Twas the Night Before Christmas

“‘Twas days before Christmas and things kinda stank.

The fear of recession and economy in the tank.

But at Freedom we were happy, it has to be said,

With the anticipation of holiday treats in our head

And I strategically planning efficient and fast,

Was analyzing data right down to the last.

When out in the lobby I heard such a clatter.

I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter.

Away from my desk and straight to the door,

Out in the hallway and to the lobby I did soar.

And what with my wondering eyes did I see,

But a little old man waiving frantically at me.

He was dressed all in red and spoke rather quick,

But I could tell in an instant that this was St. Nick.

He had papers in hand and asked me to hurry.

So straight up to him I quickly did scurry.

He got right to the point and said with a sigh,

“I can no longer afford for my reindeer to fly.

“The cost of feed and the parts for my sled,

If I don’t get relief Christmas’s future I dread!”

We went off to my office in a chair he was seated,

I went over his finances saw his 401k was depleted.

But I was not worried and said “Do not fear.

Freedom can help you so it’s good that you’re here.”

With a savings restructure and a nice yielding loan

I devised a bailout to get him back in the zone.

Once all was completed, he was back on his way,

Delivering goodies before Christmas Day.

And I heard him exclaim as he flew out of sight,

“Before Freedom’s help money really was tight,

But now that you’ve helped me I can continue my flight.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!!”

The Futility of Hate

I’ve never understood hate. Don’t get me wrong, I say I hate some things. I hate traffic, I hate liver, I hate the cold, I hate the way I look in these pants, but that’s not the hate I’m talking about.
I mean the apparent ease with which people hate, the reasons they hate and the lengths they go to express that hate. I’ve seen a lot in my many decades on this planet and I still don’t understand why people hate for such superficial reasons like appearance, background, beliefs, or hate an entire group because of the actions of a few.

Disagree? Sure, but hate? Especially hate that turns to violence. What benefit is there for hater or the hated? What change does that actually bring? What gain is there in removing the ability to discuss, compromise, empathize, coexist in hopes of a better tomorrow for everyone?

Look, I’m no saint. If someone hurt someone I loved or I was in a survival situation, I can’t predict how I would respond, but that’s totally different than hate because of certain differences.

Maybe I’m just naïve, but that seems futile. Whatever happened to judging someone by the content of their character or not judging a book by its cover, or judge not lest ye be judged?

These days we are quick to anger, quick to judge for the slightest reason. Maybe, just maybe, we can see how damaging that is to our society. That focusing on our differences rather than our similarities puts us on a path of self-destruction.

Maybe, just maybe, a season about peace and love will stand out this time and show us a better way. I have to believe in that and it’s why our actions at Freedom matter so much. That’s why doing good is more important than just doing good business.

Besides, in the words of Elvis Costello, “what’s so funny about peace, love and understanding.”

Build

From small things, big things grow. Like a seed that turns into a giant redwood, the little choices we make and small steps we take have a larger impact. The minor things many take for granted are the foundation of something greater and, dare I say, very important for how we build a team, a credit union, and a community. By helping each other, encouraging each other, and supporting each other through good times and bad we build, we grow, we get stronger. The key term, of course, is we. What we build is a culmination of many people, ideas, skills, backgrounds and so on. We build Freedom together but also with our community and our members. Even though the saying is “if you build it, they will come”, I believe it’s more:

If you build it, they may come. If you build it with them, they’re already here.

Dream

There’s a song from the musical Man of la Mancha called The Impossible Dream. It’s a powerful song starting off with the words:

“To dream the impossible dream. To fight the unbeatable foe. To bear with unbearable sorrow and to run where the brave dare not go.”

Intense, huh? The song basically talks about following your dreams that seem like they would never be achievable, to do what’s right and to be willing to go through difficulties in order to reach your ultimate goal which is referred to as the unreachable star. I see the Freedom mission in this.

If you think about it, we’re in a business where we compete with other, not just large, but humungous, financial institutions. How do we stand out? How do we contend? How do we survive and grow when others have more resources?

By doing what’s right that’s how. Right for our members, for our employees and for our community. By being a trusted partner and by putting people before profit. Seventy years in business may seem like a drop in the bucket to some, but it’s not the number of years, it’s what you do with them.

From my perspective, we’ve used that time, especially in the most recent years, to dream the impossible dream and keep reaching for that unreachable star. The journey can be challenging. It requires resiliency, flexibility, patience, commitment, and a belief that we make a difference.

I’ve seen the difference we make, and I believe our continued success is because others have seen it too. But we’re not done yet. In fact, we’ve only just begun. There are still foes to fight and stars to reach and the dream gets more possible every day.

Deep Impact

This may start out a little morose but stay with me…

Last night I had a dream where I found out my father died. In actuality, he passed away October 8^th, 2003 (20 years ago). The thing about this dream was the impact it had both while I was sleeping and after it woke me in the wee hours of the morning. I felt, intensely, all the anguish, sorrow, heartbreak, loss one would expect in the dream, but upon waking those feelings lingered for some time after.

