The Power of One

"Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look at what they can do when they stick together." -- Vesta Kelly

"I'm a 'small is beautiful' kind of a person," Judy acknowledges. "Rather than grow larger, I prefer to go deeper with what I have. I prefer to ask, 'How can I have deeper, more profound relationships with those around me -- my staff, my customers, my local community, the farmers who grow our food, the farmers who grow our coffee in Mexico?' That's what interests me.

"If the powerful institution of business is directed toward involving everyone in the game, maybe there will someday be a world where everyone has a place at the table. What a great party that would be!"

(Judy's parties are truly distinguished: Each Fourth of July, she dresses up as a pregnant colonial woman with a sign on her back reading, "George Washington Slept Here!" When she gives "birth" to twins on the street, in front of hundreds of revelers, a midwife delivers black and white girls named Liberty and Justice, who jump up and tap dance to the music of "Yankee Doodle Dandy." The crowd lights sparklers and sings "God Bless America.")

Brand Lifeline: Build Your Brand on One, Integrated You

"Everybody can be great . . . because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love." -- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Initially, Judy integrated her passions into her business because of need. She didn't have the time to do community activities and a business, so she put them together. She didn't have time to raise her children, Grace and Lawrence, so they got involved in the White Dog as youngsters. What she ended up with was a powerful way to express herself and differentiate the White Dog through food, fun, and social activism. "The great promise of business is to provide opportunity for everyone," Judy proclaims. "It is to link the energy and power of business with the energy and power of love and compassion for other people."

So, don't leave your values andyour passions at the doorstep of your business. You may be leaving your very best behind. And in any case, bringing all of you to work makes the journey that much more fun.

"My life is an indivisible whole, and all my activities run into one another; and they have their rise in my insatiable love of mankind." -- Mahatma Gandhi

To read more on Judy Wicks, see ML2 E-Newsletter #45 and Ways to Give Back. Read July Wicks' life story in Chapter 3 of my New York Times bestseller, Making a Life, Making a Living.

Copyright © 2000 Dr. Mark S. Albion. All rights reserved.

Read more columns by Mark Albion.

by Mark Albion