In later generations, in addition to going to court, the way to resolve corporate debt disputes was to hire a debt collection agency was also a common method. One of the most common tactics used by debt collection agencies is to create various gimmicks to discredit the reputation of the debtor company, forcing him to choose to repay the money honestly in order to avoid greater losses.

In this era, due to the imperfection of the business system, more attention is paid to business reputation, at that time, it is nothing what kind of bad reputation an entrepreneur has, whether it is greedy or vicious, or even brutal, this is not a problem, but he cannot have a reputation that does not talk about business reputation. Once he has such a reputation, he will encounter all kinds of problems in the business field, whether it is credit or financing, he will encounter all kinds of difficulties. Therefore, in that era, once a contract was signed, the price to pay for breaking the contract was often very large.

"If people refuse to give money, you just stay at the door of the company, and tell everyone who passes by that their company owes debts and does not pay. I believe that they would never let their reputation be damaged for the sake of such a small amount of money. Scrooge said this to John 61 Rockefeller.

"Good way, do this without fear that they will not give in. And the strength is also very controllable, I can completely increase the pressure on them little by little, and avoid the result of a complete face. John 61 Rockefeller said as he nodded.

……

Later, according to John 61 Rockefeller, within a month, he helped the company find out more than sixty dollars in accounting problems, and also recovered more than a hundred dollars in debt, in addition, he also helped the boss Hewitt collect the rent - this is not the company's business, just the boss's private affairs, but the boss found you, can you still not do it?

Hewitt is particularly fond of buying a house and then renting it out. At the beginning, when there were one or two sets, three or five sets, he either collected them himself or sent someone to collect them temporarily, which was not a difficult thing to do. Later, after buying a dozen or dozens of houses, Hewitt found that he could no longer afford to collect rent, even if he sent the company's employees. Over time, there was arrears and rent evasion, which caused Hewitt a headache. Now that an employee with a knack for collecting debts suddenly appeared in the company, Hewitt, as the boss, naturally thought of leaving this matter to him.

The boss gave the order, and of course the Rockefeller had to carry it out. So, after going to the company every day to sort out the accounts, Hewitt's carriage pulled Rockefeller out to collect rent, and did Mu Renzhi's business.

Rockefeller did not immediately pursue the action, but first spent a few days learning about the various situations from the tenants who paid the rent on time, roughly straightened out the relationship, and designed a process, and then began to negotiate the lease contract with the tenants one by one. In the new contract, Rockefeller strictly agreed on the timing of the payment of rent. He also added a clause to the contract: "Only tenants who pay their rent on time in the current year can get the preferential right to renew the lease in the second year." ”

This condition was quite attractive, and Cleveland had a good economy at that time, with a large floating population, and houses were not so easy to rent. With such a rule, tenants will be happier when they pay their rent. Of course, it is not without nail households that want to default on rent. In dealing with these people, Rockefeller used the old trick again, blocking their doors, and suing everyone who passed by here owed rent and did not pay. As a result, well, Rockefeller once again managed to get his money back.

Both bosses were very pleased with Rockefeller's appearance, and they found that some of their business associates, even those who had just been asked for money by Rockefeller, had complimented their new buddies in front of them, and praised them quite sincerely.

"Hewitt, do you think we're going to end that little guy's probationary period early and make him a full-time employee next month, right?" In the office, Tuttle said to Hewitt.

"Well, that little guy is really capable, and our company really needs to keep him. I've heard that some guys, like that Daley, are trying to dig into our walls. Hewitt replied.

Captain Daley is an old associate of the company, he runs a shipping company, and has a lot of financial dealings with Tuttle and Hewitt's company, and of course, a lot of debt entanglements. Rockefeller was once instructed to negotiate with Captain Daley, and as a result, he surrendered to Captain Daly and completed the mission. Captain Daley, who was subdued, admired Rockefeller very much, and even asked Rockefeller directly if he would like to work with him.

"Daley, this old thing is really not a thing!" Tuttle cursed in a whisper, casually tossing the pencil in his hand on the desk, and the pencil rolled and touched the desk calendar on the desk. His eyes were also brought to the desk calendar by a rolling pencil. On that desk calendar, there was a line like this:

"Every five cents counts because it's the interest you get for putting a dollar in the bank for a whole year."

This sentence was written here by Tuttle himself a few days ago, and the reason for writing it was a conversation between him and Rockefeller.

"Mr. Tuttle, you see, Maus owes us five cents, which according to the contract should be recovered by the end of the month."

"Good. However, 5 cents is not cost-effective to collect it once, and it is easy to hurt feelings. Old customers, can't be too careful. Tuttle replied nonchalantly to Rockefeller.

