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Archive for November, 2015

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Attention sports fans which athletes have stayed around too long??

Monday, November 30th, 2015

As I watch Peyton Manning throw each pass I see less and less speed and arm strength. Yes he is a great quarterback, one of the best, but not now! Unfortunately, those days are past. Next stop is the Hall of Fame for sure. I just wish he would find a way to realize he needs to walk away.

Many athletes can’t, and who knows, if I were an athlete perhaps my competitive juices would be burning and I wouldn’t walk away until I had too.

I do wonder if the last few years of a superstar’s career – with less production – does it hurt their legacy?

There have been plenty of stars that have stayed too long. Some may say that Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and Brett Favre would make such a list.

What do you say?

  • Is it time for Peyton to ride off into the sunset?
  • What athletes have stayed around too long?
  • If an athlete stays too long what does it do to their legacy?

I look forward to reading your comments.

Posted in Sports | Post Comments (6) »

Are You Ready For Some Football? Join The Week 13 Merrill Dubrow Blog Football Pool!

Wednesday, November 25th, 2015

Congratulations go out to Terry Salat who had 12 wins and won week 11. With the win, Terry beat out 279 participants and takes home the $50 American Express gift card. In addition, Terry joins Mike B, Old Ace, Brad Larson, Sharon Gautschy, Fat Chuck, two time winner Beth Howe, Steven Sienkowski, Tim Antoniewicz, David Leicht, Erica Williard, and Cheryl Wurtzer-Zarrillo to qualify for championship week:

To see the current standings, click here. The results page shows this week’s current standings as well as the cumulative rankings.

Remember, the weekly winners will be given a spot in the grand prize pool which will be during week 17 for an opportunity to win $500 and, of course, bragging rights for the next 6 months. In addition, the two people who have the highest cumulative score (these standings will be updated weekly) will be given a spot in the grand prize pool along with the weekly winners. As of right now Beth Howe with 111 wins & Holly Cairey with 107 have the two top spots!

All picks need to be in by 5:00pm (CST) on Thursday, December 3.

Click here to participate in this week’s pool.

Feel free to share the link and have friends, colleagues, relatives, kids and anyone else you want join the pool.

Enjoy the holiday season!

Posted in Contests, Friday Fun | Post Comments (264) »

You either have it or you don’t?

Monday, November 23rd, 2015

I remember when I was growing up I was a paper boy after school and on the weekends, I was mowing my parents yard and as needed (often living in Boston) shoveling the driveway! Did I enjoy it a ton? Probably not! Did I enjoy it even a little, probably not, and clearly to do most of those chores wasn’t my choice. That choice was made for me…Thanks Mom & Dad! Many of you think I am probably being sarcastic but I really mean it when I say thanks Mom & Dad! You gave me something that is very valuable, that has stuck with me for decades! And, something many don’t have, and I would argue you can’t teach after a certain age – Work Ethic!

From the first day I started at M/A/R/C I get into the office early. Am I really 100% effective at 6:15am – perhaps not but for me getting my day started early, accomplishing a few things off my list sets the tone for the rest of the day!

I have noticed that work ethic has slipped over the years. Often I will walk into a retail store and many customer service reps are on their iPhone or updating their Facebook status! Being old, I couldn’t do that when I was growing up and if we did something like that we would be sent home.

One of my biggest fears is that work ethic has slipped and, who knows, is a thing of the past!

  • What do you think?
  • How do you view today’s work ethic?
  • What happened?
  • How can we change it?

I look forward to reading your comments.

Posted in Life | Post Comments (4) »

Are You Ready For Some Football? Join The Week 12 Merrill Dubrow Blog Football Pool!

