Last week I was visiting Ecuador with my family and after finishing up with a meeting I called for a taxi to take me home, a ride that I had taken many times.
 
A small red car arrived, driven by a very thin and petite driver who had a huge grin stamped on his face; the scene resembled a part of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and the driver reminded me of Cheshire, the smiling cat.
 
When I got into the car; I could feel his grin following me.

I asked, “him how much the fare would be?”
With a quick response he said “3 dollars”
“Do I look like a gringo to you?” I replied. “Normally I pay 2 dollars.”
“No problem” he said “if that is what you pay” with a smile.
 
Immediately we began a nice conversation…
 
We talked about the government, about his life, where he comes from and about carnival.
 
He comes from an area, where carnival is the most important event of the year, Gualaceo; a festival held before Lent every year and considered the largest of that kind in Ecuador.
 
"Have you ever been there?” he asked me.
"Never," I said
"Well, Gualaceo is where we know how to celebrate," the driver replied
 
The way that he described the town’s celebration, in such detail and enthusiasm made him a natural promoter and a great entertainer.
He talked to me about the people, the town, and the drink. “El Pajaro Azul,” the Blue Bird. "Have you ever tried?" he asked.
"No," I said.
 
"Well El Pajaro Azul is a happy drink, after 2 shots, you will forget where you are and just have a good time."
 
We both laughed.
 
I asked: "so my friend, what is your name?”
"Angel Chacha," he responded.
"Wow, Angel Chacha, what a great name," I stated.
 
"It describes exactly who you are!"
"Angel, you are a kind man with a great attitude
Chacha is a type of dance and you live in a continuous festivity."
 
We both laughed again…
 
I said to him: “What a great attitude you have; your mannerism, your smile, your frame of mind… If people will only understand that all it takes to succeed in anything you do is to have the right attitude."
 
Before getting home, he said:
“In all my years as a taxi driver you are the 5th person that complemented my attitude and I really appreciate it; thank you.”
 
"Thank you!" I said: "You are a good man."
 
When he dropped me at home I gave him 5 dollars, double the fare he was expecting and I told him: “I tip for great conversations; thank you Party Angel…”
 
Remember: Attitude is the little secret that you need to succeed in anything you do.

A business associate and I were having breakfast when he asked me:
“One of my employees used to be very good and his performance has deteriorated by a lot, what should I do with him?”

“Do you trust this person, is he loyal?” I asked him.

“Yes!” he said.

​“Then you need to find a way to work with him and provide him the tools to improve his performance” I responded.
 
_Loyalty, that once-essential virtue, has faded fast from our society. Today everyone is looking for a quick gratification. Allegiance to others does not exist except to us by selling ourselves quickly to the highest bidder.
 
The dictionary defines loyalty as the quality of being faithful, true, devoted to someone.
 
Yet, when I use the word loyalty I do not use it as obedience or worse, submission; I use it as dependability, reliability, trustworthiness, dedication and commitment. Loyalty means to stay true to someone or something even when other things call attention.
 
Blind allegiance, unquestioned loyalty can lead us down the wrong path, a one-way deliverance of loyalty that could lead to an abusive behavior by the recipient.  We see this type of abuse in cults, gangs, dictatorships and some companies. This is the dangerous unchallenged allegiance.
 
In business, marriage, friendship, family and life, loyalty is really important but must be rooted in strength and commitment. Loyalty must include the commitment to respect each other and the strength to question the actions of both sides.  The commitment of wanting the best from ourselves that allows us to stop and refuse to go in the wrong direction.  Respect is when the other side receives it as a positive critique than a lack of loyalty.  This type of relationship is a 2-way path of loyalty.
 
In our company we value loyalty. It is easier to work with employees or partners with a strong sense of loyalty than high performers with no sense of loyalty.  Those high performers, self-absorbed are like a suppressed volcano prone to burst out suddenly and leaving the rest on their path of destruction.
 
Loyalty is a rare virtue and if we are among the lucky recipients of such we must handle it with a strong sense of responsibility.
 
“So my dear friend, it is important to work with this employee and find out what is the cause of the drop in performance and provide him with the additional tools to improve.”