them to quote it when making decisions on a daily basis. It has completely changed the culture of the team and I know will lead to long term success. I one day plan to be an executive of a Fortune 500 company — and I will owe a lot of that success to your book.”

We thanked him and said we were curious how his team uses the book’s ideas at work. Here is his reply.

The Go-Giver is the single most powerful book on the market. I read it about a year ago and have ever since been spreading the word aggressively, in both my personal and professional life. In terms of impact I’ve seen this book have on those around me, two specific stories come to mind.

As background: I work as a technical sales representative for Ashland Inc., a Fortune 500 specialty chemicals company. My sales territory is covered by a team of five people. Earlier this summer, I introduced the book to four out of the five people on the team. It was amazing! After reading the book, each of them began to reference the book when making decisions.

For example, my supervisor was working recently with a customer to improve the safety of their facility. The customer had asked that we provide them with a piece of chemical feed equipment that added to the safety of the facility. The issue was that the equipment would severely cut into the profit of the chemical being provided. Normally, my supervisor would have insisted the customer pay for the equipment; however, in this instance he decided to give it to them. He told me that the pivotal point during the negotiation was when his mind started recalling the story of Pindar and Joe in The Go-Giver.

The second story involves the inspiration that The Go-Giver has given me and two of my colleagues, James Morin and Matt Ciampa. After reading the book, the three of us decided we wanted to find a macro way to be a connector and give to a cause that we are the most passionate about. The result was the creation of the UMaine Business Challenge (UBC), to be held annually starting in the spring of 2012.

The UBC is a one-day business competition with the goal of giving collegiate entrepreneurs the support to transform their business dreams into a reality. In parallel, the competition strives to contribute to the long-term growth of Maine’s economy and the mission of the University of Maine as a partner with the state of Maine. We feel that this competition clearly embodies all five Laws of Stratospheric Success, and would not have been created without the inspiration provided by your book.

Owen is too modest to mention this, but we will: a recent graduate of the University of Maine, he also served there as student body president (serving nearly nine thousand students) and concurrently CEO of the University of Maine Student Government, where he oversaw a budget of about $800,000 and had the responsibility for creating a shared vision and leading an organization of seventy-five people. Here’s what one of those seventy-five says about him:

“Owen was an incredible team leader. What draws people to Owen is his strong sense of professionalism and passion for all that he is involved in. He is incredibly reliable and is able to see the big picture without forgetting the importance of small details. When working for Owen I always felt supported and inspired. I thoroughly enjoyed working with him and would jump at the chance to work with him again!”

We have a feeling this young man will indeed be executive of his own company!

Trent Johnson/Salvation Army

John David Mann — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 15:02:05 +0000

We are always fascinated by the range of organizations represented by the people who write to us about using the Go-Giver principles in their work. We recently received this note from Trent Johnson, Director of Resource Development at the Salvation Army in South Carolina, who wrote of The Go-Giver, “This is the best book on donor development I have read.” Here is how he described the book’s impact on his work with the Salvation Army:

I would have always described myself as a go-giver, but after reading your book, I have become very disciplined about starting out each conversation with new relationships with the mission of determining what it is that I could do for this person. How can I add value to this person’s life?

I discovered that that was not as natural for me as I would have thought.

Your lessons are spot on. As I reflect on my most successful business/donor relationships, it is clear that they have evolved because I did not let organizational needs overpower the needs of the donor. When we operate with a donor-focused strategy, both the organization and donor benefit!

Thank you both for your philosophy on selling and living. I will definitely recommend the book to my friends in development.

Jordan Healy, USAF

John David Mann — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 21:40:30 +0000

We recently received this email from a young Air Force lieutenant named Jordan Healy, who serves as Maintenance Flight Commander at a base in Dover, Delaware. We asked if we could post it here in the scrapbook, and he readily agreed, and furnished us with these snapshots — one of himself and his longtime friend Nicole, at a military ball, and the other, of Jordan with his team at the Air Force base.

Thank you for writing such a wonderful story. The Go-Giver is full of important life lessons that gets down to the truly important things life: caring and compassion. This book changed my perspective and helped me become a better worker — and more importantly, a better person, even in a highly stressful and demanding career field. It is the sort of material that’s never actually taught in a classroom, even throughout my undergrad and MBA. And that’s sad, because these concepts are the things we should be bringing to people, rather than the flavor-of-the-day management techniques.

