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        <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, maximum-scale=1"><meta property="og:type" content="article" class="meta-article"><meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image"><link rel="canonical" href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-hurricane-harvey-taught-me-life-business-jason-smith" class="meta-article"><link rel="author" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonsmithesq" class="meta-article"><meta property="article:author" content="Jason Smith" class="meta-article"><meta name="twitter:creator" content="@TJSmithEsquire" class="meta-article"><meta property="og:title" content="What Hurricane Harvey taught me about life… and business." class="meta-article"><meta name="twitter:title" content="What Hurricane Harvey taught me about life… and business." class="meta-article"><meta property="og:url" content="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-hurricane-harvey-taught-me-life-business-jason-smith" class="meta-article"><meta property="og:description" content="It didn’t appear to be much of a storm. When you live on the Gulf Coast, you expect to dodge a storm every few years. This time it seemed like a minor" class="meta-article"><meta name="twitter:description" content="It didn’t appear to be much of a storm. When you live on the Gulf Coast, you expect to dodge a storm every few years. This time it seemed like a minor" class="meta-article"><meta property="fb:app_id" content="161320853908703" class="meta-article"><meta property="fb:pages" content="123146351030521" class="meta-article"><meta property="og:image" content="https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/shrinknp_400_400/AAEAAQAAAAAAAArHAAAAJDc5MTE2ZTJkLTk5OWMtNDcwNy05ZGFjLWYyM2NjZDM5ODZjZg.jpg" class="meta-article"><meta name="twitter:image" content="https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/shrinknp_400_400/AAEAAQAAAAAAAArHAAAAJDc5MTE2ZTJkLTk5OWMtNDcwNy05ZGFjLWYyM2NjZDM5ODZjZg.jpg" class="meta-article"><meta property="article:published_time" content="2017-09-15" class="meta-article"><script type="text/javascript" src="https://static.licdn.com/sc/h/hswvqosanjeznp3r0usa89mc"></script><link rel="stylesheet" href="https://static.licdn.com/sc/h/evc0485rt2zmypxr4aj7o0l7e"/>
      
    
        
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itemtype="http://schema.org/NewsArticle" itemscope tabindex="-1" data-li-main-content><header id="article-header" role="banner"><h1 class="article-title" itemprop="headline">What Hurricane Harvey taught me about life… and business.</h1><ul class="article-meta"><li>Published on <time itemprop="datePublished" datetime="2017-09-15">September 15, 2017</time></li></ul><div class="article-author-wrapper"><section id="social-stats"></section><figure class="entity-image entity-image-user"><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonsmithesq" rel="author"><img src="https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/shrink_200_200/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAzTAAAAJGQyMGMzYzY2LTY4N2MtNDBlZi05OGI2LTc2MzYyODFiZWQyYg.jpg" alt="Jason Smith"></a></figure><div class="entity-content"><h2 class="entity-name" itemprop="author creator" itemscope itemtype="http://schema.org/Person"><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonsmithesq" rel="author"><span itemprop="name">Jason Smith</span></a><span class="follow-action"><div class="tooltip-wrapper"><button class="button-follow button-link  tooltip-trigger"><span class="text text-default">Follow</span><span class="text text-active">Following</span><span class="text text-active-hover">Unfollow</span><span class="accessible-text">Jason Smith</span></button><p class="tooltip tooltip-follow" role="tooltip">Sign in to follow this author</p></div></span></h2></div></div></header><div class="prose" itemprop="articleBody"><p>It didn’t appear to be much of a storm.&nbsp;When you live on the Gulf Coast, you expect to dodge a storm every few years.&nbsp;This time it seemed like a minor event… a small tropical storm hitting hours away that would bring us some much needed rain for our dry lawns.&nbsp;We hoped it would at least pass quickly so as not to impact our Labor Day plans.&nbsp;But Harvey was like nothing we’d ever seen before… and by the time he left our state, he had left a path of destruction that nobody expected.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> 
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<p>The latest estimates show that over 203,000 homes have been damaged by Hurricane Harvey, with almost 13,000 of those completely destroyed.&nbsp;Over half a million people have registered with FEMA and almost 50,000 people are in shelters, displaced from their homes.&nbsp;Seventy-five of Houston’s 275 schools were damaged by floods, including my daughter’s high school which will be closed for the entire school year for repairs.&nbsp;Flooding covered southeast Texas the size of the entire state of New Jersey.</p> 
<p>In the wake of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation that brought unprecedented damage across South Texas and Louisiana, especially to my community of Kingwood, Texas – wiping out homes and businesses of so many close friends and neighbors and destroying my daughter’s high school – I’ve come face to face with a few life lessons I had no plans of learning so abruptly as the summer wound down.&nbsp;I was in cruise control – planning for upcoming meetings, the beginning of the kids’ school, gymnastics and soccer seasons and anxious for the cooler weather to arrive.</p> 
<p>And then life, and Mother Nature, decided it was time I snapped out of my comfortable routine and learn some key life lessons.</p> 
<p><strong><u>True Character is Revealed in the Darkest Hour</u></strong></p> 
