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Passion, Dreams, Goals, or Experiences?

Passion, Dreams, Goals, or Experiences?

Over the last several weeks I have written about opportunities, decision making, and eliminating naysayers. In this final column of the series I want to wrap up with bringing dreams to life. Or better yet, posing the question is it passion, dreams, or goals that bring success and change to us? One person’s passion, may be another’s dream, and yet another’s goal.

Passion is the ultimate driver for any success and is typically seen as energy or commitment, for without passion opportunities are doomed to failure because it is easy to quit. I am most intrigued by life-long passions like Einstein’s research or an unknown 50-year Bridge player named Mary Alice Seville of Corvallis, Oregon. I wonder what drives these people to maintain their commitment. My wife and I discussed passion this past week and I had to admit, I probably have no current passions. In contrast, dreams paint a picture in our minds about our future; a picture of a day not arrived whereas passion on the hand is what carries us through the gloom, threat of failure, and makes an ordinary day exciting.

Dreams are what we wish for, talk about, and bring radical change to our life. With energy, enthusiasm, perseverance, and passion I believe anyone can achieve their dreams. None are impossible, having typically been proven by others doing them, but we must understand elements of dreams are out of our hands. Thus, it is important to understand a subtle difference between dreams and goals. While dreams are typically dependent on others, like “I want to be a rock star,” goals are of our own control. Sadly, failure to achieve dreams is common because many are not grounded in reality and external factors wipe out their probability of success.

Goals are milestones, generally steps on the way to achieving our passion and dreams. Most people would find personal goals synonymous with resolutions, describing accomplishments over both short and long periods of time. Goal setting lends itself to providing a long-term vision for our lives, and most likely spawns from our passion. Examples of goals are running a marathon, losing weight, or making ten sales calls per day; all specific and not dependent on outside variables. As exemplified above, goals are differentiated from dreams by eliminating external circumstances. For example, my goal of riding my bike cross-country is dependent on my ability to train and plan, not on acceptance by others.

Lastly I want to touch on experiences; the toughest for me because finding the difference between goals and experiences is difficult. When I look at some of my personal goals: own a Porsche, or ride my bike across America, I must wonder if they are truly goals or desires for an experience. This is the everyday mental battle I face and therefore work to find underlying commonalities.

Regardless of whether considering passion, goals, dreams, or experiences we must be cognizant to opportunities knocking. When hearing the knock I feel we are obligated to actively make decisions, and eliminate negative people from our lives. Each of us can improve our lives dramatically and even more so by developing a long-term vision. It is obvious though, we are all different and everyday many people accomplish what others consider impossible. To those that see impossibility they should look to others for inspiration and how to achieve success. Ultimately though, if we find our passion then our lives fall into sync and our dreams become reality.

May 31, 2012 by Self Improvemet

Naysayers – Don’t be kept down (5/16/2012)

Naysayers – Don’t be kept down (5/16/2012)

Imagine your excitement regarding a new goal, like going back to school or starting a business, and everyone you share your idea with finds problems with it. Parents are guilty of using their personal failures as experience to discourage children and friends allow their own insecurities to trump support.

This is my third column regarding opportunities, decision-making and pursuing our dreams. Along the way we must acknowledge the negative influencers who stop us. Many years ago I discovered the type of personality type I would call the “naysayer;” the friend or family member who constantly spews negativity. I am a believer that the ability to recognize and consider opportunities, make effective and timely decisions, and avoid naysayers will propel us forward to new successes.

The classic naysayer can be described as “Eeyore” from the “Winnie the Pooh” series of books. At first glance a likable character and friend, but upon examination he is dreadful. For example Eeyore once conversed with Pooh, “Good morning, Pooh Bear,” said Eeyore gloomily. “If it is a good morning,” he said. “Which I doubt,” said he said. Eeyore always saw the glass half full, sadly never relishing the hope which comes from optimism.

As an optimist, it is hard to acknowledge negative people, but once I found the naysayer and understood their life’s mission is pessimism, cynicism, skepticism, and denial regarding any opportunities it was obvious avoiding these people was critical to my own success. The naysayer would not admire my success and therefore was an enemy to my future.

