03/10 March Directions

InfrastructureKeep up with the buildup.P A G E 1 2

March 2010 $3.50

“What have you done that has improved the quality of life for me and my family? Prove it.”

Matt RectorGuamFederationof Teachers

Is your office a safe environment? — page 35

How to GradePoliticians:

Interview page 42

InvestmentsTake a risk in a low market.P A G E 2 2

MarketingTap into Generation Y.P A G E 2 9

3DIRECTIONS • MARCH 2010

WELCOME TO. . .

THE MAGAZINE DEDICATED TO YOUR PRODUCTIVITY

INTERVIEWMatt Rector, PresidentGuam Federation of TeachersServing what was arguably the most contentious single year that any senator has ever had, he resigned from the Guam Legislature in January. Now, back at GFT full time, he reflects on his stormy expe-rience as an elected official and what he feels he accomplished; talks about poli-tics, politicians and how to grade them, his media boycott, and why business leaders shouldn’t look upon him — and the union — as the enemy. Buckle up.

MarketingThe young adult market is a thriving demographic with great buying power. These individuals are on their way to becoming our future generation and are filling in occupational positions in the working world, making them earn decent incomes to spend — to the tune of $211 billion in annual purchasing power.

March 2010 Vol. 15, No. 01

Regular FeaturesPerspective 4Signposts 6Picture This 8People 10Diversions 50Fresh Inc. 52Executive Environment 53Enviro Views 58Sales Department 59Digital World 60Human Resources 61Managers’ Toolbox 62Customer Index 66Higher Thoughts 67Family Business 68

ProfilesMargaret Tiong Mesa 54OR Charge Nurse, Guam Surgicenter

Hank Schilling 56Transition Program Coordinator for the Department of Education’s Division of Special Education

EDITORFaye Varias

ASSISTANT EDITORBryan C. Sualog

EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORSPeggy Denney, Marty Herron, Kim Komando, James Lea, Ron Marks, Karri Perez, Rafael DeAusen, Faith Realica, Christine Restuvog and Jerry Roberts

DIGITAL DESIGNTaliea Designworks

PHOTOGRAPHYSteve Hardy

ADVERTISING SALESStephani FerraraRayann Taitano

PUBLIC RELATIONSNellie Joy Roberts

ADMINISTRATIONTia Camacho

PUBLISHERJerry Roberts

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/OPERATIONS MANAGERStephani Ferrara

INSPIRATIONAdam Cooper, Kian Cooper, Aiden Ferrara, Allejandra Ferrara, Aylah Ferrara, Josiah Roberts and Micah Sablan

Opinions expressed in Directions are not necessarily those of the publisher or our advertisers.

SEND COMMENTS TOEditorDIRECTIONSP.O. Box 27290,Barrigada, Guam 96921E-mail: [email protected]

Tel: 671.635.7501 Fax: 671.635.7520

©2010 DIRECTIONSAll rights reserved.

PRINTED BYT&T PrintingHong Kong

InvestmentsThe economic downturn in recent years tends to make us take a closer look at our finances, take control of them, and possibly, make sound financial investments. Some may think that this is the wrong time to invest; however, there are huge opportunities for financial gain in a down market — you just have to do your homework.

Office SafetyIn your business, aiming for productivity, quality and a healthy environment are key for increasing profits and your return on investment.

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InfrastructureWhile many people are optimistic about the economic boom that’s expected to accompany the buildup, will the island truly be ready in time to accommodate its own growing population along with the increased military presence?

4 DIRECTIONS • MARCH 2010

Someone once said that the only difference between a rut and a grave is the perspective of the person looking at it. For many

of us who own or manage a business, it can be a bit of both if we allow time and position to dull our senses and the talents it took to get us there.

For readers who recognize me only as the publisher of Directions, I do wear another hat, leading the effort for our sister brand, Guam Training. Between the two, I don’t lack for things to do, yet there has been something missing for a while.

Our company was launched almost 17 years ago as a promotion and marketing service. We produced consumer and trade shows, along with other events, giving organizations the opportunity to regularly reach out to customers in a more personal way. I dubbed it “face-to-face marketing.” It brought us a profit but, more than that, we had a lot of fun.

We also saw immediate tangible results. New relationships were established and customers bought products and services. We were witnesses to growth and progress, and that’s exciting.

While Directions provides me with a vehicle to distribute ideas and help the workplace in that way, and Guam Training allows a second channel for doing the same, both more or less place me in the role of the planter — a sower of seeds. While that’s satisfying and people have always been extremely generous in their feedback for my efforts, I rarely have been front and center for the harvest. I’m not with readers or training participants on a daily basis to witness the personal growth and the changes they’ve implemented.

In October, my wife, Nellie Joy, enrolled us as a customer with an Idaho-based wellness company that manufactures products in the areas of household cleaners, vitamins and supplements, bath and body, skin care and cosmetics, and “over the counter” style pharma-ceuticals. The products are natural and, in general, family friendly. It’s a network marketing company, but unlike any other that you might be thinking of. Nobody sells products, nobody has to buy a bunch of inventory, no deliveries, no billing or collections — basi-cally it is free of almost all of the challenges of everyday business. Where was this when I was thinking of launching a business maga-zine 15 years ago (he said with a grin)?

The name of the company and details? Call me at 689-3800. This article isn’t a pitch for the business opportunity but instead what it’s meant for me since we joined.

I had no initial interest and Nellie Joy went solo for the first couple of months while I watched her progress. Then I saw the direct re-sult of her efforts, as others who had little or no business experi-ence quickly began to grow and make money. With no inventory to

buy, there was immediate profit and this had a definite impact on the people involved.

I hadn’t drawn a parallel between the two at this point, but this net-working had transported me back to the days of events and promo-tions, and some instant gratification. Right in front of my eyes I saw people and attitudes transformed, and their lives begin to change.

It was “face-to-face” marketing again and, like I said, that’s exciting.

So, I decided to get involved, and for the past few months, I have assisted my wife and seen it all up close. Let me tell you, it is just plain great when you see someone follow a simple plan and it pays off for them, and they know it. They begin to raise the level on their goals and dreams — and that mirrors the type of training I’ve been delivering for years.

Marketing has always been in my blood but shouldering a lot of other responsibilities pushed that to the rear. Sometimes, it has seemed like a distant memory. Gratefully, working with my wife has reawakened that old feeling.

Whereas our primary businesses market to organizations for the ultimate benefit of their customers and employees, now I can work directly with a person who wants to build a second income to make ends meet, get out of debt, pay for their child’s private school tuition, add to their retirement, or any number of other reasons. This is on the front line. When they realize that the system works — and that this vehicle can fund their precious goals — it’s an amazing sight.

Helping others while you help yourself is simply exhilarating.

What about you?

Is there something that you used to do that brought you immense joy and satisfaction, but you haven’t done it in a while?

Are there old skills that have been dormant but could be freshened up with a little effort?

If your current position doesn’t allow you the flexibility to use those particular talents, could you do so for an island charity or civic organization? Could you start a part-time business?

If you just look around, you may find that good opportunities exist, where you can help others and have FUN using those old talents again. Fun is emphasized, as too few of us have enough of it.

One other thing. I believe that my newfound marketing work has even helped me to enjoy my regular day job more.

Stretching Out Again: A Journey To My Past

http://guamtraining.com


No, I wouldn’t. Although my mom has been away with the Lord for many, many years now, I would still say no, even if she were here for good reasons: 1) My mom is the giver of my life used by God and I owe her such tremendous respect to even think of having her work for me. 2) The relationship between a mother and a child, I believe, must be of nurture, love and mutual respect, but a nudge higher than any other person. 3) I cannot be boss to her and tell her what to do and how to do certain things at work, nor discipline her if she errs! No, No! 4) I’d rather sup-port my mom anyway I can but not let her work for me — after all, she has lit-erally worked for me already all her life while changing my dirty diapers as an in-fant, feeding me and washing my clothes

as a child and sending me to the best schools in the Philippines — couldn’t ask for more.Rosemarie Privitt,Hyatt Regency Guam

If I had my own business, I would hire my mom to work for me since her great skills in public relations would be a great advantage towards the market-ing of my business. I owe her my strong personality since she has always en-couraged me to believe in myself that I can always to better.Sheila Manaloto, GCIC

Yes and no. Yes, because I know my mom is a hard-working individual that I can count on. No, because I don’t want our re-lationship to change from mother-daugh-ter to employer-employee. At work, it has to be all business and professional.Christine Baleto,Market Wholesale Distributors, Inc.

Directions magazine welcomes respons-es to our monthly Signposts topic. Not every submission can be printed, though all will qualify for the dinner contest. We reserve the right to edit submissions for length.

What is your preferred method of having your boss motivate you?

Contest rules:1. Must be 18 years or older to participate.2. You may e-mail [email protected], fax (671) 635-7520 or mail (address on page 3) entries.3. Your entries must be received no later than Monday, March 30th, 2010. One entry per contest only.5. You may photocopy this page for use in the contest.6. Winners will be drawn at random from all eligible entries.7. Prizes may not be surrendered for cash.8. Entrants grant Directions and the Hilton Guam Resort & Spa the right to use their name and response.9. Winner must be hungry for some terrific food and service.

Heidi BallendorfGuam Waterworks Authority

Would you hire your mom to work for you? Why or why not?

Youth Football receives donationPacSports Ltd. donates $15,000 to help youth football players. The money will assist the Guam National Youth Football Fed-eration and the Yigo Jets defray uniform, stipend, official fees, field maintenance and travel costs. Photo courtesy of PacSports

Bank of Guam donates to Japan ClubBank of Guam (BOG) donates $5,000 to the Japan Club of Guam for its 30th Annual Japan Autumn Festival. From left are David J. Arriola, BOG vice president/Tumon branch manager; Mitsuaki Terajima, Japan Club of Guam’s direc-tor of youth affairs; and Caroline H. Sablan, BOG vice president/relationship banking manager. Photo courtesy of BOG

GNC Guam celebrates its grand opening Nov. 1 at the Agana Shopping Center. Photo courtesy of GNC

GNC Guam celebrates grandopening



Biz

Bit

sBIZ BITS

Guam gets new Sister CityGuam and the Philippine city of Olongapo enters into a memoran-dum of understanding on Nov. 13 becoming sister cities. Present at the signing were members of the 30th Guam Legislature and various Olongapo public officials. Photo courtesy of the office of Sen. Eddie Baza Calvo

GTA TeleGuam expanded its GUdTV coverage to the villages of Toto and Maite, according to a GTA release. GUdTV is also available in Agana Heights, Agat, Andersen Air Force Base, Apra Heights, Barriga-da Heights, Dededo, Hagatna, Inarajan, Latte Heights, Mangilao, Merizo, Nimitz Hill, Ordot, Orote, Piti, Sinajana, Talofofo, Tamuning, Tumon, Yigo and Yona. Bank of Hawaii hosted part six of its series of financial education seminars called “Inter-nal Fraud Prevention for Business” on Nov. 24 in Guam and Saipan. The seminar covered a promi-nent theory of why internal fraud occurs; the most common forms of internal fraud; and pro-vided control measures, policies and procedural tips they can apply to help protect businesses. The Government of Guam Employ-ees Federal Credit Union unveiled its new name and logo on Nov. 16 — Coast360, accord-ing to a release. Current checks and ATM cards will continue to work without interruption. DCK Pacific Guam LLC was the inaugural win-ner of the Guam Contractors’ Association Contrac-tor of the Year award. DCK was presented with the award at the association’s 50th anniversary gala and 2009 Excellence in Construction Awards event at the Sheraton Laguna Guam Resort on Nov. 7. Matson Navigation Co. announced on Nov. 24 that it would raise its rates for the compa-ny’s Guam and Micronesia services by $120 for both westbound and eastbound contain-ers. The raise will go into effect Jan. 31, 2010.

The 30th Guam Legislature presents a resolution to Sugar Plum Tree, Inc. on Oct. 19 in recognition of its 25th anniversary. Bank of Hawaii (BOH) has been the primary sponsor of Sugar Plum Tree’s mission since 1999. Pictured from left are Vickie Fish, Sugar Plum Tree board member; Jere Johnson, Sugar Plum Tree founding board member; Dar Johnson, Sugar Plum Tree founding board mem-ber; Ron Cannoles, BOH executive vice president; Sen. Judith P. Guthertz; Bobbie Leon Guerrero, president of the Sugar Plum Tree Board; and Kathy Kernaghan, Sugar Plum Tree executive director. Photo courtesy of BOH

SPPC donates to GAINSouth Pacific Petroleum Corp. (SPPC) donates $5,000 to Guam Animals in Need (GAIN) on Oct. 30. The donation came from the proceeds of the 76 Charity Golf Tournament held at the LeoPalace Golf Resort. From left are Cindy Bartels, GAIN president; Patchy, a GAIN rescue; and Mark J. Sablan, SPPC vice president/business development manager. Photo courtesy of SPPC

SPPC supports OasisSPPC donated $7,000 to the Oasis Empowerment Center on Oct. 29 with money raised during the company’s golf tournament. Photo courtesy of SPPC

Resolution recognizes Sugar Plum Tree


Are your new management hires and promotions getting into the most-read business publication in the region?It’s easy to do. Just send color photos (head and shoulders with plain, contrasting backgrounds preferred)

along with similar employee information you see here to:

DIRECTIONSP.O. Box 27290 Barrigada,Guam 96921

If you have questions, please call 635-7501 or e-mail: [email protected].

Note: digital photos should be at high or fine resolution and converted to a jpg (at maximum quality) before e-mailing.

Gerard Cruz was re-elected as the chairman of the Asia Pacific Association for Fiduciary Studies (APAFS). Cruz is also the president and chief executive officer of Community First Federal Credit Union.

Patrick Tellei accepts the position of vice chairman of the Asia Pacific Association for Fidu-ciary Studies (APAFS). The president of Palau Community College, Tellei is a past secretary for APAFS.

David John was elected chairman of the board of the Guam Chamber of Commerce for the 2010 administrative year. John is also the president of ASC Trust Corporation.

Deborah Fischerjoins TakeCare Insurance Co., Inc. as an account executive. Fisher has an extensive background in e-commerce and business sales including negoti-ating and selling to Fortune 100 IT companies such as DELL, IBM, Cisco, HP, Nortel, Accenture and Adobe.

Greg Kerrebrockaccepts the position of account execu-tive II at TakeCare Insurance Co., Inc. Kerrebrock’s 22-year sales background spans from health, life and workers compensation insurance in companies across Southern California, including FHP, Inc., where he served as director of sales and human health care plans.

Miira McClure joins TakeCare Insurance Co., Inc. as an account executive. McClure was formerly a senior market-ing representative for Applied Un-derwriters in San Francisco, Calif.

Maria Fontanos Omambacaccepts the position as restaurant general manager at T.G.I. Friday’s.

