Loyalty and Jan

With the partial shutdown of the Federal government at least temporarily behind us, I was thinking about the comment our president made wondering why all of the Democratic members in the House of Representatives had been loyal to the Speaker of the House.  I’m not going to comment on that specific situation, but it did spark my thinking about loyalty.

To me, loyalty is putting the need of another person or group ahead of your own.

If my significant other or one of my children called me and said, “I need you to drop everything and come to see me right now,” what would I do?  Would I ask them why?  Would I tell them that I’m writing my blog and don’t want to fail to post it tomorrow morning for the first time in more than five years?  Or would I simply drop everything, walk to my car, and drive to see them?

That’s a no brainer.  I would leave immediately, as I believe they would for me.  My family is my first priority, followed by my friends.  I think that is true for most of us (if we like our family).

I remember a day, years ago, when one of my daughters was graduating from high school.  I had never missed a graduation for any of my children, but that same day Laurie, a very close friend of mine, was in the hospital hovering near death.  I decided that, if her condition didn’t improve, being with her was more important than the graduation. Fortunately, I didn’t have to make that choice.

As a franchisee of Penguin’s Frozen Yogurt I once opened more than twenty stores.  I hired a dear friend of mine, Jan, to supervise several of my stores, including one in Colorado Springs.

Jan lives near San Francisco, and I expected her to travel to the stores once every two or three weeks.  In the middle of winter in 1987, the Colorado Springs store was not doing well, and a week before Christmas our manager quit.  Ouch!

Jan called me from the Oakland airport to relay the news, and to tell me that she was on her way to Colorado Springs.  She’d decided to manage the store herself, and remained in Colorado Springs for several cold months.

That is one of the best examples of loyalty I have ever personally experienced.  Obviously, I remember it to this day.

For better or for worse, we’re all in this life together, and helping each other out, especially at a time of great need, is important.  Life is better when we share our triumphs and support each other through the tough times.

So I’m taking this opportunity to once again thank Jan, as well as everyone else who has helped me over the years.  You have made a difference.

Alan