We must challenge ourselves to ask “who do I know that is a naysayer?” Sadly, they may be our spouse, a family member, or close friend. The worst scenario is a trusted confidant as a naysayer. Over time we may not realize this is the case, but unfortunately the naysayer is the most significant obstacle to seizing new opportunities.

To recognize those holding you back you must take a close look at your friends and family who constantly find problems with your dreams, goals, and desires. Cheerleaders of your interests will always look for positive outcomes to your opportunities. A supportive friend will debate the merits of your considerations and offer pragmatic opinions. A naysayer, on the other hand, will immediately question the wisdom of your ideas and find nothing but negative consequences.

We must beware the naysayer because they will fill us with negative energy and prevent the empowerment we find when taking control of our own lives. Sadly, the naysayer is more devastating when it is someone we love or hold in close esteem because we inherently trust their opinions, sometimes more than our own. My advice is just say no to the naysayer and break away to find freedom in your own successful pursuit of opportunities.

May 16, 2012 by Self Improvemet

Decisions – Made or Avoided (5/9/2012)

Decisions – Made or Avoided (5/9/2012)

This is the second in a series of columns I am writing around pursuing dreams and changing our lives. I recently wrote about opportunities, often thwarted by inaction and fear. Once an opportunity knocks on our door, deciding how to react is as critical to stepping through the door as recognizing the opportunity itself.

I have identified several decision making processes, most leading to failure: by committee, analysis paralysis, avoidance, and relying on others. I assert it is far safer to make a decision, good or bad, and have the opportunity to change course than to make no decision at all. “The truth is that many people set rules to keep from making decisions.” – Mike Krzyzewski

In large corporate organizations it is easy to see how decisions are made by committee. This allows the individual to avoid responsibility and disappear into the group. The same holds true outside of the professional environment. Many people are guilty of surveying friends, and asking “what do you think?” until time forces a decision. As an example, a man may consider buying a new truck and discuss the details with his friends, co-workers, and family. Most likely he knows what truck he wants, but he fails to make the decision. Through committee he can blame a ‘lemon’ on everyone but himself.

Another form of decision making is analysis paralysis. Using our truck buyer as an example, this type of decision making is based on the relentless collection of data: facts, figures, reviews, and reports. Data analysis becomes the excuse for failure to make a decision because there may be an additional piece of information either for or against the choice. Perfection regarding the choice is sought, however no decision is ever perfect.

Time is the one challenge we all face regarding successful decision making and for some, delay becomes the ultimate decider. Time can successfully steal conscious decision making by forcing a deadline to pass and then becomes an excuse by allowing one to state, “I ran out of time.” Often this is conscious avoidance, or procrastination by true description, and the blame is not the clock but the clock-watcher.

Lastly, relying on others to make our choices is the most dangerous form of decision making. For example, as children our parents do this for us or at work supervisors give direction to employees and constantly make decisions for their teams. Thus, it is easy to become guilty of seeking authorities like doctors, teachers, clergy, and even parents to make decisions.

It is critical to empower ourselves and take responsibility for making timely decisions in our lives. Opportunities constantly flow forth and although the desire to step forward may burn within us, bad decision making habits will prevent reaping possible rewards. I assert the risk of a bad, personally made decision is far less than the lost opportunity guarded by the safety of inadequate decision making processes.

May 9, 2012 by General Rant Self Improvemet

Planning – Personal and Professional

Do you Plan?

I have a belief that most people just allow life to happen to them. Every year I sit down on my birthday and set goals for the following 12 months. I write these down and keep the list in my bedside table drawer. I have several years of these goals now. It makes it easy to see what was important to me, what I accomplished, and where I failed.

Working through professional development with friends and co-workers I have learned too many of us are reactive instead of proactive in planning. It is easy to be consumed in the daily “fires” of our jobs and life. It is harder, and better, to have a plan and control how we fight those fires.  Having goals will help you move forward in life.

How do I start?

1) Create a calendar, viewed by week. Days across the top and weeks down the left. I like to us MS-Excel for this.

