The 7 step process to guaranteed success.....or How to Fail your way to Success!

This is the first in a step by step series of articles on how to Fail Your Way to Success...

Step 1

Selling 101( or the art of selling custom made ceramics)

Age 9 - went into my mothers ceramics room and took 24 pieces she made and placed them on my wagon pulling it around the neighborhood, thinking I was going to knock on doors and sell them for $2 each.

Action Taken - of the 11 homes I went to, the first 4 I did not go to the door(I was to scared), at the next group of houses, I knocked on the doors and 3 were not home(what a relief) on the next 2 they smiled and said thank you but no thank you. At the 10th home not only was the lady in the house, she smiled at me(and not close the door) but she asked me to present my wares...here is what I remember telling her...
Umm...I have these statues...you can buy them for ...ummm 50 cents each....(she then bought 5 of them)..bolstered by the air of success I went to the next house, knocked on the door..the lady came to the door and after my very very good presentation...

"I have these beautiful statues for sale for only .25 each..yes ma'am I made all of them...no ma'am they aren't stolen...I made them myself(all 19 pieces left)" she asked me to hold on and then went to the phone and called my house (she was in my mom's ceramic class).

Results - Sales of 5 units for a total of $2.50
COG(Cost of Goods) 2 weeks restriction and a spanking
Profit - negative profit as manufacturing and marketing cost surpassed Sales

Lesson 1 of selling 101 -
Know Your Product, Know Your Target Customer, Know the Cost of Sales
and finally make sure that you NEVER ..EVER...steal from your mothers ceramic cabinet....


Next Article - How to sell in the very lucrative Publishing Industry....



Bonus: So I like to cook a lot and I like to pass along some miniscule experience on my cooking..here is one little bit of fun:

Cooking Da Peeg Island style -

So you want to have a taste of Hawaii but live in Medicine Hat, Montana and you find it a little hard to grab the kids and drive to the islanders local favorite restaurant in the North Shore? Well you can try this Pork BBQ to either feed a few family members or the whole Ranch.

Kalua Pig
- this is similar but different from your North Carolinian BBQ(mine is moister). You do start with the Butt of a Pig...NOT THE SHOULDER....about 10 -15 lbs, take the Butt and cut it into pieces about 2 by 4 inches and lay it in a pan that is about 3-4 inches deep(like a turkey roaster pan)

Take kosher salt and shake it generously all over the meat(pork is very forgiving). You can take garlic powder(I prefer fresh chopped garlic) and spread about 1/3 cup over the meat. Get liquid smoke and place about 1/4 cup over the meat.

Poor into the pan about 2 1/2 inches of water. cover the pan TIGHTLY with foil. Place in the oven at 325 degrees for approx 4-5 hours. You can test it by opening the foil and with a fork see if the meat falls apart. (also if you have a party that is later in the day...you simply turn the temp down to 200 degrees and let it continue to cook...this will easily stay moist for 5 more hours at that temp(just make sure there is at least a little liquid in the pan)

When ready to serve take two forks and shred all the meat mixing it in with the liquids. You can serve this with a spicy BBQ sauce of your making or off the shelf on top of a bun with slaw on the side or on top of the sandwich, or serve it with baked beans, corn on the cob...or if you want it island style..you make sticky rice, mac salad and island slaw(let me know if you want the recipes for these)

Aloha Ya'all