Brian's Blog - Ideas on Passion at Work, Home & Life

The Norris Blog
observations and opinions on various topics by Brian Norris

Who to Vote for??

I admit, I am a political junkie. Unlike my wife, I find this election stuff exciting.

As I write this the National campaign for president has yet to begin. Obama and Clinton are still duking it out (battling over whether Florida and Michigan delegates should be seated [i say they shouldn't]. Meanwhile, McCain is trying to convince conservatives that he can be trusted.

The question is who am I going to vote for?

Well, the bigger question is what candidate thinks like I do. A quick checklist.

I believe a president is a leader, not a manager. He or she should inspire others, communicate passionately, have a vision grounded in reality, and surround himself with unbiased specialists.
I favor smaller, less evasive federal government.
I favor a government (nationally and locally) that invests in job training for it's citizens, invests in infrastructure, rewards innovative people and companies and new technologies.
I want a federal government that follows the tenants of the constitution (without amending it when its convenient).
I believe that people have a right to defend themselves. I don't own a gun, but I should be able to without someone bugging me about it.
I believe that matters such as what a women does with her body, who a person marries and the religious views a person espouses are decisions that belong to individuals. Right or wrong, these matters should not be legislated, moralized or funded by government.
I favor fiscal responsibility (on the part of government and the general public).
I believe it should be against the law for a healthy adult not to be earning an income either directly (a job) or passively (investments).
I favor a return to the gold standard and the dismantling of the IRS.
I believe we need to develop fuel alternatives so that we can tell the oil companies and oil-producing countries to kiss our butts.
I yearn for universal access to higher education so that everyone can get a degree or certification for little or no tuition.
I believe in revamping health care so that it's more affordable, and rewarding people and companies who engage in preventative maintenance programs.
I believe in providing job training in new areas to replace jobs that aren't coming back.
I believe in stricter punishments for murderers (lethal injection) and rapists (cut their balls off).
I believe the democracy isn't meant for every nation in the world.
I believe that we screwed up by going into Iraq. At this point we've caused damage to our national security, world reputation and our own economy. Regardless of how and when we leave Iraq, these are things that our country might never recover from.

Issue #

Obama

yes

maybe

yes

maybe

yes

(Yes = 4, Maybes= 4)

McCain

maybe

yes

maybe

yes

maybe

(Yes = 3, Maybes = 6)

Given my druthers, I'd vote for Dr. Ron Paul in a heartbeat. He comes closest to my way of thinking. Clinton is tenacious, but she keeps referring to the past. I don't want the 80s or 90s. I want the future to be better.

Given that the media squished Paul out of the campaign, I'm left to choose between Obama and McCain. Neither of these guys does well in all of my areas. A little here and a little there. Lots of maybes. So far, on paper it's a toss up. May the best campaigner win?

How Stuck are You?

So what was the moment that did it? Was it the loss of a job? A painful breakup? The death of a loved one? A book or college course? When did you first stop moving forward? When you decide that sitting idly was cool while the world and life sped past you?

I ask these questions because lots of people are sticks in the mud. And, you know what? It's all their fault!

Sure we can point to events, to people, to circumstance. But in the end we have to take responsibility for own situation. If we can get ourselves into a holding pattern or unhealthy rut, then we can get ourselves out of it too.

To help you get unstuck, I've created the Stick in the Mud Assessment. It's 40 statements that you have to respond to honestly. You see how stuck you are based on your score. Then I give you a way out of the mud.

I've used it in all 50 states and the national average is a score of nine. Ideally, you want a score of 3 to 6. Want to take the Stick in the Mud Assessment? Click here.

Regarding Bait & Switch by Barbara Ehrenreich

I just completed this book and thought I'd share some feedback...

Barbara's book is a wonderfully written book. It reads like a horror novel. Chilling. Sad. Melodramatic. Still, her surprise and ultimate conclusion about the inner workings of Corporate America will leave you shrugging in "And your point is?" fashion.

First, the story she tells reaffirms why many of us choose to be independent contractors and to live amongst the self employed.

1. Job security doesn't exist, and hasn't for a long time.

2. Human resources are called resources because they're expendable. Through the financial lenses of a boss charged with cutting costs you're a line item, not a human. Additionally. you're only as good as your last project, and even that isn't an insurance policy against getting the boot.

