Thursday, April 30, 2009

Gmail - FBL | Quote of the Day | April 30, 2009 - shekharkashyap@gmail.com

Gmail - FBL | Quote of the Day | April 30, 2009 - shekharkashyap@gmail.com: "spacer
quote of the day
spacer

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”

—Epicurus (341BC-270BC); ancient Greek philosopher"

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Jennifer Huget - Food Experts Are Thinking About What You Eat. Maybe You Should Join Them. - washingtonpost.com

tncdel wrote:
Unfortunately, the so-called "experts" are also shills for the "bad food" industry.

And they unconscionably have brainwashed people over the years into thinking some things not good or even harmful should be eaten by human beings.

It's all about money and profit in a capitalistic society.

Even nutritionists and the author of this article are tainted by misconceptions about what is best for humans to eat.

People are also brainwashed by their cultures.

When you get a change, Google search the words, "Milk white poison," for starters.

From ther, next Google search, "excitotoxins."

And after that, Google search, "high fructose." And also, "high fructose corn syrup."

So-called "health foods like Dannon yogurt and Oceanspray cranberry juice contain that harmful substance, among countless other products that the FDA allows to be sold in our country.

Lastly, humans have teeth and digestive tracks virtually identical to that of apes, which eat primarily FRUIT and other vegetation. And they do NOT eat dead animal parts [which we call "meat"].

Neither apes nor humans have teeth and digestive tracts like CARNIVORES, which, like cats and dogs, have pointy teeth designed for ripping apart flesh, and digestive track enzymes capable of digesting animal flesh.

Humans do NOT.

Instead, dead animal parts simply ROT in our intestines, like roadkill on a highway, poisoning us, as toxic matter to humans. Stinking and putrefying. And is the main reason why many people need to use deodorants.

I myself do not eat meat, nor do I drink milk. I also eat nothing with sodium glutamate or high fructose in it.

Instead I eat mainly fruit. Supplemented by grains [oatmeal, rice, etc.], a small amount of eggs, plain yogurt, a bit of cheese, nuts and some vegetables.

But mostly fruit, since fruit is the ONLY food that the human digestive tract can digest completely ... meaning it is the only food with nothing toxic to humans.

EVERYTHING else has toxic matter. And so does fruit not organically grown.

Humans are designed to be FRUITARIANS, not meat eaters or even vegetarians.

But the so-called "experts"have wrongly brainwashed most of us into believing that nonsense that we are "omnivorous.

There are few truly omnivorous creatures on our planet: rats, being one. Because they can eat and digest just about any organic matter.

But humans cannot. For example, we can digest only about ten percent of starchy food, like white bread. The remaining ninety percent is eliminated as toxic waste.

Fruit contains nutrition and quick-burn carbs that provide the energy you need.

Ever wonder why you felt so "stuffed" after gorging on a Thanksgiving Day turkey dinner? You were STUPIFIED and LETHARGIC because you POISONED YOURSELF.

If you want to be more healthy, and better able to combat diseases [since the immune system won't have to fight the toxic matter and can instead focus on fighting the germs, etc.],

switch to a mainly fruit daily menu. supplemented as I do. I also supplement with all-natural 100 percent whey protein and daily vitamins.

And the PROOF is myself, born in 1948, and a solid 175 pounds at 6'2" with five percent body fat, married to a woman 22 years old.

:)

And I bicycle over 5,000 miles yearly, because I have the energy and health I need to do it.
4/28/2009 11:17:32 AM

Jennifer Huget - Food Experts Are Thinking About What You Eat. Maybe You Should Join Them. - washingtonpost.com

Jennifer Huget - Food Experts Are Thinking About What You Eat. Maybe You Should Join Them. - washingtonpost.com: "tncdel wrote:
Unfortunately, the so-called 'experts' are also shills for the 'bad food' industry.

And they unconscionably have brainwashed people over the years into thinking some things not good or even harmful should be eaten by human beings.

It's all about money and profit in a capitalistic society.

Even nutritionists and the author of this article are tainted by misconceptions about what is best for humans to eat.

People are also brainwashed by their cultures.

When you get a change, Google search the words, 'Milk white poison,' for starters.

From ther, next Google search, 'excitotoxins.'

And after that, Google search, 'high fructose.' And also, 'high fructose corn syrup.'

So-called 'health foods like Dannon yogurt and Oceanspray cranberry juice contain that harmful substance, among countless other products that the FDA allows to be sold in our country.

Lastly, humans have teeth and digestive tracks virtually identical to that of apes, which eat primarily FRUIT and other vegetation. And they do NOT eat dead animal parts [which we call 'meat'].

Neither apes nor humans have teeth and digestive tracts like CARNIVORES, which, like cats and dogs, have pointy teeth desi"

KISS principle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

KISS principle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Antoine de Saint Exupéry's 'It seems that perfection is reached not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away"(ie all imperfections have been removed)

KISS principle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

KISS principle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Leonardo Da Vinci's 'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication'"

Jennifer Huget - Food Experts Are Thinking About What You Eat. Maybe You Should Join Them.