I’ve been working in the military for about three years now, in the demanding aircraft maintenance career field. (You’d be suprised how much pressure we get to ensure aircraft get off the ground.) Nonetheless, this book flipped my world upside-down. At first I thought it was simply too simple and I thought I had people figured out — I was sure everyone was selfish and greedy and would take my advantage of any kindness offered. But after I read your book and tried to apply these very simple yet profound principles, I was pleasantly suprised. As I started to take the initiative to go the extra mile, people truly and genuinely took notice.

I found a little poem that summarizes my experience:

“When I was a young man, I wanted to change the world. I found it was difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my nation. When I found I couldn’t change the nation, I began to focus on my town. I couldn’t change the town and as an older man, I tried to change my family.

“Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself, and suddenly I realize that if long ago I had changed myself, I could have made an impact on my family. My family and I could have made an impact on our town. Their impact could have changed the nation … and I could indeed have changed the world.”

Now, I am not an old man (in fact, I am only 25), but I found this poem to be spot on. This kindness has spread like wildfire, and I am happy to see these results.

I manage about 240 people and directly supervise eight individuals. But now, as the military world goes, I’ve been reassigned to a new job across base and soon I will be departing to my next duty station. As I was thinking of something to give my team as a sort of going-away present, I could not think of a better gift than The Go Giver. Even though I live in a very disciplined workforce, I have found charisma has gone a long way. What better way to say thank you, than to pass this book along to my team here at Dover Air Force Base.

I’m sure you get things like this all the time, but I just thought I would write you this quick story (which has turned out to be a bit longer than expected) so you can see the impact that this has had on my life.

Very respectfully,
Jordan P. Healy, 1LT, USAF
Executive Officer, 436th Maintenance Group

Claudia Windle’s Valedictory Speech

John David Mann — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 12:55:27 +0000

We recently received an email from a gentleman named Pete Windle, who told us that his daughter Claudia was about to graduate from Cabrini College (just outside Philadelphia) in May with a dual major in Elementary and Special Education. “At this point in her young life,” said Pete, “she is absolutely certain what she wants to do: she wants to teach and give her talents to children who need that little bit of additional attention. When Claudia finds herself around children, she lights up.”

About a year ago, Pete gave Claudia a copy of The Go-Giver and wrote a note on the first page: “Always be a giver! Love, Dad.”

Claudia was recently invited to compete with a select group of students to be the valedictorian of her graduating class. She crafted her short speech titled “Always be a Giver.” She gave her speech on April 11 to a panel of professors. Although she was not selected, she came away from the process feeling really good about speech and genuinely happy for chance to participate with such a prestigious group.

Pete attached a copy of Claudia’s speech, and we wanted to share it with our Scrapbook readers:

“Always be a giver.” This quote was etched inside a copy of the self-motivating bestseller, The Go-Giver, a gift from my father. After being given the book, I initially tried to make sense of the vague advice written on the title page and wondered what relevance this book had in my life.

A few days later, I decided to read the short parable about a young man yearning for the secrets of success. After meeting an older and wiser mentor, the novice entrepreneur quickly discovers that a true sense of accomplishment is yielded by giving to others.

After reading, I briefly reflected on the positive message the book conveys, then placed it back on my shelf, where it would begin to collect dust. Not until recently, however, have I blown off the cobwebs covering the book and thought about the significance its message communicates:

We can attain success by giving and sharing with those around us.

Friends, family, and my fellow 2011 Cabrini graduates, we sit here today each possessing an abundance of talents and wisdom acquired throughout our lives and education. Whether you are 22 or 92, you have gained a wealth of information and experienced events that have provided you with valuable knowledge. But let me ask, what would our knowledge, talents, and life experiences be if we did not give or share them?

If we did not share these things, they would collect dust like the book on the shelf my father gave me, and benefit no one. Your everyday actions and choices can translate into success through the giving to others. Career choices and degrees can be thought of not only as titles or menial jobs, but as a means to use your knowledge to help those around you.

Consider yourself more than a teacher, but rather an individual seeking to educate the minds that dictate our future. Consider yourself more than a business expert, but rather a person who provides the skills needed to create a productive enterprise for the next generation. Consider yourself more than a doctor, nurse, or healthcare professional, but rather someone who discloses what they know to keep the bodies and minds of humanity healthy. Consider yourself more than a social worker, lawyer or one who enforces the law, but rather an individual who gives their talents to maintain a peaceful and just society.

