This book tells the legendary story of a letter delivery man during the Spanish-American War, which reveals the true meaning of win-win corporate success and personal development from the deeds of a hero, and which, with its hundreds of years of wide circulation and more than 800 million copies sold globally, proves an enduring model of success, a way of working that works wonders with loyalty, self-confidence, responsibility, and initiative. Rowan - the man who sent the letter to Garcia - has become an iconic talent coveted by countless governments, militaries, corporations, and other social organizations, and as the author of this book puts it: civilization is a long process of tirelessly searching for this kind of talent. This book can be regarded as the most classic and excellent business treatise, and also as the most valuable guide book for employee training, which helps us to establish a good professional image.
Preface
In the real society, the liberation of personality, self-actualization and loyalty, dedication and initiative, are they in opposition or not? The facts tell us that they are not opposites, but complement each other and are indispensable. [Albert Hubbard's book "Letters to Garcia" reflects the legendary story of a man named Rowan who accomplished an "impossible task" with his absolute loyalty, sense of responsibility and initiative to create miracles. His story has been widely publicized around the world for more than 100 years. The book has also become the world's 6th best-selling book of all time.
The thin little book, "Letters to Garcia," is said to still sit on a desk in the office of George W. Bush. Bush wrote this about the book, "You're a letter carrier!" He explained, "I'm sending it to all those people who ***fought together at the time of the formation of this administration ...... I've been looking for those who can send a letter to Garcia and make them one of us." .
The book's story takes place in 1898, while "Send the Letter to Garcia" was written in 1899. But the story and the spirit expressed in the book have become the beliefs of generations of leaders. The hero of the story is Andrew Rowan, a young lieutenant in the U.S. Army, a letter carrier. At the time of the outbreak of the U.S.-West War, U.S. President McKinley urgently needed a competent envoy to complete an extremely important task, the Military Intelligence recommended Andrew Rowan to the President. Rowan accepted the mission without asking, "Where is Garcia?" "Where can I find Garcia?" and set off immediately without anyone following him there. It wasn't until he infiltrated the island of Cuba that the Cuban insurgents sent him a few local guides, and after a few adventures, or in his own modestly humorous words, being surrounded by just a few of the enemy, and then managing to escape, that he finally delivered the letter to General Garcia, a man who played a pivotal role in the war. The book tells people that the vast majority of us must lay the foundation of our career in a social organization, and that as long as you are still a member of a corporate enterprise, you should put aside any excuses and devote yourself to loyalty and responsibility, one for the glory, one for the loss! When you put your body and mind completely into the company, due diligence, everywhere for the company, the courage of investors to take risks very much to admire, understand the pressure of business owners, then, any boss will regard you as the pillar of the company. Loyalty brings trust, and you will be entrusted with important responsibilities, and get the broad stage you have always dreamed of.
The book conveys ideas that are unimaginably influential. As author Albert Hubbard said, "Civilization, is a long process of eagerly searching for such talent." Because the initiative, responsibility and loyalty of the employees of a company are essential for its success, the "messenger" is the man of their dreams. The book is an inspirational work about success, which motivates people: not to be intimidated by difficulties, to persevere with confidence in the tasks entrusted to them. It reveals a pattern of success.
I. Letter to Garcia
Of all the events concerning Cuba, there is one person that I cannot forget the most.
When the Spanish-American War broke out, the United States had to get in touch immediately with Garcia, the leader of the Spanish Resistance, who was in the mountains of the Cuban jungle - no one knew exactly where, so it was impossible to bring him a letter. However, the U.S. president must get his cooperation as quickly as possible.
What to do?
Someone said to the President; "There is a man named Rowan who has the means to find Garcia, and he is the only one who can find him."
They got Rowan and handed him a letter to Garcia. The details about how the man named Rowan took the letter, put it in a greaseproof paper bag, sealed it, hung it from his chest, and three weeks later, trekked across a crisis-ridden country to deliver that letter to Garcia - those details aren't what I want to illustrate. The point I want to emphasize is this: the President of the United States handed Rowan a letter addressed to Garcia, and Rowan, upon receiving it, did not ask, "Where is he?"
People like him should be immortalized in statues that we put in every university. Young people need more than just learning from books or listening to all the guidance of others, but more than that, they need a sense of dedication to the task entrusted to them by their superiors, immediate action, and dedication to the task - "Send the letter to Garcia."
General Garcia is no longer on earth, but there are other Garcias now. Any business operator who needs many hands is sometimes surprised by the inability or unwillingness of the average person to concentrate on a task. Laziness, indifference, and sloppiness in doing things seem to have become the norm; no one can get things done unless he painstakingly and coercively calls on his subordinates to help, or, unless by some miracle, God sends him an assistant.