Jennifer Huget - Food Experts Are Thinking About What You Eat. Maybe You Should Join Them.: "Eating well is a matter of knowledge, money and time. Some people are zero for three"

iGoogle

iGoogle: "Whoever ceases to be a student has never been a student.
- George Iles"

Bookshelf

Bookshelf

Monday, April 27, 2009

The Right Way to Start a New Job -- And Leave Your Old One - Tammy Erickson - HarvardBusiness.org

The Right Way to Start a New Job -- And Leave Your Old One - Tammy Erickson - HarvardBusiness.org: "In today's economy, the reality is that many of us are likely to be coming and going over the upcoming months - leaving firms, joining firm - of our own volition, or that of others. Whenever you do, those first few and last few weeks are critically important. You have great opportunity for upside when you arrive and tremendous potential for downside when you leave. You do more to shape your reputation, for the good or the bad, in the way you come and the way you go, than just about anything else you do.

Here is my fundamental philosophy: both of these periods are times when your primary focus must be (or at least must appear to be) firmly fixed on the company and your colleagues. Both of these are times when the phrases 'what do you need?' and 'how can I help?' should be the questions that everyone hears most clearly. Neither are times to talk about yourself and what you want. They are both times to give back. You'll be repaid many times over in terms of the reputation you build.

What lessons have you learned about coming and going gracefully?"

Foreign Policy: The Next Big Thing: A New You

Foreign Policy: The Next Big Thing: A New You: "By beginning to read and write life code, we are gradually becoming a different species; we are moving from Homo sapiens into Homo evolutis, a human being that deliberately engineers its own evolution and that of other species. And that is the ultimate tsunami"

Foreign Policy: India’s Chinese Wall

Foreign Policy: India’s Chinese Wall: "China’s communist political system rated against India’s complicated democracy, the two countries are endlessly dissected in relation to one another. Yet amid all the hand-wringing over which country is “beating” the other in their race to industrialize, one simple question sums up very pointedly the debate over which one is making life better for its citizens. It’s a question few dare to ask in polite circles: If you were born today, would you rather be Chinese or Indian?

Delhi-born Pallavi Aiyar, the first Chinese-speaking Indian journalist based in Beijing and author of an engaging new book about the two countries, takes on the charged question. The best option, she contends, is to be a high-caste Indian man. His political freedom would certainly outweigh the economic opportunities of any Chinese citizen, she argues. But if that weren’t possible, she’d choose to be a wealthy Chinese woman, because she wouldn’t be as constrained as her Indian counterparts by low literacy rates and limits on female participation in the public sphere. If she had to be poor, she’d go with China. An Indian latrine cleaner may get to vote, she says, but a Chinese one is far less likely to be viewed as completely subhuman."

Foreign Policy: India’s New Deal

Foreign Policy: India’s New Deal: "I entered politics because I realized I was not going to play for Newcastle United and I was never going to be Mick Jagger"

Foreign Policy: More Epiphanies: Francis Fukuyama

Foreign Policy: More Epiphanies: Francis Fukuyama: "EVERYBODY HAS TO DEAL WITH UNCERTAINTY. But the unwillingness to adjust to real facts as they emerge [is] a dangerous thing"

Foreign Policy: Epiphanies: Richard Dawkins

Foreign Policy: Epiphanies: Richard Dawkins: "THE MAJORITY of children born into the world tend to inherit the beliefs of their parents, and that to me is one of the most regrettable facts of them all."

Foreign Policy: More Epiphanies from Richard Dawkins

Foreign Policy: More Epiphanies from Richard Dawkins: "THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO CANNOT BEAR CLARITY. What they’re used to is a kind of muddled, obfuscating obscurantism. And when they hear somebody talking clearly and straightforwardly, it’s so unexpected that it sounds aggressive."

Foreign Policy: Epiphanies: Amartya Sen

By Elizabeth Dickinson

Calculating the cost of human foibles.

Economists have suffered a collapse in credibility since the global financial crisis began. Faith in the efficiency of markets and the invisible hand is out; “behavioral economics,” which stresses that humans are fundamentally irrational actors, is in. We are blind to risk; we make decisions on a whim; we prefer consuming now over saving for later. Human fallibility seems to be the perfect explanation for an unfathomable crisis. Here’s how—after years of being considered a quaint subfield—behavioral economics has finally stolen the limelight.


