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  Wes Burdine March 9, 2011 at 5:25am

  You summed it up well Al.
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  Jeremy Hine March 8, 2011 at 2:22pm

  well put Al.

   

  -Jeremy

  Florida Leisure Pool & Spa

  www.FloridaPoolSpa.com
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  Al Neumann March 8, 2011 at 2:16pm

  I agree with what Lester, Matt, and Monique have said here, but I think it is more than that. I’m going to take a chance here, and put what I put in my Bio when I first joined the PGN to make a point.

  I am a very small, not so well known, 1 person pool company called A. J. Contract Services, Inc. We specialize in chemical controllers, chlorine systems, and water testing for the commercial pool market. I am frequently told that I have a tendency to ask questions that nobody has asked before. My goal is to give back to the industry, and share what I have learned, or am concerned about. In this age of DBP awareness, it's time for this industry to open up and share ideas. Perhaps this is the time for change, and for us to look at what is considered as "standard practice", and to look out of the box for possible alternatives.

  Now what does that mean. There are 2 points that are of some importance here.

  1. I ask questions that no one has ever asked before…the why’s; and why nots; the what ifs; and  Yaa, but… which are often questions that some manufacturers simply don’t want to take the time to bother with or  even know the answer to. It’s the why bothers?, and the who cares? that gets so frustrating some times, and I’m simply running out of places to ask.
  2. My goal is to give back to the industry, and share what I have learned, or am concerned about. It means that I’m at a point in my career where I want and am READY to give back to the industry...to share what I have learned, or to put out there what I’m concerned about. Being ready, I think is important as it portrays my comfort level and a williness to open myself up to criticism from my peers.

  Others may have other adgendas, or may not be ready yet to share, or perhaps are just too intimitated, or...just want to learn what they can and see what others are doing. Those who just do commercial, like myself, may be turned off  from this site, as much of it is often geered toward residential. Others may just be transient by nature, and maybe satisfied to just check in once in awhile to see what others are doing. I myself have invited a few high profile contacts here, and many have joined. Some have minimally particiapted, while others have done nothing. There is a reason for this, and this may be important as well, as many have said this to me.

  There is a fine line of professionalism between what comments are construed as self-serving, and what comments are  considered to be unbiased and productive.

   We’ve seen comments from some manufacturers that are self-serving and biased, far from being objective. Many see this as being unprofessional, and and prefer not to open themselves up to the potential of receiving such criticism, whether true or not.

  Then of course you have the consultants, who would be a wealth of knowledge, but sit on the sidelines because their knowledge is the basis of their business, so it’s not in their best interest to give it away for free…is it?

   

  Like I said, you have to be in the mindset that it is time to give something back, and for whatever reason, not everyone is.
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  Monique Nelson March 8, 2011 at 11:58am

  I have made some wonderful contacts on this network, and even if only 10% of the members participate, those members are worth interacting with. I think that a lot of new people joining are simply overwhelmed and don't know where to start. Perhaps we could all make it our mission to personally welcome new members, and invite them to participate in groups and forums that might be of interest to them. I think for most people the initial start-up is the most intimidating, but once you have a comment or two out there, you get the hang of it and enjoy the interaction. 

   

  In an effort to encourage interaction and prevent a plateau effect, I will commit to welcoming new members, and I hope you will as well! If you click on the "Members" tab you can sort by recently added, so you know who is new. 

   

  Good luck, and thanks for the discussion!
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  Matt Cellura March 8, 2011 at 6:15am

  I agree with Lester.  There are many conversations on here that I have been able to take from and apply to what we do.  There are quite a number of highly educated people on this site, and i find myself trying to gain what i can everyday.  I will admit there are some conversations that are a little too indepth for my liking(chemical discussions mostly), but if you go into it with an open mind and actually take the time, you will learn something, which i have. 

   
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  Lester Eric Brehm March 7, 2011 at 10:00pm

  I think this network is a great thing, I've learned a lot and met some good people.
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  Jeremy Hine March 7, 2011 at 8:06pm

  I've gained a good amount of knowledge, experience, work, friends, even members added to my staff as a result of my participation in The Pool Genius Network.

   

  How about everyone else, what have you gained by participating?

   

  -Jeremy

  Florida Leisure Pool & Spa

  www.FloridaPoolSpa.com
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  Matt Cellura March 5, 2011 at 10:56am

  Like any social site, you have those tthat do not participate, but those that offer a great amount of insight.