A long time ago, when I lived in Colombia, a Colombian university student shared an observation from his visit to a small town in Louisiana. He was amazed that in that town, a newspaper was sold 100% on trust. He saw a stack of papers, out in the open, being sold unsupervised, although surely with an iron weight on top OF the publications just in case it got windy and a small change bowl with a sign that read “Newspapers 10 cents each”.
At that time, Colombia was racked by the cocaine wars and terrible crime and corruption. That reliance on basic honesty was stunning to the Colombian and would strike many foreigners new to America as naive. But they miss something that’s fundamental to our nation-trust which has been the bedrock of free enterprise and personal success even despite humble beginnings marked by poverty and the need to “bootstrap” in life just to survive and eventually get on one’s feet and get ahead.
Having personal fortitude or “grit” is fundamental in becoming a person that others trust. This very topic of trust and being worthy of it was the backdrop for the interview of Stacy C Notley of the Manning Group on the Bill McIntosh Show. Indeed, Stacy has stories to tell about life and success!
He related how at one time in Texas and other places, you just shook hands and agreed to something. Your word was your bond and bankers knew you and your parents, and they trusted you as being reliable because they saw how you conducted yourself and that was the basis of getting a loan. Now its credit scores, more than personal knowledge of an individual that is the determinant of getting financing and that precise credit agency score of one’s past behaviors dealing with money, work and debt obligations is what matters now.
And so what happens when the unexpected occurs and you’re left in tatters, financially speaking? Along these lines Stacy, who hails from Texas, had amazing experiences to share that are relatable to life. One was starting over in his thirties after an ambitious project went bust and he ended up, newly married, $5 million in debt. He commented about bouncing back and it’s applicable, nowadays for those born in the 1980’s or 1990’s:
“One day at a time. We say right here [that] the problem is never the problem, how you deal with it is….I’d get a mentor, get a coach…Warren Buffet started out with coaching… get with someone smarter than you to work with…ask questions. My mother used to say you have two ears and one mouth and use your ears”.
Life happens and establishing or repairing one’s reputation to be deemed creditworthy can make or break achieving the American dream. Getting a helping hand with difficulties like this is what Stacy C Notley is all about. So does making it in life require a national implementation of “equity” type programs to redress economic difficulties supposedly resulting from racism? Stacy Notley shredded this.
At a young age his father died and he had to help his mother make ends meet at 11 years old by earning a few needed dollars mowing lawns. Such experiences are the beginnings of great economic success seen later in life as they teach character and resourcefulness that no attempt at governmental redress can obtain.
Given the recent news about former President Trump’s National Security Advisor General Michael Flynn having his Chase bank account “mistakenly” closed and knowing about the coercive “Social Credit Scoring” in China Stacy agreed that the window on freedom is closing in America and that the idea of America becoming like China is unthinkable.
Stacy Notley learned that establishing oneself is a combination of effort and at times literally diving into the deep end of the pool called life and learning under pressure but also getting help from others who can assist. Basic human kindness as well as virtue are the prerequisites to get ahead. These are values that Stacy C. Notley holds dear. Find out more about Stacy and what he does to help others at the manning-group.com