<p>During a crisis, people’s true character will be revealed. There were stories on TV of looters, price gougers and other unsavory folks looking to exploit the crisis for personal benefit… but to focus on those does a disservice to the many who sacrificed their time, money and in some cases, lives, to help complete strangers in need.&nbsp;As Fred Rogers once quipped, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”&nbsp;Man, did we see helpers.&nbsp;From the First Responders to the Cajun Navy to rednecks in pickups and bass boats, we saw helpers.&nbsp;For a brief moment in our community, there was no division based on color, creed, orientation, socioeconomic status… there were just helpers.&nbsp;Helping.&nbsp;Everyone.&nbsp;It made me wonder what our business world would look like if we took this kind of selfless approach.</p> 
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<p>And never underestimate the power of your network.&nbsp;I have friends, neighbors, colleagues, former classmates, customers, business partners and even competitors who reached out to offer help, support, words of encouragement and thoughts and prayers.&nbsp;Many asked the typical, “Is there anything I can do to help?” which I assumed was just the default question you ask people in need to make them feel better, not necessarily intending to roll up your sleeves and actually do something… but I responded with requests for supplies, donations and assistance with helping our community cleanup in the aftermath of the storm… and I got it.&nbsp;Lots of it.&nbsp;Folks donated money, supplies and some even showed up to help in person.&nbsp;It was a stark reminder that “is there anything I can do to help” aren’t just words to casually toss out to folks in need, you better damn well plan to deliver if the person doesn’t take it to be a nice rhetorical verbal gesture of support.&nbsp;And the people I’m fortunate to call “my network” stepped up in a big way.</p> 
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<p>Which brings me to my next point… giving is much easier than receiving and you should never be too proud to accept help.&nbsp;I’ve realized that the joy you can receive in helping others is a reward that few other experiences can give you.&nbsp;But I’ve also noticed that it seems to be more difficult to accept help from others for fear of being a burden to them.&nbsp;After spending time moving soggy furniture, ruined personal possessions and tearing out sheet rock for total strangers and feeling a sense of pleasure in helping them in their time of greatest need… I need to be more willing to allow others to feel a similar sense of gratification in helping me when I truly need assistance.&nbsp;No more prideful declines.&nbsp;If I need help, I’ll gladly accept it when it’s offered.&nbsp;Because I know that my gratefulness to my helpers is filling their hearts as much as it’s filling mine.</p> 
<p><strong><u>Business is more than goods and services</u></strong></p> 
<p>When you invest in genuine relationships, you’re building a team that will walk through fire with you.&nbsp;You don’t realize what that commitment to personal relationships means until the fire is lit.&nbsp;These relationships can insulate your business against crisis (whether they’re economic downturns or destructive forces of nature).&nbsp;In the wake of this disaster, I’ve seen customers working to help business owners, colleagues helping one another and even competitors assisting without hesitation.</p> 
<p>We often spend so much time and energy trying to beat everyone else, sometimes we simply forget why we began the business or pursued the career we’re in.&nbsp;We take our focus off providing benefit to our customers in short-sighted plans to win.&nbsp;But when business takes a backseat to life’s unexpected moments, we stop viewing things as a race of many boats on a vast ocean and start realizing we’re ultimately all in the same boat together.&nbsp;As Harvey destroyed or disrupted over 160 local businesses in our immediate Kingwood community, I’ve been inspired by the selfless actions of those who’ve lost their livelihood.</p> 
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<p>The owner of one local restaurant was standing in front of her devastated restaurant serving fried rice her staff was preparing on equipment running on generators for free to anyone who needed it.&nbsp;A local print shop who had lost much of their expensive equipment was busy creating stickers, signs and t-shirts for the community, donating all of the proceeds to help the high school replace athletic and band uniforms and equipment.&nbsp;Our local hardware store salvaged what tools they could from their flooded store and donated them to volunteers who were helping neighbors and strangers remove flooded floors and walls of their homes.&nbsp;Our local grocery store (okay, so it’s actually a chain around Southeast Texas) brought in trailers of supplies, food and more to help the community in the immediate aftermath of the storm… beating state and federal agencies and global charities by days.&nbsp;In an interview, the regional manager for H-E-B admitted the business would likely take a significant revenue hit this quarter due to damage to multiple stores around the Gulf Coast… yet here they were providing free resources to the community because they understand what’s important.</p> 
<p><strong><u>Work Everyday Like You’re In the Middle of a Crisis</u></strong></p> 
<p>Imagine if we all worked every day like we’re in the middle of a crisis.&nbsp;Imagine if every decision was made after first considering the needs of others first.&nbsp;Wouldn’t it be nice to remain focused on the important things while tuning out the noise and distractions?&nbsp;Instead of trying to take on the world alone, consider the creativity of working with others – even if you view each other as competitors.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>I’ve seen some extremely creative and imaginative ways to tackle seemingly insurmountable problems during the last few weeks.&nbsp;And it’s been incredibly inspiring.&nbsp;Embrace innovation, don’t fight it.&nbsp;Attacking a problem from different angles can give you a fresh perspective to solving issues.</p> 
