Not real certain where this fits in this community, but in a recent Hoarder e-mail they spoke about Zero Based Budgeting.
My wife and I had just returned from our honeymoon as I resumed my position as a bookkeeper for a publishing company. The company wasn’t doing well financially and soon several of us were released with a severance check to hold us until we landed on our feet. Not only did I not have the marketable skills necessary to traverse the rough road ahead of me but I also had a few adverse conditions to surmount. I purchased a copy of Crain’s Business Report which blazed across the front cover The Top 100 Privately owned companies in Chicago. I then went to the Reference Library and perused The Million Dollar Directory which in its listings included the address and name of every CEO, President of every company. To them I would send the following letter.
I almost want to say at this point, don’t try this at home, it’s not going to work. I had nothing to offer them in the way of background other than the truth. In the body of the letter I told them 3 things, 1) I had recently been released from prison, 2) I had accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour and was turning my life around, (A prison school teacher had told me God could change my life, He changed hers too. 2 years after I was released we were married and still are today after 39 years) 3) I had the rudimentary skills of a bookkeeper. I closed the letter with a question, “Based on your expertise and experience what would you suggest I do.?”
For the sake of brevity, I first was hired by Leo Burnett Advertising, over the phone sight unseen, Chicago’s largest Ad Agency. (In the Billing Department) 6 months later Northwestern University called as a result of the same letter and interviewed me for a position that would require me to design and implement a charge back system to bill all the departments of the University for the use of our Editorial and Design staff. (What part of ‘rudimentary’ did they not understand.) I was with the University Relations Department for the next 3 years.
My point of this sharing is to point out that in times of difficult circumstances we have to use unconventional means with a bit of creativity and certainly for me, a lot of prayer. My apologies if this wasn’t the type of story for this community.
