INTERESTING: It Is Better To Be Alone, Than In The Wrong Company

Monday, May 28, 2007

FROM AN EMAIL FROM AN OLD FRIEND

***Begin Quote***

From: Old Friend (yes I have one!)
Sent: Thursday, May 24, 2007
To: John Reinke
Subject: It Is Better To Be Alone, Than In The Wrong Company

Anonymous from a friend, apparently from the internet…..but very interesting. Sounds like some of the advice from your blog!

It Is Better To Be Alone, Than In The Wrong Company

Tell me who your best friends are, and I will tell you who you are. If you run with wolves, you will learn how to howl. But, if you associate with eagles, you will learn how to soar to great heights. “A mirror reflects a man’s face, but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses.” The simple but true fact of life is that you become like those with whom you closely associate – for the good and the bad.

The less you associate with some people, the more your life will improve. Any time you tolerate mediocrity in others, it increases your mediocrity.

An important attribute in successful people is their impatience with negative thinking and negative acting people. As you grow, your associates will change. Some of your friends will not want you to go on. They will want you to stay where they are. Friends that don’t help you climb will want you to crawl. Your friends will stretch your vision or choke your dream. Those that don’t increase you will eventually decrease you. Consider this:
— Never receive counsel from unproductive people.
–Never discuss your problems with someone incapable of contributing to the solution, because those who never succeed themselves are always the first to tell you how. Not everyone has a right to speak into your life. You are certain to get the worst of the bargain when you exchange ideas with the wrong person.
–Don’t follow anyone who’s not going anywhere. With some people you spend an evening: with others you invest it.
–Be careful where you stop to inquire for directions along the road of life.
–Wise is the person who fortifies his life with the right friendships.

***End Quote***

>If you run with wolves, you will learn how to howl.

And, if you hang with a turkey, do you learn to gobble? :-)

>you become like those with whom you closely associate

Not sure I agree with that. I think it might be better to say, “You are what you think! Think you’re a “good guy”, and you’ll tend to become what you think you are. I’m thinking of Ronald Regan, who went from Bonzo movies to be President and his writings showed how he grew. I’m thinking John Wayne, from a bad Marine to a Heroic Icon. I’m think Gandhi, who went from being a venial little lawyer to a Great Emancipator. All have flaws. All had one thing in common, the belief in a big idea. Many of the self-help gurus preach about it. So is it “I’ll believe it when I see it” or “I’ll see it when I believe it”?

>Your friends will stretch your vision or choke your dream.

I’m thinking of the great Paul Scoefield line in Man For All Seasons. “Come along with us, if for nothing more than old times sake” with the response “And when you stand in front of your Maker and get to go to Paradise for following your conscience, and I am assigned to Hell for not following mine, will you come along … for old time’s sake?”.

No some times friends are neither “stretchers or chokers”.

>

Watch what you read form the net. You to could become a … … Libertarian! ;-)

fjohn

p.s., thanks for a great blog fodder. and, the idea that my blog could have some whizdumb!

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Posted by reinkefj

JOBSEARCH: Getting to your UVP

Monday, May 28, 2007

FROM EMAIL WITH A FELLOW TURKEY

*** begin quote ***

Spent a few minutes on this tonight, tell me what you think. Be brutal, I can handle it.

“I am an information technology leader who delivers high quality business solutions to support the growth and cost effectiveness of a company’s objectives. Providing experience in application development, staff retention, and strategic technology direction are only a subset of the skills I add to an organization”

*** end quote ***

“I am” NOT my job. I don’t like that type of self talk.

“an information technology leader” I get the image of the drum major strutting from the parade. You do work for a living.

“delivers” good word

“high quality business solutions” Yeah, so what. Who says. What about “results”? “Solutions” solve but do the make money?

“to support” a yada word.

“the growth and cost effectiveness of a company’s objectives”. “barbara streisand” Are you growing objectives? Are the “company’s objectives” “cost effective”? No, it’s confused imho.

“Providing experience in” So you’re old! And, anyone can see you’re old, listen to old stories, and you serve as an object lesson not to grow old. What does it DO for the listener?

