Furniture Retail Tip #25 From Grandpa Mike-e-e! at 90 - The Ultimate Time Management Device

Clicking is an open secret that has been happening quietly all over the country for furniture working people. In my case I had the thrill of learning to become a "Major Clicker" in Sandlapper, South Carolina; Cajun, Louisiana and Tarheel, North Carolina. Wow-e-e!

I was just lucky.  I had been raised in the high-tech atmosphere of my close buddy, Professor Carlton Chutney, now working at the Institute Of Advance Furniture Design. He has been knee deep in his endless quest to design the perfect, time saving - solar-powered - beer chilling - cheese wiz dispensing - vibrating - home theater chair/dining room table combo, for close to nine years. A-n-d, now, with his newest Clicker (his patented 1 inch by 1 inch Eye-Pad- like device) I can click it, snuggly, even in my 90 year old, hand palm.

So what is happening all over the country? Well, I’ll tell you. Busy furniture executives who have never had opportunities to take time off from their retail businesses have found the answer… Clicking!

Sales reps who are always on the go and never get-to-go anywhere fun have even latched on to the Clicker System, with great satisfaction.

What system? It's very simple and just takes a drop of diligence and matching patience. All you need is a counter. One of those little clickers that used be used to measure attendance at furniture shows before they started scanning bar coded passes and the retinas of passers by looking for real-live buyers without duplication!  You keep your clicker with you at all times... at home, at work, in a car, a train, a bus or bed.

Some folks just let it dangle from a wrist. Women even have two of them... one for daytime hours at work and another dressier one (with a velvet ribbon) for the ladies night-off with the girls. Delicious!

What for? To keep a record of all the minutes you save every 24-hour day (and collect to use  later).  For instance:

• If you've found a new aspirin that dissolves faster in your tummy and does it in less than one minute, you click and record on the counter, for your saving record. 
    
• If the furniture rep who keeps trying to sell you a new armless armchair, a footless footboard, and a two sided mattress with one invisible side, gets to the point without too much schmoozing… 24 clicks!
    
• If you make a permitted right hand turn on a red light... you click the counter.
    
• If you go a week without having to intervene in an inventory mishap or a salesperson ups system dispute… 50 clicks.
    
• If the waitress brings your order promptly, without returning for questioning, you click the counter twice.
    
• If the plumber goofs and comes on time… three clicks.
    
• Sending out a past due invoice by email instead of snail mail... five clicks.
    
• Doctor appointments that keep to reservations made... click twice. 
    
• Don't drink a quart of water before going to bed... five to 25 clicks depending on your age!
    
• "I'm on the other "phone"... forget it.

Many people in our industry who use this system have found that they have a lot more time than they thought to e-n-j-o-y life. A-n-d others have trouble figuring out where all this saved time is going.  If you are one of the later type of person,  you may need to call Grandpa Mike-e-e! at 90 to do some time management consulting. I guarantee that after a few months of having me run your business, financial and personal affairs, you will have all the time in the world to enjoy life without those distractions! :)

Finally, I suggest telling your kids and business associates about Grandpa Mike-e-e's columns in Furniture World's weekly e-newsmagazine, and  also his granddaughter's You Tube bit with him. Each takes only one mouse click of your time and you can enjoy immediately.