If you don't believe me, let's do an experiment: you're sitting in your office at the moment - surrounded by six staff members. Call one of them over and say to him, "Please look up the encyclopedia for me and make an excerpt from so-and-so's life."
That clerk would quietly say, "Yes, sir." And then go ahead and execute it?
I dare say he would never, but would instead ask a question or questions full of suspicion:
Who is he?
Did he pass away?
Which set of encyclopedias?
Where are the encyclopedias kept?
Is this my job?
Why don't you ask Charlie to do it?
Is it urgent?
Why are you checking him out?
I'll bet you ten to one that after you answer the questions he asks, explain how to look up that information, and the reasons why you're looking it up, that clerk will walk away, go find another clerk to help him look up so-and-so, and then, will come back to you and say that you can't look up this person at all. Really. If you're smart, you won't explain to your "assistant" that so-and-so is cataloged in what category, not what category, you'll just smile and say, "Forget it." And then go to check yourself, this passive behavior, this moral stupidity, this weakness of mind, this style of appeasement, may bring this society to the danger of three monks have no water to drink. If people can't be spontaneous for their own sake, how can you expect them to act for others?
You advertise for a stenographer, and nine out of ten of the applicants can't spell or write, and they don't even consider that a necessity. Can such people bring a letter to Garcia?
In a large company, the general manager said to me, "Look at that clerk."
"I see it, how is he?"
"He's a good accountant, but if I send him into town on a little errand, he might get the job done, but he might also walk into a bar right on the way, and when he gets downtown, he might forget about his errand at all."
Could you send someone like that to deliver a letter to Garcia?
We've heard a lot of people lately expressing sympathy for "workers who work for cheap wages and have no prospects" and "homeless people who work to put food on the table," while at the same time berating those employers.
But no one ever mentions the bosses who, well into old age, can't get the unmotivated slobs to do a decent job, or the bosses who try long and patiently to move the employees who turn their backs on them when he does.
In every store and factory there is a constant process of consolidation. The head of the company often sends away employees who are clearly not contributing to the company, and at the same time attracts new ones in. No matter how busy business gets, this consolidation goes on all the time. Only when the company is in a slump and employment opportunities are scarce does the reorganization yield better results - those who are incompetent and untalented are rejected from employment, and only the most capable are retained. Self-interest makes it so that each boss keeps only the best staff - those who can send the letter to Garcia.
I know an extremely intelligent man who is not capable of starting his own business, and who is not of the slightest value to anyone else, because he is always frantic with the suspicion that his employer is squeezing him, or deliberately oppressing him. He is unable to give orders, and is afraid to take them. If you asked him to send a letter to Garcia, he would most likely reply, "Go yourself."
I know, of course, that a man of such moral unsoundness as this is no more to be pitied than a man of unsound limbs; but we should also sympathize with those who endeavor to run a large business, who do not lay down their work because of the bell at the end of the day. They grow gray hairs by the day for trying to make the indifferent, lazy, passive, and conscienceless employees less outrageous. Without that effort and heart, those employees would be starving and homeless.
Am I being too serious? However, as the whole world turns into a slum, I will say a few words of sympathy for the successful - who channeled the power of others to finally achieve success when there was very little chance of success; but all they got out of that success was an emptiness, an emptiness apart from food.
I have worked for people for three meals, and I have been a boss, and I know all the ups and downs of both. Poverty is bad, and poverty is not to be recommended, but not all bosses are greedy and bossy, just as not all people are good.
I admire people who work hard whether their bosses are in the office or not, and I honor those who are able to deliver the letter to Garcia. Quietly taking the letter, not asking any stupid questions or casually tossing it in the gutter, but delivering it regardless. Such a man will never be fired, and will never have to strike in order to ask for a raise. Civilization is all about a long process of anxiously searching for this kind of talent. Such a man will get whatever he asks for. He will be welcome in every city, village, and town, and in every office, store, and factory.
The world is in great need of such a man, such a man who can send a letter to Garcia.
Two, to be the best
If all of Lincoln's letters and speeches were destroyed, as long as a letter to Hooker (Confederate general during the U.S. Civil War, who participated in all the major battles in the East, losing to Confederate General Lee but winning a decisive victory at the Battle of Mt. Lucotte ---- translator's note) is preserved, then we can glimpse the "Woodchopper" (Lincoln's nickname ---- translator's note) inside the mind.
In this letter, we can see Lincoln's spirit of self-control; we can also see man's ability to control others. In this letter we can see frankness, kindness, wit, sophistication; Liamin's diplomacy and infinite patience.
