Eric Joiner's Freightdawg.com - The Logistics and Supply Chain Blog!

The Mystery of Larry Hillblom - a DHL Founder

DHL today is a 64 billion dollar logistics company spanning the globe in movement of everything from envelopes to customer chartered jumbo jets.  Now a part of German conglomerate Deutsche Post,  few people know the history of the 3 Americans who founded the company in San Francisco, Ca. in the late 60's.  

A lot of people think DHL stands for something German, but in fact, it represents the names of the three founders.  Dalsey, Hillblom and Lynn.   

Larry Hillblom is probably the most infamous of the 3 amigos for the simple reason that once the company became successful in transportation of international documents, primarily shipping line manifests before the age of electronic media, he became an international playboy.  Hillblom moved to Asia, fathered multiple children and then died a mysterious death in a plane crash.   

The article below, from Fortune Magazine, reviews a new book on Hillbloms life.  I am surprised its not a major motion picture.  60 Minutes did a report on Larry Hillblom and his multiple illegitimate children some time ago.  

DHL today has nothing to do with the historical roots of the three American founders, but the history itself is interesting reading. 

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FORTUNE -- Growing up fatherless on a peach farm in California, Larry Hillblom told friends he wanted to be like Howard Hughes some day. He came closer than anyone could have expected. Hillblom went into business, amassed a huge fortune, acquired an airline, built a secretive empire, sustained hideous injuries in a plane crash, and developed into a full-blown germaphobe eccentric.

For all that, there was an important difference between the two men. Hughes indulged his whims in Hollywood and Las Vegas, becoming an object of public fascination. Hillblom cut his wackadoodle swath across Micronesia, which is why you may not have heard of him.

Hillblom was the "H" in DHL, the international courier service, and is the subject of King Larry, a biography by James D. Scurlock. The author unquestionably has a nose for a good story. In 2006, two years before Lehman Brothers collapsed, he made a jeremiad movie called Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Era of Predatory Lenders. He published a book by the same name the following year.

With his new book, Scurlock has again hit upon a story that was crying out to be told. Hillblom, it seems, was a business monster -- a man with an unquenchable work ethic and no discernible moral compass. His principal hobby seems to have been deflowering virgins. A billionaire cheapskate, he was passionately devoted to a cause: shielding his money from the IRS. As soon as he had DHL up and running, he moved to Saipan, a U.S. protectorate with disputed (or at least disputable) tax regulations. There, dressing like a surfer and riding around in a DeLorean, he disported himself with breathtaking self-indulgence for 14 years.

via Click Here to read more of the original Fortune article

Internet Lists...I Hate Them. (mostly)

 
I guess I am becoming Internet jaded.   I surf the web like everyone else and even am known to spend mindless minutes hitting the "stumbleupon" button on my browser.  (My wife definitely thinks this is mindless...or at least I am.)

Invariably one hits the many top 10 lists, various "must read" lists, etc.   Usually this is a semi-cheesy attempt to drive traffic without creating much in the way of original content.  I'll admit I am also not above that.   In fact, I am doing it now.   However with at least a little purpose.

50 Things Successful People Have in Common.

Stumbling through the web tonight, I did find a nugget.   Dan Waldschmidt has a very good list that frankly I know from my own experience is true.   50 Things Successful People have in Common is interesting for those who are successful and are mature enough to be self aware.  I hit a good number of these square on, but there are also a few that I could work on. 

It highlights areas for improvement.  However, I also think it has application in hiring.   I know as a successful person, I am often at a loss as to "why exactly" I am good at what I do.    This list at least does a good job of defining attributes that I can identify with and identify in others.   That becomes a basis for evaluation.

Eric

Twitter Me Not...

Do you use Twitter?  This is the social networking tool that allows users to tell multiple followers exactly what they are doing at any given moment. 

Frankly I see little business use for this tool, but apparently there are some. There are also some good reasons NOT to use this tool.  A great friend of mine who is also an attorney, once told me that anything you write down in email or any form of written communication can be used as admissible evidence in a court of law.   I can only think that Twitter now puts that rule on steroids.  All electronic communications are stored somewhere for perpetuity. 

Check the link out here on what happened to an Ad agency executive who shared his personal opinions on twitter prior to a meeting with FedEx.  Good on the FedEx folks for their reaction to this event.

 Eric

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Doing "Simple Good"

Note: This post is a little off topic, but I think the Holidays are a time where being OFF TOPIC is ok, so long as the article has value for every reader  - Eric
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I spent a good portion of my weekend preparing. I spent the day putting Christmas lights on our house and going with my family to pick up our Christmas tree.  This year we bought it from the Boy Scout Troop at our church.  What an awesome tree it is too, and for a great value! (75 bucks for a 9 foot Frazier fur that was cut three days ago!?!)

