Don’t trust a word I say!
It’s my first month back since stepping down as Chair of NABAS, and it’s been over six years since I last had the freedom to put pen to paper without walking on eggshells. I can now thankfully go back to being my usual NOBS (No Bull S**T) self again. Yay! In the words of Freddie Mercury, “I’ve done my sentence, but committed no crime”!
But first, here’s the very important bit. Just over six years ago, I put a tremendously important project on hold. This a project I’m enormously passionate about and extremely excited to be launching as a joint venture, before the year’s end. It had to be put on hold due to the unnecessary division that exists in our industry. As Chair of NABAS I (surprisingly) became alienated from a large number of professionals, and I wanted this to benefit and be available to all. So, watch this space… coming soon!
So, why start my very first newsletter with ‘don’t trust a word I say’? Well, it’s because now more than ever, I really want you to do the legwork. If you are genuinely interested in our industry and aren’t just dabbling, then you owe it to yourself to be fully aware of what’s going on, and why.
Because with knowledge comes power, right? But as I’ve said so often, knowing and not doing is worse than not knowing. And knowledge should never be based on rumour and herd mentality, with the blind leading the blind. Willing to settle for opinions over facts! With so much noise and distraction, and so many self-proclaimed influencers and experts, it’s no surprise that confusion and misinformation run rife right now. Now more than ever, you need to be on your A-game!
NABAS
So, what better subject to start my gentle entry back into the freedom of writing, than our industry’s only trade association NABAS? My six years of being NABAS Chair gave me some amazing highs and a handful of lows, helped me meet some remarkable people, make some wonderful friends, and yet cost me dearly financially, emotionally and physically.
I’m not very good at playing games, and I certainly don’t like all the superstitions I’ve endured during my tenure. But in the main, I’ve remained relatively quiet and believed it was, in the words of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, “Nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows”, rather than “..take arms against a sea of troubles”.
NABAS wasn’t my movement. When representing hundreds of other people, I couldn’t make huge waves! For me, at times, this was been absolute torture as usually I address any adversity head-on. NABAS was set up 35 years ago by all the leading manufacturers, wholesalers, balloon retailers and decorators. It was about working together and giving our industry a fair, unified and united voice. But the simple fact is not everyone wants or indeed benefits from unity and the Power of a unified voice. And they certainly don’t want people like you and me to have the power!
Personally, I don’t believe NABAS should have been plagiarised and diluted some 12 years ago. I can see no logical reason for this, other than for personal gain and disrupting any possibility of unity. I personally believe doing this was selfish, disrespectful and destructive, but that’s just me. I’m sure there will be those that believe causing division in our industry was a great idea!
More disturbingly, I believe it skilfully took away the power and voice of every individual. As an analogy, I want you to imagine owning your own home. You have a say in what colour you want your walls, what you watch on TV, who you invite into your home and almost whatever else you want to do because YOU own it!
Would you really sacrifice this level and freedom to move into rented accommodation where all the decision-making is taken out of your hands? Well, I guess you would if the story sold to you sounded good enough! And that’s the problem. The cacophony of stories told to skilfully take away your power and dilute your voice is as prevalent today as they were 12 years ago.
The problem
So let’s briefly revisit the past. An offer was made to purchase NABAS, and quite rightly it was rejected. Why? Because it didn’t serve the best interest of the industry as a whole, or indeed the members of the association.
As a trade association, it was rightly believed that it should be independent, and controlled by a balanced cross-section of the industry. In essence, ran for the members by the members, and not sold to a private limited company set up to profit from all the hard work NABAS had done.
NABAS wanted its voice, control and power to be in the hands of ALL its members. With a united voice, it would have had the power to influence and address issues that regrettably we now have no control over. NABAS is about giving everyone in our industry an element of power, influence and equality. That’s fundamentally what a trade association should do!
There was also the issue of manufacturers wanting to control training and not have an independent/unbiased training body, and by so doing, again taking away your power, voice and choice. But it was again told as such a beautiful story, very few could resist the “Apple of Eden”! NABAS-approved trainers will introduce you to anything and everything that will help you grow your business.
Nothing was or indeed is ever perfect. But to damage, dilute, disrespect and divide wasn’t the answer. Thankfully I wasn’t involved with all the game playing back then. But if I was, my solution would have been so much easier and more respectful. More importantly, the members and the industry would have kept their power. All that needed to happen was to highlight a lack of confidence in the committee at that time and restructure from the ground up. No division, no attacks, no manipulation. Just a strong unified voice controlled by the members.
Would this have worked? Absolutely. Just over six years ago I was asked to join NABAS and make some changes, and that’s exactly what I did. You can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, and I know I ruffled some of the chickens’ feathers. But to grow, we must be willing to adapt and change. Some didn’t like the changes. NABAS is a trade association. It isn’t about being people pleasers or helping support anyone’s specific ‘what’s in it for me’ agenda. NABAS is here to do the right thing for its members and the industry. That’s why it’s never been afraid to make difficult decisions. This is relatively easy to do if you put people before personal gain and profits.
Currently, despite the ridiculously costly, and unnecessary division, NABAS has more members and the healthiest bank account than ever before in its 35-year history. I believe If it wasn’t for this damaging division, your industry would truly have a powerful independent voice that could better protect and support you. Hopefully, NABAS will continue to build on its now solid foundations. And hopefully, more people just like you will be interested in finding out the truth.
NABAS should feel tremendously proud of what it has achieved. By drastically upping its game, it forced others to sit up, take notice and do the same. It should be congratulated for what we’ve created and it should be supported by everyone that truly cares about our industry. But I’m afraid life isn’t always roses and rainbows. In the words of Boris Johnson, “Them’s the breaks”. But PLEASE, “don’t believe a word I say!
Well, I’ve gone from quoting Freddie Mercury and Shakespeare to Boris Johnson, and in all honesty, found this to be very cathartic and therapeutic. As always, I’m more than open to receiving your comments and replies, but please, all I ask is it comes from a place of knowledge, not hearsay and opinion.
Until next time stay safe, stay healthy and be successful.
Oh, and if you’re not already a member of NABAS, and are interested in not only joining, but owning your industry’s only trade association, and all the benefits it brings, here’s the link: www.nabas.co.uk
