OMG Digital Magazine OMG Issue 263 15th June 2017 | Page 6

OMG Digital Magazine | 263 | Thursday 15th June 2017 • PAGE 6
SoulFood
The Foolproof
Way to Diffuse a
Tense Situation
Del Pedro, bartender and owner of Tooker Alley in Brooklyn, NY, shares
the best way to keep an difficult interaction from getting worse.
By Del Pedro
In 30 years of pouring drinks, I’ve seen everything—a
guy who threw a stool across the bar, another who
pulled down his pants and said he wouldn’t pull them
up again unless someone gave him money. But if it’s just
a person who’s a little too rowdy, I’ll take him aside and
say quietly, “Hey, my man, I’m glad you’re having a good
time, but I need you to bring it down a notch.” The goal
is to handle the situation immediately and make myself
clear without humiliating anybody. Customers today
are more likely to complain than act out. My theory is
they feel more powerful as consumers than as citizens,
and they want redress. If someone’s really difficult, one
technique to try is killing ’em with kindness—the ruder
they get, the nicer you get, until the other person’s
almost embarrassed. And a little humor can help.
On crazy nights, I’ve got all these hands reaching out
to grab me like they’re going to die if they don’t get a
drink, and I feel like a relief worker. When someone’s
hungry and the kitchen’s closed, find some bread. You
can’t underestimate the power of primal needs.
simply walking around it as the others had, the peasant
put down his load and tried to move the stone to the
side of the road. It took a lot of effort but he finally
succeeded.
The peasant gathered up his load and was ready to go
on his way when he say a purse lying in the road where
the boulder had been. The peasant opened the purse.
The purse was stuffed full of gold coins and a note from
the king. The king’s note said the purse’s gold was a
reward for moving the boulder from the road.
The king showed the peasant what many of us never
understand: every obstacle presents an opportunity to
improve our condition.
VALUE
Motivational and Inspiring Short Stories About Life
BY: www.livin3.com
When life has got you in a slump, turn to these
inspirational short stories. Not only is reading them like
getting an internet hug for the soul, but they just may
spark an idea or a change in you for the better. Read on
and get ready to smile.
THE OBSTACLE IN OUR PATH
There once was a very wealthy and curious king. This
king had a huge boulder placed in the middle of a road.
Then he hid nearby to see if anyone would try to remove
the gigantic rock from the road.
The first people to pass by were some of the king’s
wealthiest merchants and courtiers. Rather than
moving it, they simply walked around it. A few loudly
blamed the King for not maintaining the roads. Not one
of them tried to move the boulder.
Finally, a peasant came along. His arms were full of
vegetables. When he got near the boulder, rather than
A popular speaker started off a seminar by holding up a
$20 bill. A crowd of 200 had gathered to hear him speak.
He asked, “Who would like this $20 bill?”
200 hands went up.
He said, “I am going to give this $20 to one of you but
first, let me do this.” He crumpled the bill up.
He then asked, “Who still wants it?”
All 200 hands were still raised.
“Well,” he replied, “What if I do this?” Then he dropped
the bill on the ground and stomped on it with his shoes.
He picked it up, and showed it to the crowd. The bill was
all crumpled and dirty.
“Now who still wants it?”
All the hands still went up.
“My friends, I have just showed you a very important
lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still
wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was
still worth $20. Many times in our lives, life crumples us
and grinds us into the dirt. We make bad decisions or
deal with poor circumstances. We feel worthless. But
no matter what has happened or what will happen, you
will never lose your value. You are special – Don’t ever
forget it!
THE RIGHT PLACE
A mother and a baby camel were lying around under a
tree.
Then the baby camel asked, “Why do camels have
humps?”
The mother camel considered this and said, “We are
desert animals so we have the humps to store water so
we can survive with very little water.”
The baby camel thought for a moment then said, “Ok…
why are our legs long and our feet rounded?”
The mama replied, “They are meant for walking in the
desert.”
The baby paused. After a beat, the camel asked, “Why
are our eyelashes long? Sometimes they get in my way.”
The mama responded, “Those long thick eyelashes
protect your eyes from the desert sand when it blows
in the wind.
The baby thought and thought. Then he said, “I see. So
the hump is to store water when we are in the desert,
the legs are for walking through the desert and these
eye lashes protect my eyes from the desert then why in
the Zoo?”
The Lesson: Skills and abilities are only useful if you are
in the right place at the right time. Otherwise they go
to waste.