Maxim Behar's Blog, page 9

Priceless Lessons by Maxim Behar: A Story with Terence Billing

The third story of "Priceless Lessons" by Maxim Behar for BGLOBAL magazine, where he shares his meetings with interesting people and the PR and business lessons he has learned from them.


The Top of The Pyramid
A story of a hot evening, cold white wine with soda, Hawaiian shirts, rock star hairstyles and the priceless lessons of Terence Billing in a small Italian restaurant in central Frankfurt...

It was a very warm day in July and I had no intention of even showing my nose outside.

The central Hessischer Hof Hotel in Frankfurt, just opposite the fairgrounds, provided coolness and cocktails from the refined bar, gave an even more charming atmosphere and seemed to relieve my tension before the meeting��� The meeting!

Just a few months earlier, I had spent nearly 30 days crossing America from east to west and back in search of a good PR experience. It was 2000. I spent six years trying to find the right path, and I already knew that America was the place to get the best of it. And while I was standing in the California office of Hill + Knowlton drinking coffee with the local boss, he suddenly took his cell phone from the desk, dialed a number and shouted loudly: "Hey��� Howard��� I found you a great person for the office in Bulgaria!". Howard Paster, then Global President of the world's largest PR corporation, sent me an email the next day and invited me to meet with Terence Billing, the company's Executive Vice President.

That name didn't tell me anything, except that, for some reason, I was inwardly convinced that Terence was a female name, and I addressed my e-mail with "Mrs. Billing." Terence sent me a fast angry email as a response, but still sent me a date to meet. Sunday. In the afternoon.

So��� I was standing in the lobby of the Hessischer Hof Hotel, dressed as I should have been at the time - a Versace tie, a white Denil shirt and a strict black suit bought from the pavilions in the NDK subway��� That was my first high-level business meeting, in the bag next to me I had a company brochure and two bottles of Bulgarian wine��� Classic!

And while I was sweating in my suit, the revolving door of the hotel swung open, and a man in his fifties burst into the front desk, in shorts, flip-flops, and a Hawaiian shirt, with long hair, glasses, like a rock band guitarist from the mid-70s, and asked for my name quite loudly. I immediately jumped to introduce myself before the girl at the front desk called me. The ���rock singer��� looked at me inquiringly and, without even handshaking, said:

- Max, this outfit is not suitable. Run upstairs to the room, put on your jeans and T-shirt, and come back downstairs to talk.
By the time he returned, Terence had drunk half a bottle of white wine with soda, his favorite drink, looked in my eyes for quite long time, and his first sentence was:

- We sign a contract, do not explain anything to me now, later you will tell me more. But I can tell you from now ��� we can work together.

Thus began my long 20-year journey with Hill + Knowlton Strategies, certainly the most wonderful PR corporation in the world, with great colleagues we learned so much from.

An hour later, Terrence and I were sitting on the terrace of a small Italian restaurant behind the hotel, and he glanced at me as a sign to begin. After all - I came from Bulgaria, even if I can say, from "that" Bulgaria, with the bad image from the front pages of European newspapers, with the legends about the mutts and the iconic murders. And I started right away ��� ���I have a company called M3 Communications, we are a very young, wonderful team, and we are very honest, transparent, honorable������ My list was endless. Terence drank slowly from his typical wine with soda and after listening to my monologue , for about an hour, put his glass on the table, looked me in the eyes and said:

- You, my friend, if you continue this way ��� your company will bankrupt in a few months, believe me���
I felt a cold sweat, especially from the fact I was talking to the legend of global PR, but somehow I was expecting a pat on the shoulder and encouraging words.

- Listen Maxim, imagine a pyramid. You have two equal parts at the bottom that support it - the customers and your know-how��� As many as you have, it mainly depends on what will be at the top of this pyramid��� Do you know what it is���?

I looked at him confused and worried. I felt like I was taking an exam at the university��� I was silent until we finished the pasta and the mascarpone, and when I was thinking about how to get away this unusual and painful conversation, Terence said:

- Profit, profit, my new friend��� This is the most important thing if you want to be in business. Be ethical, be honest and fair, do what you want, but if you don't make a profit at the top of the pyramid, you don't have a business.

In the years that followed, I had hundreds of meetings with Terence, every summer I stayed with him at his house near Frankfurt, we spent endless evenings with icy white wine and soda in his garden, and we also talked endlessly about business, #PR events. His visits to Bulgaria turned into valuable presentations and lessons for our whole company, and he really liked to stay for hours in our office and talk to the team���

It so happened that I was next to Terence Billing's bed in his last hours in a Catholic hospice, perhaps meters from the same legendary Hessischer Hof Hotel. He stood speechless and looked at me with his good-natured gaze as I told him about our company, about the incredible successes, about how we won the award for the best agency in Europe, how I was elected President of the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO)��� and how basically at the core of all that was that first and so priceless business lesson.