Daniel Tydingcojoins GTA TeleGuam as its new ex-ecutive vice president of external and legal affairs. Tydingco will over-see GTA’s government, regulatory and legal affairs. Before joining GTA, Tydingco was director of policy, planning and community relations for the Unified Courts of Guam.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past few years, you’ve probably heard about a little thing called the “military

buildup” happening on Guam. By 2014 Guam’s population would have significantly increased with the relocation of more than 8,500 Marines and 9,000 dependents from Okinawa to Guam. That doesn’t include the more than 9,000 tran-sient military personnel that Guam could see. While many people are optimistic about the economic boom that’s expected to accompany the buildup, will the island truly be ready in time accommodate its own growing population along with the increased military presence? Such an increase would place a consid-erable strain on our infrastructure — wa-ter and wastewater systems, power, roads,

etc. — if proper precautions aren’t made in time. On Nov. 20, 2009, the military released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement and the island’s residents and elected leaders were giv-en 90 days to comment on the document. The document, which was mandated by the Nation-al Environmental Policy Act of 1969, examines the environmental effects of the buildup. During those 90 days, public hearing were held at various locations on island where resi-dents were able to voice their concerns about the buildup. The public comment period end-ed Feb. 17. Sufficed to say, there were some criticism to document. In a letter sent in February to Acting Assistant Secretary of the Navy Roger M. Natsuhara, the U.S. Environmental Protec-tion Agency rated the draft as Environmentally Unsatisfactory and Inadequate Information. “There are two bases for the ‘EU’ compo-nent of the rating: 1) by not providing a spe-cific plan to address wastewater treatment and water supply needs of the construction workers and induced population growth, the project will result in unsatisfactory impacts to Guam’s existing substandard drinking wa-ter and wastewater infrastructure which may result in significant adverse public health im-pacts, and 2) the project will result in unac-ceptable impacts to 71 acres of high quality coral reef ecosystem in Apra Harbor,” U.S. EPA regional administrator Jared Blumenfeld said in the letter. The DEIS acknowledges that the popu-lation increase will “exacerbate and already environmentally unsatisfactory situation,”

Geared for Growth?

By Bryan C. Sualog

With the military buildup just around the corner, many doubt Guam’s infrastructure can handle the massive influx.


however it does not offer a specific, work-able plan to address the situation.

Water and Wastewater The affect that the buildup will have on the island’s water and wastewa-ter systems have sparked the greatest controversy so far. John Benavente, general manager of Consolidated Utility Services, be-lieves GWA will be able to handle the increased military presence as well as Guam’s growing population. “GWA has the capabilities to handle the buildup, and is in negotiations with he mili-tary to become customers of GWA’s wastewater services.” However, according to the U.S. EPA, Guam’s present environmental and health problems exceed those of most U.S. com-munities. “For example, its population experiences boil water notices, sewage spills, exposure to waterborne diseas-es, and illegal dumping,” the letter said. It also stated “the military realignment to Guam will result in an immediate island-wide shortfall in water supply. By 2014 this shortfall will range between six and 13 million gallons per day.” That would lead

to potential long-term problems including the aquifer being tainted with saltwater. In addition to a shortfall in drinking wa-ter, the buildup would also increase sew-age flows to wastewater treatment plants that are already in non-compliance with the Clean Water Act discharge permits. “The likely public health result will be an increase in raw sewage spills and human exposure to pathogens through drink-ing water supply, ocean recreation and shellfish consumption. Raw sewage spills are already occurring in Guam and have recently increased,” the EPA letter said. Proposed actions in the DEIS include building an additional 20 water wells on military property to meet the increased demand. It also proposes that GWA ex-pand its northern wastewater treatment plant so it can handle the increased waste from military and civilian populations. Benavente said Guam’s aquifer has enough water to meet double Guam’s current population. “Even without the buildup, GWA’s master plan calls for the drilling of new water wells — this is in or-der to take into account the normal Guam growth we experience. The military needs wells for the preparation of the buildup. Right now we are negotiating how all that


will take place,” he said. “The military wants to drill water wells, GWA wants to drill water wells so we are collaborating on how that effort will take place.” As far as the northern wastewater treatment facility is con-cerned, Benavente said it will cost between $50 million and $200 million to expand. “We agree the military will impact especially the northern wastewater treatment plant facility. Because of that Department of Defense must pay for that. They have agreed and are looking for the funds to make that happen.” The timeline for the improvements depends on the fund-ing, he said. Once funding gets released, that will dictate the timeline. “We are skeptical in meeting this 2014 deadline

“GPA will be able to man-age the additional load requirement as present-ed in the DEIS if all the emerging solutions are addressed along with the resolution of the pending unresolved issues.”

— Joaquin C. FloresGeneral Manager, GPA


since there are several significant proj-ects that would have to take place and to date, no funds have been released to start them. It’s highly likely that the buildup will be delayed but this is still to be determined.”

RoadsAccording to the DEIS, an improved net-work of roads is needed as part of the “mission-critical infrastructure” to sup-port the buildup and accommodate the island’s growth. “The island of Guam is experiencing a variety of roadway prob-lems: inadequate bridges; flooding roads; poor lane visibility as a result of tight cor-ners; poor lane striping, lighting and lane geometry; locations with a large number of accidents; landslides; eroding embank-ments; and inadequate intersections be-cause of the absence of traffic signals.” To meet those needs, the DEIS proposes making improvements to include roadway widening, intersection improvements, bridge replacements, and pavement strengthening at specific locations island-wide, as well as the realignment of Route 15. “These improvements are needed to resolve traffic congestion during the con-struction period from 2010 through 2016,

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1969. NEPA acts as an umbrella

and allows for a concise process within which to comply with other environmental regulatory processes. NEPA applies to the United States territories and possessions, and Antarctica, as well as 12 nautical miles seaward from adjacent shorelines. NEPA ensures that federal agencies consider environmental impacts of actions in planning and decision making, and re-quires federal decision makers to consider the environmental consequences of a proposed action before making the deci-sion to take action. It is studying, developing, and describing appropriate alternatives to recommend courses of action.

Environmental Impact StatementBecause the proposed action of realigning forces on Guam may significantly affect the human or natural environment, the Department of Defense is required to prepare an Environmen-tal Impact Statement (EIS). An EIS is a detailed study of the potential consequences that a federal action may have on the human environment. An EIS informs decision makers and the public of reasonable alternatives that could avoid or reduce impact or enhance the quality of the environment.

The EIS ProcessTo prepare an EIS, biologists, engineers, planners and other technical professionals examine existing conditions such as land use, socioeconomics, noise, air quality, water quality, traffic, vegetation and wildlife, and hazardous materials. Data

is gathered and analyzed to identify how the proposed action might change current conditions. Issues most likely to be of concern to the public are identified and addressed. Where findings indicate that there might be significant impacts, the agency identifies ways to reduce or minimize those impacts.

Steps in the EIS Process • An agency identifies a need for action and develops a proposal. If the agency identifies that the proposed action will result in potential significant impacts, an EIS is required. • Notice of Intent Publication: Provides an overview of the proposed project • Scoping: An early and open opportunity for the public review provides an opportunity for the public to comment on the intended project • Draft EIS Publication: Considers all public scoping comments • Public Hearing/Meetings: A review period by interested parties to comment on the draft EIS • Final EIS publication: Incorporates and formally responds to all public comments received on the draft EIS and identifies the preferred alternative for implementation • Record of Decision: Provides the public record of the agen-cy’s decision, describes the public involvement and agency decision-making process, and presents the commitments to ef-forts to reduce impacts

Source: www.guambuildupeis.us

About the Environmental Impact Statement


with peak construction and peak population in 2014, and the ensuing traffic increase from full military buildup combined with projected organic growth. The transportation network would become an integral component for fulfilling the U.S. de-fense strategy and alliance requirements; the network would also enhance the ability of the AMDTF (Army Air and Missile Defense Task Force) to defend critical military assets on Guam,” the DEIS states.

PowerThe Guam Power Authority (GPA) estimates that with the popula-

tion increase, its peak load will rise from 275 megawatts (Mw) to 331Mw. The additional load includes military and civilian growth. “GPA will be able to manage the additional load requirement as presented in the DEIS if all the emerging solutions are addressed along with the resolution of the pending unresolved issues,” said Joaquin C. Flores, general manager, GPA. “Part of the plans to meet these load requirements include the complete refurbishment of (three) fast track combustion turbine units in Yigo and Dede-do as well as an additional baseload generator by 2017 — how much output this generator would be is still being determined.” Although Flores said the increased load can be accommodat-ed and GPA is committed to shielding existing customers from



any negative impact, before that can hap-pen a few issues need to be resolved first, namely funding the proposed solutions to meet the increased demand. “DOD (De-partment of Defense) should absorb the costs of the buildup — both direct and indirect,” Flores said. “The availability and transfer of funding is critical for GPA to

begin projects on time to meet the ex-pected relocation of troops to Guam.” Approximately $120 million will be needed to get Guam’s power grid in shape for the buildup. As far as a timeline goes, Flores said the fast track combustion tur-bine refurbishments must be completed in two years. “DOD and GPA have already


begun the repair assessment and the perfor-mance management contract preparation.” “The Consolidated Commission On Utilities’ and GPA’s whole negotiation principle throughout all discussion with the Navy has been that DOD absorb all impact costs related to the buildup — direct and indirect. Whatever growth Guam would have undergone that would match the military impact was planed over a 20 to 25 year period. The reloca-tion announcement accelerated these plans — growth should pay for growth.” While most people are looking at the benefits of the military buildup, there are still many questions that need to be an-swered. The increased military presence along with our own growing popula-tion will put a great strain on our infra-structure, the two most pressing issues include funding and a concrete timeline. It’s imperative that we make the proper preparations now to protect future gen-erations from the negative effects of the buildup.


The economic downturn in recent years tends to make us take a closer look at our finances, take control of them, and possibly, make sound financial investments. Some may

think that this is the wrong time to invest; however, there are huge opportunities for financial gain in a down market — you just have to do your homework. David John, president of ASC Trust Corporation Inc. said, “Market timing is a tricky subject. The biggest risk of investing is your ‘time horizon.’ If you have a short term time horizon with your money, which is less than five years, I would not recom-mend investing. If this is the case, you should put your money in a savings account or certificate of deposit, also known as a ‘CD.’” But it also depends on the season. For example, if an inves-tor jumped into the market during one of the biggest crashes of all time in October 2002, the market low after the dot-com bust two years earlier, they would have been up 33 percent in one year, 44 percent in two years and 92 percent after five years. In just five years the investor could have almost doubled their money by investing in stocks when the market was really bad. Even if the investor held on after the five years and suffered through the recent downturn, they would still be ahead by 32 percent. Through the years, people of all ages and different personalities are becoming wiser with how they spend and save their money and more people are beginning to invest their money in some way, shape or form. Making financial invest-ments can be a very complicated, yet rewarding process. A person can invest in certificates, mutual funds, stocks, bonds, and real estate, among others. Most people have trouble deciding what type of investment in which to, well, invest. The question is not what type of investment a person should go into; the real question is, “What is my investment personality?” Below are a few sug-gestions on how to invest your money based off of your needs.

The patient yet persistent investor The best way to invest with this personality type is through stocks. To simplify the term, a stock is a share or “piece” of a private or public company. A stock has the ability to multiply over time with an opportunity to earn a profit, depend-ing on how well the company fairs on the stock market. Owning stocks is the one of the easiest and most profitable ways to grow your wealth over the long-term. This means, don’t expect to get rich quick or overnight, as investing in this way does take time and patience. A person may invest in stocks in four ways: through a 401k, various individual retirement accounts (IRAs), through

By Christine Restuvog

Even in a down market, hidden investment opportunities are around.

Take

A


a brokerage account or a through a direct stock purchase plan or dividend reinvest-ment plan (DRIP). A blue chip stock, when purchased, requires a person to have patience in making the money work for them. Com-panies such as Coca-Cola, Caterpillar and BellSouth are blue chip companies. These companies have easy-to-understand prod-ucts known for reliably rising stock prices. Many big blue-chip companies pay out roughly half of their profits in the form

of dividends. Dividends are what com-panies pay back to investors after they’ve reinvested in themselves.

The knowledgeable/sophisti-cated investorAre you the type of person that knows everything about how the stock market works? Then you are destined to invest in bonds. Bonds are “IOUs” in which an in-vestor agrees to loan money to a company

or government in exchange for a prede-termined interest rate. Governments, mu-nicipalities, a variety of institutions, and corporations are organizations that can issue bonds. “I would only recommend individual stock and bond investments for investors that have both experience to understand the risk of investing in a small number of investments and someone who has time to monitor their portfolio,” said John. Unless a company goes bankrupt, a bondholder can be almost completely cer-tain that they will receive the amount they originally invested. Another advantage of a bond is that they pay interest at set inter-vals of time, which can provide valuable income for retired couples, individuals, or those who need the cash flow. For instance, if someone owned $10,000 worth of bonds that paid 7 per-cent interest annually (that would be $700 yearly), a fraction of that interest would be sent to the bondholder either monthly or quarterly, giving them money to live on or invest elsewhere. Bonds can also have a large tax ad-vantage for some people. When a govern-ment or municipality issues various types of bonds to raise money to build bridges, roads, and any other project related to in-frastructure, the interest that is earned is tax exempt. This can be especially ad-vantageous for those whom are retired or want to minimize their total tax liability. Though there are numerous types of bonds, the sophisticated investor can rest assure that bonds are the least risky invest-ment of them all. As for First-time investors, who are usually, but not always, cautious, John said, “First time investors should look for a good balanced mutual fund.” However, when one is looking at indi-vidual stock and bond investments with-out the help of an investment advisor, John says, “As an investor becomes more sophis-ticated, they can look at investing in more specific mutual fund investments.” He rec-ommends individual stock and bond invest-ments for investors that have both experi-ence to understand the risk of investing in a small number of investments and someone who has time to monitor their portfolio.” A general rule of thumb when investing in bonds is “the higher the interest rate, the riskier the bond.”

The “a little bit of both” investorWhen a person invests in a mutual fund, their money is put into a pool of mon-ey provided by individual investors,


companies, and other organizations. Examples of mutual funds are equity funds or stocks, fixed income funds, also known as bonds andmoney market funds. According to John, “A balanced mutual fund is an investment that hires a manager to invest your money into a highly diversi-fied allocation consisting of both stocks and bonds.” He adds, “This is a great place to start while learning.” The goal of the man-ager depends upon the type of fund; a fixed-income fund manag-er, for example, would strive to provide the highest yield at the lowest risk.

The real estate investorInvesting in real estate makes a lot of sense to most people who are looking to invest. Real estate is a tangible investment that al-

most always gives you a return on invest-ment. Investing on private properties is one of the easier ways to be a real es-tate investor. However, one of the risks in this investment is the possibility of being taxed. An uncommon way to invest in real estate is through a special type of as-set known as a REIT (which is short for real estate investment trust). By allowing companies to pay no federal income tax in exchange for paying out 90 percent or more of their profits to shareholders as dividends, you can take a small owner-ship stake in multi-million dollar malls, hotels, parking garages, and much more. These investments can be held in broker-age or retirement accounts. Looking at how popular the real estate

market has grown, especially considering the impending military build-up, it can be said that many local residents believe that invest-ing in real estate is the easiest and safest way to go versus investing in stocks, bonds and mutual funds. John agrees, “I do think that Guam is seen more of a real estate then a stock / bond investment community. I think this is due to the history of investing in Guam and the fact that until recently, we were disconnected from the main investment markets of the world.” Though he does feel that there is room for change in the in-vesting arena, “However, with the advent of the internet and 401k accounts this is slowly changing and most likely will for years to come,” he said.

