Thinking about booking a Membership Event in 2003? Although we would love to work for you, unless there is a cancellation, Think 2004! if you want a successful and enjoyable Membership Event with YCC, start planning for the future now. I guarantee the wait will be worth it!

How high is up? How high can we go?  How high can you go? It took us almost 10 years to top 400 paid new members in less than a week. McAllen, Texas did it at the end of 1999.  Then in March of 2002, Beaumont, Texas topped them with 433, followed by Round Rock, Texas’ 442 this year. We don’t know how many paid new members we can bring in for you in less than a week, but if you follow the YCC plan, who knows what record you can break!

Questions Dept:- What do you say when you hear that your competition says that you “are all flash and glitter?”
Macy: As one that is on the outside most of the time but gets to see the results, let me answer the question with a question.
What would you rather have: a successful membership drive that has a new member turnover of over 50% and turns volunteers into nonvolunteers for the future? Or would you rather have a successful Membership Event that heightens retention for both existing members and new members, makes the volunteers far more knowledgeable about their Chamber, and turns nonparticipating volunteers of the past into active volunteers for future Chamber Events?
No contest! Volunteers don’t want to be pushed into a membership drive. They want to enjoy themselves while patting themselves on the back for being part of a success. 
Please don’t construe my statement as arrogance. I am merely stating what I hear from Chamber executives and volunteers. We don’t get plaudits and call backs because Lorraine and Jimmy don’t do their job. The results are a matter of record.

AN URGENT WORD TO THE WISE DEPT: This went out to  all Texas Chamber of Commerce Executive Members from Sean Corrigan of the TCCE: (For reasons of space, this is a synopsis.) Chambers of Commerce and city agencies in Texas have been receiving threatening letters from Brazil with suspicious brown or green powder enclosed. I contacted the Texas Department of Health and found that these claims are true. I spoke to Marie at the Lubbock Chamber, and they indeed received such an envelope with powder which at first tested positive for Ricin- although a second testing by the Center for Disease Control found the package to be negative for Ricin. Regardless, we encourage everyone to be vigilant and take precautions. If you receive a suspicious envelope from Brazil, you should not open it. If you do open an envelope, and it contains a powder, contact your local police department and regional FBI office. Obviously, do not handle such material and sanitize the area where the envelope was opened with a mixture of 9 parts water to 1 part chlorine bleach. THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH sent out an e-mail confirming the above and listing the following websites that can be helpful if you should be sent the above described packets in the mail: http://www.bt.cdc.gov/DocumentsApp/Anthrax/10312001/han50.asp. For information about Rricin as a bioterrorism agent, see http://www.tdh.state.tx.us/bioterrorism/facts/ricin.html and http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/ricin/faq/index.asp. Julie Rawlings Deputy State Epidemiologist Texas Department of Health phone 512-458-7228 cell 512-826-7638 FAX 512-458-7472 and/or Nancy Neighbors, RN,C Bioterrorism Coordinator Hays County Health Department 512/393-5520.
PLEASE BE CAUTIOUS!

SIGNS OF THE TIMES DEPT: >At a Proctologist's door: "To expedite your visit please back in."
>On a Plumber's truck: "We repair what your husband fixed."
>On another Plumber's truck:
"Don't sleep with a drip. Call your plumber."
>At a Tire Shop in Milwaukee: "Invite us to your next blowout."
>On a Plastic Surgeon's Office door:
"Hello. Can we pick your nose?"
>On an Electrician's truck: "Let us remove your shorts."
>In a Nonsmoking Area:  "If we see smoke, we will assume you are on fire and take appropriate action."
>On a Maternity Room door: "Push. Push. Push."
>At an Optometrist's Office: "If you don't see what you're looking for, you've come to the right place."
>On a Taxidermist's window: "We really know our stuff."
>Outside a Muffler Shop: "No appointment necessary. We hear you coming."
>In a Veterinarian's waiting room:
"Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay!"
>At the Electric Company: "We would be delighted if you send in your payment.  However, if you don't, you will be."
>In a Restaurant window: "Don't stand there and be hungry, Come on in and get fed up."
>In the front yard of a Funeral Home: "Drive carefully. We'll wait."
>At a Propane Filling Station:
"Tank Heaven for little grills."
>And don't forget the sign at a Chicago Radiator Shop: "Best place in town to take a leak."