A single word, simple and ordinary, which can open not only the eyes, but all the paths to business success. As long as you learn it in time and remember it well.

The Global PR Revolution Ranked Among Top 50 Best-Selling Books of 2020

The Global PR Revolution by the globally renowned PR expert Maxim Behar is among Top 50 Best-Selling Books of 2020 at the largest Bulgarian metropolitan bookstore Greenwich. The book was ranked 21st in the list, which also includes world famous names such as Eric Weiner, John Grisham, Michelle and Barack Obama, Elif Shafak, George Orwell, Harper Lee, and Umberto Eco.

The Global PR Revolution is also the best-selling book published by Enthusiast. It gathers the opinions of 100 of the world���s top public relations experts from 65 countries, current trends and predictions about the future of PR business.

The book also has many international achievements. It was ranked No. 8 in the prestigious international ranking of BookAuthority - 100 Best PR Books of All Book Time, as well as No. 7 among the best PR books for 2021. BookAuthority rankings are based on recommendations by thought leaders and experts such as Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Tim Cook, Jack Ma, Richard Branson and many others.

The Global PR Revolution was initially launched in the USA and achieved an incredible success, and at the end of 2019 it was published in Bulgaria, where the first edition was sold out in just a month.

The book can be purchased online in both digital and hard copy from the official webpage of the book.

Maxim Behar's Experience as an Author

03.01.2021

Maxim Behar shares his experience as an author and interesting facts about his best-selling books for Ramona Portelli's Maltese online media in section Author Interviews. ��

Mr. Behar, your name appears in so many capacities, achievements, and titles over the years��� Who are you, indeed?

Just one simple word repeated many times dominates my all biography ��� work, work, work���

I am an international PR expert, Harvard Kennedy school Graduated, but also have a diploma from Universities in Prague, Yokohama, Seattle, London, and Berlin. 25 years back I founded a leading PR company in my native Bulgaria ��� M3 Communications Group, Inc. serving numerous international clients and still among the top leaders in the markets in Central and Eastern Europe��� In 2020 absolutely prestigious PR Week announced me as ���The Best PR Professional in Europe��� ��� among all titles and positions I have until 2017 I was President of ICCO ��� The World���s PR Organisation and currently I am a President of the World Communications Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Tell us more about ���The Global PR Revolution���, a book ranked recently among Top 10 of The Best PR Books of All Time by BookAuthority just couple of months after the publication.

I am really pleased to see this, it was also among best-selling new Amazon books on PR months after it was listed for sale there��� From many points of view, this is a unique book and the more it stays on the top readers ranking in the world, the more I am convinced on that. First of all ��� the book gives a full picture of the dramatic changes in one of the most important businesses these days in the world ��� Public Relations. It briefly tells the history and then is focused on social media, the dying of the traditional newspapers, and also the forthcoming merge of the three main elements of public communications ��� Public Relations, Advertising, and Digital���

But I must recognize that one of the biggest advantages of the book, and it is really the fact that within the book I have 100 opinions on the changes of business shared by 100 Top PR leaders from all over the world ��� Paul Holmes, Sir Martin Sorrel, David Gallagher, Elise Mitchell, to name just a few. They give a full picture of the changes in this business in all parts of the world, and ��� an excuse not to be very modest ��� no one did it before in the whole history of Public Relations. The book now is on sale by Simon & Schuster in all Barnes & Noble book stores across the US, in practice, all Universities have in their libraries, many of them included it in their educational programs.���� ��

What was the most challenging aspect of writing this book?

To make it both easy to read, easy to find the necessary information, and at the same time analytical and slightly academical. I hope I reached the target, sales, and popularity of the book speak for themselves. In fact ��� everyone will find something serious and interesting for himself ��� mainly businessman, managers, leaders, professors, students��� or just people curious to know how the complicated world of communications has changed over the past decade and what will happen in this world in the next one.

What is your normal procedure to get your books published?

To find a good publisher. This time I did not find the good one, I just found the best ��� Allworth Press and also, they found the best distributor in the world ��� Simon & Schuster. Working with editors and managers of Allworth Press was a great pleasure and at the same time enough challenging process. They are great professionals and I hope I met all their standards. Of course ��� self-publishing in the modern world is also common practice, but I predict that in the next decade big publishing house will have their strong impact into the creative process and readers will trust them a lot.

How many books have you written so far?