Guam’s investment marketAs for local investors, there is only a small group that is quite ac-tive in investing. John explains, “There are a small number of investors with individual investment accounts. This is due to the fact that Guam’s income demographics do not allow for large number of investors and the fact that Guam traditionally is more of a real estate and small business investment climate.” However John points out that local residents are becoming more investment savvy with “safer” investment plans. “Guam has tens of thousands of investors in 401k plans, which is a company sponsored retirement account that allows a participant to invest in stocks, bonds and mutual funds on a tax qualified basis; IRAs and the Government of Guam Defined Contribution Plan,” he said. Laura Dacanay, vice president/Guam and CNMI region manager of First Hawaiian Bank said, “First Hawaiian Bank is well capital-ized and able to provide financing assistance to businesses that are working with the military build up. ... The low rate environment is making access to funds more affordable.” She added, “We continue to produce the annual economic re-port for Guam and the CNMI that can be used as a tool for new businesses or existing companies in their strategic planning.

You have to take risksInvesting is not risk free, according to most experts. In order to be successful with your long-term investment goals, you must un-derstand the level of risk you best feel comfortable with. With any company, national or local, one should follow a risk assessment process that considers you willingness, ability and your need to take risks.

“If you have a short term time horizon with your money, which

is less than five years, I would not recommend investing. If

this is the case, you should put your money in a savings account

or certificate of deposit, also known as a CD.”

— David Johnpresident of ASC Trust Corporation Inc.


Figuring Out Generation Y

By Faith V. Realica

Tap into the younger crowd for people who have the money and like to spend it.

The young adult market is a thriving demographic with great buying power. These individuals are on their way to becom-ing our future generation and are filling in occupational posi-

tions in the working world, making them earn decent incomes to spend — to the tune of $211 billion in annual purchasing

power. In Guam, Generations X and Y comprise more than half the population — a percentage that businesses try

to capture.

Alluring AdvertisingIt’s no secret that bold colors, clever dialogue, and attractive spokespeople are all part of the hand-book to lure consumers into considering, and

hopefully, purchasing a product or service. Although this format for advertising works, young adults are not so

much into the traditional sales pitch. Instead, they want to be entertained or educated on how a product will benefit them.

In one of its ads, Docomo Pacific channeled the inner rock star in young people with the catch phrase, “It’s your network, who you put ‘in’ is

up to you.” The company used individuals dressed in band attire to a play up a musical theme. The ad informs customers that they have the option of selecting five people to receive unlimited calls at an affordable rate. The company also added the relational aspect of keeping them connected to the important people in their lives at a price they can manage with their disposable income. “The young demographic likes flash … they like color, they like style,” said Edward Camacho, vice president of marketing at Docomo Pacific. “They like to know that they’re buying something expensive, but they’re not spending that kind of mon-ey for it. You got to put it where they feel like they’re maximizing their investment.”

Being a TrendsetterIn the same way clothing corporations attend fashion shows for the latest trends, com-

panies should be plugged into a network to know what’s considered “all the rage.” Young adults are bombarded by the media telling them how to look and what gear they should be seen with in order to be perceived as “cool” and acceptable to society. With all that influence, these professionals want to ooze the same chicness and look to stores to ob-tain the same kind of stylish product. Watching television, looking at what’s popular in the mainland, visiting trade shows to see what other manufacturers are doing, and subscrib-ing to publications are some of the ways Docomo Pacific stays in tune to what’s popular,


Camacho said. Atkins Kroll is also aware of the different road they need to take to market to Gen X and Y and the importance of being up to date. Sammy Sotelo, director of sales at Atkins Kroll Inc. keeps up with the latest trends by assuring the company is well informed about its product and consumer. “AK keeps up with the latest trends by knowing what is out there,” Sotelo said. “We make it a point to understand

what is happening economically, socially as well as interests in consumer behavior.” Sotelo added, “What was appealing 10 years ago may not be ap-pealing today and what motivated a buyer to purchase last year may be different today. We try to keep a pulse on our market and try our best to understand what makes it tick. Our infamous ‘War Room’ sessions are critical for us to help decide on how we approach and decide on marketing strategies for young adults. This is an elusive and tricky market at times to capture and one thing we know for sure is that there is always a change and a better way to reach them.”

It’s in the BrandIt’s true that young professionals tend to be “branded” and are more likely to lean toward products that are known to carry a certain image. A trademark that already has a good reputation with con-sumers or holds a certain status is already ahead of the game from other merchandise. Such is the case for the BlackBerry and iPhone. Known for their sleek appearance, overflow of applications and slightly ex-pensive price tag, these are definitely “it” items. “The take up rate for the BlackBerrys is larger in the young demographic than it is with business people,” Camacho said. “Your phone is an extension of you, for the young demographic; (the person) is cool because they have that phone.”

Ask and ListenIf companies really want to tap into the young adult brain, all they have to do is ask. Global research is useful knowledge but corporations need to be familiar about their consumer based lo-cally. Camacho said that Docomo’s team of marketers poll staff, ask family members and friends of their target age group to give them input on a concept or product that they are working on. “I’m not the person who knows it best; I want to talk to the demographic that knows it best. We reach out to them and they tell us,” Camacho said. He added that showing the product and asking the market simple questions like, “Do you like this, do you not like this, how should we sell it,” gives them an insight of what they’re looking for.


Psychology and MarketingBeing the premiere company to put a product out there is a way to getting ahead with Gen X and Y. Camacho said that when it comes to deliberating about how to introduce merchandise it does have its many possibilities — but too many ideas is not necessarily good. “It’s a very competitive and dy-namic market. We know that if we’re looking at something the other company is looking at something. We try not to spend too much time. Once we get a good feel, we pull the trigger.” Kyle Smith, professor of psychology, Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Guam said, “People in marketing are making use of psychology all the time.” Advertisers are known to use a variety of tactics that successfully work to persuade people into wanting, and ulti-mately, purchasing their product. Smith mentioned that when children watch a show, such as Dora the Explorer, they would probably want the Dora doll when they’re at the toy store. This isn’t the case for young adults. Instead, when an individual in their twenties or thirties sees a character being played in a series or movie they are more likely to want to be the character in the screen and possess their life-style and material possessions. Smith said that this is often why promoters will get someone who is really admired by the young demographic to wear or use their product. “When we see somebody we already like, a celebrity some-one that we’re drawn to, and we want to be like that person and we see that person wearing or using a product it’s kind of like fame by association,” Smith said. Advertisers also try to fulfill the emotional and social needs

of a consumer. One of the main desires they fill are the need to find a partner and therefore will play up physical improvement, said Smith. “One thing that advertisers are really, really good at is convincing us to that we need new products in order for us to look good,” Smith said. Attractiveness is on the top of list of characteristics that young adults want to posses in order to find a mate and advertis-ers. “It’s a time where people might even be obsessed with find-ing a partner and might not be necessarily be good with manag-ing money. People are going to buy these things,” Smith said.

“AK keeps up with the latest trends by

knowing what is out there,” Sotelo said. “We make it a point to understand what is happening economically, socially as well as interests in consumer behavior.”

— Sammy Sotelo,director of sales at

Atkins Kroll Inc.


A second need is for young adults to establish themselves professionally. These generations are finishing school and jump-starting on their careers so they want to “dress for success” be-cause they may not have it yet. Smith pointed out that young people may not have already built prestige and so depend on appearance to portray that they are accomplished. Additionally, they’re trying to make good first impressions and will seek prod-ucts that will help them achieve their goals. Third is the mindset that shopping is a means of leisure and is often tagged as “recreational shopping.” Many young adults have a good amount of stress on their shoulders and in order to relieve that stress they need to buy stuff. “Advertisers are mar-keting to this demographic who just want something to buy,” Smith said. He also added that in general advertising visuals, aside from catchy jingles, are extremely important and sometimes the image can make a brand. Typically, visuals of beautiful people, elegant settings, or something unexpected and quirky, will most likely catch their eye.

ConsumersElenoelle Ventura, 23, emphasized the importance of a product’s reputation. “When it comes to products that I purchase I look for reliability or brand because I am aware of what brand name products are reliable,” Ventura said. The UOG student and sales associate said that she usually shops for the necessities such as clothes, shoes, and bags when at a re-tail shop. She added that these are the items she usually heads for because she works at a department store and gets a first-hand look at what is in and available.


For Ventura, the most convincing critics to buy something are the people around her and she heavily relies on “word of mouth” to find out about merchandise. Ventura also pays attention to when merchandise is on discount to keep an eye on her budget. “It’s safe to say that I shop when I have money or if there’s a sale. I’m a sucker when it comes to sales because that’s when I know I can get good bargains,” Ventura said. Twenty-year-old Sandra Torres may not be an avid shopper but knows exactly what she wants when she steps into stores. Aside from spending money on bi-weekly dine outs, Torres shops

for clothing at stores like Macy’s and Everblue at the Guam Pre-mier Outlets. “They’re reasonably priced and are good quality,” Torres said. On average she shops for clothing a few times every couple of months and makes reasonable purchases. Torres added that she isn’t so much enticed by the advertising but looks heavily on the product itself. As a fan of Crocs, she owns several pairs. Although the adver-tising is simple, with a black and white crocodile peeking from a ledge, she likes the style of the newer designs of the footwear and the comfort it provides. “When it comes to buying things, it’s all about the product. That’s what sells to me.”

“When it comes to buying

things, it’s all about the product. That’s what

sells to me.”

— Sandra Torres,Consumer


In your business, aiming for productivity, quality and a healthy environment are key for increasing profits and your return on investment.

Although items such as health and paid leave — vacations or emergencies — cannot be controlled with factors such as new diseases such as H1N1 and the common flu, action can be taken in the office to prevent injury and promote productivity for your businesses success. The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administra-tion (OSHA) is common knowledge to many administrators in a business and can provide basic guidelines to keep the office area safe. Not uncommon to many businesses on Guam, here is a take of how some businesses run office safety practices.

Leading Claims There were 3.7 million claims of illness and injury in the US pri-vate sector in 2008. Roughly 5 percent were claimed from illness, leaving 3.5 million injury claims from service-providing industries

to goods producing industries. With Guam lacking any exported goods, our very service based economy from tourism will account for a large sum of inju-ries which will lead to absences and even perhaps legal measures with a cost to local businesses. Taking the added precautions now to create a better working environment will help increase your businesses productivity and decrease work related injuries when the economic boom in the military build up rolls around.

Around Your OfficeEmployees are susceptible to an array of potential injuries. From falls, strains, to being struck by items in the office. Keeping a healthy office space can prove to be a missing item on a business-es priorities list although it takes minimal effort from employee and employer. Common office safety hazards lie in ventilation, illumina-tion, noise, physical layout and housekeeping, exits, fire hazards,

Quality work is a product of a safe, healthy environment.

Pleasant


and Productive

By Rafaelito DeAusen

handling and storage hazards, electrical equipment, office furniture, office machin-ery, ladders and stands, office tools, photo-copying machines, video display terminals and so forth.

A Business PerspectiveXerox, tied directly into almost every busi-ness on the island, has 35 employees on is-land. Whether you need to copy, print, fax or scan, Xerox provides all document man-agement services locally and worldwide.

General manager Margaret Tyquiengco expresses the importance of safety at their office in Hagatna and around their large multifunction copier machines. “Our technicians go through video training for safety practices such as lift-ing,” Tyquiengco stated. “They know OSHA requirements to get around machines during maintenance such as no shelves above the machine.” A copier machine also requires ven-tilation due to the chemicals in the ink,

and businesses should be cautious about overloading a single outlet with heavy electrical equipment. In their offices, safety is focused within employees and handling information. “When we hire anyone we do a back-ground check and drug screen. Every person has a photo ID for building entry,” Tyquiengco added. At Xerox there is a “clean desk policy” to insure all desks are secured and locked at the end of each work day. Everything


has to be locked, desk clean with no Xerox or customer in-formation left on the desks to prevent personal information from leaving the building. They also hold annual code of conduct and ethics training. If there is a policy violation, there is no question on whether or not the employee is aware of their conduct policies, and there is a “zero tolerance” rule on violence in office. Finally, Xerox also holds quarterly fire drills with their employees. “Employee safety is number one — physical and verbal.”

Safety and Productivity is their BusinessMichael Ady, president of M80 Office Sys-tems, ties office safety and personnel pro-ductivity in every office they are hired to design or reconstruct. With every project they always keep in mind OSHA and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) guidelines. They deal with building renovation working with military contracts or local architects when construction office spaces. “We like to think of it as a one stop shop,” Ady laughed. Personnel involved in moving heavy furniture and supplies are dressed in col-lared shirts and safety uniforms, making it easy to recognize staff. Following simple guidelines such as leaving no exposed cords, no lumps on the carpet from cables and ventilation, M80 Office Systems also takes into ac-count the practices of the offices they are working with. “You don’t want someone who uses the copier machine frequently at a desk far away. You have to design the area and office around the tasks of the people,” Ady stated. Ady also takes into account air-flow, since erecting walls in a space effects ventilation. One thing Ady and M80 Office Sys-tems stresses is how to keep employees productive throughout the day and work year — office ergonomics. This deals with designing work stations around the persons duties. From desk size and height, the proper chair and setting a computer up properly, inefficient work spaces can lead to health issues in an employee. “You spend 1/3 of your life in your work chair and 1/3 sleeping,” Ady stated. “You

see people spending thousands of dollars on a good mattress” but skimping out on a good chair. You run the risk of poor circulation of blood to the outer extremities with an improperly fitting chair and placed com-puter. This lack of circulation can lead to fatigue and lower productivity as the day progresses. Work stations are designed for a per-son to have both feet on the floor, knees, elbows and the waist at 90 percent angles, and computer station at eye level height. A topic slowly making its way to the

priorities list on office safety is “sick building syndrome (SBS).” The Environ-mental Protection Agen-cy (EPA) describes this as “situations in which building occupants ex-perience acute health and comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a building.” In a nutshell, it expresses the tendency of airborne ailments can spread through the air circulated throughout a buildings air condition-

ing system. More air conditioning systems recirculate air inside a building versus bringing in air from outside, cooling it, and then introducing it into the space. “I try to tell people it’s a big issue. It is in the mainland and in the Philippines. It’s an issue being looked at now,” Ady explained.

Issues on GuamFollowing OSHA guidelines will still leave room for error when it comes to your employees personal health. SBS can be attributed to ailments around the

“At Xerox there is a “clean desk

policy” to insure all desks are secured

and locked at the end of each work day. ”

— Margaret Tyquiengcogeneral manager, Xerox


workplace, especially in larger building facilities. On Guam things such as heat exertion can play a role year round. Illnesses can spread quickly from school to school, home to home, and office to office on a small island. Clean office spaces and soap and hand sanitizer availability can keep your office from passing on airborne diseases. Health and weight can attribute to a persons susceptibility to illnesses which lead to absences and a drop in productivity. Obe-sity, diabetes and other illnesses plague the island and directly

effect health and productivity. One of poor health is more prone to injury, and this does in-clude injury in the workplace despite following all OSHA rules. M80 Office Systems have just added insurance coverage for their employees, which are usually tied into local gyms for free memberships. Tyquiengco stresses caution to business on an island prone to typhoons and natural disasters. After being devastated by ty-phoon Pongsona, the offices of Xerox were displaced for months


during reconstruction.