Hooker harshly and unfairly criticized his commander-in-chief ----- Lincoln, and also humiliated his top lieutenant ---- Burnside (American Civil War Union general, fighting countless battles, famous for even Beard, for people have to follow, after resigning from the military was the governor of the state of R.I. ---- Translator's note). But Lincoln waved all that away; he believed Hooker had talent and had him replace Burnside. In other words, a misunderstood man promoted a misunderstood man over everyone with whom he had a deep friendship.
But for the greater good, all personal considerations were abandoned. Of course, it was necessary that the man being promoted should master stumbling, and Lincoln informed him of this calmly, in a way that, of course, also avoided Hooker's exaggerated attacks.
Perhaps it would be best if we copied the letter in its entirety as follows:
Major General Hooker:
I have appointed you commander of the Army of the Potomac. Of course, I did so for good reasons, but you would do well to realize that there are some things in which I am not quite satisfied with you.
I believe you are a brave and good soldier, and for such a man I certainly like.
I also believe that you don't confuse politics with your profession. When it comes to your profession, you are correct.
You are confident. That is, if not an indispensable quality, at least a precious one.
You have ambition. Within reason, this is a good thing rather than a bad thing. However, I believe that during General Burnside's command, you kept your ambitions to yourself and did your best to thwart him. In doing so, you made a huge mistake, both for your country and for one of the best and most honorable generals.
You recently said that both the military and the government need a dictator. I believe this rumor to be true. Of course, I am authorizing you, not because of this matter, but in spite of it. Only those generals who have built their careers can establish a dictatorship.
Now, what I ask of you is military success, and I will risk dictatorship for that. The government will fully support you, it treats all generals equally and will not look the other way. You are accusing the commander, you are suspicious, and you are fostering a culture that will destroy you, and Napoleon will not be able to do anything about it. Now, quit your pride and go forward to victory.
Your sincere friend Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln
There is one point in this letter which deserves special attention, and which suggests a vice which grows in organizations, namely, the habit of sneering, fault-finding, criticizing, and complaining about those who are above us.
Anyone who wants to be somebody, to do something, is bound to be criticized, insulted and misunderstood. This is a necessary ordeal, and every great man understands this, and they also understand that there is no proof of greatness. The final proof lies in the ability to endure humiliation without complaint. Lincoln didn't resent Hooker's criticism of him, he knew that every life has its reason for being, but let's look at how he reminded Hooker of the fact that Hooker had it coming to him for what he did!" If it is allowed to spread, there is nothing Napoleon, not to mention you, can do about it." Hooker will be lifting a rock and stoning himself.
Not long ago, I met a Yale student. He was going home for a vacation. I'm sure he didn't represent the true Yale spirit, because he was whining and complaining about the school's rules and regulations. President Hadley also became the target of his criticisms, and he laid out a long list of reasons, facts, materials, with time and place attached, to me, and said so.
Soon, I saw that trouble had arisen, not that Yale couldn't afford trouble, but the student. He got so hung up on something trivial that he finally did something so outrageous that he lost his eligibility to study at Yale. I don't think Yale is perfect, and President Hadley and other Yale people are willing to admit that; but Yale has certain strengths, and it relies on those students, whether they take advantage of them or not.
If you're a student at a university, then grab those available advantages. You give him tolerance, you get benefits. You give sympathy and loyalty to its institutions, you get rewarded. Be proud of it. Side with the teachers and they will do their best. If a place is bad, then you usually do your best to make it good by setting an example to others. Do your part.
If the problem is on the company's side, and the boss is sexually perverse, then you'd better go to him and tell him, honestly, calmly, and gently: he's a sexually perverse man; explain to him that his policies are ridiculous. Then, let him know the way to improve it, and that you can still take these problems over and quietly remove them.
Or support it, or don't do it, one or the other; either withdraw altogether, or go all out. You can only make one choice.
If you work for someone, then go work for them in the name of God.
If he pays you enough to earn your living for nothing, then work for him with all your heart, look out for him, and support him and the organization he represents.
I figure if I work for a guy, I work for him. I can't be duplicitous with him, I can't be masculine. I'm either all in or I'm simply out.
Strictly speaking, a dash of loyalty is worth a whole lot of wisdom.
If you have to resort to name-calling, cursing and endless put-downs, then why don't you quit? You can be in a mood to vent when you are on the outside. But, I beg you, when you are in it, don't curse it. When you deride it in, and you are in it, then you are also deriding yourself.