Until now I have written 5 books and the 6th one I hope will be on the market in February 2021 as it is almost ready. My first book ���Secondary Instinct��� was published in 2000 and was dedicated to the dramatic changes in Eastern Europe after the fall of communism in the late 80s and included my articles on the topic and also interviews with such great personalities as Lech Walesa (President of Poland), Vaclav Havel (President of Czech), Felipe Gonsales (Prime Minister of Spain) and many others��� The next book was a curious one ��� I started publishing on Facebook every day my rules of life and a local published liked them a lot, so we published them in a bilingual book called ���111 rules how to make it (First published on Facebook)���. It could be the first-ever book in the world first published on Social media and then printed.

In 2014 my third book was published ��� ���Generation F��� expressing my point of view on the new ���social media generation��� and at the very end of 2019 ���The Global PR Revolution��� was published first in the USD and then in many other countries in the world. In November 2020 I published a book ���The Morning After��� about the pandemic, COVID, and impact on business and leadership, first in Bulgarian which has three editions just for two months and is one of the best sellers on the market now. And finally��� my next book ���2020: New World is Here��� will be published both on Amazon and locally in February 2021, it is almost ready and the title is self-explanatory.�������� ��
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What���s the best way to market your books?

Undoubtedly ��� first of all, Social Media and then direct contacts, mailings, and letters to the potential business entities or universities.

How hard or easy is it to establish and maintain a career in writing?

I do not know. Indeed. I am a businessman and a manager, not a professional writer. As a former journalist, I enjoy writing very much, but for me, this is a fun and hard job at one and the same time and also a great way to share my thoughts with a larger audience.

What is your advice for aspiring writers?

Just one important piece of advice which is my guiding light always: when you look at the monitor of your computer or laptop try not to see the text there, but the face of your potential readers.

It is not easy, but try to do it, it is more than worth it and will open your eyes to a completely new style of writing. ��

Priceless Lessons by Maxim Behar: A Story with Prince Charles

Maxim Behar���s second story in the series " Priceless Lessons" for BusinessGlobal magazine, tells a story from the end of 2002, at St. James's Palace in London, where he was welcomed by Prince Charles.

In the series, the PR expert talks about his meetings with global celebrities through the prism of his business, about the lessons derived from such stories, and what he has learned in a purely PR aspect.


Ten Seconds at St. James's Palace
A story about princes and kings, ethical standards, gifts and surprises���

In the modern world, events most often begin with a newly received email. In this case, however, it happened in a completely different way, and I did not expect a prime minister to send me an e-mail��� The phone just rang, and my assistant said that the Prime Minister, or rather the King-Prime Minister, would like to talk to me. "Behar, alive and well - typically for him began with a greeting - next week I'm going to London, there will be a business forum, isn't it good for you to join us���".

Only months ago, I was elected Chairman of the Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum (BBLF) and back then he was part of an organization headed by Prince Charles, and logically it would be very interesting for me. We easily became co-organizers of the forum in London, I had to bring a gift to the Prince. Without thinking much about it, I called my friend Gilbert McCall, who was part of the board of our Forum and Managing Partner of KPMG Bulgaria. One Sunday afternoon we wrote together the first in Bulgaria "Standard for Business Ethics". Now it may sound quite archaic, but then the words "business ethics" in Bulgaria were more like scientific terms than specific content.

This was exactly what I was going to give to Prince Charles in London during the forum he and the King were to open. What could be better than presenting him our work on ethical business in Bulgaria. However, the long-awaited Prince Charles did not come to the forum in the beautiful hall of the Bulgarian embassy, without knowing the reason. He was replaced by the European director of his forum, Susan Simpson, an elegant lady with a large hat and a crocodile-skin bag that I had known from a number of meetings before. But I had two standards, one for the King, which I gave him on stage when I opened the forum, and one for Prince Charles. But instead Susan appeared with the big hat and reached for the beautifully shaped frame.

I had to get out of the situation and with a serious tone I turned to her on the microphone: "Susan, what I'm giving it to you is actually for your boss, Prince Charles, so please tell him that if he doesn't come to Bulgaria soon, you should give it back to me��� ���. I broke the tension in the hall with about 250 people inside, and of course, they laughed, took it as a joke and so we smoothed things over.

Less than a week later, however, an invitation came to my office from His Royal Highness for lunch at St. James's Palace, where he lived at the time, on a certain date at 11:30. Well, I was supposed to be at the Royal Automobile Club at 7 o'clock in the morning, two minutes from the Palace, to be instructed on how to get through lunch, but that didn't matter to me, the final goal was far more important.

