Editorial/Op
Your Word and a Handshake
By |
I attended LSU, learned business law on my way to my degree in Accounting, and became a CPA. I soon partnered with a good friend from church and started our family business in same-day transportation and logistics. Through all of that experience I have learned the value of written contracts and formal agreements, but there is a more personal and binding contract that I learned about as a child right here in Central… Your Word and a Handshake.
My Dad, my Uncles, and my Grandfathers impressed on me the importance of my word being my bond, and sealing that deal with a handshake. On Dyer Road in what is now the City of Central we baled and sold hay. It was not unusual for Grandpaw to tell someone on the phone to stop by and pick up 10 bales and just leave the money in a cigar box in the barn if we were not home. Growing up I knew I could always stop at a place down Hooper Road and get Red Worms for fishing and just leave the money there, because that is how people do business in Central… on Your Word and a Handshake.
I know it would be irresponsible to transact business in 2013 without written contracts, but after they are signed I still want to look you in the eye, give you my word that we have a deal and shake your hand to seal it. I have three brothers and I vividly remember that when we would make a promise or agree on something, if we wanted it to be official and binding we would say “OK, Let’s shake on it.” If my brother wouldn’t shake on it, I knew he was going to double cross me. Even as children we just instinctively know the value of Your Word and a Handshake.
Mia and I chose to raise our family in Central because this is a community with values that we respect and want our children and grandchildren to learn and embrace. I like knowing that the same person I bought a new lawnmower from might be sitting in the pew behind me on Sunday or next to me at a T-Ball game. I also like knowing that in Central the Word and the Handshake we exchanged when I bought the lawnmower is more important than the sales receipt and the warranty card. That is how business is done in Central…and that is Good News for a Great City.
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