Week of | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thur | Fri | Sat | Sun
4/30    |     |     |       |    |     |     |
5/7     |     |     |       |    |     |     |

2) Next, insert everything you know for the year.  For example, vacations and trade shows should go on your calendar.  You know the dates.  Next block known holidays: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, July 4th, etc.

3) You now have a working skeleton of a schedule.  From a tactical standpoint you can layout travel for work or specific goals.  For example,  I layout regular travel to other offices on my calendar.  I have challenged co-workers using similar tool to plan for territorial travel regarding sales.

When done you have a look at the next 13 months.  Your next challenge is to identify recurring items, like weekly meetings, monthly meetings, doctors appointments, etc and add them to your Outlook or Gmail calendar.  At a glance you should always know when you have an appointment. 
“We must be able to look out 13 months and know where we are going, professionally and personally. Otherwise we are no different than a message in a bottle; we may have something important to say but leave our fate to the currents and waves of life. A plan allows us to instead navigate calm and storm alike. And, although we may be pushed off course our direction will generally take us where we want to go. The unguided bottle, on the other hand, cannot predict its fate.” – John Nelson

April 28, 2012 by Self Improvemet

Opportunities

Opportunities

Opportunities confront all of us each day but too often the door is closed without ever stepping forward to take a chance. Writing this column my inspiration comes from concern for those I watch missing chances to take advantage of new paths in life. After many observations I have concluded there are two distinct reasons people reject opportunity: fear and inaction.

President Roosevelt said, the “Only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” and nothing sums up the reason opportunities are rejected than his infamous saying. When faced with a new challenge many people will create unfounded fears that prevent them from considering a change. For example, an elderly person may reject a free airline ticket to see her grandchildren for fear of dealing with unknown airports, but yet millions of travelers face that fear every travel day. Similarly, overcoming unemployment may be impossible for the fear of moving from established roots, but yet thousands migrate to locales like North Dakota and Nevada to save their families.

Second to fear is inaction and is best exemplified by Einstein’s famous quote, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” I assert inaction is far easier than action. Thus, when faced with opportunity the effort to take action will succumb to the ease of inaction and the door to opportunity will close. By example a high school student may pass on a college application or a standard test due to the effort required and her laziness is then rewarded by the status quo. Likewise, a job opportunity may be passed because leaving a spouse in a current job is easier than searching for a new job when total income could increase.

Often it is easy to observe the opportunities friends and family miss, but impossible to realize when the same occurs personally. Daily I believe each of us are presented opportunities, some consequential and most trivial. The critical trait is to recognize when opportunity knocks and to, at a minimum, give consideration. Understanding fear and inaction as the obstacles to grasping opportunities helps right a course in our lives from status quo to prosperity and adventure.

My challenge to you this week is to assess every choice as a new opportunity and to understand how fear and inaction could contribute to saying no. Alternatively this week consider how facing fear and taking action could open doors normally closed. “Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” – Sun Tzu.

April 28, 2012 by preparedness sheep Stupid People

Microsoft Outlook Tips and Tricks

Microsoft Outlook Tips and Tricks
I travel between time zones and work on site in other times zones often. Keeping my calendar straight in Outlook has been a huge challenge. Second, I have more than one calendar: my primary Outlook, a second Outlook domain, my Gmail calendar, and finally I use “Tripit.com” to aggregate my travels.
In this tutorial I will cover the following:
1) Adding a an additional time zone to Outlook
2) Maintaining time zone support on your iPhone
3) Publishing calendars and viewing a published calendar

Adding Time Zones to Outlook
My business problem is that I live in Eastern Time (Atlanta) and often travel to Pacific Time (Salem, Oregon) to spend several days in meetings. Instead of doing the time zone math in my head when setting meetings it is easiest to have Outlook do this for me.

1) First and foremost, ensure your Windows settings are correct.

a. Right click on the date/time on your computer
b. Choose “Adjust Date/Time”
c. Ensure the time and date are correct
d. Second, click on the tab labeled “Time Zone”
e. Ensure the time zone is correct for your “home” location. This is where you consider your base office. For instance, if you live in Dallas and the default time zone is “Pacific time” then change it to Central time.
f. Make sure the check box, “Automatically adjust for daylight savings time” is checked.