Photos: brain, iStockphoto.com; Kahneman, Getty Images; piggy bank, iStockPhoto


Elizabeth Dickinson is an assistant editor at Foreign Policy.
Foreign Policy: Epiphanies: Amartya Sen: "Anthropology of an Idea: “Behavioral Economics”"

informal coalitions: Leading is a "doing word"

informal coalitions: Leading is a "doing word": "Nominalizing verbs and using other abstract nouns is, of course, part of the way that we learn. We generalize patterns of meaning from disparate experiences and name these as a way of making sense of the world. This practice won’t disappear from language; and I’m not arguing that it should. This blog is peppered with such usage (including the phrase 'Informal Coalitions'!). What I am saying, though, is that we need to become more sharply aware of the ways in which describing our practice (there’s another one!) in abstract terms can:

* distort our own and others' perceptions and understanding of what’s going on,
* blind us to the part that we are playing in this ongoing process, and
* disempower us from acting in the only place, and at the only time, that we can – that is, in the here and now."

informal coalitions: Co-creation – a core dynamic of organizations, not simply jargon for working together!

informal coalitions: Co-creation – a core dynamic of organizations, not simply jargon for working together!: "I prefer radio to television. The pictures are better.'

Anon"

informal coalitions: Drucker on communication in organizations

informal coalitions: Drucker on communication in organizations: "People can only perceive what they are capable of perceiving in the light of their experience: 'There is no possibility of communication ... unless we first know what the recipient, the true communicator, can see and why.'"

Tip Of The Day - Serious about your work?

Tip Of The Day - Serious about your work?: "Let´s take the work seriously, and not ourselves seriously"

Tip Of The Day - Who's got the monkey?

Tip Of The Day - Who's got the monkey?: "Tip Of The Day - Management
Who's got the monkey?
The article “Who’s got the monkey” by William Oncken is one of the two best selling articles Harvard Business Review articles ever. It has been reprised by Steven Covey below. Even if you have read it before, it is well worth re-reading every now and then.
See http://www.unlv.edu/faculty/ccochran/hca400/HCA400_web/Monkey.HTM"

I am capitalist and so are you | The Ingenesist Project

I am capitalist and so are you | The Ingenesist Project: "In case you have not noticed, it is largely in the best interest of one group of people to keep another group of people poor, weak, and disorganized. I’ll let the reader connect these dots as they see fit, however, the fact is that is how capitalism works – there must be a merchant class and there must be a working class. And even after all the inequality that this arrangement implies, capitalism is still the only game in town for creating and distributing wealth."

Introduction to Value Innovation : Pure Insight

Introduction to Value Innovation : Pure Insight: "Questions:

* Do you read about innovation leaders and wonder why your company can’t do what they do?
* Do you focus more on your competition than your customers to stand out?
* Does your team need to cut through the clutter of new initiatives and buzz words to get to something that is simple, and will work?
* Is your gut feel telling you that the hidden value in your product or service portfolio is right under your nose – if only you knew how to get to it?"

Value Innovation | BNET

Value Innovation | BNET: "Value innovators don't set out to build competitive advantage. But their innovative practices lead them to achieve precisely that"

Practicum_monkey

Practicum_monkey: "Command and control as a management philosophy is all but dead, and 'empowerment' is the word of the day in most organizations"

Management time: Who's got the monkey

Management time: Who's got the monkey: "Tips:

* Learn to say 'no.'
* Limit exposure and keep distance from monkey-carrying subordinates?
* Establish self-value.

'Until you value yourself, you will not value your time.

Until you value your time you will not do anything with it.'
- Dr. M. Scott Peck."

How to Manage Your Stress Level - Health and Well-Being - HarvardBusiness.org

How to Manage Your Stress Level - Health and Well-Being - HarvardBusiness.org: "# If you are seeing yourself doing a good job, you are more inclined to move in that direction,' she says. And giving your mind a break from counterproductive thinking helps neutralize the mental and physical toll exacted by stress."

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Four Ways to Use "Pull" to Increase Your Success - The Big Shift - HarvardBusiness.org

Four Ways to Use "Pull" to Increase Your Success - The Big Shift - HarvardBusiness.org: "Maximize return on attention. Hearing these recommendations, some readers will ask how any of us will have enough time to expand our networks and explore talent spikes. Aren't we time-constrained already? Yet by adopting new tools and services we can all improve our 'return on attention' — the value we get in return for the time spent looking for what we want and need. Search tools help improve this value immensely. But serendipity tools may prove even more helpful as they connect us to people and resources we don't yet know exist."

The Perennial Struggle: Continuous vs. Breakthrough Innovation | BNET Intercom | BNET

The Perennial Struggle: Continuous vs. Breakthrough Innovation | BNET Intercom | BNET: "Google will be at the 2007 World Innovation Forum to talk about how they develop breakthrough innovations. Meanwhile, GE uses Six Sigma continuous process improvement (CPI) to stay near the top of Fortune’s most admired companies list. Google is all about rule-breaking creativity; GE is about the incremental pursuit of excellence. Both companies succeed with very different innovation cultures, but is it possible to combine the best of both worlds?"

A Crash Course in Leadership - Gill Corkindale - HarvardBusiness.org

A Crash Course in Leadership - Gill Corkindale - HarvardBusiness.org: "1. Be aware. Understand yourself and your context. Know your own strengths, limitations, and development needs. If you don't have time to build your skills, bring people into your team who will complement you. Be aware of the organization and the people you are leading. If you have moved from a start-up to an established organization, for example, the people and the rules of engagement will be very different.