Friday, November 20th, 2015

Congratulations go out to Mike B who had 9 wins and won a tough week filled with upsets. With the win, Mike B beat out 286 participants and takes home the $50 American Express gift card. In addition, Mike B joins Old Ace, Brad Larson, Sharon Gautschy, Fat Chuck, two time winner Beth Howe, Steven Sienkowski, Tim Antoniewicz, David Leicht, Erica Williard, and Cheryl Wurtzer-Zarrillo to qualify for championship week. The Jacksonville Jaguars started off week 11 with a win over the Titans. At the end of the night 190 people picked the game right and are now all tied for first place:

To see the current standings, click here. The results page shows this week’s current standings as well as the cumulative rankings.

The 11th week we had 280 participants. The winner will receive $50. Remember, the weekly winners will be given a spot in the grand prize pool which will be during week 17 for an opportunity to win $500 and, of course, bragging rights for the next 6 months. In addition, the two people who have the highest cumulative score (these standings will be updated weekly) will be given a spot in the grand prize pool along with the weekly winners. As of right now Beth Howe with 101 wins & Holly Cairey with 100 have the two top spots!

BECAUSE OF THANKSGIVING ALL picks need to be in by 12:00pm (CST) on Thursday, November 26.

Click here to participate in this week’s pool.

Feel free to share the link and have friends, colleagues, relatives, kids and anyone else you want join the pool.

Good luck to all.

P.S. 52% of the participants will spend the same amount on holiday gifts this year as they spent last year!

Posted in Contests, Friday Fun, Sports | Post Comments (278) »

Shopping on Thanksgiving Yes or No? Let the debate begin.

Wednesday, November 18th, 2015

As many of you know Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. It is the one time I know for sure I will see my parents and my kids will be with their grandparents. This is a tradition that has gone on with our family for decades. For me, Thanksgiving is all about eating bad food, watching football, and laughing with loved ones. From time to time someone in the house may say “hey lets go shopping” and by that they mean lets go shopping to a retail store not a grocery or convenience store because we just ran out of something.

I read a month ago that Staples will be closed on Thanksgiving and REI recently said the same thing.

I strongly believe this is a day that everyone should be home with their family and not working. I totally understand that companies need to have sales, hit numbers, and increase shareholder value but not on Thanksgiving.

  • What do you think?
  • Do you like to go shopping on Thanksgiving?
  • What do you think about Staples and REI’s decision to be closed?

I look forward to your thoughts.

Posted in Business | Post Comments (7) »

Say good bye to beeps in the office?

Monday, November 16th, 2015

Ok I can remember back in the day (since I am old and experienced) when someone handed you a phone message or left one on your desk. Years later we had voicemail which was easy, convenient, and efficient. Decades later all of us have gotten use to calling someone in their office and leaving a message after the beep. Well perhaps those days are short lived!

No longer can you leave a voice mail at Coca-Cola Co.’s Atlanta headquarters. A little less than a year ago they said good bye to that old technology! Yes no MORE voicemail!

I don’t have a long list of companies that have followed. In fact, I don’t even have a short list. But while I think it is a creative change that perhaps is needed, I believe others, in fact lots of companies, will follow!

What do you think?

  • About Coca Cola saying good bye to voicemail?
  • Do you know of other companies that have done the same thing?
  • Do you get less voicemail messages now than a year or two ago?
  • How would you react if your company eliminated your voicemail system?

I look forward to reading your comments.

Posted in Business | Post Comments (3) »

Are You Ready For Some Football? Join The Week 11 Merrill Dubrow Blog Football Pool!

Friday, November 13th, 2015

Congratulations go out to Old Ace who won week 9 with 11 wins. With the win, Brad beat out 295 participants and takes home the $50 American Express gift card. In addition, Old Ace joins Brad Larson, Sharon Gautschy, Fat Chuck, two time winner Beth Howe, Steven Sienkowski, Tim Antoniewicz, David Leicht, Erica Williard, and Cheryl Wurtzer-Zarrillo to qualify for championship week. The Buffalo Bills started off week 10 with a big divisional win over the New York Jets. At the end of the night 98 people picked the game right and are now all tied for first place:

To see the current standings, click here. The results page shows this week’s current standings as well as the cumulative rankings.

