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Do you need anything Mr. Ambassador?

american-embassy-housingYesterday was our first full day in Beijing. Regan is the only person who has been here before, so each of us were like little kids discovering one of the most unique cities in the world.

The FLC members arrived into Beijing two nights ago, Saturday late into the evening (North America’s Friday). Within, I believe it was, 10-minutes of arriving at the airport Renate made a quick stop into the restroom. Next thing they knew was they lost her! For about thirty minutes. So as the story goes, just a few minutes before calling the police to report what they feared might be a missing person, they found each other. So you can imagine both their relief, as well as the endless teasing that occurred the following day.

regan-and-raz-eating-chineseThat same Saturday evening, Regan and I ventured out to the most authentic Chinese restaurant we could find and ended at a traditional Beijing noodle house. Not a lick of English spoken. Lots of pointing to the menu, acting out certain sounds, and trying to say the English word more loudly in the hopes of our servers understanding. We both received incredibly delicious noodle bowls, Regan had beef and I had pork with bean paste. Fantastic. We also were given a chance to try a drink called something like “Sweet Little Fairy Spirits”…Which, I think, is basically bottled jet fuel. Not so fantastic. We tried some, out of both courtesy and curiosity, and gave the rest of the bottle to our concierge. Another dish we ordered were these miniature shrimp–yes that sounds silly–but these were the size of peanuts. A heaping plate full of whole shrimp–legs, tail, head–cooked in oil. I think it was somewhat the Chinese equivalent of french fries. Delicious.

the-great-wallYesterday we spent nearly all day at The Great Wall of China. It’s about a two hour drive, so we enjoyed a traffic-filled journey by listening to the encyclopedic knowledge of our tour guide–Sally. Really, she was incredible. Her facts and figures riddled off like a bullet train, she was both charming and gregarious. We learned the Great Wall is about 4,000 miles in length (equivalent of going from LA to NYC to Miami), and took about 2,000 years to complete construction. What an amazing accomplishment–seeing the size and structure it is hard to believe the magnitude. And the geography for building this wasn’t exactly a cakewalk either, you can see some of the rugged and hilly terrain in the photo to the left.

part-of-flc-at-great-wallTo the right you can see MOST of the FLC members and Regan. Yes, four of the members were tough enough to brave the rain and wind. In the picture below right, you’ll see Al huddled in the corner. Like a puppy in the rain.

So this is what prompted tour-guide Sally–she quickly picked up on Al. Shortly thereafter, in a very endearing way, she started calling him “Mr. Ambassador”. The rest of the trip she really took to him.

al-off-in-the-corner“Do you need anything Mr. Ambassador?”

“Please come over here Mr. Ambassador.”

“Do not touch those ancient statues Mr. Ambassador.”

“Mr Ambassador, are you happy man right now?”

She was a riot. So was Al and the rest of the group.

A parting group shot below before leaving the Great Wall to continue the adventure…

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the-next-pearl-streetWhen we returned to the City, most of us opted to go shopping in the Pearl District, where you can shop for nearly anything but the specialty are pearls. Hence the name.

We took the photo to the right given that our Company heritage with field leadership really started at the Pearl Street Hotel in Boulder, Colorado about ten years ago. So the word “Pearl” has some symbolic and special Univera meaning. The photo to the right is somewhat like a “Pearl Street 2”, but it’s “Pearl Market.” And in Beijing. And it’s missing Mr. Ambassador who opted instead for a massage.

Do you need anything Mr. Ambassador?

We finished the evening with more traditional Chinese food; in Beijing a specialty is duck. Different restaurants and areas have different ways of preparing it, yesterday ours was roasted duck. We wrapped up the evening discussing both the days events, sprinkled with business, and celebrating three of the five FLC members birthdays which occur in April. John Ryan, Al, and Renate. Served, of course, with traditional Chinese noodles and egg as dessert. A great day with a great team of people.

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Power Up!!!

cutout-execsTwo years ago a small group of us attended Univera Korea’s 30-year celebration at their annual Convention. 30,000 people in the Daejon World Cup stadium in Korea. Despite cold and clammy weather, it was an incredible event attended by nearly every Univera Associate in Korea.

Most Conventions are intended for the “mid-level Associates” and up (equivalent to our Silvers or Golds) and only last a half day, so the 30th celebration years ago was quite unusual.

power-up-crowdYesterday, over 2,000 very excited Univera Associates donning color-coded team uniforms kept an electric energy throughout their 2008 “Power Up” annual Convention. In the below photograph, you can see the two talented–and fun–Univera CEOs, Regan Miles and Don Kim. Who, interestingly, were both CEOs of Unigen Pharmaceuticals before their move to Univera.

regan-and-donThe Univera Korea business model, given that it originated over 30-years ago, is uniquely different than ours in North America and is more like a unilevel model. That particular structure will stay in Korea, the model we take worldwide will be like that of what exists in North America.

Their Convention is really oriented more like a dynamic four-hour performance, rather than a training or development initiative. It’s about as different as you can imagine from a Univera event in North America, but every attendee loved it. Early on, Bill opened the event (below right) with a rousing and inspiring speech that served to set the tone for a packed afternoon of recognition and fun.

bill-speakingMany famous entertainers performed, including the “Elvis of Korea” (yes, he swaggered like him and even fashioned modernized Elvis dress attire) as well as an apparently hilarious comedian–it’s tougher to get the jokes when they’re all in Korean and you don’t speak the language–sprinkled with recognition throughout the entire event.