2. Have a plan. Know where you are going. One great definition of leadership is to have followers. If you cannot create a sense of the future, no one can follow you.

3. Build relationships. Give more of yourself. A leader has to get things done through others, so people skills are critical. Take time to get to know your peers, bosses, and subordinates. Talk less, listen more, and remember the details of what people say. Investing time to understand the roles, ideas, and personalities of those around you will yield a strong network, corporate allies, motivated staff, and personal goodwill.

4. Deliver. Get things done. Whatever your line of business, you need to show the results of your leadership. So whether it's a better product, an improved service, a higher profit or share price, make sure you deliver.

5. Have Integrity.Get your values right. Your values define who you are and why others should work for you. The important point here is that values should be lived, not written down or occasionally talked about. Show by your own example that honesty, truth, transparency, respect, and sustainability matter.

These are the key principles of leadership as far as I can see. Do you agree? Is this an oversimplification or a welcome streamlining of a subject that has become far too academic? Is it time for a campaign to demystify leadership or will it always remain complex and challenging?

Wanted: Entrepreneurs Who Can Ignite 550 Million Young Indian Minds - Navi Radjou - HarvardBusiness.org

Wanted: Entrepreneurs Who Can Ignite 550 Million Young Indian Minds - Navi Radjou - HarvardBusiness.org: "Hi Navi and all

It is definitely an interesting topic.

One of the biggest issues i think is the 'Educational System' by itself. We are following the Curriculum based on Age Old theories and youngsters are thrust with unwanted knowledge and forced to practice 'Rote learning'.

No one is taught about Fundamentals of Life
- Money Handling
- Parenting
- Relationship building (how to deal with families and friends)
- Team Work (in schools they encourage competition
and individualistic behaviour)
- Creating opportunities (selling/entrepreneurialship)
- Time management
- Keeping healthy
- Work/Life Balance
etc"

Saturday, April 25, 2009

You Always Have a Job (Even if You're Unemployed) - Daisy Wademan Dowling - HarvardBusiness.org

You Always Have a Job (Even if You're Unemployed) - Daisy Wademan Dowling - HarvardBusiness.org: "The trick to getting to the next destination safely? As hard as it is, you've got to help yourself ditch the shame — yes, I said 'shame' — of being Unemployed, and get your usual energy back. You've got to get yourself ready to go to that cocktail party — or an interview — looking, acting, and feeling like the champ you really are."

StumbleUpon WebToolbar - We Should, Like, Stop Saying Like. on vi.sualize.us

StumbleUpon WebToolbar - We Should, Like, Stop Saying Like. on vi.sualize.us: "“it is impossible to be deeply responsive to the world without being saddened very often.”"

Thursday, April 23, 2009

- 'Complacency' Epidemic-ET Slide Shows-Features-The Economic Times

- 'Complacency' Epidemic-ET Slide Shows-Features-The Economic Times: "Complacency is a state of mind that exists only in retrospective: it has to be shattered before being ascertained'. So go ahead, break free from the shackles of complacency and enjoy its rewards"

- 'Complacency' Epidemic-ET Slide Shows-Features-The Economic Times

- 'Complacency' Epidemic-ET Slide Shows-Features-The Economic Times: "Complacency is a state of mind that exists only in retrospective: it has to be shattered before being ascertained'. So go ahead, break free from the shackles of complacency and enjoy its rewards"

iGoogle

iGoogle: "elbert_hubbard.jpg
To avoid criticism do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.


Elbert Hubbard"

Find Purpose, Live Longer

Find Purpose, Live Longer: "Keep working

A job is probably the easiest way to help you feel your life has purpose, so consider staying with it as long as you can, says Robert N. Butler, M.D., founding director of the National Institute on Aging and author of The Longevity Revolution: The Benefits and Challenges of Living a Long Life (Public Affairs, 2008). Even if your job is not the greatest, Butler notes, “accomplishment—and, most important, income—can provide an ongoing sense of purpose.” But there’s more. A European study that tracked 16,827 Greek men and women for 12 years found that those who retired early had a 51 percent higher mortality rate than those who kept working. And according to a 2005 study that followed 3,500 Shell Oil employees, those who retired at 55 were twice as likely to die during the next ten years as people the same age who continued to work.

Take stock of yourself

If you’re struggling to bring your purpose into view, Richard Leider, life coach and author of Something to Live For: Finding Your Way in the Second Half of Life (Barrett-Koehler, 2008), suggests making a list of what you consider your gifts, values, and passions, then identifying your top quality in each category. Together, he says, the three can help reveal your calling—a formula he describes as G+V+P=C. Chopra"

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

iGoogle

iGoogle: "elbert_hubbard.jpg
To avoid criticism do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.


Elbert Hubbard"

iGoogle

iGoogle: "Man is a creature who lives not upon bread alone, but principally by catchwords.