The 10th week we had 288 participants. The winner will receive $50. Remember, the weekly winners will be given a spot in the grand prize pool which will be during week 17 for an opportunity to win $500 and, of course, bragging rights for the next 6 months. In addition, the two people who have the highest cumulative score (these standings will be updated weekly) will be given a spot in the grand prize pool along with the weekly winners. As of right now Beth Howe with 96 wins & Holly Cairey with 93 have the two top spots!

All picks need to be in by 5:00pm (CST) on Thursday, November 19.

Click here to participate in this week’s pool.

Feel free to share the link and have friends, colleagues, relatives, kids and anyone else you want join the pool.

Good luck to all.

P.S. 36% of the participants favorite player is a quarterback while 26% don’t have a favorite player!

Posted in Contests, Sports | Post Comments (283) »

I’m sorry….

Wednesday, November 11th, 2015


  • I’m sorry!
  • My bad!
  • It won’t happen again!
  • My mistake I’m really sorry!

To some people those words are foreign! To some people they just aren’t able to review a situation and find areas that they could have done a little bit better or they were totally wrong. Without question I have made mistakes, in fact many. Regardless, in my personal or business life there are plenty. With each situation I am hopeful that I learned a little bit. I grew a little bit, matured, and because of that situation I am a little stronger, wiser, and better for it.

I am sure we all know someone:

  • Who isn’t able to say these words?
  • Who regardless of the situation always blames everyone else?
  • Who just can’t say I’m sorry?

How do you handle it and what do you say to them?

I look forward to reading your comments.

P.S. My hope is that all of us can learn from this post!

Posted in Business, Life | Post Comments (6) »

Interesting service – would you use it?

Monday, November 9th, 2015

A few weeks ago I received an email I thought was kind of interesting. It was from Hertz Car Rental who are now offering a service where they will drive you back to the airport so you don’t have to use the airport shuttle bus, walk, or tram.

I am not sure if they offer this service in every airport or just testing the concept. This email was for Orlando. I think the strategy is very creative and I give them props for developing the program. I would love to know if you would use it and what airports would make the most sense?

  • Would you use the service?
  • What do you think about the $20 charge? Too high? Just about right?
  • What airports do you think make the most sense?

I look forward to reading your comments.

Posted in Business | Post Comments (4) »

Are You Ready For Some Football? Join The Week 10 Merrill Dubrow Blog Football Pool!

Friday, November 6th, 2015

Congratulations go out to Brad Larson who won week 8 in a tiebreaker. With the win, Brad beat out 296 participants and takes home the $50 American Express gift card. In addition, Brad joins Sharon Gautschy, Fat Chuck, two time winner Beth Howe, Steven Sienkowski, Tim Antoniewicz, David Leicht, Erica Williard, and Cheryl Wurtzer-Zarrillo to qualify for championship week. The undefeated Cincinnati Bengals started off week 9 with a big win over the Cleveland Browns. At the end of the night 284 people picked the game right and are now all tied for first place:

To see the current standings, click here. The results page shows this week’s current standings as well as the cumulative rankings.

The 9th week we had 296 participants. The winner will receive $50. Remember, the weekly winners will be given a spot in the grand prize pool which will be during week 17 for an opportunity to win $500 and, of course, bragging rights for the next 6 months. In addition, the two people who have the highest cumulative score (these standings will be updated weekly) will be given a spot in the grand prize pool along with the weekly winners. As of right now Beth Howe with 89 wins & Holly Cairey with 86 have the two top spots!

All picks need to be in by 5:00pm (CST) on Thursday, November 12.

Click here to participate in this week’s pool.

Feel free to share the link and have friends, colleagues, relatives, kids and anyone else you want join the pool.

Good luck to all.

P.S. The most visited U.S. attraction is the Washington Monument at 58% while only 9% have visited Crater Lake!

Posted in Contests, Friday Fun | Post Comments (289) »

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