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Name of author Rick Baker, P.Eng.

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If you don't have time, you have nothing.

by Rick Baker
On Aug 18, 2015

Recently, the following quote caught my attention:

"Time is the substance from which I am made."

Jorge Luis Borges

Argentine Author & Poet, (1899-1986)

 

Quotes about time always catch my attention…because (1) I have always been and still am fascinated by the concepts of time-physics and (2) over recent years, I am alarmed by the increasing number of people who think and say they things like, “I don’t have time.

I am not familiar with the work of Jorge Luis Borges, so I can only speculate on the context around his quote. Without context, I interpret the quote in my own way. 'Subjective opportunities' - perhaps that is the best measure of a quote's value?

Here, I will not be providing an interpretation of, "Time is the substance from which I am made." Instead, I will share some thoughts the quote triggered.

My first reaction to the quote was to do a double-take….I thought I had mis-read the sentence. After reading the quote the 2nd time and reaching a conclusion about its meaning, for some reason, a question-thought hit me:

“If you don't have time, what do you have?”

The answer to that question came quickly:

“If you don't have time, you have nothing.”

Whether or not time is the substance from which we are made, if we don’t have time then we have nothing.

Perhaps, that’s why I have such a problem when people say things like, “I don’t have time.” Perhaps, that’s why I feel their self-brainwashing is so damaging..so spirit-killing…so unnatural ...

Perhaps, that’s why I now feel the most helpful thing you can do when people say "I don't have time" is ask, "If you don't have time, what do you have?"

Since you care, you ought to offer these wrong-thinking people at least that provocation.

If you care even more about helping people make positive changes, and the situation lends itself…

Help them understand, if they continue to think and say they do not have time then they are right – they do not and never will have time.

And, help them understand, if they do not have time then they have nothing.

 

 

Footnote - article About Time

 

 

When expectations are out of synch with reality

by Rick Baker
On Aug 3, 2015

Sometimes expectations adjust themselves to fit the realities of situations; sometimes expectations do not align well with realities of situations; sometimes expectations stray far from the realities of situations.

Perhaps, expectation-adjustment is a matter of IQ, or is it EQ, or is it both?

Do you ever think about how easy or difficult it is for you to adjust your expectations to fit the realities of the situation at hand?

Do you ever judge others according to their ability to adjust their expectations to react to or align with the realities of situations?

Are you influenced by real-life stories about people like Henry Ford, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Steve Jobs?...people who had such conviction about their own ideas that they refused to hear when others said, “No, that’s impossible. That cannot be done.”

And how about Churchill's "we shall never surrender"…that dogged determination rallied a country in the midst of severe adversity.

We see such doggedness in business. The problem is, sometimes, we see an over-abundance of dogged expectations. We see people being doggedly determined over the smallest of items in the most unwarranted of situations.

It seems some people must win control at all costs, at all times, in all situations.

For these people, every conversation flirts with or hammers into crucial territory.

Some people underestimate the importance of selecting their battles with care. For them, everything must be contested and few topics offer a safe haven for discussion or escape from conflict of opinion.

Some people must expend energy at every point of what could be conversation.

When will must win at all costs, expectations become blind to the realities of situations.

 

***

Which reminds me of advice I have received from people who have been important to me:

  • Pick your battles carefully.
  • There's a time to march and a time to fight.
  • Better to remain silent and be thought a fool...

 

Carried away with and by technology

by Rick Baker
On Jul 31, 2015

Have you noticed technology is a double-edged sword?

Technology makes our lives easier by automating tasks, which reduces our manual processes and workload. Yet, technology is presenting a whole new set of workplace complications.

To function properly, computer technology [including off-the-shelf software] demands very specific actions. Put another way, technology is rather unforgiving. We learned this in the early days of card punching…one small typo ruined the software program. We called that problem something like garbage in, garbage out. Garbage out today appears in the form of error messages or (worse) unannounced problems, for example, problems hidden in the logic of Excel file cells.

Unannounced Garbage Out - have you seen that at your workplace? Do you see your off-the-shelf software spitting out little and big errors that surprise you because they strike you as violations of common sense? When you see this sort of garbage out do you think to yourself, "How could our people make errors like that?”

As the sophistication of off-the-shelf software continues to expand [exponentially], have you noticed your people making far more errors while doing relatively-simple tasks?

…like an error epidemic has attacked the basic processes at your workplace.

Have these computer garbage out errors become the norm at your workplace?

Do your people seem resigned, accepting garbage out as if it is a necessary evil of the workday?

Have you noticed that?

Have you noticed your production sputtering and grinding to an unproductive, unprofitable, painful crawl?

Have your clients noticed your production is flawed and pitted with errors?

Have you noticed your people getting carried away with and by technology?

If so – what steps are you taking to fix that problem?

Doing the right things - really, Whats that all about?

by Rick Baker
On Jul 28, 2015

Many people talk about doing the right thing.

Many people talk about doing the right thing at the right time…that’s even better.

There seems to be a consensus: when we do the right things at the right times we gain advantage…we grow…we meet goals…we succeed.

So – we understand WHY there is value in doing the right things at the right times.

And – much time and effort has been spent exchanging ideas about WHAT are those right things, WHO should do those right things, and WHEN are those right times.

However – one major piece is missing…the HOW.