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894)"

Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Sex + Sleep = Long, healthy life? « - Blogs from CNN.com

Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Sex + Sleep = Long, healthy life? « - Blogs from CNN.com: "Maybe it was cancer, dementia, Alzheimer’s… the list of potential health problems is endless and almost expected in the US. Rarely do we hear about people living nearly disease-free until their final days. Yet, on this 99-square mile island, people require far less medical care and tend to have more “good years”. If you’re thinking Ikarians simply hit the good gene jackpot, it’s a nice try but not that simple. Only about 20 percent of our longevity is determined by genes; the rest is up to us.

Dan Buettner, the best-selling author of “THE BLUE ZONES: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest” just named Ikaria the world’s fifth “Blue Zone.” He’s there right now to get some firm answers for us about what makes Ikarians so special, and to share those tips with us. Do sex and sleep play a big role? I’ll ask Dan tonight. In the meantime, you could always do a little research of your own – naptime, anyone?"

Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Does religion help you live longer? « - Blogs from CNN.com

Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Does religion help you live longer? « - Blogs from CNN.com: "Duke University has done several good studies that show that people who below to a faith-based communities, and show up to services at least four times per week. live up to 14 years longer that people who never attend religious services. It doesn’t matter if you’re Muslim, Christian, Jewish or a faithful atheist.

The lesson is that having religion is good for us. It forces scheduled stress reduction, makes it less likely we’ll engage in risky behavior and surrounds us with community. Of course, we don’t know for sure how religion helps us live longer, it just seems to help. And, I suppose, Konstantinos is a living example"

Gmail - CR #409: How to Write MORE Copy in LESS Time - shekharkashyap@gmail.com

Gmail - CR #409: How to Write MORE Copy in LESS Time - shekharkashyap@gmail.com: "'Procrastination is the art of
keeping up with yesterday.

- Don Marquis"

Saturday, April 18, 2009

iGoogle

iGoogle: "There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.
- Peter Drucker
You know that children are growing up when they start asking questions that have answers.
- John J. Plomp
All human situations have their inconveniences. We feel those of the present but neither see nor feel those of the future; and hence we often make troublesome changes without amendment, and frequently for the worse.
- Benjamin Franklin"

iGoogle

iGoogle: "There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.
- Peter Drucker"

Four Ways to Increase the Urgency Needed for Change - Management Essentials - HarvardBusiness.org

Four Ways to Increase the Urgency Needed for Change - Management Essentials - HarvardBusiness.org

Overcome Your Fear of Trying Something New - Stew Friedman - HarvardBusiness.org

Overcome Your Fear of Trying Something New - Stew Friedman - HarvardBusiness.org

Affirming affirmative action.(the book 'The Shape of the River: Long Term Consequences of Considering Race in College and University Admissions,' by William Bowen and Derek Bok, seems to confirm

Affirming affirmative action.(the book 'The Shape of the River: Long Term Consequences of Considering Race in College and University Admissions,' by William Bowen and Derek Bok, seems to confirm: "THE AIM OF affirmative-action programs, which give preference to blacks and other minorities in matters of employment and school admissions, is to bring underrepresented groups into the mainstream of American life. Making race an issue in this way makes sense as a provisional measure in service of a larger goal--that of creating a society in which race is not an issue."

Management idea: Kaizen | Kaizen | The Economist

Management idea: Kaizen | Kaizen | The Economist: "However, Watanabe also acknowledged that “when 70 years of very small improvements accumulate, they become a revolution”"

Audio: Scrap the MBA - How To Fix Business Schools - HarvardBusiness.org

Audio: Scrap the MBA - How To Fix Business Schools - HarvardBusiness.org: "However if we will seriously consider how to keep on exploring and understanding the complex world we live in, and make this an inherent part of management education, perhaps the future version of our world would look better."

Audio: Scrap the MBA - How To Fix Business Schools - HarvardBusiness.org

Audio: Scrap the MBA - How To Fix Business Schools - HarvardBusiness.org: "From my perspective, the main lesson from this economic meltdown is that despite our confidence – we actually know very little about the operation of the financial world around us. Moreover, it is clear that such lack of understanding, together with high confidence and reliance on the opinions of others (presumably experts) can have devastating consequences. If anything I suspect that this meltdown shows exactly how important it is for executives to have a better understanding of the world in which they operate."

Audio: Scrap the MBA - How To Fix Business Schools - HarvardBusiness.org

Audio: Scrap the MBA - How To Fix Business Schools - HarvardBusiness.org: "Derek Bok, the 25th President of Harvard, famously said: 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.' What we need is more business education, not less!"

First, Lead Yourself - Gill Corkindale - HarvardBusiness.org

First, Lead Yourself - Gill Corkindale - HarvardBusiness.org: "The feedback is important, but it is the time spent on reflection that is critical to their development. In other words, in which situations or with which people might they be more strategic or sensitive? What is stopping them from being strategic or sensitive? And what might they do to change their behavior?"