<p>Like the middle of a long road trip in the middle of the night when the sudden flash of lights and alarming horn shock you out of a moment of dozing off at the steering wheel, an unexpected natural disaster disrupting your entire life can force you out of your comfort zone and teach you that you’re capable of more than you thought.&nbsp;If your limits are never tested, you may never realize just how far past those limits you’re capable of going.</p> 
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<p>Whether it’s suddenly being thrust into 18-hour days of hard labor or learning to go without basic comforts unexpectedly, you’d be surprised how long your body can continue when your brain tries to convince you you’re done.&nbsp;Just think of the possibilities you could achieve in your career if you were able to trigger that “crisis mode” in your body to continue going long after you think you can’t go any further.&nbsp;As Muhammad Ali once said, “It isn’t the mountain ahead that wears you out… it’s the pebble in your shoe.”</p> 
<p><strong><u>When You Feel Like You’ve Lost Everything, There’s Always Someone Who Lost More</u></strong></p> 
<p>When our power first went out, I complained.&nbsp;When the generator wouldn’t start, I got frustrated.&nbsp;I had no Internet, my groceries were slowly ruining in the refrigerator and the Texas heat was making me miserable… then I drove around my neighborhood.</p> 
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<p>As the old saying goes, “I cried because I had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.”&nbsp;Nothing puts your situation in perspective more than seeing someone who’s lost more than you thought you even had.&nbsp;As each day passes, I learn of another friend or neighbor who was impacted by Harvey.&nbsp;The stories range from flooded cars to houses that were damaged beyond repair.&nbsp;As I drive through the streets of Kingwood staring at the piles of sheetrock, furniture, appliances, toys, equipment, family heirlooms and memories that cover almost every yard in our community, I can’t help but feel blessed to have avoided the worst.&nbsp;A mixture of “survivor’s guilt” with the shame of complaining over things, which in this new context, seem downright trivial.</p> 
<p>We all have bad days at work.&nbsp;We all encounter turbulence and frustrations.&nbsp;But Harvey is now a constant reminder that no matter what I face in my job, I must remember there are others who have it much worse.&nbsp;With this understanding, I hope that I can provide a glimmer of hope, a spark of joy or at least a beacon of light to those people by focusing on the positives in every situation.&nbsp;You never know when an uplifting comment or kind gesture can be just what someone needed in their own time of crisis.</p> 
<p><strong><u>Storms Are Inevitable</u></strong></p> 
<p>The great philosopher Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”&nbsp;This quote certainly resonates in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.&nbsp;As the summer was wrapping up, we were planning our Labor Day weekend barbecues and pool parties, getting ready for the kids to start back to school, anxiously awaiting the start of football season and cooler temperatures.&nbsp;Then life changed.&nbsp;Forever.&nbsp;In our little community of Kingwood, Texas, Hurricane Harvey will always be that separating line between life “before Harvey” and “after Harvey”.&nbsp;Sometimes you just can’t prepare for the unexpected… but you can prepare for life after the unexpected.&nbsp;That preparation doesn’t necessarily come in the form of a checklist of things to buy or supplies to store, but rather in the lessons found throughout this story.&nbsp;Preparation takes the form of relationships established, bonds forged, kindness delivered, acts of selflessness, creative thinking and innovation.&nbsp;This wasn’t the first storm and it won’t be the last.&nbsp;</p> 
<p>They say that in good times your friends will know who you are, but in bad times you will know who your friends are.&nbsp;I can personally vouch for that.&nbsp;We are #HoustonStrong.</p> 
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href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonsmithesq" >Jason Smith</a></h2><ul class="entity-counts"><li><a href="/today/author/jasonsmithesq"><span class="count">2</span> articles</a></li></ul></div></footer><section id="related-content-vertical-list"></section><section id="comments"></section><section id="related-content-horizontal-images"></section><section id="top-content"></section><section class="article-end"><h3>Looking for more of the latest headlines on LinkedIn?</h3><a href="/" class="button-primary-medium">Discover more stories</a></section></article></div></div><div id="content-modal"></div><footer id="content-footer"></footer><code id="embedded-article-json" style="display: none;"><!--{"author":{"name":"Jason Smith","totalDrafts":0,"image":{"width":200,"url":"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/shrink_200_200/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAzTAAAAJGQyMGMzYzY2LTY4N2MtNDBlZi05OGI2LTc2MzYyODFiZWQyYg.jpg","height":200},"isInfluencer":false,"pivotUrl":"https://www.linkedin.com/pulse-fe/api/v1/pivot?memberToken=CwEAAAFhpLbc6vCNZlDRt4TVbFe13IWoBIsLIK55DsnT0kDbrVv5E2-Pai8","totalFollowings":0,"publicProfileUrl":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonsmithesq","totalConnections":4446,"industryUrn":"urn:li:industry:4","totalFollowers":0,"lastName":"Smith","firstName":"Jason","followableEntityUrl":"https://www.linkedin.com/pulse-fe/api/v1/followableEntity?vanityName=jasonsmithesq","entityType":"MEMBER","urn":"urn:li:member:220970","vanityName":"jasonsmithesq","isFollowing":false,"totalPosts":2,"canFollow":true,"memberToken":"CwEAAAFhpLbc6vCNZlDRt4TVbFe13IWoBIsLIK55DsnT0kDbrVv5E2-Pai8","hasProfileImage":true},"pubArticleUrn":"urn:li:linkedInArticle:6314534933457096704","permalink":"what-hurricane-harvey-taught-me-life-business-jason-smith","ampUrl":"","url":"https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-hurricane-harvey-taught-me-life-business-jason-smith","isLowQuality":false,"domain":"linkedin.com","isDraft":false,"commentsState":"OPEN","isCrawler":false,"articleContent":"\u003cp\u003eIt didn’t appear to be much of a storm.