REALITY DEPT: Are you among the millions of people hooked on Reality   T.V.? Whether you like it or not, you’ll love Jimmy’s YCC “Badda Boom, Badda Bing” Reality Chamber Retreat Programs. The reality of today’s Chamber programs is…….. You can’t do it all by yourself. You need cooperation and effort from board members as well as staff. You have to have a program of work that is useful to the members and the business community. You have to plan what to do and do what you plan!
Comments like: “Your insight and planning will help our Chamber "survive".  And; “Your input at our recent Board Retreat was invaluable!  After 18 years of annual board planning retreats, your “Badda Boom, Badda Bing” half day presentation was a real eye opener for everyone in attendance,” are earned not bandied about. You want the reality and truth about successful Chambers? Call us at 800/678-6241. The reality is that you won’t be disappointed. When you hear Jimmy’s, “Why?” you understand the answer, “Why not!”  is not too far the other way.




BOOK DEPT: Every Chamber should be looked at as a resource for the business community. A “resource” includes a library. Here are a few authors I know and respect that could be part of your resource library. 
#1 is a new concept reprint of Danny Cox’s “Leadership When The Heat’s On: 24 Lessons in High Performance Management,“ a derivative of his bestseller by McGraw Hill. This publisher came up with the idea to soft cover and edit for quick reading some of the best business and motivational books ever printed. Along with Danny they chose to reprint Jack Welch, the ex CEO of GE, Vince Lombardi, and Secretary of State Colin Powell, along with a few other great business leaders. The price is low ($6.00 in high quantities  $7.95 in small lots) and worthwhile reading for anyone in management now or aspiring to be in management. This is the book that every manager should always carry with him. Order through McGraw-Hill 800/842-3075 or call Danny direct at 714/838-3030.
Author#2 is salesman/trainer extraordinaire and real-life magician, Ed Callaghan. Ed is president of the National Training Corporation and has been training salespeople and sales managers for over 25 years. Ed has compiled a wealth of information, resources, and advice for the newly initiated salesperson and the veteran. His tape parogram,  The Magic of Selling ($69.95) and book, Sell On Purpose, Not By Accident ($12.95) are a must in every sales library.
Ed’s books and tapes can be purchased by calling 800/896-9500, fax 817/430-275, or email Ed at NTCA@aol.com.
Author number 3 is a true story of what you can accomplish if you only try by Jimmy Cabrerra. “What’s In Your Backpack? Packing for Success in Life” A really good book for your education program committees. A great link for the Chamber and your school systems.
The strength of this book stems from the fact that it gives you eight of the most powerful success tools you will ever find regardless of how you define success.
This book is for people who: …keep themselves so busy that they lose sight of the most important things in life; …want to have it all, spend it all, and enjoy it all; …dream big and stretch their limits at every turn; …say they are happy but feel an unsetting emptiness inside; …have the courage to change and the will to succeed  no matter what; …instead of becoming a legend  Leave a Legacy!                         
 This book is for adults and school age children of all backgrounds and cultures. For $21.95 you can invest in yourself or someone you care about. Contact Jimmy at www.JimmySpeaks.com or call to order at 800/437-4226.

Computer DEPT: Subject: The true meaning of upgrading:
Dear Tech Support
Last year I upgraded from Boyfriend 5.0 to Husband 1.0 and noticed a slowdown in overall performance, particularly in the flower and jewelry applications that had operated flawlessly under Boyfriend 5.0. 
In addition, Husband 1.0 uninstalled many other valuable programs, such as Romance 9.5 and Personal Attention 6.5, but installed undesirable programs such as NFL 5.0 and NBA 3.0. And now Conversation 8.0 no longer runs and House Cleaning 2.6 simply crashes the system.
I've tried running Nagging 5.3 to fix these problems but to no avail.
What can I do?
Signed,         

Desperate

And the reply:
Dear Desperate: 
First keep in mind, Boyfriend 5.0 is an entertainment package while Husband 1.0 is an operating system.
Try entering the command C:\I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME and download Tears 6.2 to install Guilt 3.0. 
If all works as designed, Husband 1.0 should then automatically run the applications Jewelry 2.0 and Flowers 3.5. But remember, overuse can cause Husband 1.0 to default to Grumpy Silence 2.5, Happy Hour 7.0,or Beer 6.1. 
Beer 6.1 is a very bad program that will create Snoringloudly.wav files.
Whatever you do, DO NOT install Mother-in-law 1.0 or reinstall another Boyfriend program. These are not supported applications and will crash Husband 1.0. 
In summary, Husband 1.0 is a great program, but it does have a limited memory and cannot learn new applications quickly. You might consider additional software to improve memory and performance. I personally recommend Hot Food 3.0 and Lingerie 6.9.
Good Luck,      

Tech Support