Am Sad & Will Miss NPR's “Car Talk”... But Glad Tom & Ray Were Here

Ray (on the left) and Tom Magliozzi

If you've been cave dwelling since 1977, NPR’s “Car Talk” is a show where two fraternal mechanics take calls from people asking for help with car issues. The issues range from the mechanical and electrical to the philosophical, emotional, and/or marital.

No question was too hard, stupid, or silly. But some of the callers … man, there were some gems. 

Tom passed away in 2014, and they’ve been doing “Best Ofs” since. They are finally signing off this September. 

The Brothers Magliozzi are genuine, fun, glib, silly and smart at the same time. Nothing was ever taken too seriously. Tom and Ray are a great duo. Like Batman and Robin. Ross and Rachel. Bert and Ernie. Abbott & Costello. Derek and Clive. They were always engaged, in the moment -- a couple of bungling buddhas. I always felt in on the joke. 

Everyone who called in was in on the joke. The guy who let his check engine light go for months. The woman that drove with the death rattle that she couldn’t find. The wife who wanted her husband to pay more attention to HER CAR rather than his truck. The guy who dealt with the clunk in the trunk by whistling louder. That old guy from New Orleans who swapped out trannies but had extra pieces left over.

If I had to be stranded in the desert with an old jalopy – I’d do it with Tom and Ray. In a heartbeat. Here's what I’ve learned from them.

1) Laugh. You can never laugh enough
Having a sense of humor will get you through a lot. Even $3,000+ engine rebuilds.

2) Empathize with people
Tom and Ray always cared about where people were from and they always made a connection – it was amazing how quickly they did it.

3) Anything safety related was important – the rest – meh
There are things you should care about – tires, brakes, radiators. Other stuff, well if it made a noise but still ran – meh, turn up the radio. Or put black tape over the "Check Engine light." Or don’t put a $2,000 engine into a car worth $800.

4) Don’t be afraid to say, “I don’t know.” Know what you don’t know
But try and solve it anyway. Don’t be hindered by the thought process. There is this great show where they help a guy named Paul fix the electric brakes on his cattle trailer. 

5) Failure can be funny
See #4.

In the shower, I listen for Tom’s laugh alone. Don’t care I can’t hear the caller. They were born to it – you taste their passion and the fun through the speaker.  

In Tommy’s obit from 2014, producer Doug Berman said, "I'd just hear this laughter … And then there'd be more of it, and people would sort of gather around him. He was just kind of a magnet."

We should all be so lucky. And happy.


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(Find more info here if you've, in fact, been a cave dweller since 1977.

And here is a link to Click and Clack quotable quotes. Tell me your favorite...mine's the one about driving with the windows open.)

Tell your Start-up's Story to a 6 Year Old on Day One.

At a NH High Tech Council networking event last night, Gregg Fairbrothers, Founding Director, Dartmouth Entrepreneurial Network discussed interesting innovations opportunities. He also noted that two things most in need are 1) Qualified people to work for these companies, and 2) Investment.

When he asked the group what we thought one might be, I said marketing. I should have said good storytelling.

To obtain #1 and #2, you -- Ms., Mr. and Mrs. Entrepreneur -- must tell story of your company in a coherent manner so that:
1)      People want to work for you.
2)      People want to give you money.

Start-up folks don’t think about such issues early on because they are focused on getting the product to work or their service launched. But building the story (i.e., the elevator pitch, talking points) are as just as important as getting your fungal-based protein expression systems to work (Yes, Virginia, there is a fungal-based protein expression system).

It was Einstein who said that “If you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it yourself.” If you can’t explain why anyone should care about your innovation, what’s so innovative about it?

So Ms., Mr. and Mrs. E: make sure to find someone who can create and tell a good story to a 6-year old. I can almost guarantee it is not you. Nothing personal.

That person knows that in order to get #1 and #2, you must put words together in a way that convinces people your company is innovative, trustworthy, credible and able to take this innovation to implementation. 

They will be so excited that they will want to work for your or give you their last dollar.

It was Buffet who said, “Never invest in a business you cannot understand.” He also said, “Beware of geeks bearing formulas.”

The answers don’t need to be set in stone from Day One, but they need to be drafted, written in pencil. Make them part of your company’s blueprints as you build and begin the journey to success. They will change. 

That’s ok. That’s what happens with blueprints. 

But you get others excited so they want to be part of your success. And they feel engaged and empowered.
So here they story-blueprint questions.

• What is our company? (What are we? What do we want to be?)
• What do we stand for?
• What problem do we solve? Why should anyone care?
• How are we different – and better – than our competitors?
• What three words define our company’s essence

Do you agree? What other 30,000-foot questions might you add? 

Chime in. Please. More brains are better than one.

And beware of geeks baring formulas for fungal-based protein expression systems.

~Rupert Murdoch & the Power Politicians Give Him~

On my way to the mountains this weekend, I heard an NPR Weekend Edition piece about Rupert Murdoch’s influence in the UK and the closing of News of the World (NOW), the 168-year-old weekly newspaper that published its last edition yesterday.

What’s troubling (although not surprising) is how quickly politicians ran away from Murdoch after wanting to curry favor for so long. The piece notes that the past five prime ministers courted Murdoch to get elected and to stay in office.

They all want his blessing when it suits their own needs. But when it doesn’t, they move away quickly and chastise and vilify as they move away. 

What hypocrites. I blame the politicians more than Murdoch. At least his is a constant vision – improve the bottom line and make money. He and James Murdoch saw (quite accurately) NOW had self-destructed and, as a result, would tarnish the Murdoch brand and affect their ability to generate revenue.

