Both sons, Ben and Sam, have complained in the past about having full-time jobs during the summer. According to them, none of their friends "has to" work that number of hours. When he had a full-time job the first summer, Ben used to lament his friends were having fun without him. He wasn’t part of the group, and he was missing out on the inside jokes because he wasn’t there to be part of them. And Sam told his dad and me last summer that he just "wanted a break" once in awhile. Why should he wash his own dishes when he had just worked an eight-hour shift? (I’m not sure he had thought that one through before he said it to me as I was coming in the door from, ahem, work.)
Sorry to say, their complaints fell on deaf ears. They needed to learn about work—the kind that goes beyond me harping on them to walk the dog—and, by the way, have their own money and learn how to manage it. If you are buying your own gas, you take an interest in gas prices and how many times you drive to the movie versus your friends.
Now that Ben is older, those summer jobs taught him a lot, including that if you work hard, you are building a work history that will bring you rewards later. And Sam has admitted that it feels good to be acknowledged for a job well done and be the one they count on to fill in for others. Also, P.S., it’s nice to start college in September with some money in your pocket.
The subject of our cover story this month, Lane Kofoed, would probably agree with me. Kofoed is the CEO of Assisting Hands, a senior-care franchise. He lives on a farm and when he gets home from work at night, his kids don’t need to go elsewhere to look for work. A working farm needs those extra hands to get the chores done, like milking cows twice a day. Franchise Times Executive Editor Nancy Weingartner spent a couple of days in Idaho, shadowing Kofoed at work, but also at home. So much of what Kofoed lives at home carries over to work, and vice versa. Life lessons become business lessons. How he runs his business is how he raises a family—it’s hard work, and everyone has a job to do. That’s how things get done. You’ll want to read Nancy’s account of life on the ranch and how that translates over to work life.
Publisher Mary Jo can be reached at 612-767-3200 or at [email protected]
Publisher Reach Mary Jo at 612-767-3208 or [email protected]
We also have continued to expand our international section this month. Contributing writer Julie Bennett traveled to Eastern Europe in September and you’ll be interested to read her report on the Czech Republic and more. One thing reads loud and clear: Franchising could really go beyond the Golden Arches and other fast feeders—there’s room for more U.S.-based companies. Some could even be ground breakers, such as how RE/MAX Realty changed the way Eastern Europeans bought houses. And we have an interview with a seasoned international franchise executive who gives tips on what to do—and what not to do—when working with international franchise prospects. While international travel sounds glamorous, it’s mostly not. We’ll help you examine how to make it worth the extra work.
A new feature this month is financial reporter Jonathan Maze’s column on the latest information on the restaurant industry. Jonathan also writes for our sister publication, the Restaurant Finance Monitor, and has his ear to the ground on the latest in financial news for this industry. His reporting includes pull-no-punches commentary, when warranted. I follow him on Twitter, too, and he easily keeps me up to date on the most recent occurrences.
And just for fun, we’ve paired up GOP candidate Rick Perry with franchising. How? You’ll have to scour the issue to find out.
Really, there’s so much good reading in this issue, I can’t mention it all here. This time your job will be easy. Although, as I tell Ben and Sam, a little hard work never hurt anyone. (Insert their eyerolls here. I wonder if Kofoed’s kids roll their eyes?)