For example – has anyone ever presented to you the opinion, “Before you can do the right thing at the right time you must think the right thing.”

And, in reaction to that statement you may have thought, “That’s a bit of a confusing thing to say.” And, you may have asked, “Can you explain that comment?”

And following more discussion you understood…

Most of the time we think without thinking about thinking. Our minds are bombarded by unplanned, haphazard thoughts. And, haphazard thoughts frequently are the causes behind our actions.

Considering the extent of unplanned thoughts, it is no wonder we often fail to do the right things at the right times.

That is the first part of the problem.

The second part of the problem: When we have not done the right things we think about how to justify our flawed actions. We know, at least subconsciously, we are ‘making excuses’ for our haphazard thoughts/actions. And, we know we are ‘making excuses’ for not doing the right things at the right times. And – everyone around us knows this too.

When personal growth [of any form] is desired, it is important to embrace the power contained in, “Before you can do the right thing at the right time you must think the right thing.”

When change is personal growth [of any form] is desired, it is important to embrace the power contained in, “Before you can do the right thing at the right time you must think the right thing.”

What do you think about the profanity of our times?

by Rick Baker
On Jul 20, 2015

First, let’s make sure we are on the same wavelength. By ‘profanity’, I mean offensive language. While ‘offensive’ is [of course] subjective and potentially debatable, I think most of us can agree to the following definition of ‘offensive words’:  ‘Offensive Words’ are words we are very troubled to hear from the mouths of our 2- and 3-year old children and grandchildren. In fact, it was a discussion of a 3-year-old’s repetition of a ‘swear word’ that led to the writing of this Thought Post.

It seems to me we observe profanity in 5 forms:

  • Expletives: the things people say when they are angry, frustrated, or in pain
  • Humour: often tied to body parts and body functions
  • Racism/Bigotry: malicious references to people who are different, including attempts at humour
  • Religious references: these can overlap expletives [such as taking the Lord’s name in vain] and bigotry laced with intolerance for people of other religions
  • Habit-speak: as examples - gang talk and passed on habits of family members

Now, I’ve explained what I mean by profanity…What do you think about it?

Specifically, how do you want people to speak at your workplace and what words, if any, should never be used in your workplace? What “Master Rule” applies at your workplace?

How do you or will you address violations of your rules that limit offensive language?

***

Some related thoughts and questions…

Other ways to describe profanity and expletives: blasphemy, curse, cuss, cussword, dirty word, swearword, four-letter word, obscenity, profanity, swear, vulgarism

How do you feel about consistency, do you ‘practice what you preach’? Do you choose to use words at work but choose not to use them in front of your 3-year-old relatives?

When you wallop your thumb with a hammer, what words spring from your lips? If you are not pleased with those 'automatic' words, how could you possibly break that deep-rooted habit?

When you are angry, do you climb up the ladder of increasingly-offensive language?

Do the people in your gang think it is cool to repeat, repeat, and repeat profanity?

In your workplace, is it OK to emphasize an important point by using a strategically-placed piece of profanity?

I have read that native North Americans knew no profanity until the Europeans arrived…I wonder if that is true.

Why has profanity gained so much ground in our mass-marketed entertainment...i.e., why is there so much profanity in our literature, our songs, and our movies?

Is swearing inversely proportional to intelligence? [i.e., The more the profanity the less the IQ & EQ?]

Why have so many 'bad words' been created for body parts and bodily functions? And, why are they considered ‘bad words’ while other descriptors are considered acceptable? So many acceptable descriptors are Latin-based it causes me to wonder how often the Latins used swear words. A quick on-line search suggests there were Latin profanities in the Roman heyday...isn't that disappointing!

What role has religion played in all of this? The 3rd of the Judeo-Christian 'Ten Commandments' says "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain". Clearly, profanity in some forms has existed for several millennia. People must have been using religious profanity in Moses' time. Were they also using other forms of profanity at that time?

Are You Superior to Circumstances?

by Rick Baker
On Jul 9, 2015

”Our main thinking habit is to analyse situations so that we can recognize standard situations and then apply standard answers.”

Edward de Bono

`The Six Value Medals`, (2005)

 

As you analyse Situations, do not limit yourself by assuming they are 'standard'...explore and see if there are important nuances that deviate from familiar patterns:

  • direct your attention toward the key parts of the Situation [the People, the place, the level of urgency, the 'props', the background noise, etc.]
  • compare those parts, looking for similarities - the parts that fit a pattern you recognize
  • compare those parts again, looking for differences - the parts that do not fit a pattern you recognize 
  • look for the parts that catch and pull at your attention...they can be the most-important aspects of the Situation
  • set logic aside and take some time to focus your attention on your gut feel
  • use your special insights to fully appreciate the value contained in the situation/circumstances

Strive to identify Situations that contain special circumstances…special circumstances that serve as catalysts for your unique talents and gifts. Be confident in your ability to either rise above problems and grasp hold of opportunities. Be confident in your ability to customize your exceptional contributions in reaction to the signals you [alone] receive as you analyse Situations.


And always remember…


”Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstance.”

Bruce Barton 

American Author & Politician (1886-1967)

 

 

 

Footnote:  

”Circumstances - what are circumstances? I make circumstances.” Napoleon Bonaparte

Copyright © 2012. W.F.C (Rick) Baker. All Rights Reserved.