We had lunch. Decently and calmly, we had a very interesting conversation about everything, mainly about business and how it should be ethical and transparent. I handed him another copy of the standard, and as we were finishing, the Prince turned to me most unexpectedly:
- Sir, I was very pleased that you came, I have a small gift for you.
-"Oh,��� I replied, ���so kind of you, Your Royal Highness."

I was sure I would get a teacup with the Buckingham logo or a photo album from the palace we were in, when he continued:
- I have invited several friends from the big business in the next room, let's have tea with them and you will have about ten minutes to present Bulgaria to them in the best way���
Oh my God! What could I say to British businessmen about Bulgaria that they don't know! ... A search engine like Google will tell them everything in three minutes���

I had no more than ten seconds to think, we were already getting up from the table and the other hall was about a hundred meters away. We entered, the gentlemen - five or six - rose from their seats respectfully, Prince Charles introduced me as "my new friend from Bulgaria, where my cousin King Simeon is prime minister" and gave me the floor.

I had to, I really had to wake them up, these people casually stretched out in their chairs with cigars and a cup of tea with cognac in hand.
- Gentlemen, I really come from Bulgaria, a wonderful WWW country!

There was a long silence, which Prince Charles broke first.
- ���Oh yeah! Really! I have heard that you have a faster internet than many other countries in Europe.���
- "It's true, but I didn't mean that. Remember - WWW for Bulgaria now means Weather, Women, Wines.���

They started laughing, and that was the sentence that broke the ice. We had a great conversation about investment opportunities in Bulgaria.

Of course, from the very beginning I clarified that this comparison is attractive, but figurative. Weather, these are our four seasons, the wonderful opportunities for tourism, Women - of course them, but mainly people, smiling, educated and ambitious, and Wines, but not only them - the mixture of different cuisines makes our food to these wonderful wines attractive and insanely delicious���

WWW - invented literally in seconds in the transition from one hall to another in St. James's Palace, for a long time it was used by many in Bulgaria and around the world. Back then I really brought an invitation for the Prince to visit Bulgaria, and only after three months he really arrived. I will never forget how I met him at the back entrance of the Sheraton Hotel, where he came after his meeting with the President to meet with Bulgarian business, and when he saw me at the door, he pointed at me and exclaimed: "Ah, WWW! I remember very well! Nice to see you again.���

Often interesting things in my business happen in ten seconds, but they keep their fame for much more than ten years���

What I learned from one of the legends of the world PR business Terence Billing - in the next issue.

Maxim Behar for Manager News: Positive messages will save business

21.12.2020

The world-famous PR expert is the first to start Manager News��� series, which tracks trends, analyzes and forecasts for 2021, based on changes in business, marketing and communications following the pandemic.

- How does the language of communication change under the influence of the COVID crisis?

Everything has changed under the influence of the COVID crisis, not just the language. In fact, language has always been secondary, it changes according to circumstances, time, generations, the influence of others, and external factors. Remember how many English words have entered and continue to enter our language after the social media boom ... In 2020, the language was most strongly influenced by the changes in relations between people, especially in business. And the word for its change is - it has become more pragmatic, simple and precise. Our communications, especially verbally, and mainly on online video platforms have changed - the long introductions, explanations, emotional exclamations that preceded every conversation only a year ago have disappeared. We already use less words, we are far more direct and somehow in every communication we look for quick results, if possible tomorrow, because no one knows what will happen the next day ... I consider this change as very good. The results are what matters in every business, and the pragmatic approach only helps to achieve them quickly.

- Which approaches and messages in marketing and brand communication will be successful in 2021?

Any reasonable approach that works will be profitable. The messages must be positive in order to stand out against the background of the rather gloomy business forecasts, which will undoubtedly come true in 2021. Powerful and very important for Bulgaria industries such as hospitality, air transport, tourism in all its dimensions are collapsing and will probably never be able to cope with its previous scale. This will lead to a sharp reduction in volumes in many other sectors such as construction, supply and much more.

Of course, there should be no ���vacuum��� in business. All these companies will change their businesses in a way to find their good place in the bigger picture, but for this they will need really positive messages, clear and accurate business-oriented communication. I strongly hope that my colleagues in the communications business will change in such a way that they will be even better at "fitting in" with their clients and with society as a whole.

Maxim Behar was a guest lecturer at the online seminar Leadership During a Pandemic at UE-Varna

16.12.2020

The leading PR expert Maxim Behar was a guest lecturer at an online seminar organized by the Student Council at the University of Economics - Varna. He presented his views on Leadership During a Pandemic, focusing on what positives we can achieve as an outcome of the negative situation the whole world is facing.