The best move? Shut it down since it has lost all credibility … if such a tabloid has such credibility.

What’s also disturbing is that politicians also saw a need to curry favor in order to avoid becoming targets for the next scandal.  By doing so they give Murdoch the power and influence … they shouldn’t.  

UK Prime Minister David Cameron notes that politicians put themselves in a relationship that “became too close, too cozy. We were all in this world of wanting the support of newspaper groups and, yes, even broadcasting organizations.”

Even though they moved away quickly, any intelligent voter can see that they were more than cozy for a time. Public figures are better off focusing their energies on serving the good of their constituents rather than their own self-interests. Focus more on what you stand for rather than what others think or who you must cozy up to. 

Have clear ideas and visions. Foster a willingness to debate and discuss such ideas in an intelligent manner.  Be true to yourself and such favor is unnecessary. That way, they stop giving power and influence to people and organizations that don’t deserve it.

Happy to hear what you think. Do we lack leaders who can think for themselves? How do we encourage leaders to be true to themselves and not look to curry favor? Is there room for this in the current political climate where making extreme declarations is chosen over encouraging dialog?

Stop yelling and people will listen.

I posted this Slate piece on Facebook  outlining how a guy was thrust into the conservative-media spotlight quite unexpectedly after posting footage on YouTube of an Al Gore speech. Here was my thought at the time:

Brian Merchant's article/experience shows that:  1) the Internet is making us all nuts. 2) Cowards/haters hide behind computer screens.  3) The facts don't ever have to get in the way. In fact the more technology the faster the truth fades away.

We can be such machines and make such intractable decisions without looking at and thinking about the facts. It can be much easier for people to tell people how they MUST see them. And if you question them, well you’re not with us. You're with the terrorists.

It pains me to see people jumping to a thoughtless conclusion before a conversation has taken place. Discussion and reflection on issues seems to be "so 1990s." In 2011, it’s all about who can say the most inflammatory statement first and the loudest... and get it up on YouTube/Twitter/FB.

But then I see other things; Facebook/Flickr photos of places that I’ve never been and want to go. Or people’s children and happy dogs swimming in inner tubes. Or thoughtful discussions about what how to help patients communicate better with their doctors.

And then hope re-appears. My point? Use social tools to draw people out and ask them what they think rather then telling them what they should think.

People can choose to give people the benefit of the doubt. They can make sure they've heard others before they speak and try to be heard. It’s not hard; it just starts from a place of common decency and respect for your fellow human being.

I'm just saying.

My Clients: OK So, Don't Listen to Me. Listen to the Journalist. You Know … the Guy Who Has to Listen to You Speak in Acronyms?

While trying to book phone briefings for a tech client, this wonderful reply from James Powell, Editorial Director of Enterprise Systems, came to my Inbox. I share it so that others may learn.

In my time, I’ve said what Mr. Powell outlines below to clients, sometimes, with little or no luck. He's been kind enough to let me share ... certain contact information withheld for his benefit … and mine!

The Lesson? Listen before you speak. You have two ears and one mouth for a reason (to quote everyone’s grandmother).

And thank you, James, for your cooperation.

I hear you.


-----Original Message-----
From: James Powell
Sent: Thursday, May 07, 2009 1:01 PM
To: Robert Minicucci
Subject: [Client name and product] at Interop.. request phone briefing

Hi, Robert.

I will be happy to attend a telephone briefing if:

1. The product has shipped or will be shipping within one week of our meeting. We DO NOT run stories about product announcements -- only products (or services) that are shipping.

2. You avoid all technical jargon. I am not interested in a briefing filled with three-letter acronyms. If you have a new technology or new feature, I want to know the problem it solves, how IT currently tries to solve the problem, and how competing products address (or do not
address) the problem. Save the technology explanations for your press release. I have to cover ALL mainframe technologies; I am not a virtualization expert or a storage expert or a systems expert.

3. The main information drawn for product/service announcements we publish comes from the press packet you send (press release, backgrounders, etc.), NOT from the telephone briefing. Be sure the press release is available at the time of the briefing (we will honor embargoes).

…

If you have further questions, feel free to reply to this message.

James E. Powell
Editorial Director

Would you like some bailout with a side of swine flu?

Is it me or has NPR talked about nothing but these two issues - no one has any money (still) and everyone has the flu.

It has kept me in bed all week ... Who wants to get up when you know "Morning Edition" has nothing good to talk about.

This 24-hour news cycle is making me wheeze. I am travelling to California soon and my first thought is to wear a haz-mat suit on the plane. But then --it occurred to me -- people have the flu all the time. Relax. People get sick all the time. People are sick all the time.

Anyway, hope to wake up tomorrow to hear about a good natural disaster in Korea -- like an earthquake in the mountains or something.

That should help me get out of bed with a spring in my step!

Communication of Institutional Knowledge

Just got off the phone with AT&T -- have been trying to order a phone for my wife all week. It has been one big head bang. Each time, the person on the line knows one thing, but not enough to get me to get my phone.

I just spoke to a great lady. She knew what to do. And did it in record time. Thank you, lady (didn't get her name).

I said she should be a trainer/supervisor. But she didn't want to be a supervisor --too much for her. That's unfortunate because it was clear from the minute she answered my call -- she knew what she was doing. She was a Veteran of the company.

So, Ms. Veteran, thanks to you, I'm staying with AT&T Wireless for two more years.

The lesson: When you stop banging your head and talk to a veteran, things work ... you just have to keep at it. It feels great when you stop.

Next time, I plan to ask the customer service person how long they've been the company ... and then be asked to speak with a Veteran!