Common Safety Practices You Can UseLighting can be an issue, whether too bright or too dim. Keep computers away from facing windows and bright light sources, and stray away from low hanging lights. Following the “paper trail” helps document move-ment. Ady advises offices to arrange personnel and desk in the way most business flows. From your host at the front desk to your copier machine in the back, office efficiency should be taken into account in office layout. If your office has a large sum of em-ployees making quarterly fire drills diffi-cult as Xerox does, making exits and fire extinguishers clearly visible and easy to find will help in a situation where they are needed. Fire hazards can be an issue when it comes to storing old paper documents. Using fire-resistant vaults and flame re-tardant material can help prevent any in-stances. You can also scan documents to store electronically. Keeping a designated smoking area with correct disposal bins can also help prevent any hazards. When dealing with electronics, once again it is good to prevent the overload of any single outlet. Keep cords from being dragged over sharp objects and from be-ing hidden under rugs or placed in aisles. Always unplug electronic device when cleaning as well. When dealing with office furniture, you may want to consider an ergonomic chair if you have persisting health ailments and spend most your time at your desk. At M80 Office Systems you can find a wealth of these types of chairs. “We have a 15-year warranty on our chairs. We let people take them and use them, and 99 percent of the time we never see the chair again,” Ady exclaimed. Closing cabinets can prevent another employee from running into them. Also, keeping overhead compartments from high traffic areas such as a copier machine can prevent accidental injuries.

A Look at Securing Your OfficeAt a conference G4S held on Nov. 20th at the Westin Resort for its new program to aid the Guam Corrections Facilities, Lee Palmer, President of G4S Guam gave a look

to their advances in home and office secu-rity systems. “For businesses we look for the right combination of electronics and man pow-er,” Palmer stated. “Minimum wage goes up, costs of electronics typically goes down.” G4S is now carrying some technol-ogy such as movement detection, with programs that can notice a person hold-ing groceries from a corner store to move-ment mimicking those of a car theft. With the current economic slump world wide, and the wait of Guam to pre-pare for the military build up with hopes

to rise our island out of economic despair, bur-glaries are more and more common. “A G4S monitoring sys-tem adds a high deterrent value. The home or office system with our logo on them become less of a tar-get to potential burglars.”

Keeping Office Safety GoingDepending on what your business undertakes, you will have items that effect you and items that do not.

If your company deals with the constant movement of large items you have to look into safety with ladders, heavy machinery and proper attire. Unfortunately the OSHA website (www.osha.gov) is cluttered and difficult to find specific information. Keeping a safe working environment can be easy, how-ever, if it is taken as part of the routine of any office. It really is a matter of compiling what it is your business does and creating sim-ple “habits” for your employees to ensure

“You have to design the area and office around the tasks of

the people.”

— Michael Adypresident of M80 Office Systems


a safe environment for themselves on a daily basis. If your company has a large base of employees, you can take on groups to promote these habits and update them on new practices you may need to add on as you expand your business. From cleaning air-conditioning ducts, computer station ergonomics, to typhoon readiness, do not forget to take into ac-count the “worse-case-scenarios” and not to overlook what may fall into the “com-mon sense” category. “We don’t take anything lightly. Safety of our employees comes first and the safe-ty of our business,” Tyquiengco added. Ady, co-chair of the Small Business Committee, is in the business of looking after your office employees. “Office safety is such a critical issue. At a construction site there are levels safety officers. No one ever looks at the poor office worker. Thats why OSHA is out there.”


Photography by Steve Hardy


“I’m a negotiator. When I went out with the $40,000 add-on to foreign workers, my intent was, you start high and you negoti-ate it down until you get something that everybody can live with. That was my thought on Bill 48, the Middle Class Job Creation Act. I found out that that’s not really how things work in the

legislature, but I thought that we would have support on standard Democratic issues. Democrats are the working people’s party.

We’re not supposed to be the corporation’s party.”

Interview

Matt RectorPresident, Guam Federation of Teachers

Matthew Rector was born in Sacramento, Calif., Nov. 13, 1962. His

mother was a teacher and he had no ambition to follow her into

the education field. “My mom was a teacher for 35 years and I

thought, ‘My God, I couldn’t do the job she did.’

He attended the University of California at San Diego, earning a

Bachelor’s degree in chemistry in 1986, but his career path led

him in another direction. He said,“My last two years of college, I

was already in the music business and I was managing bands lo-

cally, and going on tours. We were on the quarter system at UCSD

and I took a quarter off to go on tour. We played 80 gigs in 90 days;

it was a brutal winter tour. I came back, finished up my last quarter,

graduated, then went right back on tour.”

Rector eventually left the tour lifestyle and moved to Los Angeles

to build a music business career. “I really loved being on the road;

it was great,” he said.“Every night is a party, you’re meeting great

people all over the country and having a great time. But once I got

into the ‘business’ side of things, I was sitting behind the desk and

the business was pretty slimy and I didn’t really enjoy it.”

In 1988 Rector and a friend took backpacks and traveled to Thai-

land, where Rector had spent time as a child. “I sold everything,”

he said. “I sold my music contracts, hopped on plane with $4,000

in my pocket and never looked back. I traveled around the world,

picked tomatoes in Australia, worked as butcher in the UK, flew

in to Hong Kong with $20 in my pocket. I got a job the next day

working as a bartender. It was a great way to see the world.”

In 1991 Rector came to Guam and was faced with his wife’s (he

is now single) immigration issue that would delay her entry into

the U.S. Waiting for that to clear, he said he looked for work. “No-

body needed a chemist, but they needed teachers. Because I had

a bachelor’s degree, I was able to get an emergency exemption.”

Making Guam his home, Rector taught for 15 years, including stints

at Dededo Middle School and John F. Kennedy High School.

Following a dispute over loss of sick leave, Rector, then not a union

member, filed a grievance with the Guam Federation of Teachers.

He said the union mishandled the claim and he lost his case.“It

taught me two things. One, how important it was to have a good

contract. Two, how important it was to have a strong union that

could enforce it. I went down and signed up for the union, became

a shop steward the next year and started my adventure through

the labor movement.”

Later, Rector became the chairman of the teacher’s unit and chief

negotiator. After five years in those positions, he ran for president

and was elected GFT leader in 2005.

He has been a board member for KPRG public radio, and through

GFT has participated with various organizations and events.

For hobbies, Rector rebuilt a 1973 Chevy Nova from the ground

up, learned how to work with wood and spent a summer building

furniture at the union offices in Mangilao. He also describes him-

self as “a readaholic.”

You spent a little over a year in the Guam Legislature before your resignation. With your teaching background, give yourself a grade for your brief tenure as senator, and explain the grade.

I would give myself a B because I think we did really important work and we accomplished a lot while we were there. We got significant amendments through that improved people’s lives. We started a conversation that had never been started before talking about putting families and jobs and decent living conditions first before corporations and profits. We built machinery that started mobilizing working people to push the issues that are important to them, which is a very important thing. Right now, things are driven through the Legislature with very powerful lobby forces; the Chamber of Commerce, Guam Hotel and Restaurant Associa-tion, Guam Visitors Bureau and more — all have a lobbying coali-tion that goes and works things. But who lobbies for the people that are making minimum wage? Who lobbies for the people that work 40 or 50 hours a week and barely put food on the table? Who lobbies for the fami-lies that don’t have health care and can’t afford it? That’s the machinery we built. And could we have done things better? Al-ways. I’ve never believed that I’ve done things per-fectly. Everything in life is a learning experience and the trick to it is [to know] what you did right and do it again, and what you did wrong and how you can do it better. And I think we did a pretty darn good job.

For the people who say the track record is not so good in terms of what legislation was actually passed, what do you say to them?

Well, we did have a good track record. We got a few amendments through that really changed people’s lives. One of them made it so that MMA (mixed martial arts) fighters for the first time are taken care of. Prior to the amendments I got through if these guys got injured making money for the promoter, “Too bad, so sad, pay [your medical bills] yourself.” Now because the amendments I got through, if they get hurt in the ring, making money for their em-ployer, their employer has to cover their medical bills. On top of that, if they lose their life in the ring, their families are covered. Prior to the amendments I got through, they were out of luck. So, did we pass a whole bunch of lightweight bills? No.

Your proposed legislation, early on, adding a $40,000 fee to each foreign worker brought in, and another bill to have Guam Waterworks Authority provide free water and sewer hookups to

all Chamorro Land Trust lease clients — were highly controver-sial. Did it ever cross your mind to initially go slow, get a couple of small successes and then attack the larger issues?

No. Realistically time is incredibly short, the people of Guam are seeing their standard of living and their quality of life go steadily downhill. We have to start monumental change right now, and people realize it. Things don’t happen overnight. Getting our en-tire economy and government turned around, it’s like a giant sea freighter. You can’t turn on a dime but you have to start the pro-cess of steering the boat. We started that process. You mentioned Bill 48. Actually the bill that went to the floor added only a $20,000 per annum fee to H2 workers and would have pumped literally bil-lions of federal dollars into our economy from this military build-up. It would have produced good jobs for our families, it would have made this military build-up work for our people. And now

you look at it and all of my colleagues are claim-ing the things that I said in the first place. But look, we have to make this build-up work for us. So now that conversa-tion has been started, and now all of a sudden folks are listening.

You’re on record as stat-ing that most of the bills passed by the Guam Leg-islature don’t have much substance.

The candidates come out at campaign time and they’ll say, “Look, I passed all these bills,” and you look at these bills and you say, ‘How did they improve my life? How did they im-prove my family’s life?’ I’ll tell you, they didn’t. They have this great plan in the Legislature that they put

out these bills with really fancy titles on them. Now, I like fancy titles and I did that myself. But then they’ll put basically nothing in the bill; so it accomplishes nothing. If it does have something in it, there’s no enforcement mechanism built in. Let’s talk about achievements, because that’s really what you should be graded on. This is the question everybody should ask every senator, “What have you done that has improved the quality of life for me and my family? Prove it.” That’s the question that should be asked, that’s how a grade should be determined.

Renting your senatorial office space from the Guam Federation of Teachers was a move that you had to know would create a media firestorm and charges of conflict of interest. Why go look-ing for trouble right off the bat?

Hindsight is 20/20. The nice part about renting this office is I came into a computer and information infrastructure that was already in

Matt Rector, Guam Federation of Teacher

On the image of being an enemy of ‘business’:

“Everybody likes to point fingers so that you’ve got to make somebody the devil. They like to make it

seem that the unions hate business and business hates the unions — and that’s just not true.”


place, and part of the lease was that we tapped into GFT’s network. Good God, it’s got the fastest 1G network available, RAID 5 config-uration in the servers with a dozen terabytes of memory, plus we were able to go under GFT’s software license — so our computers were up and running with literally tens of thousands of dollars of software. Not renting the office from GFT would have slowed things down quite a bit for me. The media was going to wage war on me no matter what I did, and they did. They pulled out every single issue, starting with that I retained my union presidency at the same time. Never mind that a) it’s happened here in Guam before, with Bilmar Flores, and b) that there are state senators all across the nation that are presidents of unions. It’s a common practice because it’s not a conflict of interest. You bring experts into the Legislature and you give them the committees of which they have expertise. We put ex-police officers in charge of public safety, we put lawyers in charge of the courts. That’s what you do. I don’t think there’s any-body on island that knows as much about the intrica-cies or labor law as I do, as a big picture in policy making. All said, I believe that I was able to hit the ground running unlike any other senator has ever done in the history of the Legislature.

What surprised you most about how the Guam Legislature works, inter-nally, from what you had anticipated?

As much as I knew about the Legislature, about lob-bying and the infrastruc-ture, I didn’t realize just how many back-door deals were the norm. Something else that was surprising was watching the voting process. When you get the vote on the third reading file which is when you’re voting on the actual bill, you get three passes. So the vote will go around the first two times and senators can pass, but on the third time if they pass, they are automatically voting “no.” Nobody tells you these things, so you’ve got to figure it out on your own. What senators do is they’ll count the votes and if it’s a bill that’s popular but some special interest doesn’t want it, they’ll see that there’s not enough votes for it to pass even if they vote for it — then they’ll cast their vote for it. Or if they know there’s enough votes for it to pass but they want to get the political mileage [with] the people that oppose it, then they’ll vote against it. It’s really a sneaky thing that they have in the rules, and I think that’s something that people should watch. Pay attention to the senators that pass.

The Democrats went in with a 10-5 majority. Did you have con-versations ahead of time with your colleagues that led you to believe you could trot your bills out and have a good chance to

get them passed? Second, do you feel that they abandoned you?

To a certain extent, yes. I mean look, I’m a negotiator. When I went out with the $40,000 add-on to foreign workers my intent was, you start high and you negotiate it down until you get something that everybody can live with. That was my thought on Bill 48, the Middle Class Job Creation Act. I found out that that’s not really how things work in the Legislature, but I thought that we would have support on standard Democratic issues. Democrats are the work-ing people’s party. We’re not supposed to be the corporation’s party. We’re supposed to take care of everybody, and so I thought these were significant Democrat bills. They’re not radical Commu-nist bills, they’re not anything other than what the party of Barack Obama would do from day one and has done from day one — cre-ate good jobs for our people. So I thought we would at least get them through in some format and get some progress.

Off the top of your head, what were the three best things you did during your year as a senator?

The key accomplishments: 1) To get health and life in-surance for the MMA fight-ers; 2) My amendment on Bill 175. They were trying basically to privatize and sell off control of Guam’s most valuable asset — control of our water — to foreign companies. While I knew the bill was going to pass, I at least got an amendment to pull out operations because our people need jobs. While with the private manage-ment contract nobody can move up to management anymore, at least we saved 500 jobs for our people. That’s something I’m in-credibly proud of; and 3) I brought a new type of

accountability and a new type of information system to the Legisla-ture and to our democracy that no one’s seen the likes of. With our Web site and our Facebook, MySpace and Twitter accounts, people were getting real-time feeds and information like never before. I would send out tweets on Twitter during public hearings or even during hearings on the floor and I would get an instantaneous re-sponse back from constituents on what they thought are the is-sues, and that’s real-time democracy — like it should be.

Balancing the scales, list three key mistakes.

1) I think I could have gotten the Middle Class Job Creation Act through if I had approached it in a different manner. So, that’s part of the learning process, learning how to manipulate in the Legislature without selling your soul; 2) Not having an escort with me at all times. That’s something my former colleague,

What voters need to focus on:

“The Candidates come out at cam-paign time and they’ll say, ‘Look, I passed all these bills,’ and you look at these bills and you say, ‘How did they improve my life? How did they improve my family’s life?’ I’ll tell you, they didn’t.”

