Wednesday, April 18, 2007

ONCE FAMOUS ROCK STAR

This article appeared in the GLMV Chamber of Commerce Action News for
April, 2007

Back in the late 1980's my wife Dianne and I were in Dallas, TX attending a real estate convention. We were on the hotel elevator one morning with several other conventioneers when Scott MacKenzie walked onto the elevator. If that name doesn't ring a bell, he's the artist who wrote and recorded the song, "When you're going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair," back in the late 1960's. That song was popular in the hippie community and still gets played on the radio today.

When he got on the elevator, I hailed him, "Hey Scott, Scott MacKenzie, how are ya?" How about signing an autograph for me? Mr. MacKenzie, surprised that anyone would recognize him, was very gracious, and after he got off, someone asked me, "How'd you know that was him?"

Actually, I had information that nobody else there had, and that's the point in business. If you do your homework and work harder than your competitors, you will do well in business. If you can uncover some information that has eluded your competitors and know how to use it, you'll be far ahead. Certainly, in the legal profession and probably most other businesses, information is the key commodity.

If you come to Chamber functions on a regular basis, you'll know what's happening in the community. At our luncheons, our speakers are usually people well connected in the community and we can learn much from them. If you participate, you may be able to obtain an edge on your competition. If you network with other Chamber members, you will certainly learn useful information. I always do.

So how did I recognize Scott MacKenzie? Well, we had attended a Mamas and Papas concert the previous night and Mr. MacKenzie was the musical arranger for them and he performed that song for the audience. Mr MacKenzie was related to John Phillips of the Mamas and Papas, and he toured with them.

Some other time, I'll relate how I got folksinger Pete Seeger's autograph on a Chicago Cubs scorecard.

KENNETH SUSKIN

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