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.In truth,though, you can t get a good read on the organiza-tion without knowing the feelings of the person whois leading it.168 Your Name Is on the DoorThe climate created by a CEO and his or hermanagement team has more impact on employeesthan we generally realize.People bring out the bestin themselves when they hear and see the best intheir leaders.Over the years, we have given out thousands ofscholarships to the children of our employees.It hasbeen a joy to meet many of these students and toreceive invitations to their high school or collegegraduations.When we become a part of theemployees families, morale is at its highest.Whoisn t excited when their children succeed? Andwhen someone is feeling good, his or her workplaceproductivity shows it.V'As Huntsman Corp.begins its new chapter as apublicly traded company, some of the family atmos-phere may well disappear.Many public shareholdersaren t as altruistic as they ought to be because theyonly want a quick return on their investment.That sa pity.The greatest dividends are those paid to hard-working men and women through bonuses, gifts,scholarships, and praise.Public or private, we stillconsider it a family business.After all, our name ison the door.169 Winners Never CheatAll companies publicThe greatestor private must create adividends areculture in which employeescome first and are treatedthose paid toroyally.Believe me, theyhardworking menalways return the favor.and womenthrough bonuses,gifts, scholarships,and praise.170 FIND OUT HOW MUCH GOD HAS GIVENYOU AND FROM IT TAKE WHAT YOU NEED;THE REMAINDER IS NEEDED BY OTHERS. ST.AUGUSTINEWE ARE THE MERE TRUSTEES OFWHAT FUNDS WE ARE TEMPORARILYGIVEN ON THIS EARTH.MAY WE SHARE THOSE WITH OTHERS. ANDREW CARNEGIEA MAN WRAPPED UP IN HIMSELFMAKES A VERY SMALL BUNDLE. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN171 This page intentionally left blank CHAPTER ELEVENTHE OBLIGATION TOGIVE BACKNobody is completely self-made;return the favors and good fortune.Giving is my favorite topic.I hardly know whereto begin.Let s start with a disturbing revelationabout a president I greatly admired and respected,Richard Nixon.As White House special assistantand staff secretary, I got to see details of his tax fil-ings before the IRS returns were released to thepublic.In 1971, for instance, he gave only $500 tocharity on a declared income in excess of $400,000.I was shocked.To me, that pittance was more oner-ous than Watergate.Philanthropy ought to be the preeminent ingre-dient in everyone s recipe for material gain.No mat-ter what the field, no star of any success story is a173 Winners Never Cheattotally self-made man orNo matter whatwoman.Along the way, allthe field, no starof us received help fromof any success others; most of us alsowere the beneficiaries ofstory is a totallylucky breaks.We all owe aself-made man orportion of our success toothers, incurring a debt inwoman.the process, and the onlyway to repay that assistance is by sharing your goodfortune.I get goose bumps thinking of the blessings thathave come my way.It wasn t always so.For years,the shoe was on the other foot.People shared whatthey had with the Huntsman family.My uncle,grandfather, and mother taught me the art of giving.Uncle Lon had only a sixth-grade education.Ahardscrabble Utah farmer, he boasted of few pos-sessions.When I turned eight, he gave me his pock-et watch.It was one of those old-fashioned watch-es with the big hands and a chain.(Uncle Lon neverwore a wristwatch, and I don t either.) I proudlytook that timepiece to school.All day in that third-grade classroom, I would pull out that magnificenttimepiece to check the hour.I couldn t believe I174 The Obligation to Give Backpossessed such an amazing watch that oncebelonged to my favorite uncle.A few years later, when my folks were strug-gling, Uncle Lon gave me a pair of his shoes.Minehad become somewhat scruffy.With Uncle Lon sshoes, I considered myself the best-dressed personin my class.Those farmer s shoes hardly were afashion statement, but I didn t care.I adored them.Mother had little in the way of material means,but she knew I loved lemon pies, especially thoseshe made from scratch.In her mind, making a piewas the nicest tangible thing she could do for me.Every few days, a lemon pie would be waiting whenI got home from school.I mentioned my mother s dad, GrandfatherRobison, in an earlier chapter.He owned a smallmotel in Fillmore, Utah, from the 1920s through the1950s.The units in those pre-World War II dayswere individual cabins.Motorists would pay $3 to$4 a night to stay in a cabin.There was no insideplumbing.Bathrooms were located at the end of thesmall path behind the cabins.When Grandpanoticed a family was struggling financially, he wouldonly charge them $1 a night.In many cases, when175 Winners Never Cheatthey would come to pay in the morning, he wouldtell them, That s okay.Someday maybe you canreturn the favor to somebody else. As kids, we all were taught to share and sharealike.We garnered praise from grownups when weengaged in letting others play with our toys, espe-cially the less fortunate.We quickly learned thatgenerosity was among the highest attributes a per-son could acquire.Even as children, we frowned onstingy playmates.By high school, the Huntsman family financeshad worked their way up to a point they could bare-ly be labeled modest.With my father enrolled ingraduate school, everyone contributed to the com-mon pot.My brother Blaine and I each held twojobs to help with medical expenses and the cost ofkeeping the family car running.I had no idea whereI would go to college, but I hoped that somehow Iwould be able to attend a university that would bechallenging and appropriate for my future.During my senior year, Harold L.Zellerbach,head of the nation s second-largest paper company,came to our high school in Palo Alto.Accompanying him was Raymond Saalbach, direc-tor of admissions of The Wharton School at the176 The Obligation to Give BackUniversity of Pennsylvania.They were seeking awestern states high school senior to be the recipientof the Zellerbach family scholarship to attend thisprestigious business school.I had never heard of Wharton.I did not knowthat it was the first business school in America, orthat it was on its way to preeminent status world-wide.Mr.Zellerbach, among Wharton s mostfamous alumni, met with me to discuss the possibil-ity of my attending with a scholarship all becauseclasses had been dismissed that day for a teacher sconvention.I was student body president, and theprincipal had phoned me at home to invite me tomeet with Mr.Zellerbach and Dr.Saalbach.Based on that and my high school performance,I received the Wharton scholarship.I thanked thetwo men, but said the grant would not be sufficientto permit me to attend.I would have to work full-time to make it financially
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