2) Start Microsoft Outlook
3) Click on “Calendar”
4) Once the calendar shows, click on the “Week” view.
5) In the blank area, just below the date, right-click and choose “Change Time Zone”
6) A pop-up screen will show with another of options:

a. Click “Show an additional time zone”
b. Choose the time zone and click “Adjust for daylight saving time”
c. Give the zone a name, for me I choose “Salem” and the time zone is Pacific Time.

7) Use the button “Swap Time Zones” when traveling to change or to easily set appointments.
8) When done, click “OK”, your second time zone shows on the screen.

Maintaining Time Zone Support on Your iPhone
When traveling I used to struggle with the iPhone not properly showing my appointments in another location. As an example, let’s assume we are headed to a trade show in Las Vegas and normally live in Atlanta. Using the steps in the previous section, setup Las Vegas as an alternate time zone and swap time zones. Appointments for the week of the trade show can be setup in the local Las Vegas time zone.
To ensure your iPhone looks right on arrival you must ensure iPhone Time Zone Support is off.

1) Go to the Home screen on your iPhone
2) Choose Settings
3) Scroll down to Mail, Contacts, Calendars
4) Scroll down the calendar to “Time Zone Support”
5) Click on it and ensure the setting is “Off”

Since all of your calendar settings are in correct local time, which means they reference to UTC time correctly then the events will shift as you travel. Thus, an appointment set in Outlook for 4pm EDT will show at 1pm in Salem, Oregon on your iPhone calendar.
Publishing Outlook Calendars and Viewing Published Calendars
The next challenge I faced was sharing two distinct versions of Microsoft Outlook on my computer. I did this to segregate emails and keep appropriate domain names filed separately. Fortunately my iPhone made managing the calendar easier as I could see multiple calendars. However, I needed the same capability in Outlook.
To make this change I had to publish each calendar to the other Outlook. Let’s say we have Outlook1 and Outlook2. Outlook1 is one domain and Outlook2 is the second.
Before starting you will need a Microsoft Live Account (Create MS-Live Account).

1) Open Microsoft Outlook
2) Choose Calendar
3) You may be able to share your calendar if your domain settings allow, but most domain settings will not allow this.
4) On the left hand side find the option “Publish My Calendar”
5) You will be prompted for your Microsoft Live credentials.
6) At the end of publishing you will be prompted for emails to invite to your calendar. Enter your Outlook2 email address.
7) When done, exit Outlook.
8) Re-open Outlook, but open Outlook2.
9) Accept the invitation in your email to read the published calendar.
10) Click on calendar
11) On the left hand side there will now be a checkbox available under “People’s Calendar”
12) Click the box and you can see the published calendar.

Repeat the above steps within Outlook2 to publish to Outlook1.

Viewing your calendar
When adding the new calendar, the second one, to your Outlook the two will show side by side. Personally I prefer an overlay that allows me to see a single weekly calendar with all of the dates overlaid.

1) Start Outlook
2) Click Calendar
3) I prefer to be in week view, click “week” at the top
4) On the left hand side, under “People’s Calendars” ensure there are additional calendars selected
5) Two possible views exist; overlay view and side by side view.
6) Right click under the date, on the main calendar
7) Click the appropriate choice:
a. “View in Overlay Mode”, or
b. “View in side by side mode”
For more information, visit Microsoft’s help page by clicking here.

April 9, 2012 by Android

Generational Reach (3/21/2012)

Generational Reach

Have you ever considered your legacy or the legacy of your family who came before you? The immediate touch to our children and grandchildren is obvious, but have you considered the stories your grandchildren will tell their grandchildren about you? In their book, The Fourth Turning, authors William Strauss ad Neal Howe propose the theory of generational reach. They describe this as memory span; the distance between the lives that touched you connected to the lives you will touch.

Since reading about this concept I have considered thoughtfully who I am based on memories of my grandfather and how my grandchildren will remember me. When technology is factored into the concept an awareness of complexity becomes more apparent. To calculate your generational reach, think of the oldest person who influenced your life and their birthday. For me, it is my paternal grandfather, born 1899. Next, we must identify the youngest person you will touch. Most likely this will be a grandchild; if unborn today assume your youngest child will bear your grandchild at age 35 year and your unborn grandson will live to be 85 years old. For me, my son Ty will be 35 in 2047 and his son or daughter, my future grandchild, will live 85 years to 2125. Thus, my reach is (2125-1899) 226 years.