Matt Rector, Guam Federation of Teachers


Senator Taitague, educated me on, with the whole allegation that I had slapped her, which was literally insane. To say I hit you in a room full of senators, television cameras and live feeds on TV, plus 50 students and adults looking on, pounding on the win-dow for the JFK construction issue, and to say that I hit you and a) didn’t leave a mark, b) you didn’t say anything and c) no one saw it — you’ve got to do a little bit better than that; and 3) Applying for a gun permit. Yes, I fear for my safety and I fear for the safety of my staff. But it’s kind of funny to do something that if I would have thought about it more I would have said, “Well, this is stupid. What if I hadn’t got it even though I thought my record was all clear?”

Your resignation from the Guam Legislature ul-timately came as a result of the FBI report that your misdemeanor conviction had not been expunged from your record. Looking back at this entire issue, is there anything you could have or should have done differently?

The FBI report came back with coding that indicated arrest records. I fired those off instantly to an attorney in Sacramento and said “Look, what the heck is going on? Get me informa-tion.” And she did. She went to the courts;nothing. She went a different route and went to the microfiche and found that all they had was records of the arrest. So, once again, I thought it had been expunged. When you think these things through and you get the police clearances and they said, “You’re cleared,” I did what I was supposed to do. Who am I to say, “Wait, maybe the police don’t know what they heck they’re do-ing. I better go and do a bunch of other stuff?” When I finally found that it hadn’t been expunged it was on a Friday afternoon, and I resigned on Monday.

You’ve been critical of the media, claiming that your statements and positions were skewed to fit their own purposes. Do you be-lieve it was solely an issue that the media was out to get you or, possibly in part because you boycotted them and refused to be interviewed, that an adversarial relationship followed?

Look, the Pacific Daily News is an agenda-based newspaper, they always have been. And that’s okay as long as we recognize that they push an agenda. When I was running one of my colleagues passed me a media report that evaluates what people read, view, and listen to. In this report it said that the majority of people that read newspapers don’t read articles, they read the headlines. Very,

very few people read an entire article and get to the end. So what a newspaper will do is it will have a provocative headline, then they’ll have accusation after accusation on the first page and by the last paragraph they’ll start putting the other side in. If they re-port things wrong and you call them to correct it, then they’ll put a little retraction in. But instead of [the retraction] being on the front page in a headline — like in 100-point font — it will go on page 12 in like six-point font. It just got to the place where there was no point in me doing interviews with PDN because whatever I said they would take it out of context. The nice part about them is every time they would say, “Well, Matt Rector doesn’t talk to us and we got this information on his Facebook site, from his MySpace

site, from his Web site,” etc., it was great. I mean my Web site just gets huge hits. I had to thank them for that.

Besides GovGuam work-ers GFT does have a cou-ple of private employee groups organized. Are you looking to greatly ex-pand your clientele and what key factors have to be present for GFT to be successful in organizing a workplace?

We are always in an or-ganizing mode. The key factor is the motivation of the employees to fight for democracy at work and a better life for their families. I tell you, I prob-ably get 50 phone calls a month from employees of various companies say-ing they want to organize a union. I’ll talk to them over the phone and ex-plain to them the process

and what they need to do to fulfill their mission and their dream. Then we’ll sit down and talk about it and see if we can build a coali-tion that’s going to be successful.

Do you believe that every employer should be a union shop?

We compare wages on Guam to wages all across the country. Any-body can do this, you can go to BLS.gov and they’ve got all the stats up for various job descriptions. Across the board, we’re underpaid by 30 percent on Guam, whereas our cost of living is 30 percent higher than the national average. Every worker looks for some way to make their family’s lives better, so there isn’t a company in Guam that isn’t right for organizing. And if we had the time and re-sources, and just a gigantic machinery, I think every company can be organized.

Most business people see a union as a negative force that gets between management and other workers, and further will drive


“We started a con-versation that had never been start-ed before talking about putting fam-ilies and jobs and decent living con-ditions first before corporations and profits. We built a machinery that

started mobilizing working people to push the issues that are important to them, which is a very important thing.”


up costs and drive down profits. Further, if their competitor is not unionized, they would have trouble remaining competitive. How do you sell these people that the union is a good idea?

I totally understand that and it’s quite fearful to a lot of people. Let me tell you about SEIU, Service Employers International Union. They pioneered a new type of organizing and they’re famous for organizing custodians and janitors. They would go to a city and talk to all the custodial services, and have them sign a voluntary recognition paper so that all of them were in agreement. If the union organized 75% of the workers — a 75% “yes” vote for the union — then the union would negotiate the same contract with all of them at once. It allowed companies to compete fairly. All con-tracts with customers pass through the wages because everybody’s competing on the same level. That’s a big deal with the business community. It’s just one of those things that, once I became sena-tor, I didn’t really have time to go forward with. But there’s another really good advantage to a company having an organized union at their place, and I’ll tell you what it is. When a union steward puts on his union hat, he’s no longer acting as an employee but he’s the equal of the boss. Now, of course, every boss who’s reading this magazine right now is going, “No way, nobody’s my equal!” Well, it’s not like he’d start signing the paychecks or something, but it means that he can bring the concerns and the issues of your workers to you without fear of retribution. Any boss who thinks that that is not a good thing, I would say that you are not a good boss.

You’re viewed by some as an enemy of business and you’ve ada-mantly disagreed with that assessment.

Once again, that’s a misperception driven by media that likes to have controversy. Everybody likes to point fingers so that you’ve got to make somebody the devil. They like to make it seem that the unions hate business and business hates the unions — and that’s just not true. Look, we want an economy to be successful. That’s our whole mission, to improve the quality of life for our members and their families. To help grow an economy. You know, it’s the labor movement that was responsible for the greatest eco-nomic growth in the history of mankind. After World War II when President Franklin Roosevelt signed the National Labor Relations Act, and his peers called him a traitor to his class because he was a rich man but supported labor unions. When workers all of a sud-den were coming back from the war and they were getting the GI Bill and they were organizing unions, and they were having good jobs and middle class careers, and were able to send their kids to college — which was never before attainable for the working class — we saw the greatest economic growth in history. Then, over the years, as we started weakening worker penetration and workers had less and less say, things changed. When you’re able to compete by constantly undercutting on the backs of workers, eventually it catches up with the economy. We’re not an enemy of business, we’re about making businesses profitable.

There is speculation that you’ll run for the 30st Guam Legis-lature, but so far you have remained non-committal — stat-ing that you’re waiting for your misdemeanor to be officially expunged before deciding.

My attorney in Sacramento says that my paper could be cleared through the court sometime in May. Once that’s cleared then I can make a decision. I have to decide by July 5th.

What is your thinking while you’re waiting for that?

I’ll tell you. I didn’t run for the Legislature because I needed a job. I’ve got a great job that I love. I love being a union president, I love being on organizer, I love negotiating contracts. I believe it’s God’s work. Fortunately, most churches agree with me and most orga-nized religions agree with me. They advocate the right of workers to organize. And I think it’s a good thing. I ran for the Legislature because the voices of our members and our families and all of the working people of Guam were being ignored. I’ve helped a lot of senators get elected, and, unfortunately, the second they got in they got instantaneous amnesia. So that’s why we ran.

Do you feel that you are still electable?

My people tell me that I could run for the next Legislature and wouldn’t have to do much and I’d be in the top five. We have the machinery now to deliver a slate of senators to the Legislature. If we can find people that are of good moral character, people we be-lieve that have the right intent, who care about the welfare of the people of Guam and not about making themselves as rich as possi-ble as fast as possible — that we can really endorse wholeheartedly — we will help get people elected. By the same token I believe we have the machinery now to deliver the next governor.

Of the current Democrats in office, how many of those are quali-fied to be on your slate?

I can only think of two people, just off the top of my head without looking at the data that I think even would have a chance to make that list, and I’m not even sure if they would.

You said that your work with the union is “God’s work.” How do you look at spirituality?

I grew up in a house that was very non-religious. My dad tells me he’s a dedicated atheist, and we never went to church. I have a de-gree in science. I used to always hear these folks say things to me like, “God has a plan for you.” I used to think when I was younger, “Yeah, right, God has a plan for me? I’ve got a plan for myself. I’m the captain of the ship, man.” But as I went through time, I found out that none of the plans I had for myself ever turned out like I thought they would. Eventually, at my age, 47, I found out that there’s always been a reason for things that happened to me. May-be somebody does have a plan for me.

If you were to run this time and if you were to be elected, where is your office going to be?

It won’t be at GFT.




Could You Please Clear Up Just One Thing?

“Do you believe in life after death?” the boss asked one of his employees.

“No, Sir.” the new recruit replied.

“Well, then, I’m Confused,” the boss went on.

“How’s that, Sir?” asked the worker.

The boss replied, “Well, it’s the strangest thing. After you left early yesterday to go to your grandmother’s funeral, she stopped in to see you.”

It Pays To Know Thyself

A college pizza delivery boy arrived at Larry’s house. After giving him the pizza, Larry asked, “What is the usual tip?”

“Well,” replied the youth, “this is my first trip here, but the oth-er guys say if I get a quarter out of you, I’ll be doing great.” “Is that so?” snorted Larry. “Well, just to show them how wrong they are, here’s five dollars.”

“Thanks,” replied the youth, “I’ll put this in my school fund.”

“What are you studying in school?” asked Larry.

The young man smiled and said, “Psychology.”

Not What She Had In Mind

Ed was in trouble. He forgot his wedding anniversary. His wife was really upset. She told him “Tomorrow morning I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in 6 seconds AND IT HAD BETTER BE THERE.”

The next morning Ed got up early and left for work. When his wife woke up, She looked out of the window and sure enough

there was a small box giftwrapped, in the middle of their driveway.

Confused, she put on her robe, ran out on to the driveway and picked up the box.

She opened it and found a brand new bathroom scale.

Life Is Tough

The worried housewife sprang to

the telephone when it rang and listened with relief to the kindly voice in her ear. “How are you, darling?” it said. “What kind of a day are you having?”

“Oh, mother,” said the housewife, breaking into bitter tears, “I’ve had such a bad day. The baby won’t eat and the washing machine broke down. I haven’t had a chance to go shopping, and besides, I’ve just sprained my ankle and I have to hobble around.”

“Oh my, sweetheart, I’m so sorry.”

“On top of that, mother, the house is a mess and I’m supposed to have two couples over for dinner tonight.”

The mother was shocked and was at once all sympathy. “Oh, darling,” she said, “sit down, relax, and close your eyes. I’ll be over in half an hour. I’ll do your shopping, clean up the house, and cook your dinner for you. I’ll feed the baby and I’ll call a repairman whom I know will be at your house to fix the washing machine promptly. Now stop crying. I’ll do everything.”

“Oh, THANK YOU, mom!” said the daughter.

Her mother then continued, “In fact, I’ll even call George at the office and tell him he ought to come home and help out for once.”

“George?” said the housewife. “Who’s George?”

“Why, George! Your husband! … Isn’t this 555-1212?”

“No, this is 555-1312.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry to trouble you. I guess I apparently have the wrong number.”

There was a short pause and the housewife said, “Does this mean you’re not coming over?”

Not Married To Betty Crocker

At breakfast one day, Theresa eagerly waited for her husband to comment on her first attempt at homemade cinnamon rolls.

After several minutes with no reaction, she asked, “If I baked these commercially, how much do you think I could get for one of them?”

Without looking up her husband replied, “About 10 years.”

The Value Of Time Management?

A local priest was being honored at his retirement dinner after 25 years in the church.

A leading local politician and member of the congregation was chosen to make the presentation and to give a little speech.However, he was delayed so the priest decided to say his own few words while they waited:


“I got my first impression of the parish from the first confession I heard here. I thought I had been assigned to a terrible place. The very first person who entered my confessional told me he had stolen a television set and, when questioned by the police, was able to lie his way out of it. He had also stolen money from his parents, embezzled from his employer, had an affair with his best friend’s wife, and taken illicit drugs. I was appalled.

“But as the days went on I learned that my people were not all like that and I had, indeed, come to a fine church full of good and loving people.”

Just as the priest finished his talk, the politician arrived full of apologies for be-ing late. He immediately began to make the presentation and said, “I’ll never forget the first day our church’s priest arrived. In fact, I had the honor of being the first person to go to him for confession.”

Moral: Never, never, NEVER — EVER be late.

Lord, Have Mercy!

Adam was hanging around the garden of Eden feeling very lonely. So, God asked him, “What’s wrong with you?”

Adam said he didn’t have anyone to talk to.

God said that He was going to make Adam a companion and that it would be a woman.

He said, “This pretty lady will gather food for you, she will cook for you, and when you discover clothing, she will wash it for you. She will always agree with every decision you make and she will not nag you, and will always be the first to admit she was wrong when you’ve had a disagreement. She will praise you! She will bear your children. and never ask you to get up in the middle of the night to take care of them. She will NEVER have a headache and will freely give you love and passion whenever you need it.”

Adam asked God, “What will a woman like this cost?”

God replied, “An arm and a leg.”

Then Adam asked, “What can I get for a rib?”

The rest is history.

Material in Diversions comes from individual contributions as well as Internet sources such as www.crosswalk.com, the Net’s premier site for clean humor.

1. Sen. Adolpho Palacios has authored Bill 301, which would cre-ate a headquarters to combine which two GovGuam agencies?

2. Guam recently was part of a Tsunami alert that was issued in the aftermath of an earthquake that struck which country?

3. In early March nearly two-dozen officials from various parts of Japan met with Guam leaders. Why?

4. This former governor of California is running to get his old job back.

5. A 2008 law permitted this government department to charge $195 every time it renders its service but the agency has not col-lected almost $2 million it is owed. Name the department.

6. Who recently won the Oscars for best actor and best ac-tress.

7. Regarding the Department of Mental Health, District Court of Guam Judge Consuelo Marshal denied a request to establish a receivership and instead did what?

8. General Motors

9. How did the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency character-ize the federal government’s Draft Environmental Impact State-ment?

10. The FAA recently suspended a John F. Kennedy Airport air traffic controller, along with his supervisor — why?

ANSWERS ARE ON PAGE 66

The word this time is Simple. Please, no political jokes. A check of the dictionary shows that there are a lot of words that mean the same thing, boys and girls — sort of. How about: unanalyzable, undecomposable, uncomplicated, unsophisticated, plain, elementary, unproblematic, unsubdivided, bare, mere, childlike, wide-eyed, round-eyed, dewy-eyed, naive, dim-wit-ted, and a bunch of other stuff. But you probably already knew all that. Glad we could keep things, yup, simple. The word simple has 29 words hiding within its 6 letters. Each of your choices must have at least three letters. When you’re done, check your list against ours on page 66.