The entertainment expanded from the “traditional” forms of singing and dancing to what a North American might call “non-traditional” activities for what we might expect at a Convention.

What do I mean by non-traditional? Well, skits on stage being done by Associates–including Blue Diamonds–would be one. Or, a Blue Diamond with a well choreographed dance performance is another–when I return to the States I’ll upload a video clip. The lead dancer is one of Univera Korea’s top producing Blue Diamonds…Perhaps an idea for this year’s Convention? Pretty amazing for someone whose full time vocation is Univera!

Another unique component was the ceremonial induction of their top Blue Diamond of the year by carrying her into the event, literally, on a chariot of sorts amongst the crowd (don’t get any ideas, future Blue Diamonds!). It was very charming, and her daughter sang at the event preceding her recognition. Very touching, and she had a gorgeous voice. Finally, one that we really got a kick out of was the short presentation of ten Korean bodybuilders who stood and posed for a few minutes on stage as part of the ceremony. Perhaps a reinforcement on the importance of Wellness? Not sure, and I’ll spare the picture for now…Regardless, the crowd thought it was a hoot.

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The Associates loved every minute of the entire event. An incredible success, my genuine congratulations to all my friends and colleagues in Korea for a spectacular event as well as gratitude for being such excellent hosts.

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Seoul, Korea: “The Farm”

dscn0225This week I arrived in Seoul, Korea, to participate in a few of the ECONET Worldwide Executive meetings hosted by Bill Lee and the other Board members as well as some team building activities.

An incredible week.

Coming into it, I felt I knew a lot about the resources, the plans, the people, the vision. But, leaving, I am even more amazed by what I learned and saw. Our owner, Bill Lee, has tremendous vision for the Company. But, more than this, he has commitment.

chairman-yunho-leeVision can come and go, same with great ideas. But vision coupled with commitment can be magical. And it doesn’t exist in many places, that I do know. The words from the late Chairman Lee embedded in this placard hanging in the lobby of ECONET Center in Seoul are a good example of what I mean.

After a 14-hour flight from Seattle to Seoul, I arrived with the completed task of an empty inbox (amazing how many emails you can get through without interruptions!) and about a dozen outdated Wall Street Journals finally read.

lunch-at-koreaImmediately, I jumped right into Korean culture, by going to a traditional Korean restaurant where I was served an array of small dishes that you can see in the picture to the left. What is it? Not sure. But I ate all of it. Well, almost all of it. And it was really quite good though I’m not sure I could adjust to this daily.

On Sunday morning, we went to Bill’s family farm about an hour outside of Seoul, to participate in various team-building activities and to “experience Korean culture” along with other ECONET Exec’s. Seoul is a crowded and sprawling city, reminding me of my days from living in Manhattan with the activity, crowds, and energy (without quite the number of skyscrapers) yet with the vast sprawl you see in Atlanta. Nearly 25 million people cram into what’s really a pretty small area of land.

Seoul is an amazing city. Great energy. Continual innovation. Respect and courtesy. Tenacity. I am always impressed, and humbled, by the people of Korea when I travel here.

peter-and-edLeaving early the next morning, much of the entertainment was the drive to and from, where a van brought one of the groups over to Bill’s home. In the picture to the right you can see Peter Hafermann, CEO of Aloecorp, and Ed Cannon, CEO of Unigen. Both great executives, and as you can tell by the looks on their faces, are a lot of fun–this is a snapshot in between friendly jokes and ribbing we’re giving each other on the drive over.

Bill’s house in the country, simply known as “the Farm”, is gorgeous. Laden–as you would expect–with trees and plantings of all types over many acres, nestled among some rolling hills. A kind of special serenity exists there, and it was an idyllic location for fellowship with peers from across the world.

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During the course of the day we participated in Korean games and various cultural events, which included learning how to play the Korean drums (I was so remedial that I received my own instructor!) . One of the games is pictured to the below right; it’s a very traditional Korean game, and something we never really figured out even after several explanations from different people.

throwing-the-logsIt works like this: four people take turns throwing foam logs onto a pad and hope that either an X or an O lands on top. That team then receives a certain number of points for doing so. And you don’t want one or four points, that’s bad. But two or three is good.. I think. At least that’s when the Koreans seemed to cheer loudest. Like I said, we never understood it. A total game of chance, but it drew out the hyper-competitiveness in all of us. Despite having no clue what we were doing, the game “throwing-foam-logs-onto-a-mat-hoping-a-certain symbol turns-straight-up-so-we-can-win” proved to be amazingly fun.

The first day of “culture” was a great kick off to excellent meetings that discussed some exciting progress across ECONET, from the enrollment growth of Univera associates to the manufacturing facility in Lyford, Texas, to the new wellness spa/resort–officially named “VeraResort”, which is already in the beginning phases of construction. There’s much more, stories and photos of which I am sure we’ll share on our tour across North America in April and May.

No doubts, take Lasix only as prescribed by your doctor. Levitra is one of the best-known medications of all when. What is the most significant info you must study about levitra vs cialis? Most doctors say the effectiveness of Levitra is well documented. Absolutely, a sexual problem refers to a problem during any phase of the sexual response cycle that prevents the individual from experiencing satisfaction from the sexual life. Whilst sex is not vital for good health, it’s doubtless significant for anyone. Why it happen? What kinds of professionals treat sexual diseases in men? A common class of antidepressants, which include Zoloft — can kill the mood in bedroom.