&nbsp;When you live on the Gulf Coast, you expect to dodge a storm every few years.&nbsp;This time it seemed like a minor event… a small tropical storm hitting hours away that would bring us some much needed rain for our dry lawns.&nbsp;We hoped it would at least pass quickly so as not to impact our Labor Day plans.&nbsp;But Harvey was like nothing we’d ever seen before… and by the time he left our state, he had left a path of destruction that nobody expected.&nbsp;&nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAArHAAAAJDc5MTE2ZTJkLTk5OWMtNDcwNy05ZGFjLWYyM2NjZDM5ODZjZg.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAArHAAAAJDc5MTE2ZTJkLTk5OWMtNDcwNy05ZGFjLWYyM2NjZDM5ODZjZg.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThe latest estimates show that over 203,000 homes have been damaged by Hurricane Harvey, with almost 13,000 of those completely destroyed.&nbsp;Over half a million people have registered with FEMA and almost 50,000 people are in shelters, displaced from their homes.&nbsp;Seventy-five of Houston’s 275 schools were damaged by floods, including my daughter’s high school which will be closed for the entire school year for repairs.&nbsp;Flooding covered southeast Texas the size of the entire state of New Jersey.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eIn the wake of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation that brought unprecedented damage across South Texas and Louisiana, especially to my community of Kingwood, Texas – wiping out homes and businesses of so many close friends and neighbors and destroying my daughter’s high school – I’ve come face to face with a few life lessons I had no plans of learning so abruptly as the summer wound down.&nbsp;I was in cruise control – planning for upcoming meetings, the beginning of the kids’ school, gymnastics and soccer seasons and anxious for the cooler weather to arrive.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eAnd then life, and Mother Nature, decided it was time I snapped out of my comfortable routine and learn some key life lessons.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eTrue Character is Revealed in the Darkest Hour\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eDuring a crisis, people’s true character will be revealed. There were stories on TV of looters, price gougers and other unsavory folks looking to exploit the crisis for personal benefit… but to focus on those does a disservice to the many who sacrificed their time, money and in some cases, lives, to help complete strangers in need.&nbsp;As Fred Rogers once quipped, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, \"Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”&nbsp;Man, did we see helpers.&nbsp;From the First Responders to the Cajun Navy to rednecks in pickups and bass boats, we saw helpers.&nbsp;For a brief moment in our community, there was no division based on color, creed, orientation, socioeconomic status… there were just helpers.&nbsp;Helping.&nbsp;Everyone.&nbsp;It made me wonder what our business world would look like if we took this kind of selfless approach.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-left\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAy_AAAAJDgzMGY2NzE1LWFmOGUtNDRlMi1hNTM1LTVhNGMzOWUxMzg1Mw.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAy_AAAAJDgzMGY2NzE1LWFmOGUtNDRlMi1hNTM1LTVhNGMzOWUxMzg1Mw.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eAnd never underestimate the power of your network.&nbsp;I have friends, neighbors, colleagues, former classmates, customers, business partners and even competitors who reached out to offer help, support, words of encouragement and thoughts and prayers.&nbsp;Many asked the typical, “Is there anything I can do to help?” which I assumed was just the default question you ask people in need to make them feel better, not necessarily intending to roll up your sleeves and actually do something… but I responded with requests for supplies, donations and assistance with helping our community cleanup in the aftermath of the storm… and I got it.&nbsp;Lots of it.&nbsp;Folks donated money, supplies and some even showed up to help in person.&nbsp;It was a stark reminder that “is there anything I can do to help” aren’t just words to casually toss out to folks in need, you better damn well plan to deliver if the person doesn’t take it to be a nice rhetorical verbal gesture of support.&nbsp;And the people I’m fortunate to call “my network” stepped up in a big way.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAufAAAAJDdjODAwYWExLTFmNjUtNGI2ZS05NjgzLTk3ZDUzYWU0ZWYxYw.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAufAAAAJDdjODAwYWExLTFmNjUtNGI2ZS05NjgzLTk3ZDUzYWU0ZWYxYw.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhich brings me to my next point… giving is much easier than receiving and you should never be too proud to accept help.&nbsp;I’ve realized that the joy you can receive in helping others is a reward that few other experiences can give you.&nbsp;But I’ve also noticed that it seems to be more difficult to accept help from others for fear of being a burden to them.&nbsp;After spending time moving soggy furniture, ruined personal possessions and tearing out sheet rock for total strangers and feeling a sense of pleasure in helping them in their time of greatest need… I need to be more willing to allow others to feel a similar sense of gratification in helping me when I truly need assistance.&nbsp;No more prideful declines.&nbsp;If I need help, I’ll gladly accept it when it’s offered.