Mullet, earrings, pink shirts, beautiful starlets

I counseled a friend about his business the other day and was surprised to hear some of his comments. As we discussed his product offering, every other word out of his mouth seemed to dwell on what was important to “HIM”. I finally interrupted him and politely informed him that in business it is not what is important to “him” as the business owner that yields success, but what is important to the “CUSTOMER”. I told him that if he hopes to sell to the masses, he better start getting his arms around that concept and very soon.

In my local area a restaurant owner might personally think, (like I do), that eating a mullet would be akin to eating a nasty opossum or perhaps a buzzard, but if the people in this northern Florida panhandle community like to eat mullet, the business owner should be prepared to serve this nasty, mud-eating fish to his customers, (gag – puke). I don’t like blackened dishes either; however if I were to discern that my customers like them, then blackened mullet would be on the menu and undoubtedly will be on the menu in our plantation restaurant because that is exactly what many people in this area like to eat.

It is all about the customer that is important in business.

Personally I don’t like to see men wearing pink shirts or earrings. I have often told my children that if I ever saw an earring in one of their ears, (including today), I would rip it out flesh and all. But if my clientele liked them I would wear one myself and don a pink shirt while serving blackened mullet with a big smile on my face.

I cannot tell a lie I would not wear a pink shirt or an earring under any circumstance, I would rather go out of business and starve first; instead I would make my son do it.

Just kidding — Just a vain attempt at a little humor on a Friday. No nasty letters – please! This is mainly all common sense. I wouldn’t hire someone who is hideously ugly like Muammar al-Qaddafi to greet people at our Honey Lake Spa and Salon. Who would want a facial after looking at his face? Yikes! On the other hand a beautiful starlet might sell someone as ugly as him on buying the full treatment.

Business is business.

Actually there are limits that I will go to in order to succeed in business. There are lots of ways to make money in this world and I draw the line on some of them. I would not establish a drug cartel or pornography empire no matter how many people love those products. I have principals to which I adhere, and I don’t care how much money is involved I am not going to cross that line. (Serving mullet is borderline, because it almost failed the smell test, but it will likely slither onto the menu.)

Unfortunately my discussions with a Hollywood firm making my autobiography, “Miracle on Luckie Street”, into a movie appear as though they might be heading into the abyss. News Flash: I’m not willing to strip out of the book the main parts because they are politically incorrect in our modern society.

I realize that in order to make it into a movie it must be changed, but I especially refuse to strip out the main tenant of the book, my acceptance of Jesus Christ as my Savior as being the reason for my ultimate success in life. It wasn’t my intellect or strong work ethic that gave me success, it was Jesus Christ. It was not just some abstract “higher power” or all-inclusive connotation of a God (which gives the Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, Jews, and others a warm fuzzy feeling), that gave me peace, joy, and happiness. It was Jesus Christ.

Interestingly no one is considering taking out the violence such as holding a gun to someone’s head and pulling the trigger, or beating a guy with a tire iron, or any of the sexually explicit, salacious parts. They aren’t throwing out trial balloons of taking out parts about making obscene amounts of money and acting like an idiot in worshipping matierialism.

No, they want to take out the part about Jesus Christ; the part that is absolutely essential for people to understand in order to find hope; which is by the way my “entire” purpose for writing the book. I didn’t write it to make money; I already have money. I wrote it, (and in the process exposed all of the dark sins of my life and embarrassed my family and me), in order to demonstrate that no matter how many serious mistakes a person makes in life, God will never give up on them and will gladly forgive them, provided that they are willing to turn from their former lifestyle and follow Him. This should provide HOPE to anyone reading this that is caught up in a world consumed by hopelessness.

As you enter into the weekend I hope that you will take a stand for Jesus Christ, no matter how unpopular that notion might be in some circles or how unprofitable it might be for your business. Jesus Christ is what this life is all about. Tell all those naysayers to get on board your Jesus Train and enjoy the same thing that is making you joyful and at peace in a world gone mad. BTW – Jesus commands that we do this….

Matthew 10:32
“Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.”