Bloody Marys
THE MAKING OF A BLOODY MARY
“THEN FOR HEAVENS SAKE WHY DIDN’T YOU MAKE IT THAT WAY IN THE FIRST PLACE?”
I’ve been reading quite a few business books recently and I’ve been amazed at how some of the lessons I’ve been learning are so apt for my personal life as well as for running a business. I guess if something is right in one sphere of life, then it’s probably going to be right for all sphere’s of life. It seems like I’m not the only one to think like this….
A friend of mine recently told me all about a business book he’d been reading which contains a very key lesson for life outside business and when he told me about it I thought that’s brilliant and so important for our all members.
The book he’d been reading was by a man called George Lois. Chances are you won’t have heard of him, which is fine – that’s not important. He was an advertising legend who grew up alongside David Ogilvy in the late 50s and made his name in the 60s and 70s creating some of the most well-known and effective advertising campaigns in America. The book is called “Damn Good Advice (for people with talent!)”.
In the book, Lois tells the story of when he was in a bar in Las Vegas with the famous restaurateur, Joe Baum. It goes as folllows:
Baum ordered a Bloody Mary at the bar of his spectacular Forum Of The Twelve Caesars. Baum, before sipping his drink, asked the bartender “Is this the best Bloody Mary you can make?”
“Yes, Mr Baum” the bartender answered with assurance.
“Taste it” Baum ordered.
The bartender sipped and reflected.
“It’s good” he decided.
“Can you make a better one?” asked Baum.
The bartender mixed a new Bloody Mary.
“Now taste this one and tell me what you think” said Baum.
The bartender took a sip.
“This is very good, Mr Baum. It’s perfect!”
“Then for heavens sake why didn’t you make it that way in the first place?” barked the great Joe Baum.
Seems to me this is a story that we should all remember every time we do anything in life. Like writing a letter to another member or making that initial phone call for a start.
Now I realise that living this way, day in day out is difficult. It takes a lot of effort!
But then, no one ever said that living life well was easy or straightforward. But the truth is for all of us, our lives are defined by the choices we make – basically like making an effort, doing something properly – or even at it’s most basic making the effort to do something at all.
I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase: “If something is worth doing it’s worth doing properly” and I guess that’s what the story is all about.
When you’re hoping to meet new friends, first impressions are really important and making the effort to get these right is worth the time and effort. So today spend a bit of time thinking about the last couple of times you met someone new for the first time. Did you put yourself across in the best possible way? Was it the best you could do? And if the answer is No, then think about whether it’s time to put a bit more effort in. Because like an average Bloody Mary or a really well made one, the difference is enormous, and the difference in the response you get really could be life changing.