Marketing Lessons from Grandad: Lesson #4. It pays to be…

Grateful!  When Grandad was a young boy living on a ranch in the mountains of Colorado, his dad gave him a pony to ride.  Grandad felt like a real cowboy.  His younger brother Robert got a pony, too, and it didn’t take long for Grandad to notice that Robert’s horse was thinner and faster than his own.  As the older of the two, that didn’t seem right; he should have the faster pony, and his baby brother the slower, fatter, safer horse.  Determined to improve his situation as he saw it, my grandfather approached his dad about making the trade.  He made his case about being older and needing the faster horse, and his father agreed to the trade.

Not long after the trade, Grandad was made aware that Robert’s pony was pregnant. She gave birth to a colt that was sold, and the money from the sale was deposited into an account for Robert.  Poor Grandad! Not only was Robert’s pony now thinner and faster, he also had money in the bank that could have been Grandad’s.  Grandad recalled that Robert  got even richer selling 1 or 2 more colts from that pony.

It was a hard lesson but one that stuck with him: it pays (quite literally) to be grateful for what you have.

At this holiday season, are you showing gratitude for what you have?  Do those who have taken a chance on you feel that gratitude?  Take a minute to say thanks.  Make an effort to show it all year, and it will pay dividends in the end.

P.S. Thanks for reading!  One last “Marketing Lessons from Grandad” is coming in December.

‍