Today I put on a teaching hat

In an effort to get everyone trained really well and all of us doing the same thing......we are putting a spotlight on training this month.

We've discovered that the key to our business running at it's optimal potential....is to have a WELL TRAINED staff.

Unfortunately, the last few years, we've left it up to the people working in the stores to train the new people. That means everyone has a different way of doing things or doesn't know the right way.....and we're trying to change it.

Over the next few weeks, we are holding "mini" training sessions featuring training in one area at a time. Today was my first mini training at the Kuykendahl store and the featured topic was "Telephone Training" and "Completing Customer Satisfaction".

I made up little training manuals and pamphlets and made them as interesting as I could. Today I spent 30 minutes talking with the Kuykendahl crew about how we need to be doing things differently and how we can do them better. Tomorrow I will be doing the same training class at the Grant Rd. store.

Hopefully, the end result of this will mean that we will have capable people that will be able to take over the training (with the right materials) and we will have an AWESOME well-trained staff and we don't have to work any more.

Not holding my breath just yet.........but I feel it is coming soon!

Dear Diary -

Dear Diary -

I am filled with so much anger right at this very moment and wish that I could just tell everyone how I feel at this moment.

But I can't.

I wish that there was someone here right this second that could listen to me and tell me that all would would be ok in the end.

But there isn't.

I wish I could just write down all these things that I really need to get out and let everyone know how I really and truly feel about things.

But I won't.

So for now, dear Diary.......this is all you are going to get.

P.S. I really feel sorry for Paul when he gets home tonight, as he is the one that will get to listen to my ranting and raving.......although, things don't seem to be that bad when he's around :-) Must be his constant state of sanity and rational reasoning.

There's no place like home

This is the topic today because Aaron just got done spending 4 days here and left this morning to go back "home".

Talking to him last week, he kept mentioning about how excited he was to come "home" to Houston. He missed his friends, he missed his family, he missed doing all the things that he did up here and couldn't wait to get here.

I actually got to spend some quality time with him this trip since he stayed here. We had a chimichanga dinner Sunday night for all who could attend and I made 58 chimichangas to send home to those who couldn't be here.

This morning he got up at 5:30 to make the drive back home because he needed to be at work. As he was leaving I asked him if he had a good time and if he was glad to go back "home". He remarked that it was good to go back "home", the place where he is now comfortable. The place that has all his stuff. That is also surprising because I feel like he is now getting established in his new life and not missing what he left here. I'm sure now his visits to Houston will be farther and fewer between as he builds his new life even bigger.

I know exactly what he's talking about. As much as I love to travel and be gone and do things.....there is sometimes that it's just plain nice to be "home". It is always a good and familiar feeling walking back into the door of your house after being gone for awhile. What a nice and safe feeling your "home" is.

A mantra to live by

I can't please everyone all the time.

To find my own happiness I must please myself first.

Then I will be "full" and able to help others around me.

Although I have found that there is always others out there, who no matter what you do, will never find their happiness.

My own happiness is based on me.......and me alone.

Aaron is home for the weekend.....can you tell?

No words necessary for this one!

Wordless Wednesday: Update

Update on porch swing.....it got built.....but still sitting in the living room.

Oh well.....at least there was some progress!

A miscellaneous kind of day

You know those days where you do a hundred things and at the end of the day you feel like you haven't got anything to show for it?

Well yesterday was my "miscellaneous" day. You know those items.....there are 50 "small" things that don't take much time -- but you just keep pushing them aside.

I thought I would just start jotting down all those things so I could see where my day went.



* Went to both stores and dropped off/picked up things
* Set up new paperwork at each store and did a backup of each stores orders
* Printed OOPS cards
* Mailed out 2 OOPS cards
* Mailed out and sent congrats note & gift cards to our recent Facebook winners
* Answered 4 or 5 e-mails
* Reconciled the food vendors invoices against the bank drafts they sent me
* Wrote a couple of checks to food vendors
* Reviewed insurance quotes for our renewals: property, driver, and Worker Comp
* Designed and ordered new business cards
* Helped Michael R. get a filing cabinet out of the garage he wanted

Ok, seriously.....it's only 4pm and I've already done all this stuff.

Here's what's left:
* Aaron's taxes (don't anybody judge me for this one)
* Fix Pizza Zone web address on Yahoo (this means contacting them)
* Get all the online reviewing sites caught up with all our information to attract new customers. This includes: FourSquare, Yelp, Google+, Merchant's Circle
* Order new toners for my printer
* Get credit card machine info and set up for Grant Rd.

Also, amongst all these tasks was eating lunch and dinner and doing laundry.

Ok.....I'm not writing any more of this stuff down -- it takes too long.

Needless to say.......I was a VERY busy girl yesterday.