MobilityPass Sucks – Take Two

 

The chatter about MobilityPass being a rip-off-firm is continuing, and I have not seen a single positive post about them yet. In retrospect, I got lucky, because all they got out of me was the cost of  the modem, and since I could not get that to work with them for two months, I never got around to getting as far as usage charges.

Here is a good summary post so you can see other horror stories.

MobilityPass Sucks

In March, when planning on a trip to Europe, I needed to ensure Internet access. I found MobilityPasson line  as a vendor, signed up on line, spent $150 on the modem, and waited, and waited, and waited.

Nothing happened. Eventually I received a package from Spain with a modem. I tried to make the modem work, to no avail.

So I contact support. This is only possible via email.

They have told me that their broadband carrier is giving them trouble, but they should be up and running again soon.

They have told me that I didn’t put $50 “funds” into my account and that’s why it’s not working.

I asked for an RMA number to return the equipment. They gave me an address in Spain to send the thing to, but unless the packaging was in perfect condition I could not expect a full refund.

Finally, somebody called me back and told me they found the problem, but to fix it they would need to install a new SIM card. He said they would send me a new card, free of charge, and then it would work. They would also put $20 “test money” into my account so I could use it.

Would I give it another chance? Yes, Ok.

After about 2 weeks, another envelope arrived from Spain, and I got a SIM card. I installed the new SIM card, and yes, I was actually able to call into the AT&T network. But it gave me a roaming warning, telling me it was not my home network, and extra charges would apply. Oh well, it’s  their funny-money anyway, so I was not too concerned.

I am now on my first trip, and I decided to try MobiliyPass again. I am in the middle of  Richmond, Virginia. It’s hung up in “looking for network” until I finally give up.

I have had enough. I am going to ask for my money back. It has been almost 3 months of trying to make this work — what a flawed product.

I recommend strongly: Do not do business with MobilityPass. With me they misrepresented themselves every step of the way. And I am tired of envelopes from Spain.

Cheap Watch from Forbes

I like to read Forbes Magazine enough to subscribe to it occasionally when I get a good offer, like $20 for a year. Then, when it comes time to renew, and they want normal pricing, I abandon them, only to be lured again a year or two later with another introduction. I am sure I have done this 15 times over the last 30 years. 

Cheap Watch from Forbes

This time I subscribed and all of a sudden I get this cheap watch in the mail.

I am not a good  photographer, and I have no ambition to be one either, so this picture is the best I could do for a close-up. But you get the idea. It came with little piece of paper that gave instructions:

Analog Quartz Instructions:

Time Setting:

Pull crown out and turn in either direction to set correct time. Then push crown in and second hand will begin moving. Please note your watch is battery operated and should not be wound.

I followed the instructions. Of course, I am old enough to have had analog watches when I was a kid, so I knew intuitively how to set the time. I guess the iPod generation would not know what to do with the little crown.

But here is the kicker: I pulled the crown, and the whole thing came off. The little stem was broken off. After a cuss word, I tried to stick it back in and sure enough, it still worked to set the time.

Not only does the watch look cheap, with its imitation leather armband and the fake gold housing, it is so cheap that the crown comes out when you pull on it.

I don’t get it. What was Forbes thinking? Thumb through Forbes and it’s full of ads for Rolex watches and private jets and golf resorts in expensive locations. None of the people interested in those ads would ever wear such a watch. Why did they send it to me? What do they think I am going to do with it?

If I wore watches, I’d have a good one and I’d have no use for this trash. But I don’t even wear watches. Did I perhaps respond to a teaser that offered a “free watch” and they actually think I just took the magazine so I’d get the watch?

Somebody at Forbes hired some dufus for a marketing genius, and the guy is blowing millions of dollars on junk to mail to their subscribers. Not only is the stuff useless, it actually motivates the recipients to take pictures of it and post it in blogs.