"It���s essential for us to be very focused, pragmatic and make quick decisions. Leaders now have a much greater responsibility than they had before, not only to their business, but to their team. They need to guide their employees, adapt to changes in communication and have self-confidence based on knowledge, skills and vision of what they want to achieve," said Maxim Behar to the students and faculty of the university.

During the seminar-discussion were discussed the changes in the new world caused by social media, as well as one of the most current trends in modern PR - influencers.

Maxim Behar moderated the online meeting of BBLF with the Minister of Economy Lachezar Borisov

14.12.2020

Government Supports Businesses. How? was the topic of the online discussion, held by the Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum (BBLF). As a former chairman and current board member, Maxim Behar moderated the meeting.

Special guests were the Minister of Economy Lachezar Borisov and Iliana Ilieva, General Director of the General Directorate for European Competitiveness Funds at the Ministry.

The event sparked interest and heated discussion on government measures to support business. Among the participants were CEOs and managers of over 35 BBLF member companies and partners, which are among the most successful Bulgarian and international companies in our market. The discussion was also attended by the Chairman of BBLF Levon Hampartzoumian and members of the Board.

Minister Lachezar Borisov explained the government's strategy to first support the companies most affected by COVID-19, and then the rest in need, with a little over BGN 1 billion invested so far. The second goal is to prepare for a complete restructuring of the economy, considering the changes that occurred along with the COVID crisis.

Maxim Behar Organized The First Global Online Birthday Party on Zoom

10.12.2020

The globally renowned PR expert Maxim Behar organized the first global virtual birthday party ever held in human history. He celebrated his 65th birthday on the online video platform Zoom with dozens of his friends, colleagues and partners from around the world.

Behar received the most heartfelt wishes by his guests, who joined the party live streaming from Austria, England, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Israel, Iran, Nigeria, New Zealand, the Republic of Seychelles, the United States, Turkey, Hungary, Sweden and others.

Among the many guests were honorary ambassadors, prominent businessmen and CEOs, academics, lawyers, journalists, communications professionals and celebrities.
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Maxim Behar's birthday was described as a ���global party revolution" by some present at the modern event.

Maxim Behar Organized The First Global Online Party on Zoom

10.12.2020

The globally renowned PR expert Maxim Behar organized the first global virtual party ever held in human history. He celebrated his 65th birthday on the online video platform Zoom with dozens of his friends, colleagues and partners from around the world.

Behar received the most heartfelt wishes by his guests, who joined the party live streaming from Austria, England, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Israel, Iran, Nigeria, New Zealand, the Republic of Seychelles, the United States, Turkey, Hungary, Sweden and others.

Among the many guests were honorary ambassadors, prominent businessmen and CEOs, academics, lawyers, journalists, communications professionals and celebrities.
��
Maxim Behar's birthday was described as a ���global party revolution" by some present at the modern event.

The genus Behar in "Genus" on BNT 1

28.11.2020

�� movie about Behars, their roots and emotional family stories, and about the long way from the small town Bejar in Spain to Shumen in Bulgaria in 1492. Maxim Behar reveals exciting stories and messages from his family, along with the wills of his grandfather Moshe and his grandmother Matilda - words he will never forget!

Narrator: This is "Genes" - a show that collects family stories not to make people who once lived heroes, but to give you the opportunity to judge for yourself what their heirs are today. A show that does not tell ordinary memories, but parables in which the past meets the present to support the future. A transmission about the values that accompany us, about the people from whose lips we have heard them, about the signs we encounter on our paths to remind us that life is a string of promises that must be fulfilled. This is "Genes", and today we are with Maxim Behar.

Maxim Behar: Behar in Shumen or Behar from Shumen.

Narrator: Yes, we are now in Shumen, the town where the Behar family settled when they came to Bulgaria. But Shumen is far from the place where the family originates.

Maxim Behar: Actually, Behar comes from Bejar. This is a city in Spain, near Salamanca, where I was very lucky to be a few years ago, to receive the city's badge of honor from its mayor, to see the city they came from in 1492, I put big quotes in the verb "came", my great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfathers and they fell into the Ottoman Empire. They came here from Spain. And just a small part of this story represents the Behar family.

Narrator: And everything in Spain starts with the end of the so-called "Reconquista" the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the power of the Muslims. At that time, the marriage between Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon united Spain, and the Holy Inquisition was headed by Father Torquemada. It was under his pressure that the two signed the Alhambra Decree for the expulsion of all Jews from Spain. With it, they break a series of promises to their Jewish subjects.

Maxim Behar: 1492. This is actually the key year of all the so-called "Sephardic Jews" or these are the settlers from Spain, then expelled by the infantry, by the Inquisition and my ancestors, Beharovtsi, fall here in Shumen or around Shumen, which at that time was the Ottoman Empire. They were accepted with open arms, so at least all historical books, memories, data show, as far as it was possible to describe at that time, of course.

