At Rose Chauffeured Transportation, we sell VALUE. We're the best every time. We're always on time, with clean cars, and well trained professionals behind the wheel. 

Our value is ordinary people doing their job in an EXTRAordinary way. We hope that customers think of no one but ROSE when they need transportation. Just doing the job is not enough. We create RAVING FANS. Our Wall of Fame is full of them.

To do what we're doing at Rose, you need to add the element of PASSION in what you do. On the phone, performing your job, talking to customers and co-workers. What's the importance of being passionate? Passion is important because customers and employees feed off of that. Passion gives confidence to help you reach a goal. Life is colorful when you have passion. Passion allows us to overcome setbacks.

You will never be known for "good service" if you just take care of the customer. You can be competent in your job and even good at it, but still lack PASSION. Life is tough. We all have hardships, but remember to bring positive emotions to the job. 

Search for it and bring it out. You have got to put happiness in the phone call and show people you want to help them. And never take a customer for granted.  Be friends inside the company and work as a team.

People will pay more when you have passion, because they get more. And they'll become raving fans. What are you doing to bring more PASSION to your job?

About eleven years ago in May, I sent a letter to the editors of the New York Times. I said I thought commencement speakers should stop preaching dreams and fantasy and tell graduates what life is about. They didn't publish it. I still think they should have.

Here's my commencement address:

You will be slapped on your butt unfairly. Half of you will get fired more than once. Half of you will divorce. Half of you will get fat and diet unsuccessfully. Half of you will be affected by an addiction. Half of you can't sing a note, but will try... and some of you will sing in the choir when you shouldn't. More than half of you will say 'yes' when you want to say 'no.' You'll kiss in any direction and hate yourself for the hypocrisy. Half of you will pretend at religion and not really believe in what you're doing. Half of you will spend your time on a job because of the money or status when it isn't your talent.

More than half of you can't answer this. What is it I like to do and am good at? Half of you will never be able to separate the prejudiced junk people tell you when you're growing up... from the truth. And all of you will struggle... for that is what this journey is about. So you better like what you're doing and who you're doing it with.

At my age, looking back and then listening to what I did on WBT radio in the 70's and 80's, it makes me smile and laugh. You forget how much fun it was. You also remember how it has changed and maybe not always for the better. It's a different world so it's not fair to compare the two. In those days, we hosts were known as the 'Entertainers' on WBT. We used the phones on the air for the first time and we were also involved in the community every day. Probably the biggest reason for our success was teamwork. We had good management and the talent on the air was top of the line. We were surrounded by creative, clever people, and we came to work to have fun.

After inducting me into the WBT Hall of Fame, the station posted about me and others who left their mark at the station. This tribute video is so well produced... and I had forgotten what a motor mouth I was! Take a listen. I think you'll like it.

That cover image is Cheryl Pruitt, Miss America 1980.