Friday, April 17, 2009

The Easiest Way to Change People's Behavior - Peter Bregman - HarvardBusiness.org

The Easiest Way to Change People's Behavior - Peter Bregman - HarvardBusiness.org: "So don't fight yourself to change your behavior in the midst of the wrong environment; just change the environment"

Leadership Lessons from Abraham Lincoln - HBR.org

Leadership Lessons from Abraham Lincoln - HBR.org: "If I did get to meet him, though, I wouldn’t ask him what I, as a historian, know I’m supposed to ask him—about what he would have done to bring the country together after the Civil War, had he lived. I’d ask him to tell me stories. Everyone remarked upon his extraordinary sense of humor, and he was widely admired as a storyteller. He said himself that a good story is better than a drop of whiskey. I’d just sit at the kitchen table with him and have him tell me one story after another, for then he would truly come to life again."

Predictably / Irrational » Blog Archive

Predictably / Irrational » Blog Archive: "We aren’t cool calculators of self-interest who sometimes go crazy; we’re crazies who are, under special circumstances, sometimes rational."

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Predictably / Irrational

Predictably / Irrational: "And yet, even the Oracle of Omaha is not immune to the allure of irrational behavior. He is what Behavioral Economists call a sophisticate: someone who understands his irrationality and builds systems to cope with it. (The other types of people are the “rational,” who never deviates from optimal behavior, and the “naif,” who is unaware of his irrationality and therefore doesn’t do anything to address it.)

Uncommon a person as he was, Buffett had a very common concern: he feared gaining too much weight. Rational agents don’t gain weight because they always consider all the possible consequences of all actions. Naifs plan to start their diet tomorrow."

“There is no such thing as the caste system anymore” « Kafila

“There is no such thing as the caste system anymore” « Kafila

“There is no such thing as the caste system anymore” « Kafila

“There is no such thing as the caste system anymore” « Kafila

Questioning Pride - Consults Blog - NYTimes.com

Questioning Pride - Consults Blog - NYTimes.com: "No one can make you feel inferior without your permission” - I try to think of this when the situation arises"

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Living Simply to Simply Live - CBS MoneyWatch.com

Living Simply to Simply Live - CBS MoneyWatch.com: "I think if people are forced to spend less time on getting stuff and more time on doing stuff, then that’s all to the good"

Living Simply to Simply Live - CBS MoneyWatch.com

Living Simply to Simply Live - CBS MoneyWatch.com: "Also, the most important thing about well-being seems to be close networks of social relationships. If anything, those were better than they are now. I don’t think Facebook is a substitute for neighborhoods. It may become one, but it isn’t yet"

Mind - When All You Have Left Is Your Pride - NYTimes.com

Mind - When All You Have Left Is Your Pride - NYTimes.com: "Pride, in short, begets perseverance"

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Employing Emotional Intelligence In Everyday Life, from Associated Content - Business White Papers, Webcasts and Case Studies | BNET

Employing Emotional Intelligence In Everyday Life, from Associated Content - Business White Papers, Webcasts and Case Studies | BNET: "Overview: Emotional intelligence is about how we apply our emotions to our interactions. Emotional intelligence, as indicated, is partly about the language we use as we talk to other people and it's often dictated by those we are communicating with. If we are familiar with that person our language will be different from when we just met them. As we become more comfortable with a relationship we loosen up and our language changes. It changes in the security of that relationship. This is part of emotional intelligence."

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Management idea: Business process re-engineering | Business process re-engineering | The Economist

Management idea: Business process re-engineering | Business process re-engineering | The Economist: "BPR’s originators, Hammer and James Champy, maintained that re-engineering had a wider significance than mere processes. It applied to all parts of an organisation, and it had a lofty purpose. “I think that this is the work of angels,” said Hammer in one of his more fanciful moments. “In a world where so many people are so deprived, it’s a sin to be so inefficient."

Leadership Vs. Management

Leadership Vs. Management: "1] People cling to old ways of working even though they have been confronted by a new situation.

2] They fail to define new goals with meaning and challenge.

3] Action is taken without studied reflection. Behaviour is rooted in tradition rather than need.

4] Institutionalized contentment exists: activity is secure and stable, not venturesome.

5] Old 'wisdom' is passed on to new people. Older managers tend to adhere too rigidly to old ideas, to antiquated approaches and methods.

6] Low tolerance for criticism acts to stifle independent thinking."

Leadership Vs. Management

Leadership Vs. Management: "The manager administers; the leader innovates.
The manager maintains; the leader develops.
The manager accepts reality; the leader investigates it.
The manager focuses on systems and structures; the leader focuses on people.
The manager relies on control; the leader inspires trust.
The manager has a short-range view; the leader has a long-range perspective.
The manager asks how and when; the leader asks what and why.
The manager has his or her eye always on the bottom line; the leader has his or her eye on the horizon.
The manager imitates; the leader originates.
The manager accepts the status quo; the leader challenges it.
The manager is the classic good soldier; the leader is his or her own person."