Narrator: Forced to leave their homes, Sephardic Jews find their new home in the Ottoman Empire. Sultan Bayezid II of the time ordered: "Do not refuse the entry of the Jews or cause them difficulties, but accept them warmly." Moreover, Ottoman ships were sent to Spain to transport some of the refugees to the Balkans.

Maxim Behar: Leaving Spain, they did not know what was happening outside the country, there was no information. They did not know whether Jews were being persecuted throughout Europe during this time, or whether the religion was in some way restricted in other countries. And so, leaving Spain, they decided to take the names of the cities in which they lived so that they could really present themselves as Spaniards rather than Jews, not knowing what was going on outside the country. And so they arrived in these lands, the Ottoman Empire of the time, now Bulgaria, they arrived with their surname Behar.

Narrator: This is how the new surname Behar starts from the name of the lost birthplace.

Maxim Behar: Behar, who in those years, probably the end of the XIV, the beginning of the XV century settled in the Ottoman Empire are the so-called "Sephardi." Either these are the settlers from Spain who come with their customs, they come with their language Ladino, or when I was little it was called Spaniel. All the Jewish families in Shumen we knew spoke to each other in Spaniel, especially when they wanted for children not to understand, especially when they were talking about politics or some interesting things, only this language was spoken.

Narrator: Today the Ladino language is less and less common among the community of Bulgarian Jews.

Maxim Behar: None of us speak or few speak Spanish.

Narrator: Initially, large Sephardic groups settled in Edirne, Thessaloniki and other major cities of the empire.

Maxim Behar: The story of my relatives was probably very difficult and very contradictory, because they found themselves in a place, in an empire or among people who do not speak the language, do not know their customs, completely different, quite different, radically different, and yet they have managed to be one with them.

Narrator: The fugitives from Spain fit into the life of the empire relatively easily. It is said that Sultan Bayezid II himself stated that the Catholic King Ferdinand was wrongly considered smart after persecuting the Jews, thus enriching the Ottoman Empire at the expense of the unification of Spain. And this is not accidental, because the Jews brought the most important thing - knowledge.

Maxim Behar: 100 percent of those who moved to our lands at that time were merchants. We know about the Jews that they are good merchants, we know that they are musicians, writers, creators, artists. A composer needs only one instrument, they can travel the world with it. A trader only needs a good sense of bargaining, how to make them buy and sell something and stay honest. This is a very difficult craft by the way. Therefore, when they settled in these lands, they began to engage in trade. Every nation, every large group of people who moved from place to place loved to have their craft in their inner pocket.

Narrator: Sephardic communities are gradually beginning to settle in the interior of the Bulgarian lands, mainly in large cities - strong economically and militarily secure. At that time, Shumen was already one of the largest military cities in the European part of the empire. The city has a fortress, Tombul Mosque, and the first imperial military hospital.

Beta Haralanova: There is still no evidence for the history of the Jews about the exact year when they settled in the town of Shumen, but according to our research, not only mine, but also research of various historians and memories that have been transmitted, it is already known that in the middle of the 18th century Jews were spoken of in our city. Here came the first Jews from the city of Edirne as doctors who were in the Ottoman army. They settled in the area of the westernmost part of the city between the Kyoshkovets and the Tombul mosque in a so-called "large yard" in the beginning several families. Gradually their number increased, they came from the Vidin region, they also came from Southern Bulgaria and so the Jewish quarter was created.

Narrator: In Shumen the community quickly began to develop and soon after settling it built its own house of prayer - the first synagogue.

Beta Haralanova: Among the particularly active Jews in the middle of the 19th century was Menachem Navon. He also became chairman of the organization, of the local Jewish organization, a young man who knew foreign languages, who had studied in Edirne but had really succeeded, came here with his parents and managed to unite the youngest part of the city's Jews. Thanks to him, in 1860 the synagogue was built, it was really beautiful for its time, with very good acoustics, two-storey, one of the largest synagogues in Bulgaria.

Narrator: The synagogue was consecrated in 1860, and soon after, Menachem Navon took the initiative to open a secular school because a religious one was already operating in the synagogue's courtyard.

Beta Haralanova: In 1870 he managed to get in touch with Baron Hirsch and thanks to him, with a donation and connections with the Alliance Fran��aise, the first Jewish school for boys in Bulgaria was built.

Narrator: Baron Hirsch, who remained in Bulgarian history with his famous railway, is also a prominent figure in the international Jewish movement. With his help in 1874 the first school for girls was opened in Shumen. Later, grateful citizens built a fountain in his honor.

