Musings from the NAFCU CU Suite

Your Credit Union Weekend Reading Pile, Courtesy of NAFCU

Written by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

It has been a great week. I hope you had a chance to see our new website. And NAFCU awarded its 1,000th NCCO designation during this week's regulatory compliance conference. 

And as a typical week in March would have it, we've had rain, sun, and snow. Bring on the weekend! 

Now, on to this week's reads.

• Target and Kroger are thinking about merging. (Fast Company)
• Overpinnings and underpinnings. (Godin)
• Silicon Valley: Make way for the Midwest. (Inc.)
• LA is painting streets white to combat the heat. (BI)
• How to see opportunity everywhere. (Leadership Freak)
• More than half of homes subscribe to video streaming. (FastCo)
• The best way to end an email? (Inc.)
• Miami Dolphins. 30 percent of new ticket sales come from Facebook leads. (Inc.)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

- Anthony

Toys R Us

Written by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

By now, you've heard that Toys R Us is shutting its doors in the U.S.

It is just the latest big box retailer to fall victim to the changing marketplace.

It is easy to see them as the large, clumsy dinosaur that was unable to survive in the new world.

But that's too easy and does the company a bit of a disservice.

Toys R Us was ahead of its time. Founded by Charles Lazarus, it was originally a furniture store. Lazarus was a WWII veteran, and he heard GI after GI tell him of plans to head home after the war and start a family. From furniture, the store shifted to toys. Toys R Us used computers earlier than many companies. Inc. did a nice job showing the history of the company. 

Here's a roughly 5-minute video that details the rise of Toys R Us. (YouTube)

Here's a possible management team meeting idea for you.

1. Have your team watch that video, and discuss how a company so ahead of its time at one point, just shuttered 800 stores.
2. Next, brainstorm on how that very same thing could happen at your credit union? 

***

 NAFCU alert: Here are two upcoming events to put on your calendar.

• NAFCU's CEOs and Senior Executives Conference in lovely Napa, California. April 18-20.
• NAFCU's Annual Conference, in Seattle, Washington. June 19-22.

Your Weekend Reading Pile, Courtesy of NAFCU

Compiled by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

Life changes as you plow through the years.

Earlier on, this time of year had me visiting some city to watch the first round of the NCAA Basketball tournament. 

Now, this time of year has me planning birthday parties for Kate and Briggs - who entered the world on St. Patrick's Day in 2009. 

Less basketball. More cupcakes and balloons.

Life changes as you plow through the years. And that's a wonderful thing!

Now, on to this week's reading pile.

• Everyone has an accent. (Godin)
• Three ways great leaders communicate. (Berger Leadership Blog)
• GM is piloting a P2P car sharing service. (BI)
• Never underestimate the power of the job description. (Inc.)
• 18 ways we make bad decisions. (Visual Capitalist)
• Toys R Us is gone. But when it started, it was cutting edge. (Inc.)
• 11 Inspiring and Funny Quotes from Stephen Hawking. (Entrepreneur)
• Distinction bias - why we make bad life choices. (Psychology Today)
• Yes. A thousand times, yes. How you do anything is how you do everything. (ThriveGlobal)
• 100 years later, the madness of daylight savings time endures. (Smithsonian)
• The power of narrative. (A Wealth of Common Sense)

Here's one of my favorite shots. Kate and Briggs with their cousin Eaghon (middle) while in Kilkenny, Ireland.

Erin go Bragh!

Forest Man: A Lesson for All of Us

Written by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

About 30 years ago, Jadav Payeng started planting trees.

He lives in India near a large island in the Brahamputra River. Flooding and other issues had turned the island into a "wasteland." 

Jadav didn't like what he saw, and like I said earlier, he started planting trees.

Thirty years later, his "forest" is twice as large as Central Park. It is now home to a huge array of wildlife. 

You can watch a 16-minute video of his story here. It is powerful. It could be useful for a staff meeting to show the power of perseverance. And an example of what one person can achieve. 

***

 NAFCU's annual conference is coming up this summer. Here are five great reasons to attend.

1. We have a new format. Day two will have a number of shorter, hard-hitting talks from the main stage, followed by more in-depth workshops in the afternoon. Be a better leader. A better board. A better credit union. Or a better business. 
2. Are you new to the industry? We'll have a workshop for volunteers to detail their role and how it fits into our industry.
3. Networking opportunities will abound. Bring your business cards and get ready to share ideas. 
4. Seattle. It is ranked as the No. 2 city to live in. The second best tech city. The most growth. It is beautiful in its own right and is also a great launching point for trips into the Northwest and Canada.
5. Fun. We work in a great industry. We live in a great country. Work hard, and play hard. The week will be full of information and dialogue. But it will also be fun. Jeff Foxworthy will perform, and there are plenty of wonderful restaurants and attractions to visit.