Everything I don't like about the holidays was exhibited Thanksgiving weekend. Shopping, shopping, shopping.   Black Friday, Cyber Monday,  Express parcel cut off dates, peak season, hub capacity, holiday pick up scheduling at work.  Ugh!  This is the engine of commerce at full throttle in America.

Everything I love about the holidays started this past weekend.    Mostly it is preparing for my favorite time of the entire year.  I travel a lot.  Up to 150 days a year.  That is a lot of time away from home.   Don't get me wrong, I really love my work.  I also love the fact that I can run around New York, LA, Miami, Phoenix and a host of other places with the same familiarity as I can in Atlanta.   I have great business colleagues and customers in all these places.   Home time in the month of December however,  is "extra valuable" to me.

Usually, it's about now that I start thinking about how my last 12 months has gone. What did I do that I'm proud of?   What did I do that I wish I had done better?  What did I fail to do that I should have done?  What did I do that really mattered beyond my work?

That last one always gets me.   I have a wonderful friend whom I think of as a mentor.   When he does something, I tend to watch carefully.   We had dinner a couple of weeks ago and he offhandedly mentioned something he does that I found to be so simple that it amazed me.  I am definitely doing this too, starting with my next business trip. 

My friend, like me, has a history as a road warrior.   He spends many nights in hotels.   What he does is very simple. I call it doing "simple good". Rather than use the complimentary soaps, shampoos and amenities that many hotels offer in rooms, he saves them.   He takes that collection and after a box is filled, gives it to the local homeless shelter.   So simple and yet so easy. These items are already built into the cost of the hotel room and paid for when one pays for the room.

This is good because it helps those who are in need. It is simple because it took little effort beyond being thoughtful.  A humble gesture with great value.

Even more importantly, my friend donates his time. His personal caring and involvement with those whose life path is different can be a great influence to both the giver and the receiver.

I have found myself at a point in life where doing simple things for other people is deeply rewarding.   If it feeds my fellow man, it also feeds me.  The real key is it puts virtually everything else in my life in priority order.   These small yet valuable contributions are what make us human. 

None of this stuff is clever, but for at least 150 days a year, when I collect these things,  I will have done something very small for the benefit of someone else.  If I can do that for 365 days a year, then I suspect my thoughts about what really matters beyond my work will take care of itself. 

Character is defined as doing the right thing, even when no one else is looking. In a world where companies now actively enforce "codes of conduct", doing "right by each other" seems obvious. These things represent good stewardship. Something that if we did as part of our daily work lives might prevent there ever being an "Enron" or a subprime mortgage crisis.  Habits are a result of daily activity.  Doing "simple good" daily surely would have positive value.

Check out these 10 "Simple Good" things that we can all do.

1. Visit someone who is elderly
2. Do something concrete to help the poor
3. Make a gesture of reconciliation with someone from whom you are alienated
4. Do something kind for someone who does not like you.
5. Listen to someone you would otherwise pass by.
6. Do something extraordinarily kind to someone who would never expect it.
7. Volunteer in a shelter, a soup kitchen or a tutorial center.
8. Clean up someone else's mess.
9. Console someone who is grieving.
10. Send a thank you note to someone whom you owe a debt of gratitude.

My 2008 goal is simple.   Do Simple Good.  Simple works do not attract attention.  They are exhaust of what we should do ordinarily.  However it is in doing these basic things that we grow. I think the rest will take care of itself.

Eric

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Mental Acuity: Winners Imagine Winning

Winners Expect to Win.

I blog about a lot of stuff within the logistics and supply chain space.  There are also a few topics that don't seem to be directly attached to my chosen field.  I blog about airlines because I love airplanes and my first internship job was with an airline.  I blog (sometimes) about character and leadership because I believe in it.  More importantly, I think this is an area where I will be a student for my entire life.

I look at the Boston Red Sox and the NFL's New England Patriots and I see two teams of players who expect victory but work at the process.   They know how to win because they've done it. That leads to an air of expectation.  Also let me say I live in Atlanta, so there is no special attraction to Boston.  I just know a winner when I see one!

This is what I know so far. 

The secret to being a champion is knowing that the most fun part of the baseball game is when its 3 balls-2 strikes-2 outs..9th inning...last at bat...game 7 of the world series and the winning run is on second base.   It is the most defined high pressure point in all of sport.   It is also the most mentally played through event by 9 year old boys playing little league baseball there is.  Virtually every child imagines hitting the winning run.  Running, jumping, smiling, yelling...winning.  What's interesting is that no little kid imagines himself popping out to shallow left field.  What the kid gets intuitively is that only ONE PERSON gets to be in that special position. Only one gets the opportunity to be the hero. 

Then there is "Reality" 

Somehow, most of us get the idea that because we are grown ups...we can't imagine victory.  Especially we can't pretend or "play" victory.   Not So!   Did you know that the best pro sports players imagine themselves catching the winning touchdown or hitting the winning run?   Did you know that the US Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels and the USAF Thunderbirds literally imagine (as a group!) their airshow?  They do this before every single performance.   Not many adults want to be the hero.   They are too busy imagining failure. Imagining victory is the key to getting it. Pretending Victory is like rehearsing a musical performance.  You imagine and you train your mind. How many guys rehearsed the first call to the girl you eventually married?    How many sales people rehearsed their presentation in the car on the way to the big pitch?   You may still lose, but you won't win if you don't play. 

