Tough Times Make Tough People
Dear Business-Builder,
So how was your summer? Good? I’m so glad.
Mine? Well, I just drove more than 1,000 miles on the wrong side of the road, sitting on the wrong side of the car and did not kill one Englishman.
And boy, was HE ever lucky!
Nah, just kidding. I did just fine driving in the UK.
Although I must say; next time I’m there, I will definitely NOT rent a massive Mercedes SUV with which to careen down 1 ½-lane-wide, winding, back-country roads at breakneck speeds.
Given the fact that Britain’s three-quarters scale country roads do double duty as parking spaces for the locals – and that the locals seem to particularly enjoy parking on blind curves – I will definitely select a more compact means of conveyance next time!
I will also take my own coffee cup with me; a 32-ouncer. Turns out, British service stations sell coffee in cups that are barely large enough to wet my whistle; nowhere near large enough to deliver the vast quantities of caffeine required to nudge my groggy brain towards sentience most mornings.
Oh – and if I ever meet the guy who invented those @#$!!! roundabouts, boy, will I EVER give HIM a piece of my mind!
Beyond these minor annoyances, though …
England rocks!
So here’s the deal: My 16-year-old daughter spent her summer at Oxford University – Pembroke College – studying journalism and photography. In August, The Redhead and I jetted over, collected our girl and spent the next two weeks seeing the sights.
The flight over was a treat. We clambered aboard British Airways at 9:30pm or so. After a few preliminaries, our seats were transformed into comfortable beds. Next thing I knew, it was morning and the hostess was announcing that we’d be landing at Heathrow in 20 minutes.
Our first real “sight” in England was our daughter’s dorm, which was only steps away from Christ Church – the school built by Cardinal Wolsey and Henry VIII and that later became the home of Lewis Carroll, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and many other geniuses.
Our second sight (after hiking Oxford until my feet bled), was the 500-year-old Makepeace manor house in the hamlet of Sulgrave.
Since George Washington’s ancestors lived in the house first, it is now a museum. Able Makepeace married Lawrence Washington’s daughter, bought the home and lived there with his family in the late 1500s. Mrs. Makepeace’s needlepoint can still be seen in the master’s bedroom. Is that cool or what?
Next came Stratford-Upon-Avon, Birmingham, Liverpool, Blackpool, Leeds, York, Nottingham, Bristol, the Cotswolds, Bath, Lacock, and finally, London.
As a dyed-in-the-wool Beatles fan, Liverpool was a fantastic treat. We visited the hospital where John Lennon was born … the church were John and Paul first met … and the school where they huddled to lay out their plans for world domination between classes.
We visited George’s and John’s modest childhood homes and also Paul’s solidly middle-class family home where, still in their teens, Lennon and McCartney wrote more than 100 Beatles songs.
A sweet elderly lady named Margaret, who bought Ringo’s childhood home from his parents some 30 years ago, even invited us inside to poke around.
We explored Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane – including the barber shop where “the banker sitting waiting for a trim” was, as well as “the shelter in the middle of the roundabout.”
We visited the church hall where John and Paul first met … we surprised an embarrassed band of youngsters practicing “Hey Jude” in the chapel … and we stood at the foot of Eleanor Rigby’s grave.
We soaked up the atmosphere at The Cavern Club, the legendary venue where The Beatles appeared 292 times between 1961 and 1963 – and where Eric Clapton and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Kinks, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Elton John and many other legends graced the stage.
After leaving Liverpool, we explored William the Conqueror’s 1,000-year-old castle keep at York. Toured the Royal Armory in Leeds. Spent a night in Robin Hood’s Nottingham. Meandered through the 2,000—year-old Roman spa at Bath. And marveled at Stonehenge’s 5,000-year-old ruins.
We communed with the ghosts of Henry VIII, Ann Boleyn and Jane Seymour in the king’s great hall, chapel and privy apartments at Hampton Court.
And in our final week in London, we saw Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the London Eye and visited the Rosetta Stone and many other wonders from ancient Persia, Babylon, Egypt, Greece and more at the British Museum.
We spent a full day at the Tower of London where so many kings and queens lived. We saw Henry VIII’s personal armor, Traitor’s Gate and toured Longshank’s apartments where Joanne Makepeace – our first namesake – was born.
We stood in quiet reverence on Tower Hill where Ann and Jane Boleyn, Katherine Howard, Lady Jane Gray, Sir Thomas Moore, William Wallace, Thomas Cromwell, Guy Fawkes, Sir Walter Raleigh and so many others drew their final breaths.
At London’s Westminster Abbey, we saw the St. Edward’s Chair where, since 1308, all but two of Britain’s sovereigns sat as they became monarchs.
