January 17, 2022
Good morning! With most variables being somewhat constant, why is it that sometimes dozens of birds gather at our backyard feeders while at other times there are zero birds? Have you ever wondered about the power behind the expression, “Hmmm”? How about the expression, “I don’t know.”? If we could have a bit more snow on a daily basis I could perhaps re-strengthen my upper body.
- Happy Feast of Martin King!
- Do you work today? Will you celebrate in some way? Will you go to church, temple, or mosque?
- This holy day was established by the United States government in 1981.
- Contrary to what many think, it is applicable only to federal employees and federal agencies in varying degrees.
- For example, I don’t think the Army takes the day off.
- It should come as no surprise it was and remains controversial.
- Ron Reagan signed his name to this bill to make it a law on one of the first days of his presidency.
- Thus far it has stood the test of time for forty-one (41) years.
- Question: What is the best way to clear a few inches of snow from your driveway or your sidewalk?
- Answer: One shovelful at a time.
- Second question: When you’ve just finished shoveling the snow and the snowplow deposits a two-foot drift of frozen gunk from the street at the end of your walk and at the end of your drive, what is the best way to clear that gunk? (There should be a unique vocabulary word for this windrow, don’t you think?)
- Answer: One shovelful at a time.
- Should we be more concerned about the Russians than we seem to be — as a society, that is? (Not a political question, just practical.)
- Fifty or sixty years ago during the so-called cold war, the Russians (U.S.S.R.) could have attacked us in maybe four ways: Land, air, and sea — and maybe espionage.
- Today the Russians could attack us in millions of ways, especially through technology.
- Did 1988 put us into a collective state of naive euphoria — or were we distracted by other troubles?
- Did we take our eye off the ball?
What’s the Greatest Compliment You Can Give Someone?
- Always remember, the greatest compliment you can give someone is to ask for their help.
- There is probably more confusion about goals — setting them, achieving them, measuring them — in the workplace than there is understanding them.
- Reason? Too many people put the cart before the horse and/or follow red herrings and/or focus on the wrong things.
- There is a lack of focus, a lack of clarity.
- Think of this mantra: Educate, Communicate, Replicate — relentlessly.
- Solution: Focus more on what you can control (behaviour) and less on what you can’t control (outcomes).
- If your goals don’t include what and who and how and where and by when and to what degree — please go back to the drawing board.
- A snippet from The Harvard Review:
- “Many (master plan) processes fail because new plans are often not plans at all. A real plan involves a clear set of choices that define what the firm is going to do and what it’s not going to do. Many plans fail to get implemented because they do not represent such a set of clear choices. And many so-called (action plans) are in fact goals. ‘We want to be the number one or number two in all the markets in which we operate’ is one of those. It does not tell you what you are going to do; all it does is tell you what you hope the outcome will be. But you’ll still need an (action plan) to achieve it. Another reason why many implementation efforts fail is that executives see it as a pure top-down, two-step process; e.g., ‘the plan is made, now we implement it.’ That’s unlikely to work. A successful plan execution process is seldom a one-way trickle-down cascade of decisions.” (Vermeulen)
- You can’t unravel the tapestry in a day, let alone weave it anew. (YT)
- In your experience, is having a good automobile mechanic more important or an on-call plumber?
- A physician or a restaurateur?
- A sommelier or a fishmonger?
- A purveyor of fine meats or a farmers’ market?
- An electrician or a groundskeeper?
- A roofer or a tailor?
- A chocolatier or a baker?
- A friend who’s a famous artist or season tickets at the theatre?
- A best friend or ten highly talented close acquaintances with different areas of expertise?
- A dentist or a hair person?
- A great cup of coffee or a perfect martini?