For more details, go here. I hope to see you there!

 

 

Really? Why would he do that?

Written by Anthony Demangone

It was around 1992, I think. My friend Andrew and I were chatting.

Andrew was a good friend of Penn State's placekicker, Craig Fayak. Of course, I was a huge fan. (Still am.)

I asked him what kind of guy Fayak was.

Andrew said this story should tell you all you need to know. When Fayak was picking elective classes at Penn State, he'd ask everyone he knew this question.

"What's the hardest class you took at Penn State." 

When it was time to pick his electives, he chose classes from that list. 

At the time, all I could think of was why anyone would do that to themselves. 

Fast forward to today, and I read something that made me think of Fayak.

It was an article about Warren Buffet. A 14-year-old asked him for advice. His response?

It's better to hang out with people better than you. Pick out associates whose behavior is better than yours and you'll drift in that direction.

The article is worth your read. And the advice is true.

And it seemed to work for Fayak. In 1990 as a freshman, his kick gave Penn State the win over No. 1 Notre Dame. 

Certainly good enough for me!

***

Seats are filling up for NAFCU's CEOs and Senior Executives Conference. 

April 18-20. Meritage Resort and Spa, Napa, California. 

Go here for more details. 

Your Weekend Reading Pile, Courtesy of NAFCU

Compiled by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

I spent most of this week in Nashville at NAFCU's Strategic Growth Conference. 

It was a great conference - the Growth conference ever. Three huge points were driven home:

1. Allow growth (loans, membership) to take place without the need to visit a branch. If your member needs to print, sign and mail/deliver something - there are competitors who deliver that service without that friction.
2. Know your data. Understand your data. Act on that data. 
3. Your mobile experience should be the same as your branch experience. If you can do something in the branch, you should be able to do it via mobile. 

I learned a lot, met a bunch of great people, and listened to some fantastic music. It was a good week.

Now, on to this week's reading pile. 

• 2018 hottest housing markets. (The Big Picture)
• NAFCU updated its very popular ADA FAQ document. (NAFCU Today)
• Meet Flippy, your burger-flipping robot helper. (FastCo)
• Amazon is tip-toe-ing toward offering a checking account. (Reuters)
• Have a Coke and a...buzz. Coke will offer its first alcoholic beverage in Japan. (Bloomberg)
• Foursquare CEO lays out where the future of retailing will live. (Yahoo Finance)
• Cultivating high-performance teams. (Berger Leadership Blog)
• February jobs report: Boom! 313K jobs added. (Calculated Risk)
• Success: Talent or Luck? This study may surprise you. (Technolgy Review)
• Ideas that changed my life. (Collaborative Fund)

Enjoy the reads, and have a fantastic weekend.

Your Weekend Reading Pile, Courtesy of NAFCU

Compiled by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

Well, that's a first.

The Federal Government is closed today in the Washington, D.C. region.

Because of high winds. 

There's probably a joke in there somewhere, but I'll leave it alone. 

Now on to the best of this week's reading pile.

• Your next car might be a subscription. (FastCo) 
• Six approaches to inspire and motivate. (Berger Leadership Blog)
• 10 breakthrough technologies for 2018. (MIT Tech Review)
• One of the most heartwarming stories about how one person can make a massive difference. (Inc.)
• Silicon Valley parents are raising their kids to be "tech-free." (BI)
• What doesn't get done gets noticed. (ShepHyken)
• BOA is adding 500 branches. (Charlotte Observer)
• Consumers are getting more comfortable with mobile loans. (Bank Innovation)
• Berkshire Hathaway's 2017 annual report. (PDF)
• Wells Fargo's mobile banking agenda for 2017. (Bank Innovation)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

 

Who is your competition?

Written by Anthony Demangone, Powered by NAFCU

It looks like Bank of America is playing offense.

A recent article notes that the bank is adding 5,400 jobs and 500 branches nationwide. 

With that in mind, it looks like your credit union may be competing with BOA if it isn't already. 

But you know the real truth. You already compete with Bank of America. You have been for years. 

It all begs the question - who do you compete with?

• The other financial institutions in town? 
• FinTechs?
• Any financial institution with a website and mobile banking? 
• Peer to peer lenders?
• Pawnbrokers?
• Check cashers? 
• Payday loan companies?
• Every business in your town when it comes to talent?

I'm guessing that many of you would say yes to all of them.

So, how do you compete with everyone? 

That becomes a competition within. The push to be the best version of "you" possible. To push your credit union to be the best possible version of itself. 

And then to rinse and repeat. 

Every. Single. Day. 

I know I'm preaching to the choir. I've spoken to so many of you. You're a "tribe" of hustle.  And I love it.

Have a great Thursday, everyone.