Friday, April 3, 2009

Dinner Parties for Under $50 - Two Food Writers Face Off - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

Dinner Parties for Under $50 - Two Food Writers Face Off - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

Dinner Parties for Under $50 - Two Food Writers Face Off - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

Dinner Parties for Under $50 - Two Food Writers Face Off - Interactive Feature - NYTimes.com

Financial Crisis for Beginners « The Baseline Scenario

Financial Crisis for Beginners « The Baseline Scenario: "Where did all the money go?

This is a fairly common question. If banks are taking losses by writing down hundreds of billions of dollars, is someone else gaining hundreds of billions of dollars? Or is money just vanishing? Planet Money took a stab at this with Satyajit Das, but I thought I could help clarify it with a simple example."

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Rebecca Traister on using Freedom, internet-disabling software | Salon Life

Rebecca Traister on using Freedom, internet-disabling software | Salon Life: "That's just like what I downloaded, except in my case, the Freedom I was seeking was meant not to liberate me from the oppressive bonds of an unjust regime. No, my Freedom was designed to bind and restrict me, to prevent me from e-mailing, surfing, browsing and playing online games. Ah ... sweet, sweet Freedom."

Rebecca Traister on using Freedom, internet-disabling software | Salon Life

Rebecca Traister on using Freedom, internet-disabling software | Salon Life: "'In order to be free, the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau claimed, humans must sometimes surrender a measure of freedom.'"

Rebecca Traister on using Freedom, internet-disabling software | Salon Life

Rebecca Traister on using Freedom, internet-disabling software | Salon Life: "'In order to be free, the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau claimed, humans must sometimes surrender a measure of freedom.'"

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com: "To me he is a towering figure although he is tiny — almost a saintly model of how to get old. The main thing he retains is playfulness. Einstein had it. Playfulness and curiosity. He also stands for this unique trait, which is wisdom. Brightness here is common. He is wise. He integrated, not in a theory, but in his life, all his dreams of things.”"

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com: "What may trouble Dyson most about climate change are the experts. Experts are, he thinks, too often crippled by the conventional wisdom they create, leading to the belief that “they know it all.” The men he most admires tend to be what he calls “amateurs,” inventive spirits of uncredentialed brilliance like Bernhard Schmidt, an eccentric one-armed alcoholic telescope-lens designer; Milton Humason, a janitor at Mount Wilson Observatory in California whose native scientific aptitude was such that he was promoted to staff astronomer; and especially Darwin, who, Dyson says, “was really an amateur and beat the professionals at their own game.” It’s a point of pride with Dyson that in 1951 he became a member of the physics faculty at Cornell and then, two years later, moved on to the Institute for Advanced Study, where he became an influential man, a pragmatist providing solutions to the military and Congress, and also the 2000 winner of the $1 million Templeton Prize for broadening the understanding of science and religion, an award previously given to Mother Teresa and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn — all without ever earning a Ph.D. Dyson may, in fact, be the ultimate outsider-insider, “the world’s"

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com: "THE WORDS COLLEAGUES COMMONLY use to describe Dyson include “unassuming” and “modest,” and he seems the very embodiment of Newton’s belief that a man should strive for simplicity and avoid confusion in life. Dyson has been in residence at the institute since 1953, a time when Albert Einstein shared his habit of walking to work there, which Dyson still does seven days a week, to write on a computer and solve any problems that come across his desk with paper and pencil. (In his prime, legend held that he never used the eraser.)"

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com: "Science is not a matter of opinion; it is a question of data"

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com

The Civil Heretic - Freeman Dyson - Profile - NYTimes.com: "Among Dyson’s gifts is interpretive clarity, a penetrating ability to grasp the method and significance of what many kinds of scientists do. His thoughts about how science works appear in a series of lucid, elegant books for nonspecialists that have made him a trusted arbiter of ideas ranging far beyond physics"

The New York Times > Magazine > Image >

The New York Times > Magazine > Image >

Op-Ed Contributor - Cynicism We Can Believe In - NYTimes.com

Op-Ed Contributor - Cynicism We Can Believe In - NYTimes.com: "Cynicism is basically a moral protest against hypocrisy and cant in politics and excess and thoughtless self-indulgence in the conduct of life. In a world like ours, which is slowly trying to rouse itself from the dogmatic slumbers of boundless self-interest, corruption, lazy cronyism and greed, it is Diogenes’ lamp that we need to light our path. Perhaps this recession will make cynics of us all."

Life Lessons From the Family Dog - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

Life Lessons From the Family Dog - Well Blog - NYTimes.com: "Human beings constantly struggle to live in the moment. We’re either obsessing over the past (”Gee, life would’ve been different if I’d only joined the Peace Corps.”), or obsessing over the future (”Gee, I hope my 401K holds up”). We forget that life, real life, is lived right now, in this very moment.

