Day 30

Had a meeting at Eton College today, www.etoncollege.com. Although I am much younger than most people would expect, I would have to venture that I have 1,000 or so meetings under my belt, and this has to make the top 10.

This is the boarding school that has been given some more recent exposure in the United States, as it is the school Prince Henry and Prince William attended. Now, “college”, as it is used in the United Kingdom, would be the equivalent of “high school” in the United States. And, “university”, or “uni”, is synonymous with what we refer to as “college”.

As you come upon the campus, you can just feel the history, feel the pride…the commitment to excellence doesn’t have to be advertised---this place exudes a commitment to excellence. And, the place is just tactfully sprinkled with fluffiest-haired kids they could find, in very proper dress attire, to re-enforce it. We had a great meeting, whereby we were exposed to a personality assessment that is given to 10 year old boys who have intentions of entering the college. This personality assessment is part of a comprehensive review, including 5 interviews and much more. And, I am not doing it justice, these young men(“boys” as they refer to them, in proper) are really put to the test and have to respond under what must be incredible pressure at a very young age. That, in itself, must make men out of boys.

Now, this was interesting…they are looking to replace the assessment administrator for their personality assessment, and as they were demonstrating it to us…the demo failed on them, time after time after time. If you have ever wondered what it feels like to be on the other side of the table, when a demo is failing…I have to tell you it feels pretty good. Actually, this was a good thing for all parties, as we are hoping to replace their testing administrator. We should be able to help them, and it would be a marriage of two great brands.

Afterwards, we were treated to our own tour, by our wonderful host for the meeting. I wish I had a camera with me. I hated school, probably well more than the next person…but for this day, and this day only, I loved it. We walked through a courtyard out of a movie, a chapel that compares to very little I have ever seen, a hallway with the students names carved into the woodwork, and the very first classroom at Eton, which is one room, immaculately preserved, with no dividers, split into 2 equal parts, where we learned that the first class of 70 students were split into 2 and classes were taught at either end. You literally couldn’t help but visualize being in the room for one of those first classes. All of those students names are carved for into this incredible woodwork that adorns just about every room in the school. And, and let’s keep this between us…now, there might just be a little “Prove It!” in that room for eternity. And, it wasn’t easy…you see the coins in the United Kingdom do not have the rigid edge as they do in the United States, they are rounded off(no doubt, to prohibit carving anywhere in the United Kingdom). So, I had to make an executive decision, and let’s just say that I had a nice Montblanc, and now I have a pen that looks like a banana, when it is peeled about halfway perfectly. OK, that part might have been inserted for embellishment, but imagine if ;)

So, it was a wonderful meeting, a literally breathtaking tour of some of the best workmanship and history I have ever had the privilege to be exposed to. It really was a privilege, and it would be our privilege to work with them. Interestingly enough, there is a top boarding school in Harrow as well, and to sum it up…Kelly happened to mention that Winston Churchill attended Harrow, and our host was quick to reply…”yes, but Churchill did not excel there academically.”

Sell hard today

JV