I believe generational reach helps understand the differences in views toward politics, values, and everyday culture. Immigrants carry fresh in their mind the struggles to come to America and place value on family, hard work, and maintain their roots. Many families have been in American since the late 19th century or early 20th century, thus generational reach to a different time is a fresh memory, easily reached through one or two generations. In contrast, families with roots dating back to the late 18th century and early 19th century have lost touch with the fight to escape persecution and enjoy the fruits of others thrust upon them by an entitlement society.

I believe generational reach slows progressive policies and grounds values in time. Shifts in culture acceptance of previously questionable behaviors are slowed. However, generational reach may also create rebellion as youth work to prove elders wrong and undo values established for conservative reasons. Take, for example, the late 1960’s when the hippie-youth counter-culture rebelled against the establishment of the day. Arguments were made regarding the disconnect between youthful opinion over the Vietnam War versus politicians sending other people’s sons to Southeast Asia. Today, similar disconnects are evolving as the Millennials protest , through the Occupy movements, decisions of an elder-political class intent on enslaving future generations through an unpayable debt.

The generational reach today comes from the millennials whose grandparents tell stories of the thievery of banks in then 1930s and see similarities to today’s big banks. These same millennials will tell their grandchildren about the great recession and the lost decades of economic prosperity and how their future was stolen like their great-grandparents. They will touch forever lives extending forward another century in the history of America.

March 21, 2012 by Freedom Great Recession

When are Races Won? (3/14/2012)

When are Races Won? (3/14/2012)

Last summer I wrote a column titled, “The Media Elects Presidents;” a now prophetic article regarding the influence of corporate media on the nominations. Since the spring of 2011 the Republican nomination process has been underway although it did not officially start until the first Tuesday in January of this year. However, long ago it appeared a decision was made anointing Mitt Romney as the heir to the Republican nomination. My goal here is not to offer an opinion on the qualifications of the candidates, but instead want to analyze the process.

Watching the recent Russian elections many media outlets around the world reported possible election fraud and manipulation. I believe Americans have always believed our elections were above such accusations and not subject to manipulation or theft. However, many seem to acknowledge questionable tactics in municipal elections like Chicago’s mayoral races, either like the Daly’s in the past or the most recent residency issues of Emmanuel. Similarly, the Bush and Gore vote division propelled true questions of integrity in our own system to the forefront of our attention.

As of this week, there are only four candidates in the race: Romney, Santorum, Gingrich, and Paul. Of the bound delegates, according to the GOP web site, Romney leads with 339, Gingrich is second with 107, and Santorum is third with 95 delegates. Paul is clearly trailing in fourth place with 22 awarded delegates.

Throughout the nomination race I have been puzzled by reporting from major media outlets like the case where Santorum won the Iowa Caucus, not Romney, even though the media was quick to report differently. Although Romney holds a sizable lead over his next closest competitor, only one-third of the total delegates have been awarded. Watching the process last summer and fall demonstrated a candidate’s demise could arrive without much warning. Regardless, since my original column eight months ago Romney has been the declared winner.

I feel the problem with the constant polling and predictions of who will win is the voter apathy created. First instance, if Romney is the winner – as declared by the media before the race started, then why bother voting? When a voter believes his vote no longer matters he chooses to not participate in the process and ultimately fulfills the hypothesis that his vote no longer matters. If results were held back, speculation by the media held back, and no forecasts were made I assert the voters would remain more objective in the process and choose the candidate they feel best qualified for the job.

March 13, 2012 by Mainstream Media Stupid People

The Media Elects Presidents (6/8/2011)

Appeared in the Observer 6/8/2011

The Media Elects Presidents (6/8/2011)

Over the last 50 years I believe there has been a dramatic turn in Presidential elections. Arguably the headline, “Dewey Defeats Truman” in 1948 is reflective of media bias and anticipation toward election outcomes. Most academics will acknowledge the 1960 Presidential debate outcome was not determined by the quality of the candidate speeches, but instead by appearance on television. Nixon articulated much stronger responses but was no match for Kennedy’s suave television charm.