Not only that, but you are loosening the ties that bind you to this institution. Trees are big, and when the day comes that you're uprooted and have nothing to fall back on, you won't even know what's going on yet. All that termination letter will say is, "The contract is up and I'm sorry we don't have enough positions available," and so on.
You see people who are unemployed everywhere. Talk to them and you'll see that they're whiny, resentful, and indignant. That's their character flaws causing them trouble. They are self-destructive and self-defeating. They always seem out of place and do nothing. All the employers are looking for someone who can help him out, and he is looking on with a cold shoulder. It is a rule of business that those who do nothing, those who get in the way, are told to get out before it is too late; and based on the laws of nature, the rewards can only go to those who are able to do it. In order to be promoted, you must have compassion.
As long as you gabble, talk down, point the finger, be contrary, and say that the boss is a man of a perverse nature and that his business is going down the drain, then you are not helping him. You don't need to threaten him with resentment, you don't need to escalate your jealousy into conflict, but you are stepping into a dangerous situation that will quickly eliminate you from the game.
When you tell someone that your boss is a good-natured person, then you are revealing that you are such a person; when you tell someone that the agency policy is "irredeemable," then it is clear that you are as well.
Despite the shortcomings, you were promoted at Hooker. But chances are, your employer wasn't as generous as Lincoln. But even Lincoln couldn't protect Hooker forever; Hooker fought unfavorably, and Lincoln was forced to hire someone else. One day, Hooker was replaced by a superior man. This man never criticized anyone, never complained about anyone; this brilliant man controlled his emotions just right; he did his part, doing what was impossible for ordinary people to do, with loyalty, trust, and unquestioning devotion.
Let us do our part, and do it with all our might.
Three: Don't be passive, but be proactive
Like many people, I did a lot of interesting jobs as a teenager and during college. I repaired bicycles (I got fired) and I sold dictionaries door-to-door. One year I spent an entire summer collecting tickets for a beauty pageant that had been ordered and not paid for by middle-aged people persuaded by sweet-talking competitors who had no intention of going to see it. I also worked as a tutor for math classes, a bookstore cashier, a store cashier, and a summer camp scout counselor. There was also cleaning the yard and organizing the keep room and cabin in order to finish college. Most of these jobs were so demeaning that for a while I considered them all menial and poorly paid jobs.
Later, I realized I was wrong. These jobs subconsciously gave me precious lessons and opportunities, and I learned a lot no matter what kind of job I was in or what class I was in.
Take my job at the store. I feel that I was a good employee and I did what I was supposed to do, which was mainly keeping track of the money customers spent on their purchases.
However, one day, while I was chatting with a coworker, the district manager walked in the door. He looked around and then gestured for me to follow him. Without saying a word, he began to organize the merchandise that had been ordered. He then walks over to the food section, clears the counter, and empties the shopping carts.
I watched this in amazement, gradually waking up to the realization that he wanted me to do all of these things, too! I was amazed by the reason why, not because it was some new task, but because it meant I had to do it all the time.
But no one told me to do these things before! Even now, no one has said anything.
Then, I learned the lesson of a lifetime. Not only did it make me a better employee, but I learned more from every job.
The lesson was that I have to take responsibility for my work, I have to take it to the next level, and I have to actually take responsibility for my actions. In short: it's not just what I'm told to do.
Once I got this lesson, my work, which I had previously considered a low point, started to be interesting. The more I focused on my work, the more I learned and accomplished.
I left that store to go to college, but the experience had a profound effect on my life and career. I went from being a bystander to a serious and responsible person. Academics became fun, and part-time jobs and internships became opportunities to explore what the future held.
When I became a manager or executive, I always tried to discover what needed to be done. In fact, in a wide variety of jobs, I could find opportunities to outperform others ----- not only set my employer apart, but also to make a name for myself.
My conclusion is that every employee, in every job, needs to listen and believe this: you can make your life better, starting today with the job you have right now, without having to wait until some day in the distant future when you're looking for your ideal job to make a move.
Four, Hubbard Business Creed
I believe in myself
I believe in my product
I believe in my company
I believe in my coworkers and associates
I believe in the producer, the designer, the maker, the seller of the product, and in all of the people in the world who work in the business
I believe in the value of the truth<
I believe in a good disposition and a good body
I believe that the necessary condition for success is not to make money, but to create value, and when value is created, success comes naturally
I believe in sunshine, fresh air, vegetables, fruits, and all the good things in the world
I believe that the best word in the world is " Confidence"
I believe that for every business I do I make one more friend
I believe that when I part from someone we are all eager to meet again and that we all have a good time when we do
I believe in hands that work, brains that think, and hearts that fraternize