Your accomplishments, no matter what profession or career you decide to pursue or already pursue, can be built upon a foundation of generosity. Know that you can attain true success by sharing the wonderful gifts you possess and by always being a giver.

So, guests and Cabrini Class of 2011, I would like you to join me by not just doing something extraordinary, but by giving something extraordinary.

Janet Testerman, Lorie Huff and Leadership Knoxville

John David Mann — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 02:17:41 +0000

A few months ago, we received word that in the September edition of Knoxville magazine, the lead editorial mentioned The Go-Giver. We were intrigued. We got a copy of the magazine, and lo and behold, there it was.

Knoxville magazine editor Janet Testerman talked about the year she had spent with the organization Leadership Knoxville, and how, upon graduation, they had been given a gift.

Here is an excerpt of Janet’s editorial:

At graduation we were presented with a book: The Go-Giver: A Little Story about a Powerful Business Idea. In the land of motivational, inspirational and “feel good” books, I think I’ll rate this one right on toward the top. Laid out simply is the “Trade Secret” for success: Giving. While the thought seems broad, trite, surface, practically overused and far too generic to apply, administer the book’s Five Laws of Stratospheric Success, and the concept of “giving” is suddenly invigorated with purpose and applicability.

Now, I’m certainly no motivational speaker and have a whole lot more work to do on the giving part. (The pressure I put myself under every day for not showing more gratitude for so many generous gestures that have come my way is truly exhausting.) But I grasp the book’s pivotal point that “you get what you expect, and ultimately the world treats you, more or less, the way you expect to be treated.” In other words, you teach people how to treat you.

During our Leadership Knoxville year and through many e-mails since graduation, I continue to see the genuine respect and sense of cooperation among classmates. We walked away with confidence, knowing we could largely depend on each other for ideas, solutions, feedback and support on a cause or passion one of us might be championing. We bought-in that concertedly we can have a bigger impact, and, like several of Knoxville’s non-profit leaders wrote in this issue, “all of us is better than any of us,” and “individually we take small steps, but collectively we can make real progress in enriching others’ lives.”

As a Go-Giver, the authors’ edification is “changing your focus from getting to giving — putting others’ interests first and continually adding value to their lives – ultimately leads to unexpected returns.”

Therein lies the road to wealth. Cash in.

# # #

Needless to say, now we were really intrigued. We investigated further, and found that Janet’s experience at Leadership Knoxville owed its lineage to Lorie Huff, the program director at Leadership Knoxville.

We got in touch with Lorie, who wrote this reply:

I love The Go-Giver and have enjoyed sharing it with others!

I previously worked at a wireless company, U.S. Cellular. While there I was privileged to work alongside two consecutive Regional VPs, who were wonderful servant leaders. As their executive assistant, I did a lot of reading and research on relevant “culture-impacting” books and ideas that would be beneficial to developing leaders in our values based culture.

I picked-up The Go-Giver in the airport while on a trip.

At the time, I knew I might be leaving U.S. Cellular for Leadership Knoxville and thought it would be the perfect final message to leave with our executive leadership team. I gave one to each member on my final day at U.S. Cellular.

As our program year drew to a close last spring, I again had an opportunity to leave a final message with a group of leaders who had been considering servant leadership for the year. The Go-Giver again provided the perfect message I hoped would inspire that group of community leaders to go influence their world.

I was very proud to see Janet’s article and glad that she shared it with the broader community.

Thanks for the email and for the message of The Go-Giver!

# # #

Thank you, Lorie, and thank you, Janet!

Newton Chamber of Commerce

John David Mann — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 01:52:02 +0000

In May we posted the story of the Carlsbad, California Chamber of Commerce and their enthusiasm for our book. Must be catching. We just heard from Darrell Sarmento, who is the recently appointed Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce in Newton, Iowa. Newton is famous in part for its historic role as location of Maytag, the venerable company who recently vanished form the American industrial scene. Newton is making a brave new start in the twenty-first century, as Darrell tells us.

I just bought a copy of The Go-Giver for each of my board members, and it is the Chamber Recommended Business Book of the Month for August.

My wife believes she first heard about the book from a Mastering the Management Buckets seminar she took from John Pearson. Both my wife and I were leading a non-profit at the time and were very moved and challenged by The Go-Giver as it related to fundraising.