“application development, staff retention” Lipstick on the pig? Maybe if you said RAPID APP DEV, or JOINT APP DEV, or even USER FOCUSED APP DEV, I might care.

“strategic technology direction” That I can buy from McKinsey! Why are you my strat tech director? Direct me something?

” are only a subset of the skills” Not “my” skills. Not “important” skills. Not “vast inventory of skills and tools”. Who cares if you can speak URDU?

“I add to an organization” Yada. Where’s the excitement? Where’s the synergy? Where’s the earth shaking rapid movement to the buried treasure.

No, I’ve read it, studied it, analyzed it, struggled over it — twice. In two different sessions. And, IMHO, it’s not you. You have more passion in some blog posts than exudes from this elevator speech.

Make it short, energetic, every word costs a million bucks. Does each phrase or word have an ROI?

MY “elevator speech” statement is “I help enterprises, solve tough business and technical problems, in large scale global infrastructures.”

I think it’s spot on for me. What do you think? The commas are important. :-) Followed by silence and active listening. (I hope)

How about recasting yours into:

I can lead an information technology effort to deliver business solutions. That makes growth, profitability, and “fun” happen. It takes skills from a – applications development to z – zest to make it happen. When I get my opportunities to shine, I’m a star.

Does that help?

In retrospect maybe:

I can lead an information technology effort to deliver business solutions. That makes growth, profitability, and “fun” happen. It takes ALL my skills from a – applications development to z – zest to make it happen.

Yup, that’s it. It’s how I see you. But the real question is how do you see you? It’s like a ghost written resume or using some one else’s UVP. You have to be comfortable in your own skin. You have to be YOUR uvp.

fwiw ymmv faiwwypfi

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Posted by reinkefj

ADMINSITRIVIA JQUOTE not category

Monday, May 28, 2007

JQuote

William Pitt the Elder once expressed a British freedom ideal:

The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the force of the Crown. It may be frail; its roof may shake; the wind may blow through it; the storms may enter, the rain may enter, but the King of England cannot enter; all his forces dare not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement!

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Posted by reinkefj

RANT: The South Brunswick Police have a motor cycle … …

Monday, May 28, 2007

The South Brunswick Police have a motor cycle … … and are using it for “fund raising” activities on Sand Hill Road near Emerald Road. The fellow sits in the shade of the big bushes and pounces on the dastardly law breakers who violate the 25 speed limit.

I view this as glorified toll taking. A highway robbery. Naked gooferment force.

If we really were serious about 25, then we’d have speed bumps. And, 25? On a major connector between Somerset and Route 1. Our socialist big gooferment statist planners, following in the great traditions of the Communist famines, have road planned us into a complete disaster.

Look at the various State, County, and Township roads! What a planning disaster! You’re luck if you can get from there to here, in a reasonable amount of time, safely, or without being tagged for violating any of the gooferment’s many diktats.

Just look at new 522 from Route One to Route One Thirty. Would it have been too much trouble to line it up with the entrance to the Turnpike at 8A? (What did that route not go through some brother-in-laws valueless land or missed going by the campaign contributor’s business.?)

And, look at 287 to Route 1. Too much trouble to plan that.

Route 27 with the 2 lane 1 lane 2 lane shuffle. An accident waiting to happen.

And, my personal piece de resistance, South Middlebush / Sand Hill. Good planning guys. Trucks still use it.

No, it’s about the stupidity of gooferment “planning” for us. And, then “punishing” the bad serf who have the temerity to try and use the “stuff”.

And, have you seen the financial impact of one of these mickey mouse tickets? Points, fines, insurance. It’s no laughing matter.

No if he was sitting on Tyne Court and trapping on Emerald, where there are a ton of kids, being kids, on any given afternoon. And, warning drivers, not ticketing first timers. Then, I wouldn’t kvetch. But you won’t see him there because the motivation is “fund raising” and scaring people into compliance with an absurd traffic law.

As you might guess, I think this is just wrong.