Beta Haralanova: He is one of the biggest donors for the construction of the school itself. From the beginning he gave 100 million gold francs, that is 1870, then he gave another 4 million for the construction of the girls' school and when in April 1896 he died, this fountain was built in the school yard in his memory.

Narrator: At the beginning of the 20th century, life in the Jewish quarter of Shumen was in full swing. Shops and workshops began to open in the central part of the city. Modern houses were built for their time, and the social profile of the Jews in the city was diversified.

Beta Haralanova: Mainly as traders, there were few manufacturers, there were goldsmiths, sarafs, to be more precise, there were also a few craftsmen. Naturally, a large part of the Jewish population living in this neighborhood is also from the poor population, which for the most part was in Shumen at that time.

Narrator: Few have already witnessed that time - a living Jewish neighborhood full of people and noise.

Niko Mayer: The Jewish quarter was a kind of ghetto, starting from the Tombul mosque and leading to the Kyoshkovete themselves. Located between the southern and northern banks of the river, as it was called "Bokludzha", Poroyna. One street passed through it from the station to Kyoshkovete and this was the main street of Shumen as well.

Narrator: The emigration of Jews to the newly created state of Israel in 1949-1950 will seriously bleed the Jewish quarter. Only a few families remained in Shumen, mostly young people, who promised each other to build their new lives not there, in the Promised Land of Canaan, but here, where their ancestors once found salvation.

Maxim Behar: When I was born, there were seven Jewish families who lived very close together. We went every Sunday on picnics in the corners, on the plateau, the fortress, we had picnics, and when it was a cold winter time we gathered at the houses in our small, very, very small, cramped apartments, all seven families.

Narrator: And Maxim, as is right for every grandson, has his own memories of his grandmother, the neighborhood and his native house.

Maxim Behar: My father, my grandmother Matilda, told me about their life here. My father was left an orphan at a very young age, he was only 3 years old and somewhere around 10, 11, 12 years, he was left alone with his mother and sister. The only man in the family had to work in the local oil mill from a very young age. And I know, my grandmother used to tell me, how she waited for him late at night at the window so that he could show up and she can be calm, to know that he had come home.

Narrator: Grandma Matilda and the children were left alone too early. Grandfather Moshe Behar left without being able to leave them an inheritance, even though he was a merchant. He bequeathed to them only what was left of him in the end - the good name. Not many people can leave such worthy words behind.

Maxim Behar: Written on February 5, 1930 in the Central Hotel, room number 40: "I, who did not know how to refuse anyone, but gave everyone what they needed to help them, now during these months to fall to the bottom of the sea. What shortens my life now is the constant thought of how to meet our debts. The doors that were open to us have already closed. Why? I don't know. They seem to have slandered us. I wish them well, too. We reap as we sow. My sons, knowing your character, you know that I will not be able to bear the shame of the people we have worked with for so many years, and I do not want to ask you in the name of my memory to don't worry about litigating in the courts with people who are stronger than you. When you seek your justice, do so only for good. "

Narrator: This is part of the death letter of Moshe Behar, who ended his life in a room in the Central Hotel in Sofia.

Maxim Behar: "Now, my dear sons, you can keep your name, the name of the company and gradually eliminate all debts where you can, and where you cannot, we will ask them to wait. You will raise money and you pay the debts ". Exactly what they did. "Ask those who can wait a little longer to do so to keep yours and their interests. You will give less to some, but you will give to all. Some may wait, but you will not leave any debtor without paying them." This is very strong words that I have read hundreds of times, of course, which belong to my grandfather Moshe Behar.

Narrator: Behind this letter is the story of Grandpa Moshe, an egg trader with offices in several European capitals, who, in the wake of the Great Depression, found himself with a large number of eggs bought on credit that he had to sell.

Maxim Behar: The system worked in such a way that he took loans from the bank, paid all taxes, fees, customs duties, imported the eggs, sold them, then repaid the loans and so on for years. But by 1929, all the banks had already shrunk their budgets a lot, they looked at things much more conservatively, my grandfather Moshe wandered the streets of Sofia and entered one bank, another, a third, a fourth. They all chased him to give him loans only a few months ago, now they refuse him. And he is very worried. Why is he denied? Because it is not clear what will happen with these eggs. This train may crash, he may sell them, he may not, it is a crisis. It is a product that breaks down very easily and is a very risky product, so they say "No loans".

Narrator: "Pacta sunt servanda". "Contracts must be fulfilled," said the ancients, and with this phrase laid the foundations of law. And keeping the promises we make is the foundation on which our society and civilization are based. And people like Grandpa Moshe.