Opening up in September 2008, Sharp Business Systems leases out and sells

Sharp multifunction printers or MFPs, said general manager and managing director In Cha. A multifunction printer is a machine that incorporates the functionality of multiple devices in one, leaving a smaller footprint and providing centralized document man-agement, distribution and production. Some of the devices that can be incorporated into an MFP include a printer, scanner, photo-copier, fax machine and a machine capable of sending e-mails. Located near the Tamuning post office, Sharp Business Systems is a division of Copy Express. Cha said he was the assistant general manager of Copy Express before moving onto Sharp. Sharp was opened to give existing customers, people new to the

island as well as companies looking to open a branch on island another option when it comes to MFPs. “Another product. Our product is very competitive, robust in tech-nological features and just something that we wanted to offer to the island. ... There are a lot of companies moving in. There’s new businesses that require this type of equip-ment and we wanted to offer to the local businesses more options to choose from.” Sharp Business Systems is the authorized service dealer for the region. “We’re autho-rized for Guam, CNMI, FSM, Palau, but we haven’t opened any businesses there be-cause we just started over here.”

Prior to Sharp opening its doors, Cha said there were only about three other compa-nies that offered the same type of services as Sharp so options were limited. “It’s still limited. Even with us being here, we’re very limited to the choices here. We wanted to offer robust technology and features that they can use. Our machines are very easy to use.”

The OSA is meant to make the work flow process more efficient and cut down on costs. “With our OSA tech-nology, companies can index on the fly right from the MFP control panel.” You take that unnecessary body and have that resource attached to something else instead of

that project they do on a daily basis, he said. If you’re looking to replace your cur-rent printer, copier, fax machine, etc., Cha said Sharp would be more than happy to help you figure out what your needs are and find the right machine for you. “We try to tailor to the customer. We never try to give something that’s over-equipped or over-configured to our customer. We lis-ten to them and see what their volume or what their needs are and we tailor to that. If they’re making 2,000 copies a month, we don’t want to put in a copier that can do 5,000 to 10,000. It’s more cost saving for the customers.”

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“Our product is very competitive, robust in technological features and

just something that we wanted to offer to the island.”

— In Cha, general manager,

Sharp Business Systems

Innovation is Key

Saving money seems to be at the top of the list of many business owners and with the economy slowly gaining momentum; it’s no wonder that several are thinking outside the box with the development of innova-tive ideas such as co-branding. These strategic alliances offer great opportunities for their consum-ers as well as for themselves. In an uncertain business environment, there is room for potential revenue growth and increased traffic depend-ing on how far these companies are willing to go. The potential savings are limit-less. All that is required is a little imagination and a willingness to work with other industries.



Albert Gurusamy’s office looks like just like all the other offices and desk spaces at Health Services of the Pa-

cific. There’s a computer, a chair, papers strewn across a plastic table that one would normally see being used at a fi-esta and some shelves. Except for the fact that it’s a corner office, no one would think that the office belonged to the vice president and administrator of the home health agency. “All of that office equipment is very nice — a lovely desk, a lovely executive suite — that’s all good and fine but quite frankly, as one of the owners of the business, I just don’t feel that that’s an important issue for me,” he said. As a health care delivery company, Gurusamy said most of the work Health Services of the Pacific conducts is done at the client’s home. “The office serves two functions. One function is for all of our clinicians to have a starting place where they can come in and get the schedules get all of the supplies, then they go out and see all their patients. The other function is admin-istrative — our billing operations, our finance operations and all of the clerical operations that we need to run the office.” Gurusamy said he doesn’t use his office to hold meetings and throughout his career, his offices have always been very mod-est. “If we’re talking about equipment, we are going to invest the larger part our investments on our clinically driven equip-

ment because all of that is going to increase our patient care. It’s going to make our care more effective — more efficient — so that’s going to be the focus of our equipment investments.” The little personal touches that the room is adorned with, was added by his sister, Ruth Gurusamy. He inherited the office from her after she stepped down from the administrator position to become the company’s clinical director. It’s just a place for work. While sparse, Gurusamy said he loves the fact that his corner office has windows. “There’s a lot of outside light that comes in. To me that’s important to have some connection with the outside.” Gurusamy said he is happy to spend the money on equip-ment that would benefit the company’s clients and employ-ees instead of himself. “As the office starts building up, as we get more patients and more business, it is also worth-while to invest in new technology for business operations.” One of the things Gurusamy said the company wanted to invest money into is scanning technology to digitally scan and store all of the companies records. “For us, it’s well worth it to invest in that. ... I don’t see that it’s important for me to have this lovely swanky office. I’m more inclined to spend the mon-ey on new scanning equipment. That’s going to enhance our business. That’s going to bring in more business rather than a fancy executive suite.”

By Bryan C. SualogPhoto by Steve Hardy

Albert GurusamyVice President and Administrator

Health Services of the Pacific

Margaret Tiong Mesa has always enjoyed helping other people and as the operat-

ing room (OR) charge nurse at Guam Surgicen-ter, she gets to do what she enjoys every day. “I work in the operating room, where the safety of patients and staff are vital components of my job. As a child Mesa’s goal was to treat our four-legged friends and become a veterinarian. “I definitely had a passion for taking care of ani-mals, but then as I got older I learned what a vet really does other than being able to pet and hug animals and I was dissuaded. ... I wanted to become a nurse because I enjoy helping people and taking care of people ... and I heard they make good money.” For four years, Mesa has been helping to treat patients at Guam Surgicen-ter where she started work-ing right after she passed her board exam. “It was all by chance,” she said. “I was look-ing for a clinic to work at, so I looked in the phone book and the Surgicenter was one of the places I applied to and was most interested in.” The fact that every patient is different also helps to keep things exciting. There is no “typical” day work-ing at Guam Surgicenter, Mesa said. “Every day is full of different cases with different people with different circumstances. I think that’s part of what keeps the job exciting. It’s like you al-ways have to be prepared for the unexpected.” Besides the joy she gets from helping peo-ple, Mesa said working at Guam Surgicenter has made her experience that much better. “It’s great! Work doesn’t always have to feel like work and I think that’s rare. It’s the difference between working because you have to and working because you want to.” In fact, Mesa said working in an office where everyone shares the same passion she does is the best part of her job, “working with fun and

easygoing people who share the same passion of helping people. Also, the heartfelt gratitude from patients is definitely a great feeling.” Although she enjoys working at Guam Sur-gicenter, Mesa said she hopes to expand her horizons in the future, possibly moving to the

states where she can learn and gain even more experi-ence to help the patients she sees. While dif-ficult, Mesa is one of the lucky few who truly en-joy their jobs, but she warns anyone think-ing of becom-ing a nurse that, “having the heart and

the drive are two important things to always remember. Don’t do it if you don’t love id and don’t do it if it doesn’t make you happy.”

FamilyHusband John Mesa and daughter Marliani Mesa

EducationGraduated high school

from Trinity Christian School and received my Bachelor’s Degree from the University

of Guam and currently pursuing an MBA.

Community InvolvementsI used to volunteer at GAIN, which was really fun. I think that this was part of pursuing

my childhood dream.

If I were Ruler for one day

I would probably make everybody be nice to each

other and grant everyone at least one wish.

When No One is LookingI’m not too sure, probably sing and dance to the last

song I heard.

As a ChildI was so quiet and shy, I kept to myself, my mom said I was a great child and that I never gave her problems, I bet she sometimes wishes I never

grew older.

Biggest Pet PeeveI get really peeved when

people are thoughtless and dis-respectful, like cutting you off in traffic or basically just being rude and insincere to others.

Motto“Don’t worry, be happy.

Having a sense a humor and laughter I think are important. Having a good laugh -- the kind that makes your stomach hurt and your eyes all watery — is

cleansing for the soul.” About “I think Directions magazine provides the community with great useful information.

I think that letting the people know what’s out there is important, especially if there are others who may have an interest in the

business happenings of the island.”


As the transition program coordinator for the Department of Education’s (DOE) Di-

vision of Special Education, Hank Schilling in tasked with coordinating transition pro-gram services for Guam’s five public high schools, which was mandated by the Indi-viduals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) of 2004. “Transition services are those mandated by law, which will assist an eligible student with a disability in bridging high school to adult life,” Schilling said. “That is an over-sim-plified conceptualization but it provides a vi-sual picture of those services needed to meet their unique needs; preparing them for em-ployment, education and independent living.” As a child, Schilling had aspirations of going into geology and not the field he’s currently in. However, after 25 years, he said his greatest ac-complishment is watch-ing the students he’s worked with leave school and lead successful lives. He enjoys working with the students, developing programs that enable them to leave school and successfully become integrated members of the “community fabric.” For those looking to enter similar fields helping others as Schil-ling has over the years, he recommends getting as much experience in as many different fields as possible. “Vary your experience; get as much experience in the other fields such as social work, counseling, business and education and work experience and then tie it into the theory.” Schilling got his start in Transition in 1985. “I was assigned to Chief Brodie Memorial School, then a segregated school for students with disabilities. My assignment focused on assist-ing adult age students with employment out-comes and links to adult service providers.” In 1992, he moved to Guam Community College (GCC) working at the college’s Sina Center, which was a program for youth with disabilities within the vocational high school. In 1999, he worked for the college’s coopera-tive education program and apprenticeship program. “These two programs provided work and learning opportunities for all students, at both the high school and post-secondary level.” After retiring 2006, he re-joined DOE taking

on his current position. Judy Roberto, the school programs consultant for the division asked if I would like to work for Transition for the division. “I accepted in part because the new re-autho-rization of IDEA 2004 provided challenged to programming and opportunities for youths with

disabilities,” he said. “Like many departments within the government, challenges are a con-stant reminder that we look for unique ways to leverage resources and deliver services. I be-lieve that challenges are critical for change and growth. That is positive.” “With Transition work there is really no typical day. Although we try to typify the

routines, and we do to an extent, people and situations present in non-typical ways,” he said. Although he’s retired once already, Schil-ling said he hopes to continue working with Transition for years to come. As someone who still has a “sense of wonder,” Schilling said, “I hope to continue in the field of transition. It represents such a vast arena for learning; both at the programming level and application level.”Business. If we are looking at employ-ment outcomes for students then events and trends in the business community are important; especially in the development of curriculum.” About

“Directions provides insight not just (into) Business. If we are looking at employment

outcomes for students then events and trends in the business community are important;

especially in the development of curriculum. Directions is instrumental

in providing that feedback.”

Family Wife, Marie Children: Aaron (married to Felice), Aimee

(married to Sean), and Andrew

Community Involvement Swim team coach and special

olympics coach

If I were Ruler for a dayWe would all become better

stewards.

When no one is looking I Always looked out the

window.

Motto Trust in the Lord, and allow

him to lead in your life.

Hobbies Listening to music



Battery RecyclingLearn more and conserve.

by Peggy Denney

Recycling batteries on Guam, as with most other recy-

clables, can be challenging. Bat-teries are generally identified by their use, such as car batteries, or their size, such as or AA, AAA, 9V or button. But batteries are also identified by the metals they contain, and this is very helpful information for proper recycling or disposal.

Lead-acid batteries are those used in a variety of vehicles such as cars, boats, golf carts, motorcy-cles, and even some lawn mow-ers, and they can be recycled at a number of recycling facilities on Guam. Those facilities are listed in the Guam Recycling Guide in the front of every telephone di-rectory. Some accept those bat-teries at no charge and others pay $2.00 or $3.00 per battery, depending on the size. Lead-acid batteries in the U.S. have a recy-cling rate of 97 percent, the high-est of any consumer product. Al-though the recycling rate of these batteries on Guam is uncertain, it seems apparent that it is improv-ing with the various take-back programs that are now in place. And this is a good thing because if left in the boonies to slowly break down, the 17 pounds of lead and gallon and a half of sul-furic acid that are contained in the average battery are toxic sub-stances that can contaminate soil and groundwater.

What happens to lead-acid bat-teries when they are shipped off island to recycling facilities? The batteries are basically smashed into pieces in a hammer mill. The

plastic casing, which is usually polypropylene, is separated out, melted and extruded into plastic pellets, and sold to manufacturers to make new battery casings. The lead is melted down and molded into ingots, and is generally used to make new batteries. The sulfu-ric acid is either neutralized with a compound similar to baking soda and treated in a wastewater treatment plant, or it is convert-ed into sodium sulfate, which is used in laundry detergents, glass and textile manufacturing.

But what about household batter-ies? These are the batteries that are in our cell phones, remote controls, flashlights and other portable electronic devices that we use every day. These types of batteries are even more challeng-ing to recycle on Guam because there is no program in place for their regular collection and ship-ment off island for recycling. Al-though they have been collected at household hazardous waste collection days in the past, that is no longer sufficient to handle the quantities generated. U.S. EPA es-timates there are billions thrown away every year in the United States, and there is no question that Guam is generating signifi-cant numbers as well. There are programs available in the states to mail or ship batteries to recy-cling facilities, such as The Big Green Box (www.biggreenbox.com), but these programs apply to the continental U.S. only.

However, it may be possible to work with these programs and companies in order to properly

recycle household batteries and thus divert them from the Ordot dump. It will require identifying a funding source, probably some type of environmental steward-ship grant, that would cover the cost of drop-off bins at a variety of sites, such as grocery stores and malls. Additionally, the costs related to collection, packaging and shipping would need to be included. Although it seems rath-er daunting to coordinate such an effort, the benefits to our envi-ronment would justify that effort because we would be recycling metals and other substances that would then be reused and pro-tecting our soil and groundwater from contamination by mercury, lithium and cadmium.

And once at a recycling facility, how are these batteries recycled? They undergo a High-Tempera-ture Metal Reclamation (HTMR) process, which separates the high temperature metals, such as nickel, iron, cobalt, manganese and chromium, from the low-melt metals, such as zinc, lithium and cadmium. The high-temperature metals are cast into molds and the low-melt metals are collected as metal oxides, and both are sold to manufacturers for reuse in bat-teries and other products.

So stay tuned to learn more about this recycling project. Hopefully, in the not too distant future, we’ll be able to recycle one of the more challenging items on Guam and conserve resources and pro-tect our island environment at the same time.

Peggy Denney is contracted by the Guam Business Partners for Recycling as the program administrator for the “i recycle” Program. She was the program coordinator for education and outreach at Guam Environmental Protection Agency for over two years. She has a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and a master’s degree (all but thesis) in environmental science from the University of Guam.

“Although the recycling rate of batteries on Guam is uncertain, it seems

apparent that it is improving with various

take-back programs.”


His Way or the HighwayWhat happens when working for the boss is not working for you?

by Ron Marks

Ron Marks is the author of Managing for Sales Results published by John Wiley and Sons. He is a certified speak-ing professional and mem-ber of the National Speakers Association. He and his wife, Marni, reside in Scottsdale, Ariz. and love to visit Guam as avid scuba divers. He can be reached at [email protected].

Unfortunately this is a situ-ation that has become all

too common. Whether the per-son you report to lacks the ap-propriate people skills or if it is just a situation where there is a personality clash, many people today are in uncomfortable situ-ations with their superiors. The bad news is that most adults that reach the age where they have been promoted to upper man-agement of a firm are probably old enough where they are not going to change their behavior a great deal.

The good news is that by taking a few steps you can dramatically improve the relationship you have with your boss and increase your ability to accomplish your work in spite of this challenge. The first step is to become aware of the situation. Realize and ad-mit you have a conflict with your boss and you need to take action. Unfortunately many people have a coping mechanism in this type of situation. It would be impor-tant for you to become aware of which, if any of these “Passive Aggressive” tactics you use to respond to your bosses negative behavior.