Laws of Attraction 

Are popular today as a subject relating to expecting to be successful.   My personal belief is that if you work hard and practice hard, you have a right to expect victory.  You should imagine it, taste it, expect it.  Regardless of outcome, you not only have a RIGHT to fight the fight, but you also have a right to EXPECT to win.

Most people don't work hard. Not really. There are TONS of people who give lip service to whatever sounds PC at the office.   I am convinced that if you work hard first, know your material, and rehearse your presentation, you have every right to expect to win.

Two other things also help though... and aggressive pricing department and a good relationship with God. 

Eric

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Old School Fun

I have to admit it.  I love nostalgia.  I also love those things thought to be "old school".

"In my mind, "old school" means a respect for a different set  of values, and probably more importantly...a return to a different level of innocence."

These were the days when there were no blogs.  No internet...no email.   And especially, no qualification cultures as "hierarchical" or "egalitarian".  Egalitarian means the kids can call the grandparents by their first names. 

Check this site out.  Its called plan59.com.  I absolutely love this site.  Old cars, old trucks, and especially, the old way of thinking.  I'm not saying its better...just that it's refreshing to look at what was the "future" in days when my parents were young.  (I'm 45).

This site is fun beyond measure.  Make sure to take a gander at the "new" cars.

Eric

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Courage: Grace under Pressure

This is a "Best of" Freightdawg.com Article!

First,  This has nothing to do with my normal fare of Logistics related blog posts.  It is an article I write to illustrate personal excellence, humility, class and courage in action.  I am honored and humbled to also be related to the subject of the story.

Leslie Mouton - KSAT News Anchor.

My cousin is a TV news anchor in San Antonio, Texas.  Television station KSAT, San Antonio's channel 12, news anchor Leslie Mouton is my mothers niece. Leslie is beautiful, intelligent, funny and talented.  The person I see on television doesn't seem like the down-to-earth kid I knew in my own youth.  The first time I saw her on TV, I didn't recognize her.   That was years ago now. Leslie's mom (my Aunt Lyn!) showed me a tape and I had no idea who I was looking at. This person was clearly a professional.  I had to be told that was MY COUSIN.  Man!!  She was GOOD.  Took a 5 second epiphany, then I recognized Leslie Mouton for whom she would become.

A Health Crisis and a Rise to Meet it.

Leslie contracted breast cancer a few years ago.   Rather than hide it,  Leslie took it and made it a public thing.   She talked about her illness on-line, in the news, and even did the News Bald...to show that a woman (anyone!) can be in recovery from cancer and still perform in that most plastic of worlds,  Television media. 

Cool as that is, I also think it was Leslie's way of "calling bull shit!" on her disease and situation. This disease would be fought on her terms.  That is the definition of a champions reaction to adversity.

Leslie pretty much proved that "Bald is Sexy".  It ain't about the hair.

Leslie, maybe without meaning to, became a guiding light. A Guidion. A flag to which others may march in step.  I am sure none of this was in Leslie's head about where her career might take her.

Leslie's effort, and her other local work with cancer charities etc., landed Leslie on the Oprah Winfrey show.  She was highlighted as a hero by Oprah for being so brave and helping get the message out to women everywhere about the importance of breast health and breast examinations.  She has her own web site and has been a motivational speaker on her own personal health journey.  Leslie has subsequently told her story on Inside Edition, Good Morning America, Primetime 20/20 and other national news shows.   

"That sounds like Lemons to Lemonade..."

However, As I write this Leslie is back in the hospital.   This time for a double mastectomy.   She underwent a preventive surgery and breast reconstruction yesterday.  9 hours in surgery.

Check this link out to see Leslie herself explain the procedure she underwent.

I admire Leslie Mouton because she has chosen to make her personal health crisis a lesson in bravery and in shear style and class. San Antonio, Texas is damn lucky to have her.   So is our family.

To the girl from Lafayette, La... You geaux girl.

Eric

The article below from the ksat.com web site is linked to Leslie's personal web journal.  I encourage you to read it.    

clipped from www.ksat.com

Leslie Mouton Undergoes Mastectomy

SAN ANTONIO -- KSAT 12 anchorwoman Leslie Mouton is doing well after she underwent a mastectomy Monday.

Leslie underwent the procedure in an effort to prevent the recurrance of breast cancer.

The procedure, called DIEP Flap, allows surgeons to remove and reconstruct breasts using abdominal tissue and without cutting through abdominal muscles.

Leslie will be off the air for several weeks while she recovers, but she will be keeping viewers updated on her progress through her diary on KSAT.com.