PARTING WORDS

What’s in Your Gift Bag?

Jim Lee Executive Editor

There are two things that are constant as we approach the holiday season. One is that all of retail is geared up to sell more merchandise. The other is that each of us will give a gift or get a gift. That’s great news for everyone. Since selling merchandise is the business loss prevention professionals have chosen, getting or giving a gift is good stuff.

Sir Winston Churchill is given credit for the following quote: “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.” I can’t imagine another career, job, or profession that is as “giving” as loss prevention. We have so many opportunities to give; it’s almost part of the job to be a “giver” in our profession.

Think about charities. Melissa Mitchell makes an annual presentation at the NRF conference where she speaks about the efforts of LP teams from different companies and the many good causes they support. It makes you feel pretty darn good. Rod Holm continues the support of NCMEC that was started years ago by others in the industry. Many companies and individuals support the worthy cause of missing and exploited kids. And many of you wear colored wrist bands supportive of a variety of causes that need our physical and financial support. While some have personal reasons for supporting those causes, many in loss prevention just “give” their time or financial support because they value “giving” over getting.

Think about the job. Is there another position in retail where you can call someone from another company and get advice or counsel on any facet of the job? Where you can gauge yourself or your company against the best practices of others? LP practitioners care about their peers and advancing the industry.

Think about mentoring. All of us have one or more mentors who have “given” of their time to help make us a better loss prevention professional. I purposely said “all of us,” because I hope that is true. Sometimes this mentoring process is not always obvious. In our interview with Bobby Templet (see page 27), he credits Dan Faketty for helping him, and likely Dan didn’t even know it. That speaks to how we conduct ourselves day in, day out. If you owe a debt of gratitude to a mentor, please “give” them a periodic “thank you.” That is a gift both ways.

Think about conferences. The presentations are all “given” by volunteers. Everyone is a practitioner “giving” their time and knowledge to others. I am always amused by the session critique forms. Everyone deserves an outstanding rating. Public speaking expertise is not nearly as important as the “giving” by the presenter to others.

Think about vendors, who are often seen as individuals who are trying to sell you something. That is their job. But, many can and do more than just sell. They often are mentors, presenters at conferences, contributors to charities or professional initiatives, and advisors on best practices to you or your company. They are some of the biggest “givers” to our industry.

“We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.”

– Sir Winston Churchill

Think about associations. They provide a forum for us to get better as professionals. Each of the associations has individuals that go out of their way to “give” and help individuals and companies. Being a participant at conferences is a good thing, being a “giver” and getting involved in the conferences is even better. Have you thought about doing more?

Think about this magazine. Most of the editorial content is contributed by working professionals who want to share their expertise and experiences with their peers. There are also many others who “give” their support to the magazine in order to advance our profession and educate our young people (see page 6).

Think about your family and friends. Our jobs can often be all consuming, which makes keeping our friends and family foremost in our “giving” even more important. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us, and there are no guarantees that you will “get around to it” to show the ones closest how much you care. Family and friends always have your back.

Think about your purpose. Churchill’s quote bears repeating: “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.”

Happy Holidays. Every day is the season for giving.