• Obsession and avoidance.• Self doubt and sulking.•Wishing for the bosses de-mise or gloating over fail-ures.• Making negative comments or gossiping about the boss.• Direct negative confronta-tion or retaliation.• Shutting out the boss or a total shutdown.

Once you detect that a negative situation exists, and which if any, of the coping mechanisms you use, you can separate yourself from the situation. Bottom line is you are not the reason for this be-havior; it existed long before you came around and chances are you will not be able to change him or her. Make every attempt to avoid the coping mechanisms that were listed earlier. You will also want to make sure that you don’t let this negativity roll down hill and dump on the people you may be responsible for in the organization. Finally, don’t “medicate” with the bad C.A.T.S. (Caffeine, Alcohol, Tobacco and Sugar) Exercise often, stay active and eat right.

The third step is to negotiate a plan for dealing with this situ-ation. It may begin with taking personal inventory of what your expectations are from authority. Ask yourself, what do you spe-cifically expect and need from your boss. Then ask how those unmet needs can be met outside the relationship with the boss. In my early days in business I had a boss that never gave out recogni-tion. No matter what I seemed to do or how well I might perform, I could never get a “pat on the back” or a compliment. After some time, I realized that was his style and I was not going to change it. He believed that giving recogni-tion for good performance led to “settling” and felt that the only way to continually drive perfor-mance to higher levels was to make people think there was al-ways room for improvement and

that the job was never completed satisfactorily. I however perform best when I feel appreciated; I was not getting it from the boss so I worked on receiving recog-nition from clients by providing exemplary service.

I believe it helps to have three strategies for dealing with the boss’s behavior. First, the over all approach. This is a quality or attitude that you embody when dealing with the boss. They are in a position of leadership and while you may not be able to get along with them, they deserve certain respects and you should make every effort to be tolerant and avoid falling into the coping mechanisms we discussed ear-lier. Secondly, you need to have tactics that you can use for deal-ing with the challenges in the specific moment. Consider what responses or behaviors you can demonstrate when you are con-fronted with the negative behav-iors. Choose healthy responses that involve direct and open communication. Don’t be afraid to express how you are feeling or communicate what areas you believe could be improved in the way your boss deals with you. As we discussed earlier, this does not mean they will change, how-ever you need to be certain you are doing everything possible to contribute to the solution. Final-ly, you probably need to be con-sidering the long term strategy and be planning the appropriate “moves” to allow you to be trans-ferred or promoted out of this boss’s direct responsibility.

“By taking a few steps

you can dramatically improve the relationship

you have with your boss

and increase your ability

to accomplish your work.”


The time has come where you may no longer need

to lug a laptop around to get work done. With about $50 worth of apps, you can turn your iPhone or iPod Touch into a true mobile powerhouse.

Brush up on a PowerPoint pre-sentation. Catch up on all your email. Access important files stored on your desktop PC right on your phone. I have six great apps that will help you do this and more.

Documents to GoDo a fair number of presenta-tions or editing Microsoft Word or Excel files? Documents To Go ($10) is right up your alley. It lets you view, create and edit Word and Excel documents. The professional version ($15) adds PowerPoint support.

You can synchronize files with your Windows PC or Mac over Wi-Fi. Or, send and receive files via e-mail. You get a healthy set of features, but not all that are avail-able in Office. Files sent from your desktop retain their for-matting. You’ll see graphics and tables, along with comments and footnotes/endnotes. The app can also be used to view PDFs and iWork ’08 and ’09 files.

TapIt4MeThe iPhone’s keyboard can be difficult. You’ll want TapIt4Me ($5) for composing documents or long e-mail messages.

Start by creating “snippets.” A snippet consists of a phrase and

an abbreviation. When you type the abbreviation, TapIt4Me re-places it with the phrase. For ex-ample, “brb” is expanded to “be right back.”

Use the notes feature to com-pose a message. Expand a single abbreviation, or create an entire e-mail from several abbrevia-tions. Then, copy and paste the note into another app. The app includes a number of snippets. You can edit, delete or keep any or all of them.

Print n Share for advanced printingAt some point, you’ll want to print content stored on your iPhone. Print n Share for advanced print-ing ($7) lets you print files and Web pages. Or, print contacts, e-mail messages and photos.

Print n Share works with any printer available to your comput-er. You can print from your Wi-Fi network. Or, use your cellular connection to print from afar.

CarboniteAccess your online backup files on the go with Carbonite’s iPhone app. (Full disclosure: Car-bonite is one of my national ra-dio show’s sponsors.) The app is free, but you’ll need to subscribe to Carbonite.

The way the app works is sim-ple. Carbonite on your desktop backs up your files to Carbo-nite’s servers. You can then ac-cess all of these files on your iPhone. View photos, brush up on a PowerPoint presentation

or review documents.

The app also lets you e-mail files directly from your phone. That makes it easy to share and access files anywhere. Access your files over cellular and Wi-Fi networks.

scanR Business CenterscanR Business Center Pro ($25) turns your iPhone into a scanner and fax machine. Since it requires a camera, iPod Touch users won’t reap its full benefits.

Use your iPhone’s camera to scan documents, business cards and more. Then, convert them into PDF files. The PDFs are search-able, so you can search for spe-cific text within finished files.

Once you scan a document, fax it to anyone around the world. Or, use a nearby fax machine as a printer. Faxing is free. Your scans and faxes are stored online. You can access them from any Web browser or iPhone. You can also convert scans to editable docu-ments via scanR’s site.

DropboxDropbox (free) makes it easy to transfer files to your iPhone. It works with Dropbox’s online service, which synchronizes files between computers. A 2-gigabyte account is free.

Access your Dropbox account on the go. View files and down-load them to your iPhone for of-fline viewing. Changes made on a computer are synchronized to your iPhone.

I Have an App for That Turn your iPhone into a powerful mobile office.

by Kim Komando

Copyright 2010WestStar TalkRadio Network. All rights reserved.

Kim Komando hosts one of the top 10 most listened to radio shows in the United States and is the computer editor for Popular Mechanics magazine. Her radio show is heard on NewsTalk K-57.

“The time has come

where you may no longer

need to lug a laptop

around to get work done. ”


One of the differences be-tween a really good busi-

ness person and a great one is the ability to recognize opportuni-ties and their risk and weigh that with the potential for reward. Every business decision car-ries with it an element of risk. There are elements to risk and some strategies for dealing with risk. One of the interesting ele-ments of risk is that it involves chance and degree. Much like gambling, risk is about odds and winning. People with more ex-perience in a specific business are better able to gage the level of risk and the consequences of risky actions than those who are new to the industry or geograph-ic locations. That is why local knowledge combined with tech-nical institutional knowledge usually yields the best decisions. It also is known as being old and wise! What are some questions to ask about risk before taking a risk?

1. How detrimental is the risk should it occur?This is the degree question. Risk carries with it consequences; some more than others. The busi-ness owner must look at the risk and determine: “If the risk is re-alized (occurs) what will be the result?” This involves knowing cause and effect. This also entails looking at the ability to rebound from a realized risk and the abil-ity to judge degree of risk with compared to degree of return. For example, professionals who are just starting in their ca-reers take more career risks and

usually will change jobs more frequently than people who have been in the workforce for many years. Why? Because they can take more risk with the chance of a bigger reward (or loss). They have a commodity that more ma-ture workers to not have — that is the gift of time to recover. It is similar to deciding to play the $1.00 machines in Las Vegas with less risk, but you also will receive less reward (payout) should you win at the $100.00 machines. We often hear about ROI (re-turn-on-investment) — This is called the ROR principle (return-on-risk). The key to really good decisions is t be able to minimize the degree of risk and maximize the return on a lower risk.

2. What are the chances of the risk occurring?This is the probability question. Again, great leaders are able to manage the chances of risk occurring. Business is about managing risk, not necessarily avoiding every risk or businesses would not open their doors for business. Certain risks are within a business owner’s control; oth-ers are not. Dysfunctional busi-nesses increase their chances handling risk poorly, as they do not have the systems in place to put together a risk management plan or to execute risk manage-ment properly. The chances of controlled risk decrease in an or-ganization that has a sound man-agement team, sound business plan and sound finances.

Ways to Address RiskThere are ways to minimize the

chances of risk occurring, and should it occur the degree of damage it will inflict. This is es-pecially true in the area of risk that may be beyond the business owner’s control (such as the weather). Business owners need to look at the strategies of risk mitigation, avoidance and meet-ing the risk with alternative tac-tics and plans.

a. Risk mitigation involves hav-ing practices in place that will make the risk less likely to occur or that will minimize the damage should the risk occur.b. Determine that the risk is too large for the return and decide not to pursue the project or en-gage in the activityc. Determine that the risk is worth the potential reward and “just do it”.

Leaders are judged by how they are able to handle risk — both the planning for it, and how they handle the situation when the risk is realized. Poor leaders take huge risks with their employ-ees and their businesses for the potential of very little return or for their own personal advance-ment. Great leaders are risk takers, but calculate the “risk-to-return” equation and make the best and wisest decision for their companies.

Risk Versus RewardLearn to acknowledge when to take a chance.

by Dr. Karri Perez

“There are elements

to risk and some strategies for dealing with risk. One of the interesting elements of risk is that it involves

chance and degree.”

Karri Perez, PhD, has worked in Guam, Japan and the United States. She is cer-tified as a senior and global HR professional and is a consultant and instructor for the University of Guam, University of Phoenix and GuamTraining.com. She can be reached at 488-2526 or [email protected]

By Dr. John C. Maxwell

Seldom do we consider ourselves to be bor-ing or out of touch as communicators, yet oftentimes that’s exactly what we are. We may be passionate about our message, but we don’t understand how to craft it in a way that resonates with our audience. As a result, oth-ers tune us out, and we have difficulty influ-encing them.

What Makes People Listen?Before passing along information, great com-municators make a connection. They have a handful of qualities that garner the interest and attention of their audience. By harnessing these qualities, communicators earn the right to be heard, and their words carry weight. Here are four qualities of a communicator who connects:

1) Relationships — Who You KnowAfter reading about German experiments with uranium in scientific journals, physicist Leó Szilárd became concerned about the pos-sibilities of the Nazis developing an atomic bomb. Alarmed, the American scientist decid-ed to alert President Franklin Roosevelt. Lacking direct access to the President, Szilárd drafted a letter and then convinced Albert Einstein to sign it. With Einstein’s name affixed to it, the letter of warning reached President Roosevelt’s desk, and prompted him to form a commission to research nuclear fission. That commission later became the Manhattan Project, which invented the atomic bomb and helped the United States to end World War II.

Leo Szilárd’s letter to President Franklin Roosevelt illustrates an important principle of connection: borrowed influence. Szilárd lever-aged his relationship with Albert Einstein to get his message to the White House. One of the quickest ways to gain credibility with an

individual, a group, or an audience is to borrow it from someone who al-ready has established trust with them. It’s the basis of celebrity en-dorsements, sales refer-rals, and word-of-mouth advertising. Who you know can open the door for you to connect with someone.

2) Insight — What You KnowInsight also opens the door to connection. Szi-lárd’s impressive credentials as a physicist earned him the respect and consideration of his colleague, Albert Einstein. In turn, Einstein’s expertise as a scientist gave him a platform from which to communicate with the leader of the United States.

If you have an area of expertise and gener-ously share it with others, you give people reasons to respect you and develop a sense of connection with you. We tend to listen to people who have specialized knowledge. That’s why trial lawyers call upon credentialed witnesses, and universities hire people with advanced degrees to be professors.

3) Ability — What You Can DoIndividuals who perform at a high level in their profession gain instant credibility with others. Basketball phenom LeBron James exuded so much ability as a high school senior that Nike signed him to a $90 million endorsement deal at age 18. On account of his tremendous tal-ent, people who have never met James admire him, want to be like him, and feel connected to him. His ability carries so much influence that people will even mimic his shoe selection.

When people of rare ability speak, others lis-ten — even if the area of their skill has noth-ing to do with the advice they give. For in-stance, LeBron James endorses State Farm Insurance. Now, does James have expertise in the insurance industry? Probably not, but he’s arguably the best basketball player in the world, and people listen to him because of what he can do.

4) Sacrifice — How You Have LivedPeople connect with those who sacrifice for

the good of others. For example, each year Gallup conducts a poll to determine the pro-fession most admired by Americans. Since be-ing added to the list of professions in 1999, nursing has claimed the top spot every year but one. The winner in that lone exception? Firefighters, who took first in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center Towers.

If you have made sacrifices or overcome pain-ful obstacles, many people will relate to you. Notice how much respect is given to veterans of the armed services; we admire them going into harm’s way to protect our country. Think about the weight that is given to the words of the civil rights leaders who helped to pave the way for improved race relations in America. Or, consider the regard we have for those who’ve survived cancer. We tend to listen to people who have persevered through adver-sity, especially when they’ve undergone per-sonal costs in order to serve others.

ConclusionThese four qualities of connection are by no means comprehensive. I’m sure you can think of other reasons people connect. The point is that you must take whatever you have, and use it to connect with others. The more methods of connection you have and the bet-ter you become at using them, the greater your chance of connecting with people.

This year Dr. John C. Maxwell will again headline a list of prominent speakers and thought leaders at the 2010 Leader-cast, formerly known as the Maximum Impact Simulcast. It is the 13th year that Guam Training has presented this outstanding event.

CONNECTING IS MORE SKILL THAN NATURAL TALENT

Manager’s Toolboxsolutions, ideas and inspiration for enhanced productivity


HR Polls Observations and trends to monitor

Are you tired? If so, you’re not nearly alone.

Three in 10 Americans on average (29%) said they did not feel well-rested “yester-day,” according to Gallup-Healthways data from 2008 and 2009, conducted with 700,000 American adults.

The remaining 70% reported feeling well-rested the day before the survey.

How about you — are you well rested or are you tired on Monday (from all those weekend barbecues and parties), and stay tired all week long?

Income, age, gender, and presence of children make a differenceThe lowest income Americans, those aged 49 and younger, women, and those with children under the age of 18 in the household are among the groups most likely to say they were not well-rested yesterday — with one-third or more in each group saying so.

The other side of the coinPeople 50 and older, those with the highest incomes, men, and those without children in the household are among those who felt well-rested.

What can you do?Go to bed early. Seems obvious,, but many people plop down in front of the TV or computer after handling their chores and kids, instead of taking a shower and hitting the pillow.

Exercise also helps. When the body is functioning better, you’ll get more restful sleep.

Take “cat naps” at work. Not everybody can doze off on demand. If you’re so fortunate to have this ability, use it. A few minutes of rest can make a big difference.

Are you an introvert? If so, you’re part of the majority. In Introvert Power, psychologist Laurie Helgoe writes that 57 percent of the U.S. population are introverts or have introverted personality traits.

Her Web site and books fea-ture tips for introverts on how to network more effectively.

1. Meet clients one-on-one. If you’re an introvert, you find that groups of people drain you of energy and may even make you feel uncom-fortable. Create ways to net-work with individuals.

