fried chicken philosophy

Lately it seems like I have been doing a lot of thinking.  Where do I want to go next?  What do I want to do, who do I want to go with, how will I get there?  With new job opportunities on the horizon and two years in Saudi under my belt, it seems like the season of change is inevitable.  It might still be 100+ degrees F here, and there are no pumpkins to carve, but Fall is here none-the-less.  This time of year, when the kids go back to school, you close the door on summer fun, and you buckle down for what may come this winter.  This is the time to re-evaluate your priorities and plan for the future.

Not too long ago, the CEO of Al Baik (Saudi's version of KFC) came to KAUST to talk to us about his company's philosophy and values.  "Never work for money.  Work to excel.  Work to develop new ideas to improve life of others.  Always think long term.  What comes fast will go fast."  It seems like pretty lofty goals for a little company that sells fried chicken?  I had forgotten that I had taken a photo of this presentation until I started going through things on my hard drive this afternoon.  But as I kind of laughed at this presentation when I first saw it (I mean come on, dude, you sell FRIED CHICKEN!), now as I think about planning the next step in my life, I am going to try to remember these things that were preached by a chicken salesman, because I think he's got it right.  Even if all you do all day is dunk a drumstick into a vat of oil, do it with conviction, give it your best, improve the process, and most importantly don't be afraid of failure.  In the end, if you really give it your all, you will succeed.

I think Taru from World Tour also states this point very eloquently.

Enjoy the end of the weekend, more on Kilimanjaro coming soon...