And we stood mere inches away from the remains of pretty much everyone who sat on the British throne through 500 years of history, including Henry V, Henry VII and Elizabeth I – plus other luminaries including Mary Queen of Scotts, Isaac Newton, Chaucer, Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens and Sir Winston Churchill and many others.
We got happily lost on the London Tube. We walked Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus until our legs gave out. And we sang, stomped and cheered until we were hoarse at “We Will Rock You” – the musical based on the music of Freddie Mercury and Queen, playing in London’s West End theater district.
Britain’s most underrated attraction:
“The Painted People”
Now, I was prepared to be blown away by the ancient ruins, ten-century-old castles, the grand royal palaces, the quaint old villages and the historic abbeys. But nothing could have prepared me for “the painted people.”
Seems more than 2,300 years ago — somewhere around 325 BC — the Greek explorer and geographer Pytheas circumnavigated England, then ventured onshore to discover its land and people.
Pytheas named the island “Bretannikē” – Greek for “land of the ‘painted’ people” or “tattooed” people – a word that morphed into “Britannica” or “Britain” in Roman times.
From the laborer taking a break from mowing grass at the tiny rural pub in the middle of nowhere to the harried London taxi driver doing his best to untangle impossible traffic snarls for us, every one of the “painted people” – every soul we met — was a joy.
Overstating the warmth, hospitality, courtesy, decency, patience, good humor and helpfulness of these people would be an utter impossibility. Suffice it to say, I wanted to adopt every one of them.
Kindness; NOT weakness
It’s not like the Brits are creampuffs, mind you. Anything but!
Should you ever be tempted to doubt the British people’s courage, toughness and skill at triumphing through adversity, I’d suggest you Google “Boudica” … “Agincourt” … “Spanish Armada” … “Waterloo” … “the London Blitz” … or “National Health Service.”
This is a tiny island – less than one-fifth the size of Texas. Nor is it particularly resource rich. You won’t find any gold or diamond mines there.
And yet, armed with little more than their courage, determination and genius, the British people transformed this little patch of ground into the richest empire the world has ever seen.
For me at least, British history is the story of a people who began with little more than a bit of arable land, timber, coal and tin …
Who overcame the trauma of repeated and bloody Roman, Viking and Norman invasions in their early years …
Who then endured a thousand years of monarchs – many of them hopelessly corrupt, cowardly and cruel …
… And who conquered the world anyway.
And conquer, England did. At its height, the British Empire dominated one quarter of the world’s population and covered more than 13 million square miles – an area nearly 50 TIMES the size of Texas.
Worth thinking about the next time you start feeling like the deck’s stacked against you – no?
Tough times make tough people
I formed my first company ‘way back in 1973. In the 36 years since, I’ve created direct response promotions in almost every economic environment imaginable.
I must confess, I’ve never seen a time when creating winners was tougher than it is right now.
Real unemployment – recently unemployed plus discouraged workers who’ve given up looking for a job – is approaching 20% in the U.S. and is still climbing.
Consumers, terrified that they could be next to lose their paychecks – and by extension, their homes and everything else they’ve ever worked for – are saving every dollar they can and avoiding discretionary purchases as never before.
As a result, direct response companies, most of which sell discretionary products and services, are experiencing the lowest response rates in their histories.
Worse; economists can’t agree on whether the “green shoots” some see now are a sign that the worst is over, or if this is merely the calm before the next economic storm slams into the global economy.
And worse yet, even the most optimistic experts can’t agree on whether there will be a recovery at all. Some say that even if the economy stops shrinking, it may simply continue slogging along at this low level of activity for years.
But as any Brit would tell you, none of this is any excuse for settling for mediocrity.
Tough times don’t kill dreams – they only discourage idle dreamers and poseurs.
The simple truth is, ordinary people like you and me are still realizing their visions of independence and lasting wealth – even in this environment. All it takes is a little courage, determination and the consistent application of your genius.
Now that summer is over, we’re rededicating ourselves to the proposition that, with a little help here and there, YOU can emerge from this current challenge stronger, more successful and richer than you now believe possible.
We’ll be here to help make that happen every way we can.
Yours for Bigger Winners, More Often,
Clayton Makepeace
Publisher & Editor
THE TOTAL PACKAGE
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25 Comments »
Join the Discussion!
Let us know what you think. Or ask us anything. Or offer your own sage advice.
The only rule: RESPECT THIS HOUSE! Postings that contain abusive language and/or personal attacks will be cheerfully VAPORIZED. One cross word and – POOF! – your well-thought-out post will be gone in a puff of smoke.
– Clayton
Comment by Lydia Mills — August 31, 2009 @ 10:22 am
Wow! What a trip - I’ve always wanted to visit England. One day I will! And the lesson learned is one we should all take to heart.
Perseverance is the true name of the game.
Comment by Mark Pocock — August 31, 2009 @ 11:06 am
hey Clayton
Tough times don’t last. Tough
people do. But you know this….