&nbsp;Because I know that my gratefulness to my helpers is filling their hearts as much as it’s filling mine.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eBusiness is more than goods and services\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhen you invest in genuine relationships, you’re building a team that will walk through fire with you.&nbsp;You don’t realize what that commitment to personal relationships means until the fire is lit.&nbsp;These relationships can insulate your business against crisis (whether they’re economic downturns or destructive forces of nature).&nbsp;In the wake of this disaster, I’ve seen customers working to help business owners, colleagues helping one another and even competitors assisting without hesitation.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWe often spend so much time and energy trying to beat everyone else, sometimes we simply forget why we began the business or pursued the career we’re in.&nbsp;We take our focus off providing benefit to our customers in short-sighted plans to win.&nbsp;But when business takes a backseat to life’s unexpected moments, we stop viewing things as a race of many boats on a vast ocean and start realizing we’re ultimately all in the same boat together.&nbsp;As Harvey destroyed or disrupted over 160 local businesses in our immediate Kingwood community, I’ve been inspired by the selfless actions of those who’ve lost their livelihood.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAuTAAAAJDFjNGMzNmNhLTllYjYtNDkxZS1iNzAwLTc0OTEzNDY1OTg2MA.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAuTAAAAJDFjNGMzNmNhLTllYjYtNDkxZS1iNzAwLTc0OTEzNDY1OTg2MA.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThe owner of one local restaurant was standing in front of her devastated restaurant serving fried rice her staff was preparing on equipment running on generators for free to anyone who needed it.&nbsp;A local print shop who had lost much of their expensive equipment was busy creating stickers, signs and t-shirts for the community, donating all of the proceeds to help the high school replace athletic and band uniforms and equipment.&nbsp;Our local hardware store salvaged what tools they could from their flooded store and donated them to volunteers who were helping neighbors and strangers remove flooded floors and walls of their homes.&nbsp;Our local grocery store (okay, so it’s actually a chain around Southeast Texas) brought in trailers of supplies, food and more to help the community in the immediate aftermath of the storm… beating state and federal agencies and global charities by days.&nbsp;In an interview, the regional manager for H-E-B admitted the business would likely take a significant revenue hit this quarter due to damage to multiple stores around the Gulf Coast… yet here they were providing free resources to the community because they understand what’s important.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eWork Everyday Like You’re In the Middle of a Crisis\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eImagine if we all worked every day like we’re in the middle of a crisis.&nbsp;Imagine if every decision was made after first considering the needs of others first.&nbsp;Wouldn’t it be nice to remain focused on the important things while tuning out the noise and distractions?&nbsp;Instead of trying to take on the world alone, consider the creativity of working with others – even if you view each other as competitors.&nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eI’ve seen some extremely creative and imaginative ways to tackle seemingly insurmountable problems during the last few weeks.&nbsp;And it’s been incredibly inspiring.&nbsp;Embrace innovation, don’t fight it.&nbsp;Attacking a problem from different angles can give you a fresh perspective to solving issues.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eLike the middle of a long road trip in the middle of the night when the sudden flash of lights and alarming horn shock you out of a moment of dozing off at the steering wheel, an unexpected natural disaster disrupting your entire life can force you out of your comfort zone and teach you that you’re capable of more than you thought.&nbsp;If your limits are never tested, you may never realize just how far past those limits you’re capable of going.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-left\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAtNAAAAJGFmMTI3ZTU0LTY4NWEtNDA4ZC1hNjE1LWU5ZGJlYzhmZmEzYg.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAtNAAAAJGFmMTI3ZTU0LTY4NWEtNDA4ZC1hNjE1LWU5ZGJlYzhmZmEzYg.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhether it’s suddenly being thrust into 18-hour days of hard labor or learning to go without basic comforts unexpectedly, you’d be surprised how long your body can continue when your brain tries to convince you you’re done.&nbsp;Just think of the possibilities you could achieve in your career if you were able to trigger that “crisis mode” in your body to continue going long after you think you can’t go any further.&nbsp;As Muhammad Ali once said, “It isn’t the mountain ahead that wears you out… it’s the pebble in your shoe.”\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eWhen You Feel Like You’ve Lost Everything, There’s Always Someone Who Lost More\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhen our power first went out, I complained.&nbsp;When the generator wouldn’t start, I got frustrated.&nbsp;I had no Internet, my groceries were slowly ruining in the refrigerator and the Texas heat was making me miserable… then I drove around my neighborhood.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAzyAAAAJGM4ZWUzYTVhLWQxMmItNDgzMC1iNTA0LTZlYjIyOThkYmE3Ng.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAzyAAAAJGM4ZWUzYTVhLWQxMmItNDgzMC1iNTA0LTZlYjIyOThkYmE3Ng.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eAs the old saying goes, “I cried because I had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.”