2. Reward yourself for overcoming ob-stacles. If you network at a work function, find ways to pat yourself on the back later! The more positive associations you create when you overcome obstacles, the easier stepping outside your comfort zone and

making new contacts will become.

3. Network with other introverts. Find like-minded folk who understand you, and ac-

cept your personality type.

4. Connect with extro-verts. Extroverts enjoy mak-ing contacts and thus make excellent business partners and work colleagues for peo-ple who are introverts.

5. Learn how to make small talk. This helps you get to know colleagues and clients better — and lets them know you better, too.

Never underestimate the power of small talk!

6. Find creative ways to market yourself. Try leaving your comfort zone and doing the “extroverted” thing: making speeches, teach-ing classes, running meetings, and more.

Introvert Power!


We get what weRewardJack Welch, the celebrated former CEO of global behe-moth General Electric, was a absolute believer that manag-ers ultimately get the behav-ior they reward.

So if you punish innovators for failing, that’s what you’ll get.

If you take ownership of the failure (because you’re the boss and leader of the team), and keep swinging yourself, you model what you expect from the whole team.

If you encourage, motivate and reward the effort, that’s what you’ll get.

If you encourage risk-taking or innovation, that’s what you’ll get.

If you ignore it, you won’t get it.

Welch’s concept goes a lot farther.

As managers we train our workers by our actions, and whether or not those actions match up to the principles we claim to believe in.

An example of how to get this wrong is when a manager makes punctuality an issue and says that doing things on time is important for the

organization. However, the same manager routinely be-gins his meetings 10-15 min-utes after the scheduled start time, while waiting for the participants to trickle in.

Not enforcing the time of the meeting says that punctuality really isn’t important.

Starting on time rewards those who honored his earlier statement.


As more baby boomers delay retirement and work until older ages, they may find themselves working for a younger boss. A recent Harris Interactive and CareerBuilder survey of 5,231 full-time employees found that 69 percent of workers ages 55 and older currently have a younger manager.

If you’ve never worked with a supervisor who is younger (maybe much younger), here are a few tips to consider:

1. Acknowledge their expertise. Be open to fresh ideas. “One of the problems that many boomers experience is that in their percep-tion, the younger boss does not want to listen to their experiences and take account of their expertise,” says Linda Gravett, a psycholo-gist and coauthor of Bridging the Generation Gap: How to Get Radio Ba-bies, Boomers, Gen-Xers, and Gen-Yers to Work Together and Achieve More. Showing a little flexibility can get the relationship off to a good start.

2. Use electronic communication. A younger manager might pre-fer to interact with you via instant messenger, text message, or E-mail rather than face to face or on the phone. Get over it. They grew up with these devices and it’s what they know.

3. Don’t expect too much face time. “They are looking for re-sults and productivity as opposed to face time in the office,” said Gravett.

4. Point out your results. Keep your boss up to date with your progress toward meeting goals. Instead of chatting about your decades of ex-perience (which nobody cares about), talk about what you’re doing now.

5. Act your age. Avoid comparing a younger manager to your adult children or talking about what you were doing at their age. Also, don’t try to act younger than your age, dress younger (ask your children and grandchildren how uncool they think this is),

6. Update your skills. Having a working knowledge of the latest technology is a key to future employment.

7. Don’t compete. Don’t openly compete with a younger supervi-sor or belittle him or her because of age. It’s not their fault you were born first. Use common sense. Nobody likes a “know-it-all.”

The younger boss is there to do a job, just like you are, Use your experience and maturity to help him, and you just may discover that you share some common ground, despite the difference in age.

Source: usnews.com

1. Never give me work in the morning. Always wait until 5:00 and then bring it to me. The challenge of a deadline is refreshing.

2. If it’s really a “rush job,” run in and interrupt me every 10 minutes to in-quire how it’s going. That’s a great way to keep me focused.

3. Always leave without telling anyone where you’re going. It gives me a chance to be creative when someone asks where you are. It’s even better when you turn your cell phone off, and better yet that you haven’t set it up to

accept voicemail.

4. If my arms are full of papers, boxes, books or supplies, don’t open the door for me. I need to learn how to function as a paraplegic and opening doors is good training.

5. If you give me more than one job to do, don’t tell me which is the prior-ity. Let me guess. Then, if I guess wrong, feel free to criticize me for my judgment.

6. Do your best to keep me late. I like the office and really have nowhere to go or anything to do. How could someone like

me have a life away from work? Me?

7. If a job I do pleases you, keep it a secret. Leaks like that could cost me a promotion. Anyway, who needs praise and recognition?

8. On the other hand, if you don’t like my work, tell everyone in the office. I like my name to be pop-ular in conversation.

9. If you have some special instructions for a job, don’t write them down. If fact, save them until the job is almost done. That way, I can go back and re-do a lot of my

work. “Is this counter-productive?” you ask. Oh noooooo, what would give you that idea?

10. Never introduce me to the people you’re with. I’m only one of your wage slaves, so why would they want to know me? Just pretend that I’m invisible.

11. Be nice to me only when the job I’m doing for you could really change your life. The rest of the time I’d prefer to be treat-ed coldly, or just ignored — whichever is more convenient for you.

12. Tell me all your little problems. No one else has

any and it’s nice to know someone is less fortunate. I’m really interested in all the details of your life, particularly when they make me late in picking up my kid from day care. Do you see yourself in any of this?

12 Tips for Managers From Employees

Is There A Younger Boss In Your Life?



“Most people never run far

enough on their first wind to find out they’ve got a

second. — Henry James

Guess how many Americans took two weeks of vacation last year? A measly 14 percent.

Huffington Post blogger Keri Henley wrote that Americans are the world’s worst vaca-tioners, and the numbers certainly seem to back up her contention.

Henley stated that even though Europeans work 300 fewer hours than Americans (most get between four and six weeks of paid vaca-tion), the level of productivity per worker is the same, or slightly higher than ours.

Before we get e-mail on how Europe is in shambles and their policies are disastrous, there is also the fact that 137 other countries are ahead of us in guaranteeing at least some

vacation time.

According to Henley, people “who take regu-lar vacations are happier, and live longer than we do.”

Some people feel that because the cost to travel off-island is so high, that a real vacation isn’t possible for them. They just stay home, sit in front of the TV, and just pass the time until their “vacation” is over.

Instead, play tourist; visit a spa, go on a hike, see a movie in the middle of the day. Eat in restaurants you’ve never tried. There’s lots to do and many ways to recharge your batteries.

Leaders are decision makers, and there’s no escaping the fact that we’re paid to make deci-sions that impact our organizations and ev-eryone who works in them.

John Maxwell, at the 2009 Maximum Impact Simulcast, said 95 percent of the decisions that most leaders make could be handled by the average high school student — that we’re paid for making the other 5 percent.

What do you hear?Often times, that means going on gut instincts. We may have a lot of sophisticated data, along with the opinions of our team members, and even a consultant’s views might be tossed into the mix. However, if the decision is ours to make, we’ll still likely be crunching all that in-formation long after everyone else has gone home — or is sleeping. All that data and opin-ion aside, we’ll be listening for a voice...our inner voice.

In her book, Listen: Trusting Your Inner Voice in

Times of Crisis, author Lynn Robinson explains how to identify our intuitive voice, or gut feel-ing. She tells us to pay attention to body sig-nals: Excitement, enthusiasm, and energy all say “Go for it, Girlfriend!” Boredom, anxiety, and resentment mark a dead end.

Robinson instructs us to imagine ourselves having made a decision that we are deliberat-ing on today. Once we have made the deci-sion, how do we feel? Excited? Nauseous?

Seeing the futureCan we visualize the impact of our decision a year from now? Are we glad we made that decision? Has our organization improved? How does everyone feel about what we did? How do we feel about it?

How about initial reactions?Some people report they’ve been most suc-cessful when they simply moved on their first impression, or reaction, rather than doing an exhaustive analysis. Or, after going through

the extensive process of considering all op-tions, they arrived back at their initial position. Perhaps it would be beneficial to think back and see if the same applies to us. How many times have we done the same? Do we trust our first impressions? What about risk?

The leader who can develop this ability to employ gut instincts — and be correct the majority of the time — has a definite advan-tage in the marketplace.

“If you don’t know where you’re going,

any road will take you there.”

— Cheshire Cat

(Paraphrased, from

Alice in Wonderland)


Decision Making: Going With Your Gut

When I get ready to talk to people, I spend two

thirds of the time thinking what they

want to hear and one third thinking about what

I want to say.”

— Abraham Lincoln

Got Vacation Coming? You Should Take It.


CUSTOMER’S INDEXCUSTOMER’S INDEX

THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE DIRECTIONS

POSSIBLE

1. Guam Police Department and Guam Fire Department

2. Chile

3. To get a better understanding of how Guam feels about the relocation of U.S. Marines from Okinawa.

4. Jerry Brown

5. Guam Fire Department

6. Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock

7. She appointed a management team to oversee operations.

8. This U.S. auto maker has decided to reinstate 661 dealer-ships that it had sought to drop from its sales network.

9. “Environmentally unsatisfactory”

10. The air traffic controller, whose name was not disclosed, brought his children to work and allowed them to read a few routine messages to pilots.

from page 51

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Individual Assuance Company 34

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JMC Equipment 19

Johnstone Supply 20

Joy 92 40

KUAM 69

Mcdonald’s 30

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Pago Bay Resort 7

Sharp 31

Trane 15

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Xing Contruction 21


Fifty years ago, Harvard University set out on a research project to determine the common denominator for success

among leaders. They were hoping to find out it was “education.” Not long after, USC started a research project as well. After three years of research, both schools at the same time came out with their findings. These surveys found that successful peo-ple have the ability to communicate. Find-ings were that seven percent have the nat-ural ability to communicate; three percent of these people develop that ability; and ninety-six percent of the population can develop this communication ability, and therefore become more effective and suc-cessful. As business and island leaders, our communication abilities are essential for our success.

“A corporation’s values are its life’s blood. Without effective communication ac-tively practiced, without the art of scrutiny, those values will disappear in a sea of triv-ial memos and impertinent reports. There may be no single thing more important in our efforts to achieve meaningful work and fulfilling relationships than to learn and practice the art of communication.” This statement was recorded in book en-titled, Leadership is an Art, by Max DePree in 1989, and still rings true twenty years later in 2009.

Communication can be defined as the ability to acquire understanding between

two people or the transferring of a message between two or more people. In regards to communication, there are two major func-tions. The first function involves listen-ing or, we could say, receiving. The other function is speaking or sending messages, whether verbal, non-verbal, or written. Communication is a primary gift from God in order to establish relationships as well as complete the various tasks of life. Thus, we need to understand the dynamic power of our communication as well as principles to guide our communication with others.

TACTFULNESSEsther had been raised by her older cousin Mordecai and had become an obedient daughter towards him. Mordecai had in-structed Esther to not openly reveal their Jewish heritage as many Jews were not fondly looked upon. Thus, when Haman, another ruler in the kingdom threatened to terminate all of the Jews because of his hatred toward them, she was the primary candidate to approach the king on behalf of her people.

Now for Esther to approach the king without being summoned, she could have been killed. But, Esther was willing to risk her own life on behalf of her people by stating, “If I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16). When she did approach the king, she did not break down with the major problem. She instead, tactfully invited him to a ban-quet, which resulted in two more proceed-

ing banquets before she actually revealed to her king/husband the major national cri-sis on behalf of her Jewish people. She put the king, who maintained the right to take her life, in a comfortable position before communicating to him.

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, stated, “A soft answer turneth away wrath…” (Proverbs 15:1a). As we ap-proach problems and attempt to commu-nicate either with our coworkers or our boss, we must remember to be tactful in our approach. Many times, it is not what we say, but how we say it that makes all the difference in the world! Here are a few questions to help us be tactful. Are my words necessary? Are they appropri-ate? Are they essential to the situation? If not, maybe your communication will be hindered. Someone has said, “Tactfulness is making a person feel at home when you wish they were.”

Three Powerful Principles of CommunicationThe third article of a five-part series on ”Goodly Leadership”



Q: Our family’s business is growing at a steady rate, and we’re trying to put operating procedures and systems in place to support it. Our lawyer is urging us to write a buy-sell agreement among the principal stockholders. The process sounds like a lot of hassle and expense. Is it worth it?

A: A buy-sell agreement sets up a require-ment that in the event of the death or incapacitation of one of the owners of a company, that person’s relatives or heirs are obligated to sell his stock to the re-maining owners. The intent is to keep ownership in the hands of those running the business and minimize conflict.

So while it’s not the perfect answer to all ownership continuity challenges, a buy-sell agreement is usually a valuable building block in the foundation of a fam-ily owned or other closely held business. Remember, though, that the agreement itself is only a nice idea unless the remain-ing owners have the capital to buy the de-parting owner’s stock.

Q: I’m in my mid-60’s and chairman of a company that my grandfather founded many years ago. My daughter and son are officers of the business, and I’d like for them to take it over and keep it in the family.

But the owners that preceded me have spread company stock throughout the family. If something happened to me tomorrow, I don’t know how my kids could maintain control of the business. Is there any way to straighten this situa-tion out?

A: If you’re in your 60s, then it’s kind of late in the day to start thinking about this problem. And make no mistake: widely dispersed stock ownership can be a prob-

lem in a family business, as the children of Campbell Soup chairman John Dor-rance, Jr., discovered in the1990s when their cousins tried to force them to sell the company.

But if your company’s stock is still in the hands of only the family, then you should be able to formulate a plan for clarifying and continuing ownership. First get your objectives clear and in order: protecting and preserving the business, retaining management authority for those with management responsibility, distrib-uting benefits of ownership fairly among those entitled to them, and others.

Then bring in some expert help — an attorney experienced in corporate owner-ship issues, your financial advisor, maybe a family business specialist — to facilitate the necessary agreements among family members. Finally, do your kids a big fa-vor and urge them to start working on a plan for ownership continuity and man-agement succession a lot earlier than you did.

Q: I’ve thought about succession plan-ning for the business I founded, but I’ve decided just to include it in my will. My wife and kids can do whatever they want with it after I’m gone, and I’ll save myself a lot of money and worry. Don’t you think that makes sense?

A: I’ve said it before, but only about a thousand times, so I’ll say it again. No company worth more than $10 in U.S. currency should be conveyed by will. The risk of value loss through estate taxes and the management burdens dumped on sur-viving family members should be reasons enough to keep even the biggest block-heads from willing their businesses. But apparently they aren’t.

So consider this. Your company is your life’s work. You’ve put a lot of yourself into creating, nurturing and growing it. Why throw all that investment to the wind by letting the courts and the tax collectors have the major voice in what happens to your business after your death? Take a little well deserved pride in the business you’ve built, and put some effort into pre-serving it and protecting your family’s lon-ger term interests.

Go to work with your family on a suc-cession plan, and get your attorney and tax advisor to link it to a good personal es-tate plan for your and your spouse. That’s the real way to save everyone concerned a lot of money and worry.

After I’m Gone

James Lea is an internationally acclaimed family business consultant and is avail-able through Directions at 635-7501.

Questions to ponder on what happens to your business after your time.