Anyway, you missed out the best bit of
the UK…Cornwall…never mind all
those northern spots!
Next time perhaps?
cheers
Mark
Comment by ADAM — August 31, 2009 @ 11:08 am
Glad you enjoyed your tour of England Clayton and especially my hometown of Liverpool. It’s not a bad little place is it?
Here’s one for ya: I went to the same primary school as good ‘ol Paul Mc Cartney!!
The Cavern is a blast, did you have a drink there on a Saturday night?
Comment by ADAM — August 31, 2009 @ 11:10 am
Oi oi Mark!
Comment by Eugenie Verney — August 31, 2009 @ 11:17 am
Delighted you both had such a great time in England…
Just a couple of points: I think you’ll find royalty ended up at the Tower of London somewhat against their wishes - residential it definitely wasn’t!
And please take care not conflate the UK with England - the island hosting England also contains Scotland and Wales, which are different nations with very different heritages and often separate royal lineage. Not forgetting Northern Ireland across the Irish Sea.
As someone born in London of French and Irish origin and now living in the north-east of Scotland, I’m acutely aware of these distinctions and how important they are, particularly to the Scots and Welsh.
And next time do come to Scotland too if you’ve not been before - it’ll blow you away!
Finally, congratulations to your daughter - that’s quite an achievement at 16!
Comment by Rachel — August 31, 2009 @ 11:21 am
I felt great and british and rather tough reading that!
Thank you
Comment by Clay Schultz — August 31, 2009 @ 11:24 am
HUZZAH!
Glad your trip was so interesting and inspirational.
Great message. I needed that shot of clear thinking this morning.
Hold fast!
Clay
Comment by Kevin B — August 31, 2009 @ 11:28 am
Simply plan your work and work your plan. As Winston Churchill famously said: “Never, never, never, never give in!” That’s the real secret to success.
Comment by Will — August 31, 2009 @ 12:11 pm
Glad you enjoyed your trip.
Actually there are a few goldmines and sometimes people will spend a lot of time panning for enough of the metal to make a very special wedding ring.
Comment by Alex Newell — August 31, 2009 @ 12:16 pm
Wonderfully inspirational Clayton. Sorry I missed you when you were here. It seems that you’ve seen more of Great Britain in your whirlwind tour than I have living here.
Thanks for the portait, you’d do great tour guides.
All The Best
Alex
Comment by Bill Jeffels — August 31, 2009 @ 2:08 pm
“Tough times don’t kill dreams… they only discourage idle dreamers and poseurs”… Love It!
There have been tough times before… entrepreneurs had goals then… and they accomplished them.
It’s like Donald Trump says… “Never Give Up” ( Tom Vu said that as well lol).
Take care,
Bill Jeffels
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — August 31, 2009 @ 3:28 pm
Hi, guys — thanks for the comments!
Mark Pocock: Cornwall. Got it!
Adam: Yeah. Liverpool was a huge surprise. The media here always painted it as a gritty lower-middle class factory town.
Turns out, it’s a great little city packed with wonderful people and tons of things to do!
Liverpool Cathedral was mind-blowing. Did you know as a kid, Paul McCartney tried to get into the choir but was turned down for lack of talent? Decades later, he conducted his Liverpool Oratorio there. Revenge is sweet!
Eugenie Verney: Actually, the Tower was a royal residence long before it was a prison. Henry VIII built apartments there as a gift for Ann Boleyn when he was in love with her.
It has also been used as a fortress, a mint, a treasury, an armory and a zoo.
Keep a stiff upper lip, y’all!
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — August 31, 2009 @ 3:30 pm
Oh — and Eugenie, Scotland and Ireland are NEXT summer!
My daughter’s planning to go to Trinity College in Dublin next summer. We’ll pick her up and spend a week touring Ireland and another week touring Scotland.
Then a few days in CORNWALL, and home
Comment by Susan Connors — August 31, 2009 @ 3:46 pm
Hi there Clayton
Good to see your family had a wonderful time in England.
Something I will get to see myself plus other parts of the world in time to come.
Yes, it is hard at the moment in our areas of business.
Many businesses I deal with here in Australia are feeling the pinch as people stop buying so much.
The great news is through this chaos of the last year, more people are open to ideas for marketing.
Be it a blog set up, website or other marketing, they are open to ideas.
I have been asked about joint ventures with local businesses and it is exciting.
So in chaos - the tough get going. Heads get together, ideas are bounced and tossed around, knotted out, organised and acted on.
Thanks for sharing your holiday, thoughts and ideas.
All the best
Susan Connors
Australia
Comment by Warren Cottis — August 31, 2009 @ 4:29 pm
Well Clayton
If you liked the Brits you’ll love Australians.