&nbsp;Nothing puts your situation in perspective more than seeing someone who’s lost more than you thought you even had.&nbsp;As each day passes, I learn of another friend or neighbor who was impacted by Harvey.&nbsp;The stories range from flooded cars to houses that were damaged beyond repair.&nbsp;As I drive through the streets of Kingwood staring at the piles of sheetrock, furniture, appliances, toys, equipment, family heirlooms and memories that cover almost every yard in our community, I can’t help but feel blessed to have avoided the worst.&nbsp;A mixture of “survivor’s guilt” with the shame of complaining over things, which in this new context, seem downright trivial.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWe all have bad days at work.&nbsp;We all encounter turbulence and frustrations.&nbsp;But Harvey is now a constant reminder that no matter what I face in my job, I must remember there are others who have it much worse.&nbsp;With this understanding, I hope that I can provide a glimmer of hope, a spark of joy or at least a beacon of light to those people by focusing on the positives in every situation.&nbsp;You never know when an uplifting comment or kind gesture can be just what someone needed in their own time of crisis.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eStorms Are Inevitable\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThe great philosopher Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”&nbsp;This quote certainly resonates in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.&nbsp;As the summer was wrapping up, we were planning our Labor Day weekend barbecues and pool parties, getting ready for the kids to start back to school, anxiously awaiting the start of football season and cooler temperatures.&nbsp;Then life changed.&nbsp;Forever.&nbsp;In our little community of Kingwood, Texas, Hurricane Harvey will always be that separating line between life “before Harvey” and “after Harvey”.&nbsp;Sometimes you just can’t prepare for the unexpected… but you can prepare for life after the unexpected.&nbsp;That preparation doesn’t necessarily come in the form of a checklist of things to buy or supplies to store, but rather in the lessons found throughout this story.&nbsp;Preparation takes the form of relationships established, bonds forged, kindness delivered, acts of selflessness, creative thinking and innovation.&nbsp;This wasn’t the first storm and it won’t be the last.&nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThey say that in good times your friends will know who you are, but in bad times you will know who your friends are.&nbsp;I can personally vouch for that.&nbsp;We are #HoustonStrong.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-full-width\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAsAAAAAJDA0ZGM4OGU1LTE2OTMtNDhlNy04ZWFmLTU0NDZlYTY5YTk1Mg.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAsAAAAAJDA0ZGM4OGU1LTE2OTMtNDhlNy04ZWFmLTU0NDZlYTY5YTk1Mg.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","commentingDisabled":false,"editor":false,"canShowParsedContent":true,"saved":false,"fullTextWithMarkup":"\u003cp\u003eIt didn’t appear to be much of a storm.&nbsp;When you live on the Gulf Coast, you expect to dodge a storm every few years.&nbsp;This time it seemed like a minor event… a small tropical storm hitting hours away that would bring us some much needed rain for our dry lawns.&nbsp;We hoped it would at least pass quickly so as not to impact our Labor Day plans.&nbsp;But Harvey was like nothing we’d ever seen before… and by the time he left our state, he had left a path of destruction that nobody expected.&nbsp;&nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAArHAAAAJDc5MTE2ZTJkLTk5OWMtNDcwNy05ZGFjLWYyM2NjZDM5ODZjZg.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAArHAAAAJDc5MTE2ZTJkLTk5OWMtNDcwNy05ZGFjLWYyM2NjZDM5ODZjZg.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThe latest estimates show that over 203,000 homes have been damaged by Hurricane Harvey, with almost 13,000 of those completely destroyed.&nbsp;Over half a million people have registered with FEMA and almost 50,000 people are in shelters, displaced from their homes.&nbsp;Seventy-five of Houston’s 275 schools were damaged by floods, including my daughter’s high school which will be closed for the entire school year for repairs.&nbsp;Flooding covered southeast Texas the size of the entire state of New Jersey.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eIn the wake of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation that brought unprecedented damage across South Texas and Louisiana, especially to my community of Kingwood, Texas – wiping out homes and businesses of so many close friends and neighbors and destroying my daughter’s high school – I’ve come face to face with a few life lessons I had no plans of learning so abruptly as the summer wound down.&nbsp;I was in cruise control – planning for upcoming meetings, the beginning of the kids’ school, gymnastics and soccer seasons and anxious for the cooler weather to arrive.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eAnd then life, and Mother Nature, decided it was time I snapped out of my comfortable routine and learn some key life lessons.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eTrue Character is Revealed in the Darkest Hour\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eDuring a crisis, people’s true character will be revealed. There were stories on TV of looters, price gougers and other unsavory folks looking to exploit the crisis for personal benefit… but to focus on those does a disservice to the many who sacrificed their time, money and in some cases, lives, to help complete strangers in need.&nbsp;As Fred Rogers once quipped, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, \"Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”&nbsp;Man, did we see helpers.&nbsp;From the First Responders to the Cajun Navy to rednecks in pickups and bass boats, we saw helpers.