My First Business Trip

This is my first attempt, so please be kind.

After nearly 11 years of working for The FranklinCovey's I was sent on my first business trip. I guess they are breaking me in easy, by sending me someplace close close; Costa Mesa, California. The reason for the trip was the yearly Global Sales & Delivery Conference at the Hilton Orange County. The trip was pretty good. The opening session was a big rah-rah session where we were pleased to hear from our CEO, Division President, and other Executives.

I am going to briefly describe three of the highlights from the trip. We had a privilege of hearing from the Guatamela Minister of Education, Maria Acena del Carmen. She has adopted the 7 Habits for the educational program in Guatemala. The teachers have been trained in the 7 Habits and they in turn have improved their teaching skills and are more devoted to teaching. The Children are find a hug benefit and are also getting more focused on their education. If I remember correctly like half of the students in Guatemala either had to repeat 1st grade or simply dropped out of school at the first grade level. Because of this 7 Habits program, students are learning more and staying in school. For the first time in all my years at FC, I felt genuinely good about where I worked. I thought, my company really is helping people.

Highlight #2. On Thursday of the trip, we had the opportunity to attend what many people were calling "Prom". It was the awards ceremony for your President's Choice Winners. We were asked to dress in "Cocktail attire". Upon further investigation cocktail attire could pretty much be considered anything from Sunday Best, to Semi-Formal, to Formal. The array of attire pretty much covered the spectrum. The Event was held at the Marconi Museum in Tustin, California. The Marconi Museum houses a collection of exotic and classic cars. My favorite was the 1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing. I guess I have always been a sucker for the classic cars. The neat thing behind the museum is that all the money raised at the museum is donated to the Marconi Childrens' Foundation. This foundation donates about a million dollars a year to at risk children. If you want to see some pictues of a few of the cars let me know and I can send them your way. I have pictures of an '03 Aston Martin, the Gullwing, 56 El Dorado, 29 model A, and 56 Rolls.

Highlight #3. After about 5 months in my new position with the OSBU, I was able to meet with the Regional Office Managers. I was able to lead a discussion with all of them and our finance team. All of the Office Managers are great and the best part was finally being able to put a face with the names and voices that I work with on a regular basis.

The trip was a great event and one that I am glad I was able to attend.