The Journey to a New Building: Part 1

Over a year ago, we began looking for a new home for Mackey Advisors. If I had known how difficult this journey would be, I would have likely said, “I think I will pass.” The road to our new space has been filled with potholes, detours, missing map pieces and lots of orange barrels!

We have two goals. The first is to have a space that is simply large enough! We have grown, and subsequently become terribly cramped for space in our current location. We are short of conference room space and have people tucked into every possible corner. Our second goal is to occupy a space that is a living example of our brand.

The first objective was easiest to approach. Taking the number of people times the amount of square feet equals how much space you need. The second goal, creating a living example of our brand, has been a much more challenging task. Naturally, it requires that we have a fundamental understanding of our brand from the inside out.

We began the journey in Covington and Newport with two old and potentially beautiful buildings. We eventually chose not to pursue the one in Newport because it had the misfortune of being located next to a bar painted in the bright orange and black of the Cincinnati Bengals. We were all in agreement that this themed décor did not shout “Prosperity!”

In Covington we found an old bank building and decided to focus our attention there. Sadly, after investing much time and energy into the project we could not make the financials work on the building. Cost effectiveness and conscious spending are two components of Prosperity, so the bank building was soon off the table.

At this point we found ourselves going back to the drawing board. As we continued to look we found spaces that were too big and just as many that were too small. Like Goldilocks, we were having a difficult time finding one that was “just right.”

Unable to find a home in Covington or Newport, we began to broaden our horizons and the small community of Bellevue soon caught our attention. After looking at several buildings we stumbled upon one that, with an addition, would be just right. For the last few months we have been designing, attending public hearings, going through inspections, applying for financing and attending to the many details involved in making this building a new home for Mackey Advisors. If all goes to according to plan, we will be closing by this time next week! We will still have much to do, starting with demolition and ending with a complete remodel.

Along the weaves and turns, we also learned more about our brand, Prosperity. We have always known that Prosperity is more than just money, but usually we are looking at Prosperity from an individual point of view. Throughout this process we had the opportunity to look at it from a business and community point of view.

The building in Bellevue makes financial sense. While Prosperity is not just money, if the money doesn’t work, nothing else does either. With the financials handled, we looked at the larger picture. Prosperity for Mackey Advisors means convenience for our clients and being just off I-471 was a perfect location. Long term, as our clients continue to grow outside the region and our work becomes more Internet based, we know that the building will primarily serve our team.

As we looked at what our team needs to be prosperous, we knew we needed green space. Our new office will have two green spaces, a courtyard and a deck. We will also have a large break room and kitchen. All of the spaces will be designed around the idea that our team needs a place to gather, commune and relax.

We know that the next generation is our future, and they will want to live and work in walk-able communities. Bellevue is one of the few completely walk-able communities in our region.

At Mackey Advisors, we believe Prosperity is for everyone, not just for the well to do. Bellevue has $100,000 homes and $1,000,000 dollar plus condos. It is a community for everyone, from those recently setting out on their journey to Prosperity to those who have been on the path for many years.

Over the next few months we will post pictures so you can follow our progress on our web site and Facebook page. We will also post what the process teaches us about Prosperity along the way.

As always, we welcome your comments and encourage your feedback.

May prosperity invade your space!
Mackey

Never Lose Hope

by: Harvey Mackay

In Greek mythology, Pandora opened her fabled box and let out all evils except for hope, which the Greeks considered to be as dangerous as the world's other evils. Soon they discovered that without hope to offset their troubles, humanity was filled with despair. So Pandora let out hope as well. In the myth, hope was more potent than any of the other major evils.



In modern times, we consider hope to be anything but evil. It's what gets many of us through our worst days. Lingering unemployment, foreclosures, dwindling retirement funds, businesses folding -- any of these could make a person lose hope.



Fortunately, Pandora recognized the relevance of hope -- an element that is critical to our very existence. In the current business climate, hope is what keeps us from throwing in the towel. I'm a realist, but I'm also an optimist. And while hope and optimism are not exactly the same, they are intrinsically linked.



For example, I am optimistic that the economy will eventually improve, and I am hopeful that we can learn lasting lessons from events that led to our business challenges. But I can't just wait and hope. I have to help things happen.



Hope looks at what is possible and builds on that. As former television executive and author SQuire Rushnell (yes, that's the way he spells his name) puts it, "Take the 'imp' out of impossible!" Instead, he says, read it as "I'm possible."



In one of my favorite inspirational books, Tough Times Never Last, but Tough People Do, my friend Robert Schuller offers up this observation: "Understand the power of this word: impossibility. When uttered aloud, this word is devastating in its effect. Thinking stops. Progress is halted. Doors slam shut. Research comes to a screeching halt. Further experimentation is torpedoed. Projects are abandoned. Dreams are discarded. The brightest and the best of creative brain cells turn off. In this defensive maneuver, the brain shelters itself against the painful sting of insulting disappointments, brutal rejections, and dashed hopes.



"But let someone utter the magic words, it's possible. Buried dreams are resurrected. Sparks of fresh enthusiasm flicker. Tabled motions are brought back to the floor. Dusty files are reopened. Lights go on again in the darkened laboratories. Telephones start ringing. Typewriters make clattering music. Budgets are revised and adopted. 'Help wanted' signs are hung out. Factories are retooled and reopened. New products appear. New markets open. The recession has ended. A great new era of adventure, experimentation, expansion and prosperity is born."



This advice, penned more than 25 years ago, is just as pertinent today. In fact, when you consider the advances of the past quarter century, look at how we have changed the face of businesses: Did anyone have a website in 1985? What was your cell phone number? Were you video-conferencing with your South American office with the touch of a button?



What will the next 25 years hold? I suspect that coming generations will use their technologies in ways we are just beginning to imagine are possible. I am certain that products will be developed that will make life easier, safer, and better. I have every hope that we have the brainpower and the will to do just that.



But we cannot accomplish much at all if we don't have hope. Hope is believing that every cloud has a silver lining, and when that cloud rains, it makes things grow. And then the sun comes out again.



British anthropologist Jane Goodall has spent more than 50 years conducting landmark research on wild chimpanzees and great apes and observing the tremendous power of nature to restore itself. She shares these thoughts:



"I carry a few symbols with me … to remind me of the hope that there is in the world: the human brain, with the technology that we are now working to try and live in greater harmony with the environment; the resilience of nature; the tremendous energy, commitment, excitement, and dedication of young people once they know what the problems are and we empower them to act to do something about it. And finally, the indomitable human spirit, those people who tackle impossible tasks and won't give in … that are shining inspiration to those around them."



Mackay's Moral: Hope for the best and then find a way to make it happen.



[This article appears courtesy of Early to Rise ]