&nbsp;For a brief moment in our community, there was no division based on color, creed, orientation, socioeconomic status… there were just helpers.&nbsp;Helping.&nbsp;Everyone.&nbsp;It made me wonder what our business world would look like if we took this kind of selfless approach.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-left\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAy_AAAAJDgzMGY2NzE1LWFmOGUtNDRlMi1hNTM1LTVhNGMzOWUxMzg1Mw.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAy_AAAAJDgzMGY2NzE1LWFmOGUtNDRlMi1hNTM1LTVhNGMzOWUxMzg1Mw.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eAnd never underestimate the power of your network.&nbsp;I have friends, neighbors, colleagues, former classmates, customers, business partners and even competitors who reached out to offer help, support, words of encouragement and thoughts and prayers.&nbsp;Many asked the typical, “Is there anything I can do to help?” which I assumed was just the default question you ask people in need to make them feel better, not necessarily intending to roll up your sleeves and actually do something… but I responded with requests for supplies, donations and assistance with helping our community cleanup in the aftermath of the storm… and I got it.&nbsp;Lots of it.&nbsp;Folks donated money, supplies and some even showed up to help in person.&nbsp;It was a stark reminder that “is there anything I can do to help” aren’t just words to casually toss out to folks in need, you better damn well plan to deliver if the person doesn’t take it to be a nice rhetorical verbal gesture of support.&nbsp;And the people I’m fortunate to call “my network” stepped up in a big way.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAufAAAAJDdjODAwYWExLTFmNjUtNGI2ZS05NjgzLTk3ZDUzYWU0ZWYxYw.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAufAAAAJDdjODAwYWExLTFmNjUtNGI2ZS05NjgzLTk3ZDUzYWU0ZWYxYw.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhich brings me to my next point… giving is much easier than receiving and you should never be too proud to accept help.&nbsp;I’ve realized that the joy you can receive in helping others is a reward that few other experiences can give you.&nbsp;But I’ve also noticed that it seems to be more difficult to accept help from others for fear of being a burden to them.&nbsp;After spending time moving soggy furniture, ruined personal possessions and tearing out sheet rock for total strangers and feeling a sense of pleasure in helping them in their time of greatest need… I need to be more willing to allow others to feel a similar sense of gratification in helping me when I truly need assistance.&nbsp;No more prideful declines.&nbsp;If I need help, I’ll gladly accept it when it’s offered.&nbsp;Because I know that my gratefulness to my helpers is filling their hearts as much as it’s filling mine.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eBusiness is more than goods and services\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhen you invest in genuine relationships, you’re building a team that will walk through fire with you.&nbsp;You don’t realize what that commitment to personal relationships means until the fire is lit.&nbsp;These relationships can insulate your business against crisis (whether they’re economic downturns or destructive forces of nature).&nbsp;In the wake of this disaster, I’ve seen customers working to help business owners, colleagues helping one another and even competitors assisting without hesitation.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWe often spend so much time and energy trying to beat everyone else, sometimes we simply forget why we began the business or pursued the career we’re in.&nbsp;We take our focus off providing benefit to our customers in short-sighted plans to win.&nbsp;But when business takes a backseat to life’s unexpected moments, we stop viewing things as a race of many boats on a vast ocean and start realizing we’re ultimately all in the same boat together.&nbsp;As Harvey destroyed or disrupted over 160 local businesses in our immediate Kingwood community, I’ve been inspired by the selfless actions of those who’ve lost their livelihood.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAuTAAAAJDFjNGMzNmNhLTllYjYtNDkxZS1iNzAwLTc0OTEzNDY1OTg2MA.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAuTAAAAJDFjNGMzNmNhLTllYjYtNDkxZS1iNzAwLTc0OTEzNDY1OTg2MA.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThe owner of one local restaurant was standing in front of her devastated restaurant serving fried rice her staff was preparing on equipment running on generators for free to anyone who needed it.&nbsp;A local print shop who had lost much of their expensive equipment was busy creating stickers, signs and t-shirts for the community, donating all of the proceeds to help the high school replace athletic and band uniforms and equipment.&nbsp;Our local hardware store salvaged what tools they could from their flooded store and donated them to volunteers who were helping neighbors and strangers remove flooded floors and walls of their homes.&nbsp;Our local grocery store (okay, so it’s actually a chain around Southeast Texas) brought in trailers of supplies, food and more to help the community in the immediate aftermath of the storm… beating state and federal agencies and global charities by days.&nbsp;In an interview, the regional manager for H-E-B admitted the business would likely take a significant revenue hit this quarter due to damage to multiple stores around the Gulf Coast… yet here they were providing free resources to the community because they understand what’s important.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eWork Everyday Like You’re In the Middle of a Crisis\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eImagine if we all worked every day like we’re in the middle of a crisis.&nbsp;Imagine if every decision was made after first considering the needs of others first.