It was difficult to shake. I’m not sure what triggered the dream, but you know me, I figured there was some purpose, and, in my head, I started forming what is now this message. In conjunction with this nocturnal event, I remembered that just a couple days ago I was talking with one of my brothers about the time since our father’s passing and he asked, rhetorically I’m sure, why it seemed like yesterday.

I, of course, endeavored to respond and the answer that immediately came to mind was, “it was because of the impact he had”. That conversation, the dream, all got me thinking about the impact we make on those around us and what we leave behind.

In emails, meetings, and public speaking opportunities, I’m always talking about “the experience”; how the member experience and employee experience are the two absolute pillars of Freedom’s culture and strategy. It’s our why.

I met a lady recently at one of our Business After Hours events who recently found out about us and moved all her accounts and loans from one of the big banks to Freedom. Oh, she told me about the things we did, how we saved her money, dropped her auto loan rates, how we simplified her banking, etc., but what really meant the most, what had the biggest impact, was how she was treated and how wonderful the people she’s dealt with are. She raved not only to me, but to anyone that would listen. Talk about a testimonial!

That moment was a tangible realization, a validation, that each of us can have a positive impact on those around us. That what we do and say to one another, to our members, in the community, can make a difference.

I’ve always said banking is what we do, not who we are, but really who we are AND what we do is so much more when we realize that someone and some point will be better off because of our involvement or intervention.

I know this won’t always happen and not everyone will be impacted in some transformative way, but if we start with one, who knows where that will lead. In a world where we are inundated with negativity, where there is more talk about what makes us different than unites us, where there isn’t enough rational discourse and tolerance, I’ll gladly focus on the impact we make on one and build on it.

“One moment can change a day, one day can change a life, and one life can change the world.” ~ Buddha

The Freedom Way

The last time I wrote one of these philosophies it referenced change.
At that time, my focus was on the never-changing aspect of our culture; how the core of who we are and why we do what we do is, and will be, a necessary constant.

Of course, change in some form or fashion is inevitable.

But you know what I love about Freedom? It’s that when change does come, we adapt, and we thrive. Pandemic, economy, technology, staffing, no matter the impetus, we trust one another, we rely on each other, and we succeed.

That’s not an opinion, not wishful thinking. That’s a fact.

There is an evolution to everything and when we embrace that, use that as fuel to move us forward, we can accomplish great things.

This is the Way

We’re told change is good, and while I believe that’s true in many cases, I also believe some things shouldn’t change.
…like the culture at Freedom.

Now, culture has become a bit of buzz word these days, but I go back to October 2015 when I made my first address to Freedom as the CEO. On that day I quoted Maya Angelou by saying, “people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”.

From that day our culture was set and our focus has been on the member and employee experience; to make people feel something positive. I never heard that quote before then and never really heard people talk about culture much, but nowadays, I hear that quote and the word ‘culture’ tossed around a lot in business. I won’t lie, it makes me feel like a bit of a trailblazer and it reinforces my commitment to the “Freedom way”.

I don’t care what outside pressure comes, what competition surfaces, what hurdles are placed before us. We will not abandon doing what is right for our members, our community and each other.

People helping people has long been a catch phrase of the credit union movement so it’s not unique to Freedom, but how we put that into practice, how we make that real as best we can every day, is where we distinguish ourselves. I know that isn’t easy, I know we may have limitations at times, but I also know what we are building together is right.

I hear it from members, from you, and I see it in the community. Of course, though we can feel good about what we’ve accomplished so far, we must also continue to achieve the results that support our culture.

That’s why it is important to tell our story, so people understand that the more business they do with Freedom, the more it benefits themselves and their community. Normal everyday “banking”, the same stuff so many financial institutions offer, can have a more positive impact at Freedom because of the “Freedom way” and how we put that into practice.

Simply put, ours is a symbiotic relationship between Freedom, its members and the communities we serve and support.

This is the way.

One Man’s Trash

At what point in our evolution as a society was the decision made to discard trash anywhere you like: out the window of a car, gum spat on a sidewalk, cans/bottles left wherever they were emptied down a gullet? Was there a vote?

The other day I was walking with my son through the neighborhood. There was an empty box of candy in the grass and without a word, he bent down and picked it up. Before we got back home where he threw it in the trash can, I said, as if he was still a child, “why’d you pick that up? You don’t know where it’s been.” He held it up and said, “if everyone just did one little thing, the world would be a better place”. I found that moment very profound. A lesson learned somewhere along the way and an attitude that can inspire.

So, when I talk about how Freedom is built to put people first, to improve our community, to do good, it’s in the hope others might be motivated to act in kind and, in turn, do business with us so we can continue that mission. After all, one person can make a difference, why shouldn’t Freedom.