Maxim Behar: Very instructive story, really. Because when my grandfather leaves because he can't overcome it, his dignity can't stand the fact that once a big businessman now everyone refuses loans and he owes money to other people, and doesn���t know how to look them in the eye. In fact, immediately after that, all the people to whom he owes money gather, the creditors collect money, release the eggs in question, sell them, get their money back, and all is reduced to zero.

Narrator: And the lesson that Maxim will remember from his grandmother Matilda is much more life-affirming. Such as the lessons that only a suffering wife and mother can give.

Maxim Behar: When I was little, here in the center of Shumen, on Slavyanski Blvd., my grandmother Matilda, his widow, who lived on our couch in the kitchen and had inherited a leather coat from her husband and was sitting on that couch. I will never forget her with that expensive leather coat, in the little apartment and the coal and wood kettle that my dad would pick up from the basement every morning and used to tell me, "Maxim, everything that can be settled with money, you shall not think." All this life I have repeated myself these words. And you know this Jewish wisdom or proverb that says, "If a problem can be fixed with money, it's not a problem, it's a cost."

Narrator: And the bas-relief of Maxim's father, placed at the entrance of the Madara factory in Shumen, reminds us that the promise must be fulfilled. Moncho Behar is the first director, creator of one of the wonders of the Bulgarian industry from the period of socialism ��� "Madara". The factory, which in Shumen is written with a capital "F" for factory, once produced components for all VIAZ and KAMAZ trucks, and today machines for agriculture.

Maxim Behar: I am proud that my father Moncho Behar managed this plant. To this day, I come here with wonderful nostalgia because it was a very important enterprise, very innovative. The first self-propelled chassis, I'm 90 percent sure no one knows what that means, but some platforms with engines in these platforms could carry heavy things from one place to another, agricultural production. And then it suddenly became a truck factory. The fact that someone was able to produce trucks in those years, maybe the late 60���s, early 70���s, in Bulgaria, was a miracle.

Narrator: Maxim's mother, Rachel Behar, affectionately known as Shelley, died in a car accident when he was a young boy.

Maxim Behar: During these 13 years, while we were together, I had a great memory of things she told me in the kitchen, in the small Shumen kitchen with this kyumbe stove, with coal, with wood. She always said, "Listen to the master." Master, master. And she didn't say the boss or the director or the manager. The master, i.e. the man who can��� she was a seamstress. And the ���master��� for her was more than anyone else, probably a president, a prime minister, or anyone with abilities.

Narrator: Years later, Maxim finds a picture that brings him back to his mother's words.

Maxim Behar: An exceptional photo and I hold it in my hands. It is always at my desk in Sofia to actually remind me that I also have to listen to the master. On the back of this photo there is an exclusive inscription: "Memory of the workers and the Master from the sewing studio of Bezalel Philosopher", 1943. It was written by my mother and "The Master" is with a capital "M". Since then, the Master for men has always been with a capital "M" throughout his life. The person who knows more, the person is more capable and the person we all need to learn from. Maybe nowadays he is called a "Leader", but then he was called "Master". Nowadays I would put a capital ���L��� in ���Leader���.

Narrator: And sometimes it turns out that there are people like that around us. People who show us the signs on the path of life. Years ago, Uncle Miko Meyer approached Maxim at the presentation of one of his books on the 111 rules on Facebook.

Maxim Behar: And then my uncle Miko approached me and handed me this note: "Rule 113: When you promise something, you have to know how to fulfill it." I probably promised him something and forgot about it afterwards. In a lot of work, commitments, travel, especially travel. And he wrote to me, "Before you promise something, think about how and when you can fulfill it." This note that reads "Advice from Uncle Miko Meyer", Shumen 2009 stands and will always stand on my desk in the office so that when I see it while I work, I will know that each of us can miss or forget something, but I want everyone to have an uncle Miko to remind them that when they promise something they must know if they will fulfill it and how.

Narrator: It is too transcendent to say that keeping the promises that Grandpa Moshe wrote about before his death is the family ��redetermination that follows Maxim. But certainly, somewhere in the life and deeds of the people before you, the people before Maxim, there are encoded messages and values that can happen ��f we have eyes to see them.

Maxim Behar: Each of us, inside us, carries what his father, his mother, his grandfather, his grandmother, his great-grandparents once were. And that's why I think it's very important for all of us to know our history, for all of us to look back and look at least once a week, once a month, and say to ourselves, "Yeah, that's me, actually. I am because my ancestors did something. " There are people who know their history and we must treat them with great respect. People with self-confidence are those people who know their history and will surely pass it on to their children, grandchildren, and they must know it, and only then will they succeed.

Narrator: This is ���Genes���.

Watch the whole video here.