&nbsp;Wouldn’t it be nice to remain focused on the important things while tuning out the noise and distractions?&nbsp;Instead of trying to take on the world alone, consider the creativity of working with others – even if you view each other as competitors.&nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eI’ve seen some extremely creative and imaginative ways to tackle seemingly insurmountable problems during the last few weeks.&nbsp;And it’s been incredibly inspiring.&nbsp;Embrace innovation, don’t fight it.&nbsp;Attacking a problem from different angles can give you a fresh perspective to solving issues.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eLike the middle of a long road trip in the middle of the night when the sudden flash of lights and alarming horn shock you out of a moment of dozing off at the steering wheel, an unexpected natural disaster disrupting your entire life can force you out of your comfort zone and teach you that you’re capable of more than you thought.&nbsp;If your limits are never tested, you may never realize just how far past those limits you’re capable of going.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-left\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAtNAAAAJGFmMTI3ZTU0LTY4NWEtNDA4ZC1hNjE1LWU5ZGJlYzhmZmEzYg.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAtNAAAAJGFmMTI3ZTU0LTY4NWEtNDA4ZC1hNjE1LWU5ZGJlYzhmZmEzYg.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhether it’s suddenly being thrust into 18-hour days of hard labor or learning to go without basic comforts unexpectedly, you’d be surprised how long your body can continue when your brain tries to convince you you’re done.&nbsp;Just think of the possibilities you could achieve in your career if you were able to trigger that “crisis mode” in your body to continue going long after you think you can’t go any further.&nbsp;As Muhammad Ali once said, “It isn’t the mountain ahead that wears you out… it’s the pebble in your shoe.”\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eWhen You Feel Like You’ve Lost Everything, There’s Always Someone Who Lost More\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWhen our power first went out, I complained.&nbsp;When the generator wouldn’t start, I got frustrated.&nbsp;I had no Internet, my groceries were slowly ruining in the refrigerator and the Texas heat was making me miserable… then I drove around my neighborhood.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-right\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAzyAAAAJGM4ZWUzYTVhLWQxMmItNDgzMC1iNTA0LTZlYjIyOThkYmE3Ng.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAzyAAAAJGM4ZWUzYTVhLWQxMmItNDgzMC1iNTA0LTZlYjIyOThkYmE3Ng.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eAs the old saying goes, “I cried because I had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.”&nbsp;Nothing puts your situation in perspective more than seeing someone who’s lost more than you thought you even had.&nbsp;As each day passes, I learn of another friend or neighbor who was impacted by Harvey.&nbsp;The stories range from flooded cars to houses that were damaged beyond repair.&nbsp;As I drive through the streets of Kingwood staring at the piles of sheetrock, furniture, appliances, toys, equipment, family heirlooms and memories that cover almost every yard in our community, I can’t help but feel blessed to have avoided the worst.&nbsp;A mixture of “survivor’s guilt” with the shame of complaining over things, which in this new context, seem downright trivial.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eWe all have bad days at work.&nbsp;We all encounter turbulence and frustrations.&nbsp;But Harvey is now a constant reminder that no matter what I face in my job, I must remember there are others who have it much worse.&nbsp;With this understanding, I hope that I can provide a glimmer of hope, a spark of joy or at least a beacon of light to those people by focusing on the positives in every situation.&nbsp;You never know when an uplifting comment or kind gesture can be just what someone needed in their own time of crisis.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cu\u003eStorms Are Inevitable\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThe great philosopher Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”&nbsp;This quote certainly resonates in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.&nbsp;As the summer was wrapping up, we were planning our Labor Day weekend barbecues and pool parties, getting ready for the kids to start back to school, anxiously awaiting the start of football season and cooler temperatures.&nbsp;Then life changed.&nbsp;Forever.&nbsp;In our little community of Kingwood, Texas, Hurricane Harvey will always be that separating line between life “before Harvey” and “after Harvey”.&nbsp;Sometimes you just can’t prepare for the unexpected… but you can prepare for life after the unexpected.&nbsp;That preparation doesn’t necessarily come in the form of a checklist of things to buy or supplies to store, but rather in the lessons found throughout this story.&nbsp;Preparation takes the form of relationships established, bonds forged, kindness delivered, acts of selflessness, creative thinking and innovation.&nbsp;This wasn’t the first storm and it won’t be the last.&nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cp\u003eThey say that in good times your friends will know who you are, but in bad times you will know who your friends are.&nbsp;I can personally vouch for that.&nbsp;We are #HoustonStrong.\u003c/p\u003e \n\u003cdiv class=\"slate-resizable-image-embed slate-image-embed__resize-full-width\" data-imgsrc=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAsAAAAAJDA0ZGM4OGU1LTE2OTMtNDhlNy04ZWFmLTU0NDZlYTY5YTk1Mg.jpg\"\u003e \n \u003cimg src=\"//:0\" data-li-src=\"https://media.licdn.com/mpr/mpr/AAEAAQAAAAAAAAsAAAAAJDA0ZGM4OGU1LTE2OTMtNDhlNy04ZWFmLTU0NDZlYTY5YTk1Mg.jpg\"\u003e \n\u003c/div\u003e 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