We started out as all the larrikins, crooks and petty thieves that mother Britain didn’t want and you had to survive a sailing journey of thousands of miles just to get here… that’s tough.
Australia is soldiering through the GFC because of the attitude of people like Susan Connors and I am proud to be an Australian even if the Brits did just beat us at cricket.
cheers,
Warren Cottis
Comment by Bob Oni — August 31, 2009 @ 5:35 pm
Hi Clayton,
How on earth did you manage to pack so much into just two weeks? Nice to hear you had such a good time in good olde England!
Comment by Frank O'Leary — August 31, 2009 @ 6:10 pm
What?! You didn’t have time to visit your buddy Drayton for a a pint? For shame!
Or perhaps you had time, but the Redhead thought it would be perilous for London to let you two loose on it.
Well done, the Redhead! Londoners are in your debt. We can only imagine the havoc that’s been averted by keeping Clayton and Drayton apart.
Had those two got their heads together over a pint (or three - and with Grey Goose chasers, no doubt) we’d doubtless now be witnessing pre-launch buzz for the sale of Hampton Court, with Nelson’s Column thrown in.
Comment by Steve Gill — August 31, 2009 @ 6:11 pm
Hi Clayton,
Loved reading about your trip to England. You’ve given me a great list of places to visit when I go there for a holiday.
Thanks for the article - it was very inspiring.
Regards,
Steve Gill
Australia
Comment by Julie — August 31, 2009 @ 11:26 pm
Sounds like you and the ‘redhead’ had a great time - and I’m positively green with envy. THe places you mentioned evoked pictures from books and encyclopedias and amateur pictures from people fortunate enough to have made the trip. What I would do for a chance to go there for an extended ‘holiday.’
I am largely of English descent and if I ever get the chance to travel abroad, England is where I want to go, and not just because my ancestors are from there (and Holland, and Sweeden and Germany), but because I admire the English people and their lengthy history. The United States is a baby by comparisonn.
But, as they say, all good things must come to an end and it’s time to get back to work at what you do so well.
I’m glad you had a great - and safe - trip, but I’m also glad you’re back. Welcome home!
Comment by Tammy — September 1, 2009 @ 8:14 am
Clayton,
You are an amazing story teller. I was glued to your vacation story as much as any sales letter I’ve ever read!!
Glad you had a good time and welcome home.
Have a great one,
Tammy
Comment by ADAM — September 1, 2009 @ 10:22 am
Glad you experienced it for yourself Clayton. Liverpool does have some great attractions. The cathedral is a stunner as you found out.
Aaah, yes. Paul certainly got his own back there!:)
If you’re a soccer fan (we call it football because in England we do actually use our feet!:) ) try and get to a game at Anfield Stadium, home of Liverpool FC, you’ll absolutely love it.
Samuel L. Jackson did!:)
Comment by Lance — September 1, 2009 @ 1:24 pm
Hi Clayton,
thanks for your vacation story - we take for granted the good things and your perspective is so correct ive forwarded it on for some friends visiting UK next week.
Oh the roundabouts thing is debatable — they are, generally, so much less annoying than traffic lights and quicker… but for the full on roundabout experience I recommend the “priorite a la droite” Champs-Elysees in France.
thanks again
Lance
Comment by Carolyn Warren — September 1, 2009 @ 2:45 pm
Loved reading your travelogue, Clayton! No professional travel writer writes a more interesting piece than YOU.
Dreams and goals should not be shaped by the economy. Strategies, yes; but not dreams.
I am optimistic enough to believe success can be achieved in any economic environment, as long as a person has the right goal and the right strategy for pursuing it.
Carolyn
Comment by Clayton Makepeace — September 2, 2009 @ 9:19 am
Lance, I left that “Paris” part out.
We spent two days there. Took the EuroStar through the Chunnel.
Our hotel was in the shadow of la Tour Eiffel. We saw the French White House, the Louvre, Napoleon’s tomb, Montmartre, the Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elyse and much, much more.
The Parisians were friendly, albeit nowhere near as accommodating as the British — and traffic was light as we were there during the mandatory vacation they take each year.
Somehow though, I suspect that the advantage of driving on the right side of the road might make any roundabout a bit easier to handle. We literally spent a half hour trying to get IN to a roundabout in Birmingham!
– Clayton
Comment by Rezbi — September 2, 2009 @ 5:51 pm
You know, Clayton, I lived in London for nearly 30 years… have lived in the UK for 36 years (most of my life)… yet, I haven’t seen a fraction of what you just described.
Goes to show, it really is easy to take things for granted.
I live a Blackburn now, a little valley town in NW England, in Lancashire, but I certainly don’t take things for granted any more.
You go up either side of Blackburn and you can literally see the whole town.
From one side if you look to the other, all you see is roof tops and mountains - not very high ones - but mountains, nevertheless.
Amazing.
Glad you had a good time here.