Pirates: Democracy and Socialism

In recent days, weeks and months, news about pirates have saturated the media. Today, those news are about Somalis in East Africa, attacking ships in the Indian ocean. These pirates, driving speedboats and using assault weapons, are nothing like the swashbuckling buccaneers we think of when we think of pirates. Disney’s theme park ride, and the countless movies about Hook, Peter Pan and Treasure Island create a different picture of pirates. Here is a completely different view:

Pirates were actually democratic. The classic age of piracy in the Americas started around 1660 and lasted through 1820 or so, with the heyday around Jamaica in 1660 through 1680, and much piracy around the Caribbean all the way up to Newfoundland in the 1710 and 1720 time frame.

Pirates elected their leaders and captains. This means that they also unseated unsuitable or unsuccessful ones. The captain had ultimate power in battle, during raids, attacks, chases, and in navigational matters. But when it came to deciding what to plunder, what ships, towns or harbors to attack, the pirates voted, and every member had an equal vote, including the captain. This system of democracy was in place and worked very effectively long before the United States existed, and the various colonies still obeyed the British crown.

When the pirates divided up their loot, they had very clear demarcations, which were defined by their Articles, that everyone signed. The loot was divided up by “shares.” A common pirate had one share. The surgeon, first mate and other officers might have had two shares. The captain eight shares. This defined a clear written and documented system of how the loot was distributed. There was never any haggling or fighting.

To top it off, there was perhaps the world’s first health insurance – speak socialism. Before the loot was divided up, injuries were paid off. The most common currency was the “piece of eight,” a coin, and the predecessor of the peso.

The Articles defined addressed the “recompense and reward each one ought to have that is either wounded or maimed in his body, suffering the loss of any limb, by that voyage.” Each eventuality was priced out:

Loss of a right arm: 600 pieces of eight

Left arm: 500

Right leg: 500

Left leg: 400

Eye: 100

Finger: 100

This comprised generous medical insurance, incentive pay and employee control.

Now I just have to figure out how to reward our employees based on such incentives, learning from the pirates of the 17th century.

American Airlines – Admirals Club

After occasional complaint posts about airlines,  here is a positive one.

I just renewed my annual membership to the Admirals Club, and even with discounts, and signing up in the club, it’s still $300 a year; so it’s a significant investment.

However, it’s always quiet, there is room to find a corner and close your eyes. There are cubicles to set up the computer, the high-speed Internet access is free, there is good coffee, cookies, help with ticketing and booking, and the bathrooms are quiet, clean and private. If you travel as much as I do, just the bathrooms are worth the membership.

American Airlines is doing something right with the Admirals Clubs.

Rating: ****

Shut Down AIG

Remember when Reagan first came into office and he fired all the striking air traffic controllers? Well, you have to be older than 40 or so to have a chance to remember that. Still, it was a gutsy move. Nobody believed that he could do that — let them all go, but he did. The planes continued to fly, and striking was over, for a long time. That was one of Reagan’s great acts and he got instant respect for it.

Obama needs to bust up and shut down AIG. Sorry for the $170 billion already spent. We could have rebuilt the entire road system in the US for that money, or constructed all new schools. Alas, we exercised bad judgment.

But it’s too late to worry about that. There are people at AIG that should not only not get a bonus now, they should not have a job. Fire them, and do it now. Then deal with the lawsuits later. Drag them out for years so they have to fight for every penny, while they are home watching the soaps and do no more damage. It might cost the same in the long run, but the American public will be satisfied. Make room for  a better insurance company.

Ocarina – a new musical instrument with a twist

Have you ever wondered what the next new thing is? Like the invention of aviation, or automobiles, or computers, or the Internet? Sometimes it seems everything that can be invented has been invented. Of course, that’s wrong. But it’s hard to be creative and come up with these ideas.

The Ocarina is such an idea. It combines high tech and a commercial product, a cell phone, with art, music and a concept of worldwide connection unlike anything that has existed before.

Check out the Apple iPhone Ocarina program. It seems like an amazing idea. It’s articles like this that make me want to go out and buy an iPhone. And the business opportunities, for the right idea, implemented properly, are fantastic.

Tax Cuts Won’t Work Right Now

I am amused by the GOP crowd, led by McCain, about the tax cuts debate in the Senate.

Tax cuts don’t fix potholes, build nuclear power plants, or build schools. Any one of those activities create jobs, however, good jobs right here in the United States.