Today the media is controlling who wins the nomination and the election in several ways. One method is withholding information and using editorial prejudice to positively influence opinion about candidates. Two documented cases exemplify this. First, the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal unreported by major broadcast and print outlets until Drudge’s persistence forced the issue to headlines and impeachment of the President. Second, the New York Times failure to print an article deemed damaging concerning the Obama/ACORN relationship which may have brought a different election outcome and it took the whimsical undercover video by James O’Keefe to finally destroy the organization.

The second method of influence is the prejudicial nature of coverage of candidates. For example, The Project for Excellence in Journalism and Harvard University’s Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy conducted a study of 5,374 media narratives about the presidential candidates from January 1 through March 9, 2008. The study found that Obama received 69% favorable coverage and Clinton received 67%, compared to only 43% favorable media coverage of McCain. An October 29, 2008 study found 29% of stories about Obama to be negative, compared to 57% of stories about McCain being negative.

Finally, my last concern regarding media influence on politics is the pervasive use of public opinion polls. With every candidate announcement regarding potential Republican candidates a comparison poll is published. On NBC News May 26th nightly program speculation around Palin’s presidential announcement was offset by a poll showing candidate positioning, with Romney in the lead. The media has given far more coverage to Romney, Gingrich, and Palin than CPAC straw poll winner Ron Paul and Tea Party favorites Cain and Bachman.

With an election 15 months away the media is focused on manipulating public opinion to control an outcome. Imagine what our election process would be like if there were no polls, no television pundits, and no scandalous coverage. Imagine speeches and debates, presented factually, without media editorial. I am not asserting to curtail freedom of the press, but instead push to present unedited coverage, eliminate polling, and present opinion as such, not news.

March 13, 2012 by Mainstream Media Stupid People

Out of Sync

Out of Sync

Annually I experience the same odd weekend in late January or early February void of understanding the fascination of watching steroidal, beast-like millionaires engage in gladiator activities on a Sunday evening. I think my concern would wash away if the obsessed fans were willing to move from the couch and do more than head to Wal-Mart to purchase corn-syrup enriched foods to add to their excessively high caloric intake. For days beforehand morning and evening news programs beam critical messages to the masses about the must-watch game, the cannot wait to be seen commercials, and the over-hyped halftime show. Unable to afford it, but still willing, consumers will purchase new televisions to achieve bragging rights among their friends. Grocery stores peddle mountains of soda and chips at the gateways to their stores and decorate like another holiday has come. On game day over zealous fans will don tribal colors to cheer for their millionaires and some will paint their skin or even forever mark themselves with tattoos. Hilariously, the word “we” will be used more than ever to claim membership on a team although no fan would be allowed near the celebrity players.

With 45.8 million Americans on food stamps it is likely the SNAP card will purchase soda and chips to celebrate the day. For an afternoon the unemployed, those facing foreclosure, and many worried about job security will disregard the true American concerns instead asserting this ritual game as more important. Sadly, these same hurting neighbors will know more about the players, their names, hometowns, and meaningless statistics than they do members of congress, their state legislature, or local elected officials. Ironically, many support the “occupy” movements and fall victim to the populist arguments of today, but fail to realize their own celebration of the ultra-rich further distances the classes. While players unionize to find fairness in the absurd revenue generation, the owners are elevated from the lifestyle of their fans by wealth beyond most imaginations. I wonder how many fans realize a player earns more in one season than most fans will earn in a lifetime?

So, another meaningless game has come and gone and an afternoon of life was given to further reward those our president is suggesting we despise. Of course, many men will take their sons to football practice to teach them the gladiator like throws, and tackles to hopefully make superstars of them, or more importantly demonstrate their masculinity to their tribal friends. The reward of the annual ritual of millionaire game playing is the small boost to the economy and distraction from woe, but the tragedy is the blind following of the masses being entertained like the citizens of Rome as the empire faces collapse.

February 5, 2012 by Controversy Depression General Rant