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Posted by reinkefj

LIBERTY: Admonishing a media person

Monday, May 28, 2007

A FACEBOOK message to Comcaster Lynn Doyle

***Begin Quote***

RE: Favorite Books

May I suggest Mary Ruwart’s book “healing our world” http://www.ruwart.com/Pages/Healing/ an older edition is a free download.

I think you take a “big government” approach or perspective on your TV show. As a Libertarian, I believe, based on a ton of evidence, that people are best left alone to find their own solutions.

When the “gooferment” gets involved with it’s heavy handed one-size fits all “help”, it hurts us. It’s stuck it’s nose in so many facets of American life, that people can’t conceive of anything being done without the gooferment.

My favorite rejoinder, stolen from who knows where is:

If it’s such a good idea, why do people have to be forced to do it?

Seat belts, education, taxes, charity / welfare, … the list just goes on and on.

You’re in the cat bird’s seat to empower people by challenging their thinking. Look at John Stossel! Even Rosie O’D. Jay Leno. All have a way of getting people to change their thinking. You have a great challenge and I think you could be the next John Stossel or Barbara Walters.

I’ll be rooting for you.

***End Quote***

Let’s see if that FACEBOOK entry is real or not? ;-)

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Posted by reinkefj

FABLES: The Third Stone Mason

Monday, May 28, 2007

*** begin quote ***

One spring day a man was walking down a street when he encountered a large construction site. Because he was naturally curious and had a moment to spare, he decided to see what was being built. He came upon a stonemason laying stones and asked him what he was doing. The stonemason replied, “I am laying stones.” The man continued walking and came upon a second stonemason. He asked, “What are you doing?” The second stonemason replied, “I am building a wall.” The man continued walking and came upon a third stonemason. Again he asked, “What are you doing?” And this third stonemason replied, “I am building a cathedral.” Three men – all working at the same site, performing the same task – each had three very different perspectives of what they were working toward.

*** end quote ***

Moral: Guard your thinking against the narrow view?

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Posted by reinkefj

JOBSEARCH: The University of Hard Knocks

Sunday, May 27, 2007

Last year, I gave a turkey what I thought was a “great idea”.

Most seekers, without a degree, even with fantastic credentials, are self-conscious about the “lack”. Bill Gates didn’t graduate. In certain fields, like sales, having a degree is no advantage. And, might be a detriment when compared to four years of relevant experience. In parts of the information technology field, like programming, having a degree is not a fatal flaw. In fact, technical credentials (i.e., DeVry; certifications; demonstrations) may carry more weight.

So, I suggested that he create the University of Hard Knocks alumni society. It was very “Sun Tzu” type advice. Sort of “where you’re weak, appear strong” and “where strong, appear weak”.

You can’t “know” that a hiring manager doesn’t have a degree unless you’re a great researcher, tipped off, or “parade” you lack of a degree. By becoming the leader of the University of Hard Knocks alumni society, you can make a joke out of what you perceive as a defect. You may be able to draw a granfalloon of undegreed people to you.

I was even wondering, out loud, what one would have to do to register the domain name uhk dot edu! Using an email address of reinkefj dot alumni dot uhk dot edu, might be mildly deceptive. But I bet it would slide by a careless HR screener.

In any event, you can steal this idea if it fits and suits you. On the condition, that you make me an honorary alumni.

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INTERESTING: Where are the jokes and fables?

Sunday, May 27, 2007

My recent post about the pony leads me to wonder where are the classic jokes and fables found? I can’t think of any off the top of my head but the pony is an example. It also is blocking my thinking. But it will come to me.

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INITIALISMS: TEOTWAWKI

Sunday, May 27, 2007

TEOTWAWKI

The End of the World As We Know It

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INTERESTING: Mnemonic, Metaphor, or Jargon

Sunday, May 27, 2007

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnemonic

Mnemonic

***Begin Quote***

A mnemonic is a memory aid, and most serve an educational purpose.

***End Quote***

Colloquialism, Metaphors, Slang, Shorthand, or Jargon … or the ultimate in a quick wisdom transfer?

So when I say YMMV, what is it?

Acronyms and initialisms?

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