I just checked my pay stub. The company takes out $611 every two weeks out of my pay. If the government gave me a 100% tax cut and left that $611 in my paycheck starting right now, I would not go out and buy a car, let alone a US car, or a house, or a new vacuum cleaner. At best, I would pay off some debt. Most likely, it would get buried in my checking account and I would hardly notice. Giving me a tax cut would not motivate me to spend one dollar more than I already do.

Then they are  talking about tax cuts for small businesses. I have founded my business back in 1993 and it now does between $4 and $5 million a year, with between 25 and 40 employees. When we started and grew, we accumulated a lot of tax losses that we can carry forward for years to come. That means we’re not paying any income taxes. A tax cut would create ZERO incentive for our business. At the same time, however, we have had to lay off people because we’re not getting enough work to sustain our size. So due to this economy, we have contributed to job loss figures. At the same time, we are cycling $4 million a year into the local economy by running a growing small business that is marginally profitable, but not profitable enough to pay taxes.

There must be a million small businesses like ours out there that create jobs, supply productivity, and curb the economy to which tax cuts are meaningless.

Mind you, I am not saying we should INCREASE taxes. Of course not. But in my own small world, tax cuts will make absolutely no difference to the economy.

What WOULD make a difference? If the stimulus package had funds allocated for states to spend money on software infrastructure to be more efficient, we are ’shovel ready.’ We would hire our laid-off workers back immediately and we would pump that money right back into the economy.

US Airways – the worst airline in the U.S.

Traveling from San Diego to Albany, New York, I get bumped from my original flight on American Airlines to US Airways. I patiently walk across the terminal to check in.

I get to pay $15 to check luggage. I don’t have to pay at American, but so be it.

The agent can’t get rid of the American Airlines  leg on the computer, so she cannot print my luggage tags. She hand-writes one, which makes me suspicious.

When I go to my seat, there is somebody already sitting there. I get another seat.

When I get to Philadelphia, the pilot for the plane going on to Albany is not there and we sit there waiting for two hours for him to arrive. I can attribute that to the weather. So far, so good.

I finally arrive in Albany at 12:30am, three hours late. My luggage is not there. I stand in line for a half hour until  they take down my claim.

There are no taxis at the airport at that hour, so I stand in 20 degree weather with only a light coat, no car, no luggage, no taxi, stranded.

Next day: I check online based on the tracking number they gave me.

This does not look good at all.

I call the airline every two hours. The agent (in India, no doubt) confirms that they have no idea where the luggage is and they keep sending emails to Philadelphia, over and over.

The various telephone numbers all send me to the website which clearly has no record of me or my claim. The agents tell me they have no idea.

I fly very seldom on US Airways.  I do it only when I absolutely have to.

But I can honestly say that I cannot remember ever flying on US Airways and not have something go wrong.

Please,  Travel God, don’t ever let me fly on US Airways again.

Fish! – by Stephen Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christensen

A couple of weeks ago I sat next to a man on an airplane and noticed that the read Good to Great. I commented on the book, and how it was helping transform our company, and we got into a conversation.

He brought up the book Fish!

The story is based on the Pike Place Fish market in Seattle, which I had  heard about. Now I want to go and visit it urgently.

It is known to be a happening place, with fish flying through the air, and an infectious spirit of fun and excitement transcending from the workers to the customers and on to visitors, who go there not just for the fish, but the buzz of the place.

Go to YouTube and search for “Pike Place Fish” and you see plenty of flying fish. You also get the notion that the Pike Place fishmongers don’t necessarily agree with the way the “fish philosophy” has become commercialized by corporate trainers and consultants.

The story in this book is fictional. It frames four concepts to make any business vibrant and exciting, and as a result successful:

1. Choose your attitude
2. Play
3. Make their day
4. Be present

And everything else will fall in place.

I will not tell you the story any further. You can buy the book used on Amazon for a couple of dollars, and you can read the whole thing in an hour or two. Do it. You will go to work and check the place out with a different set of eyes and a new spirit. You won’t learn anything you don’t already know, but it’s like flossing your teeth. You go to the dentist and after you leave, for the first few weeks, you are good about flossing every day. Then you skip a day, and two, and you need to be reminded again, probably by the dentist, to kick start the process.

Read Fish! and then go to work, on your work.