But living in the moment is something that dogs (and cancer patients) do by their very nature. Bijou eats when she’s hungry, drinks when she’s thirsty, sleeps when she’s tired and will still gratefully curl up in whatever swatch of sunlight steals through the windows."

Life Lessons From the Family Dog - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

Life Lessons From the Family Dog - Well Blog - NYTimes.com: "We forget that life, real life, is lived right now, in this very moment"

Harvard Business Publishing - Management Tip of the Day

Harvard Business Publishing - Management Tip of the Day: "Management Tip: March 27, 2009
How to Recover From Your Mistakes
Making mistakes is inevitable — what counts is how you handle them. Some very public mistakes (see Tom Daschle's failure to pay taxes) have demonstrated the power of an apology to make amends and restore reputations. Here's how to recover from a mistake, gracefully.

* Own up. Don't use phrases that sound like doublespeak, 'I apologize if I hurt anyone.' Be explicit and truthful about what you did wrong.
* Make things right. Find out what you can do to remedy the mistake, whether it's repairing hurt feelings or working harder to undo the damage.
* Don't make a scene. An apology is not an excuse for a stump speech. Make your apology and get out of the spotlight. Demonstrate that you are ready to move on.
* Prevent mistakes in the first place. Think about how your actions and decisions will be perceived. Forethought and caution can stop mistakes before they happen."

Invaluable information on health inequities : The Lancet

Invaluable information on health inequities : The Lancet: "It is hoped that the impact of these findings will help accelerate processes to improve the health situation of those most in need, not only by increasing the coverage of evidence-based interventions, but also by persuading politicians of the urgent need to combat social inequities, what Michael Marmot has called “the ‘causes of the causes’—the fundamental structures of social hierarchy and the socially determined conditions these create in which people grow, live, work, and age”."

Marshall Goldsmith Library

Marshall Goldsmith Library: "Successful people consistently over-rate themselves relative to their peers. I have asked over 50,000 participants in my training programs to rate themselves in terms of their performance relative to their professional peers - 80-85% rank themselves in the top 20% of their peer group - and about 70% rank themselves in the top 10%. The numbers get even more ridiculous among professionals with higher perceived social status, such as physicians, pilots and investment bankers.

MDs may be the most delusional. I once told a group of Doctors that my extensive research had conclusively proven that half of all MDs had graduated in the bottom half of their medical school class. Two of doctors insisted that this was impossible!

We all tend to accept feedback from others that is consistent with the way we see ourselves. We all tend to reject or deny feedback from others that is inconsistent with the way we see ourselves. Successful people feel great about their previous performance! The �good news' is that these positive memories build our self-confidence and inspire us to try to succeed even more. The �bad news' is our delusional self-image can make is very hard to hear negative feedback and admit that we need to change."

Simplicity: The Next Big Thing - Rosabeth Moss Kanter - HarvardBusiness.org

Simplicity: The Next Big Thing - Rosabeth Moss Kanter - HarvardBusiness.org: "“The business schools reward difficult complex behavior more than simple behavior, but simple behavior is more effective.”— Warren Buffet

'Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly.' --- Francis Bacon

'Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage - to move in the opposite direction.'--- Albert Einstein

I believe these 3 quotes, by men much more intelligent than myself, touch on the key aspect of complexity vs. simplicity."

The Art of the Self-Imposed Deadline - Steven DeMaio - HarvardBusiness.org

The Art of the Self-Imposed Deadline - Steven DeMaio - HarvardBusiness.org: "Don't wait another minute to sweat the task of imposing creative discipline on your own workload. Wipe your brow and start now -- productivity can be poetry."

Gmail - Gmail - The Art of the Self-Imposed Deadline - Steven DeMaio - HarvardBusiness.org - Sent Using Google Toolbar - shekharkashyap@gmail.com - Sent Using Google Toolbar - shekharkashyap@gmail

Gmail - Gmail - The Art of the Self-Imposed Deadline - Steven DeMaio - HarvardBusiness.org - Sent Using Google Toolbar - shekharkashyap@gmail.com - Sent Using Google Toolbar - shekharkashyap@gmail: "Gmail - The Art of the Self-Imposed Deadline - Steven DeMaio - HarvardBusiness.org - Sent Using Google Toolbar - shekharkashyap@gmail.com

For people who work for themselves, the self-imposed deadline is a fact of life. Whether you're starting a business, writing a dissertation, or consulting for a dozen clients, paying attention only to your drop-dead dates would mean never meeting them. You obviously have to set up interim goals along the way.

But the art of self-scheduling is not unique to entrepreneurs and PhD students. It's one that I actively -- and successfully -- practiced for the two decades I spent working for other people. And it's now making my transition to freelance life a lot smoother. Here are the self-scheduling techniques that worked for me really well in the office -- and that remain the hallmarks of my working style out on the professional fringes:

1. Start your day as early as possible. Even if you're not a morning person, there's something intoxicating about planning to do A and B, and then discovering you've done A, B, and C by noon. Seeing C in the rearview mirror at lunch also makes D and E look a lot"