I was active in three different Chambers of Commerce, and it encouraged me to keep building meaningful relationships with folks, whether it led to an immediate donation or not. We referred it to one of our board members at the time, who is currently the head of the Placer Valley Board of Tourism in California—and he made it his next staff training book!

We are the former headquarters of Maytag. This town has had its challenges, but I believe great days are ahead with the right attitude.

As I got to know Newton Iowa and the challenges it has gone though, your book was the first thing that came to mind. This community has faced some real loss with Maytag, which was a real source of economic stability and community pride. The challenge now is not letting that loss define the future and to believe great days are still ahead.

Darrell Sarmento, Executive Director, Greater Newton Area Chamber of Commerce

David T. Applegate, M.D.

John David Mann — Sun, 30 May 2010 22:27:48 +0000

One weekend in late April, Dr. David T. Applegate II happened to spot The Go-Giver at a Barnes & Noble in Ohio where he lives. He bought a copy, took it home and read it, and promptly wrote us a note. “Enjoyed it very much,” he wrote us, adding, “—okay, I thought it was awesome!”

David had a specific purpose for writing: he wanted to know how he might purchase 100 copies of the book at a bulk rate. He went on to explain:

One of my current privileges is serving as President of Ohio’s Coroners Association. In Ohio, coroners are physicians, elected to investigate deaths. Not the most politically active bunch of elected officials, as you can imagine, but still, with opportunities to improve and influence life in Ohio!

In two weeks, we will be holding our annual state continuing education session in Cincinnati. We have 88 counties in Ohio, and coroners from all those counties will be attending. I would love to put a copy of your book in the hands of each of them. Even if just half or three-quarters of them read it, it would make that much difference.

So I’d like to get 100 copies — one for each of our state’s coroners, and also a handful for me to hand out to a few friends and relatives.

We connected David to our rep Aaron Schleicher at 800-CEO-Read, who sells in bulk to the corporate market. Although this was barely a week before the conference, David acted quickly. A few days after the conference he wrote us this report:

Last week, all 88 physician-coroners in Ohio were presented a copy of your book. While many of the docs already give of themselves, we shall see how many find the passion to serve (as in public service) again. I have had many a thank-you, and I already have coroners calling me about giving and being a “value added” public servant.

It has been a perfect message to my peers: not just to investigate death as the law instructs us, but using this knowledge and compassion to help the living. Giving — the ultimate business deal with the public. And I believe we will receive respect and appreciation in return (something not many government figures earn these days).

I know you wrote it with a “business” purpose, but it is truly is a little gem for general principles in life. When I tried to give my wife a copy, it turned out she had already read it. Great job — thank you!

I have also used your message on occasion in the office (I am a family doc in my other job). The message of not keeping score is powerful to those with marital or relationship problems.

David is too modest to say so, but he is more than “a family doc in his other job.” Before retiring his obstetric practice in 2000, he delivered more than 1,600 babies. Now, in addition to his work as coroner, he is also a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at OSU College of Medicine and past chairman of the department of medicine, Methodist Hospital.

David is also an instrument-rated pilot who received the National Aeronautical Association’s prestigious Volunteer of the Year award in 2004 for flying blood from Oklahoma City to New York City on the night of September 11, 2001. Also in 2004, his peers in the Ohio Association of Family Physicians selected David as the Family Physician of the Year, and since 2005 he has been listed in the national Best Doctors in America register.

Thank you, David!

Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce

John David Mann — Sun, 23 May 2010 16:21:02 +0000

In April 2010 we got a note from Colleen Gibbs, Director of Communication for Southern California’s Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce. Colleen told us that the Chamber’s CEO, Ted Owen, was about to write a column on their experience with The Go-Giver. Sure enough, the following week a review appeared in The San Diego Business Journal. Here is an excerpt from that column:

Ted Owen, CEO, Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce

As the nation’s economy continues to recover, business owners want to know why some of their competitors grow at a faster pace. What makes the difference between their sales and the other guy’s?

When I am asked that question, I simply state that we have trained our “go-getters” how to become “go-givers” …

That is the simple answer to a sometimes complicated question. It really isn’t the education, geographic location, age or sex of the salesperson; it is simply the fact that giving is better than getting, or to rephrase an old adage, “Give and you shall receive.”

