Zeb’s General Store – North Conway, New Hampshire
2006 Pride of New England Award Honoree

What is the secret to your success?
Zeb’s General Store considers customer service a critical part of its business and strives to make all customers feel welcome. The Store attributes the staff’s friendly nature to the positive work atmosphere it provides – offering employees a competitive compensation program, a challenging work environment and opportunities for advancement.

What makes Zeb’s General Store stand out from the rest?
The concept of the 200 square foot store was to provide North Conway, NH, and Mt. Washington Valley visitors with a shopping experience that featured New England products, within an old time general store environment. Zeb’s General Store has worked diligently over the years to replicate an “old time” feel by consistently adding antiques to product displays. For example, the entire interior of an 1886 drug store; an original Coca-Cola drug store counter and back-bar; and a surrey buckboard are all part of store’s layout.

What is the store’s role in the local community?
Zeb’s General Store is a 15-year supporter of local annual events, including Arts Jubilee (concerts in the community park); the Easter Bunny Parade; 4th of July Concert and the Community Center Halloween Party. Of note, the Store’s president, Peter Edwards, has served on the Board of the Chamber of Commerce and was instrumental in the formation of the North Conway Village Association, a group that helped secure a $1 million federal grant in 2004 for a major beautification construction program for the Village.

For additional information about Zeb’s Country Store, visit them online at www.zebs.com.

What Makes People Successful?

I think I figured out why people succeed.

One of the best tips I have ever been given is to have a staff meeting with your employees and have a section of the meeting where everyone must give another employee a compliment about something they do well. Let’s see if you can give one to yourself. (Bear with me– it will take a few paragraphs of setup to appreciate my purpose.)

Sometimes when I write these articles I tend to talk about myself and my experiences–after all that’s what I know best. But I must admit that sometimes it does get a bit embarrassing. I said that because I don’t want anyone to feel like I am saying things to boast or brag. Anyone who knows me personally knows I am not impressed with many material trappings. I really believe that my ego is in check. Today, I was asked a question that made me think about who I am and perhaps why I have had the successes I have enjoyed.

Very rarely is it just one question but it is rather a question asked at precisely the right time in your life. Last night I had dinner with some very old friends and we were talking about different people we had grown up with. One person grew up with Steve Wynn from Las Vegas fame, another a famous regional politician, while I grew up with (actually he was in my sister’s group of friends) Michael Bloomberg, the Mayor of New York and the founder of Bloomberg News. He is also one of the richest people in the world. We talked about other kids who were bright and even some of the smartest in the class who never succeeded in life. Some lived in the shadow of their past glories and they almost wanted time to stop at a certain place in life. Some of the football stars went on to less than spectacular laboring jobs and their fifteen minutes of fame ended years ago.

So why do some people succeed while others don’t? It sure isn’t brains, although that does help. There is an over-abundance of brilliant people who make less than the ex-football player’s laboring job. Please don’t think that I only judge success in monetary terms. I know there is more to life than money, but after all, I am a business writer.

Is it luck? Sure, there are some people who are just at the right place or have the right idea at the right time. I don’t personally look at these people as the most successful, but rather the luckiest. I look at successful people as those who have succeeded more than just one time and in different ideas.

Now with that backdrop, my mother in law asked me what I was going to do now that my newest book, The Essential Online Solution, is finished. Without a bit of hesitation I said, “I will be starting another book within the next 6 weeks and after that I am trying decide what book I want to do next”. (I have 4 different book projects I am deciding between.) And she replied, “WOW!” But I couldn’t understand why she would say that. There are so many topics I want to explore, people I want to meet, people I want to help, and things I want to learn. It’s not the goal… it’s the journey.

Right then I realized the secret to my success and the successes of so many others and the lesson I want to share today. It’s never giving up, constantly striving, even after a failure, and adopting an attitude of never ending learning and improvement as part of your core beliefs. When I was 56 years old I started writing a technical book and I am NOT a techie. I am just a sponge for knowledge and I am wildly curious about change and new ways to do things. I didn’t realize that anyone would look at what I did as even vaguely different. It is just part of who I am.

Make it part of who you are. Don’t ever make good enough good enough. Look for the better way, look for new and different. And remember if you fail, you will only get closer to your success.

For any who might criticize the nature of this piece because I am not offering a hands-on tip on how to improve your business, I ask you to reread what I wrote and then ask yourself why you are successful. Here is your chance to give yourself a compliment. You won’t be bragging or boastful and it might even help explain why your business is successful. Drop me a line and I will share it with all of my readers. If you want your name withheld, just indicate that in your email. I can’t wait to hear what got you to where you are. I look forward to reading them.

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