Life In The Weeds

What does it take

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you wn." Gandhi

"... Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." Calvin Coolidge

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

ROWE (results only work environment)

I listened to an interesting TED talk this morning by Dan Pink - http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html

It's worth a listen, especially if you are running your own business (or plan to) or leading a group of individuals and need to find ways to motivate.

The premise of his talk centers around the idea that traditional carrot and stick incentives, like money, ONLY work in tasks that require a narrow "mechanical" like focus.  In all other cases where creativity and free thinking are needed, carrot and stick incentives do not work!

I am a subscriber to this notion.  We are working in a world where blue suits and polished shoes are no longer needed.  Big offices with all the trimmings are a waste.  In my business, we hire freelancers often and they are hired based on the ROWE principal.  They are not measure by when they do their work (in regards to time of day) or where they do their work (usually at home)...they are measured by the results they produce.  They define the parameters to accomplish their tasks!

If people are given the autonomy to accomplish a certain goal, they will be inclined to work towards mastery of this goal because they will find purpose in what they are doing.

It's not a sweeter carrot or a sharper stick...

mj

How to offer help

Maybe you have faced a siuation where you knew someone needed help and you were willing to help them but you had anxiety as to the best way to broach the offer.  

Here's a bit of advice that I received: "Do you want me to help and, if so, is this the time?" 

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

Topolobampo

No, this is not my American Indian name...and, no, I have not downed a 12-pack before writing!

Topolobampo is a restaurant in Chicago where I had dinner last Friday night.  More specifically, it is a restaurant in Chicago, owned by Rick Bayless.

Rick was most recently the winner of Top Chef, Masters on The Food Network.

We scored reservations through OpenTable. (open table is probably a worthy blog topic!) Typically, there is a two month waiting list, especially after his most recent victory...but, 9:30 PM wasopen, so my coleague jumped at it.  There were four of us for dinner (Elisha, Howie (married), Ruthie and me)

We were "sat" around ten and, by the time we finished desert, it was well after midnight! 

I love Mexican food, but I was not blown away by the food.  It was good, very good, but it did not knock me off my chair.  I enjoyed the food more at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grille.   Though, Bobby's forte is South-Western...while, Rick Bayless specializes in Mexican...there IS a difference.

The mojito was one of the best I've had...

The highlight for the table was when Rick came over to our table to ask about our dinner...Elisha and Howie are both HUGE fans, so they were thrilled to chat!

If you are in Chicago...check it out, it's worth the visit. 

mj

Punctuate this!

No really, punctuate this sentence:

That that is is that that is not is not

(Scroll down)

(Don't peek!)

 

[That, that is, is.  That, that is not, is not!]

mj

 

Good judge of character

I read once that if you ask anyone if s/he is a good judge of character, the answer will be Yes virtually 100% of the time. Yet, there is a 50% divorce rate and many people indicate a dissatisfaction in their relationships (spouse, friends, co-workers, etc.).

My wife and I have moved 7 times, all over the country and, therefore, have had to make new friends many times. We realized a few years ago that there were many instances when we had written people off, based on a first or maybe second encounter, and it turned out later that we actually liked them quite a bit. 

We realized that we are not nearly as good a judge of character as we thought - judge not, lest ye ... 

O.D.O.o.O.D.B. 

Simplicty & Suspicion

Every big idea that works is marked by simplicity, by clarity. Your can immediately understand it when you hear and see it, and you can explain it to people.

Social Security: Retired people get a public pension to help them through old age. Medicare: People over 65 can receive taxpayer funded health care. Welfare: if you have no money and cannot support yourself, taxpayers will help you get back on your feet.

These things are clear. I can understand them. You understand them. President Obama's heath care plan is not clear, and I mean that not only in the sense of "he hasn't told us his plan". I mean in terms of the voodoo phrases, this gobbledygook, this secret language of government that no one understands - "single payer", "public option", "insurance marketplace exchange". No one understands what this stuff means, nobody normal. 

And when normal people don't know what the words mean, they don't say to themselves, "I may not understand, but my trusty government surely does, and will treat me and mine with respect". They think, "I can't understand what these people are talking about. They must be trying to get one past me. So I'll vote no." From Peggy Noonan, WSJ 8/22/09

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

Text or Texted

What is the past tense of Text?

I say it is Text - for some reason Texted rings moronic.

Please set me straight.

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

Al-Qaeda Deer

I figured out what is going on and how to solve it.

The deer are suicide bombers, probably trained in some Al-Queda camp in and around Pennington, NJ. 

The deer have all the ear-marking of terrorists - they wander into civilian areas, pretend that they belong and then when an unsuspecting civilian vehicle comes by, they transform into an I.E.D. 

So, let's bring in Homeland and take these terrorists to Gitmo. 

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

U2 and Blackberry don't mix

I recently saw an ad on television featuring U2 playing at one of their concerts...at the end of the piece a Blackberry logo appears with a cheesy voice-over connecting U2 and Blackberry.  Whiskey-Tango- Foxtrot?

Isn't Bono an ambassador of peace around the world?  Doesn't he hang with world leaders and presidents? Isn't U2 one of the most successful bands of all time?  Maybe the MOST successful...

And they are hawking Crackberries??

I don't like it...not a bit!

mj