"Mr. Tuttle, we can't go beyond this month, and our accounts will be in disarray until next month. Besides, business belongs to business, friendship belongs to friendship, and it won't hurt feelings. Rockefeller said calmly.

"Young man, are you teaching me a lesson?" Tuttle said, with a palpable displeasure in his words.

"Nope! Don't get me wrong, Mr. Tuttle. I just feel that it's my responsibility to report to you what other companies owe. Besides, 5 cents is $1 a year of interest. ”

The phrase "5 cents is $1 a year interest" struck a chord with Tuttle and made him wonder if he had lost the seriousness he had when he first started his business. So he wrote this sentence on his desk calendar to encourage himself.

"So, how much are you going to give him a week's salary?" Tuttle asked.

"What do you think of $6 a week? I know that's a bit higher for a newcomer, but everyone can see that this little guy can do it better than most of the old employees, and I don't think the old employees will have any dissatisfaction. Hewitt thought for a moment and said.

"yes, his power is worth the price." "But, my friend, you know, we gave him almost two months less of his probationary period, which is already a lot of money, dozens of dollars." And...... And if such a salary can really keep him, it is also very cost-effective, but ...... Hewitt, do you really think he's going to stay with us honestly? ”

"You're saying other companies are going to dig into our walls?" Hewitt hadn't fully understood what his partner meant.

"No, I'm saying he's not an honest hire-worker, a guy who just wants to be a hire-worker might be very down-to-earth and hard-working, but he won't be as proactive as he is, so I think he'll start his own business as long as he has the opportunity. He is still very young and capable, and then in the process of running the business, he will definitely be able to slowly form his own network, and the current economic shape is so good, as long as there is start-up capital, it is not very difficult to start his own business. Therefore, the timing of his departure from our company will probably depend on when he will be able to build his network and when he will have enough start-up capital. Tuttle simply laid out his thoughts.

"Well, let's give him a $5 a week first......" Hewitt thought for a moment, and then said, "Tuttle, you said that if one day, this guy really has a lot of money, and he also shows a very strong ability, can we just pull him in as a partner......"

……

"Okay, it's time, it's time for the big brother to read to everyone." After dinner, watching his mother pack up the dishes, light the lamp, and the family sign at the table again, Scrooge said with a look of impatience.

"Oh, right away." Carroll said as she flipped through the borrowed copy of "Old Man Gao" (this book was picked out by Scrooge) and was about to start reading it to everyone.

"Wait a minute," said old Joseph, "I have something to say to your brother. ”

"What's the matter?" Scrooge said that he raised his head to look at his father, and saw that his expression was quite stern, and he couldn't help but become serious.

"It's a question about the future livelihood of the two of you." Joseph said.

"Scrooge, you're a smart kid, and in terms of being smart, your brother isn't stupid, but compared to you, he's a stupid." Joseph furrowed his eyebrows slightly.

Scrooge raised his eyes to look at his brother, and he saw that Carol actually laughed when he heard his father say that he was a "stupid", and seemed not to be displeased at all because he was belittled, but happy that his brother was smart.

"But Scrooge, you know what? Your mother and I are not worried about Carol's future at all, but we are worried about your future. Joseph continued, "Carol will certainly be a good shoemaker in the future, but you may not. Of course, if you're willing to be a shoemaker honestly, you're sure to do it well, even better than Carroll. But your mother and I always felt that you probably wouldn't feel comfortable being a shoemaker. Well, Scrooge, you sue us if we are right. ”

"Ah," Joseph's words were a bit unexpected from Scrooge, so he was a little caught off guard, and after thinking about it, he felt that there was no need to hide such a thing from his parents and eldest brother, so he planned to tell the truth.

"Dad, Mom, I really don't want to be a shoemaker, I want to open my own factory and do big business." Scrooge said.

"I knew it was so." Joseph shook his head, "Of course it's good, but it's also very risky. I've been listening to that story from your brother these days, and I've been terrified, especially with those terrible and wicked schemes, but, Scrooge, when I see you hearing about those places, not only are you not afraid, but your eyes are shining, as if you want to mix them yourself. So I know you're not going to be a shoemaker. I can only remind you here that although you are smart, anyone who drowns in the water can swim. If you're determined to make a big deal, be careful...... Our family is not wealthy...... In this way, my shop will be left to Carol in the future, and as for you, I have a deposit, about $4,000, although the shop is given to your brother, but this money cannot be fully given to you. In the future, if you want to make a deal, I can give you $2,000 first, and leave the rest to your brother. ”

"Dad, it's not fair!" Kroll said.

"Carol, don't be upset for your brother. In my opinion, you are your brother's insurance. Your brother may be rich or bankrupt, and if your brother goes bankrupt in the future, I hope your door will always be open to him. "Of course, if you get rich, you can't forget your eldest brother." ”

"Hmm!" Carol nodded earnestly.