Do you consider yourself a person who lives your life in a positive manner, as though the proverbial glass is half full, or do you live like the glass is half empty, seeing it in negative terms? Most people I ask this question answer “half full.” I think they’re probably telling the truth – but I’m not sure they always look at life that way.
I know some people who see the glass half full even in the most difficult times and situations, not just when things are going smoothly. This attitude is the key in helping them to keep believing and stay the course. Kevin Plank, founder and CEO of the sports apparel company Under Armour is one of these people. When asked what his corporate philosophy is, he answered, “No loser talk.” No matter how tough the meeting is, he continued, always find something positive you can take out of it and focus on that.
When he first started the company out of the basement of his home the odds were long against his company even making it out of that basement. He was trying to break into a market dominated by massive companies like Nike and Adidas. Many times the numbers didn’t look very good and the company’s future looked bleak, but Kevin said he still always found something to be positive about. This philosophy seems to have worked pretty well for him – Under Armour not only made it out of Kevin’s basement, it turned into a massive international company with more than $1 billion in yearly sales. The company has hit a rough patch recently, but if the past is any indication I am confident Kevin will bring the company out of it even stronger than before.
I know a broker in my industry who has a similar attitude. I have been in countless client meetings with this gentleman in my 30 years in this business, and I’ve never seen him come out of a meeting with anything but a positive attitude.
A classic example of this attitude came after a meeting where the two of us presented an unsolicited offer to the owner of an office building. Armed with our market knowledge and an excellent offer we went into that conference room with great anticipation. Thirty minutes later the owner came in, sat directly across from us and proceeded to read the offer. Without saying a word, he crumpled the first page of the offer into a ball and threw it at the other broker. Then he crumpled up the second page and threw it at me before storming out of the room. We talked briefly with his CFO, who was also in the meeting, then quickly exited the building.
Sitting in the car as we were driving away, I was incredibly upset about how the meeting went. I asked my associate what he thought. He smiled real big and said, “I thought it went well.” I looked at him incredulously. “How do you figure?” I asked him.
He responded, “At least we know what he won’t take!”
Have a great weekend,
Ro
(We later sold that building for a good bit less than our original offer.)