[Here Ted mentions The Go-Giver, lists the Five Laws of Stratospheric Success, and then continues:]

I will illustrate how we teach this to our members. The action or thought to move from getter to giver is best illustrated in the networking committees at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce.

The art of giving is taught by instilling in each committee member (the current members invite others to join the committees) that the purpose of the panel is to be one another’s sales force and assist in seeking out business opportunities for the other members of the group.

You are taught not to accept an invitation to join with the goal of gleaning business for yourself, but to be the marketing force for the other members. Each member is taught the five laws and then asked to put them into practice. At the beginning, the committee members spend as much time (if not more) finding business for their fellow committee members as they do for themselves.

As you spend more time in attending the meetings, the skills needed to sell for the others are honed. When the group issues an invitation to a new member, the group is actually hoping that the new member will be a reflection of their own personal characteristics—in other words, their clone. …

# # #

In one of her emails to us, Colleen Gibbs noted, “We are big fans of The Go-Giver over here at the Carlsbad Chamber.” In our response we said: “I think we just became big fans of the Carlsbad Chamber!” To which Colleen replied:

We’re awesome (officially). In a down economy when other chambers in California are losing members like water from a sieve, we have managed to be in growth mode every month. I think we all agree that this is because we are go-givers. I have never worked with a group of people who so consistently give and give and give.

Have a marvelous day. Get out there and give! — Colleen

Julie Sando

John David Mann — Thu, 13 May 2010 17:33:20 +0000

Julie Sando’s grand plans to become a graphic designer took an unexpected detour more than a decade ago, when she began working with Trent, a 4-year-old boy with autism. A part-time job turned into a life-long passion. After Julie spent the next two years training in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), a family she knew sought another path in a course of treatment called The Son-Rise Program®, offered by the Autism Treatment Center of America. Julie kept an open mind, and the profound results she saw there made her a believer. Within a few years she completed their training as a Child Facilitator and Teacher. Today, through her own company, she empowers parents to reach their autistic children in ways that once seemed unimaginable.

Julie and Trent (now a teenager) today

I have read The Go-Giver book three times. One of those times I read one law a night along with my two best friends. Each day we put that law into practice.

I had recently started my own company, Autistically Inclined. Through my company, I get to work with families who have children with autism.

When it came time to practice The Law of Compensation, I decided to write a note on Facebook to all the families I have connected with through my company, sharing some free advice for common challenges that come up. This was my way of reaching as many people as possible at once.

In my post, I wrote about how many kids on the autism spectrum can be overly controlling, and how we can help them become more flexible by being the most predictable people we can be around them, thereby giving them a sense of more control.

At the end of my post, I wrote:

“I would love to hear stories of how this impacted you, your child, and your team. Tell us one example of what you tried and how your child responded. And feel free to post any questions if anything feels unclear. You have a whole team of people here to support you!”

I was amazed to see the response: within the first six hours, people posted 25 comments. That’s pretty good for having had my business up and running for only 5 months!

It sparked a lot of interest in the book as well. These families run their own businesses as they have a team of therapists working with their kids day in and day out.

Reading The Go-Giver and putting it into practice has changed my path in a huge and exciting way, and I share it with as many people as I can!

Julie Sando, Founder, Autistically Inclined

Julie with Griffin

Julie with Eric and David

Tara Gignac

John David Mann — Thu, 13 May 2010 01:16:03 +0000

Tara Gignac, ND, is a naturopathic doctor who practices in Collingwood, Ontario. We recently received this letter — yes, on paper, in an envelop, mailed with a stamp and everything! (Nice to know people still do that.)

I just finished Go-Givers Sell More — I loved it! What a breath of fresh air.

Working in the alternative health care industry in a culture where “you don’t pay for health care,” selling my MacGuffin can oftentimes feel very “schmarmy.”

Reading the book has reframed sales for me into a context that I can do. The nature of what I do every day is to focus on the patient, listen to them and add value to their life. Every time I would think about sales — developing my “pitch,” contacting prospects, dealing with objections, closing the sale — it would make me cringe. Now I know why: it takes the focus away from the other person, which goes against the very grain of my training as a naturopathic doctor.

Go-Givers Sell More has given me permission to stay in my core genius as a naturopath when thinking about growing my business — focus on the other person, listen and add value. I will definitely be recommending it to my colleagues who are struggling with this part of their business and careers.

If ever an endorsement by an ND is of value to you I’d be happy to oblige.

Keep up the good work!!