3. Although more successful companies are changing the way they operate most big companies still do not put high value on individual thought and morale, unless they see the direct link to profitability. I've been helping companies to see the link for 10 years now.

Second, Barbara seems to believe the corporations owe their employees loyalty in return for their hard work. That belief is her downfall. The only things a company owes you are 1) a check that won't bounce and 2)access to training to keep your skill sets relevant. Beyond that you're on your own.

Third, I applaud how crisply she described the career coaching and job reemployment industries. There's a lot of bull being espoused in the market. To these coach's defense though, if their clients are used to being coddled or fed by the system, there's only so much a coach can do. A lot of people don't get fired, they fire themselves. While resume improvement might have a small role in getting a new position, why lie? Barbara's basic finding reaffirms the old maxim that it's not what you know ... it's who you know.

Additionally, when trying to find employment don't hang out with folks in your same predicament. What's the sense in that (kind of like going to a bar to complain to others how tough life is)? If you're job searching, ask yourself:

Where are people with hiring authority?

What can you do to differentiate yourself from the herd?

What's changed since I last was a free agent?

What skills do I lack?

These questions should be the first any job seeker asks.

Still, many of the tools she scorns can be put to good use in the right hands. For example, I use a behavioral tool called the SELF profile ( http://www.briannorris.com/SELF/ ) to understand how others see you. I frown on pigeonholing. But to be able to see yourself through other people's eyes is a valuable skill because it improves how I interact with others. Even Barbara's natural detail orientation and methodical, practical outlook reaffirms that she's in the right profession as a writer and journalist (She'd be an F on the SELF).

Finally, her attitude towards attitude is consistent with many in the world of academia who equate skill or degrees with success. Attitude, specifically the behaviors and actions that showcase your attitude, does matter. Most employers I've worked with agree that a positive attitude and strong work ethic are foundational to success precisely because skills can be acquired through training. Your degrees, age and titles are increasingly secondary. A performance evaluation rarely measures your degree, the dues you've paid or the status you've acquired through schooling or longevity.

If you work within or close to a large business, you should read this book and re-evaluate your exit strategy (or least your Plan B). As Barbara may have noted when offered a job with AFLAC, everyone's in sales anyway. Get used to it and keep selling yourself, daily to avoid being grouped (as quickly) in the lower tier of your company. To avoid getting caught off guard, operate under the following expectations:

Assume you will be outsourced or replaced with someone younger, cheaper or better yet something completely automated.

Assume you'll be responsible for your own insurance.

Assume that your dream of starting your own business is closer than you think.

Welcome to the 21st century.

On Hurricane Katrina

Lots will be written on the lessons of Hurricane Katrina. Still, as the images come in, a few takeaways.

1. In those absolute most essential moments, you are utterly alone. No one can keep your family fed or protect your property or keep you from drowning but you. Not the government. Not the local sheriff's office. Not even God (for the record I believe God intervened long ago by giving us a brain and the power to discern between truth and bullshit).

What are you doing to prepare for the various physical, financial, spiritual, and mental hurricanes that are coming for you at full force? What skills do you have to generate new income when your current job gets outsourced or knocked out from under you? What weapons do you have to protect yourself against the looters and market competitors who rather take what's you've worked for than earn it themselves?

What are you doing to stay in shape? Can you hold your breathe? Can you swim? Can you run fast enough? How hard can you punch the person who dares threaten the people you love? How will you clean the water when it goes bad? How will you make fire when the electricity goes out?

2. In matters outside your personal circle, your breath is hardly sufficient to knock down anything. You lack the intensity to change the landscape of society by yourself.

Learn from the hurricane. The difference between a hurricane with 70 mile winds and 140 mile winds is evident in the damage endured by South Florida versus the utter chaos endured by Mississippi and New Orleans. Start by feeding in warm waters, places rich in nutrients, knowledge and experience. Stay away from cold, low-energy sources.

Then find networks of people who share your conviction and begin to blow in the same direction, one target at a time. Angry at legislation passed by your elected officials? Concentrate all of your energies on the individuals closest to the decision maker. Livid about price gouging or wars of dubious purpose? Blow long and hard to influence, and ultimately flatten the entities behind those worst practices. How many people should it take to get water and food and education and housing and justice and peace of mind to the disadvantaged?

What existing networks can you consolidate or recruit to make your winds and noise and outcome impossible to dodge? When people blow together precious time and resources are saved. Redundancies are eliminated. Egos and finger-pointing take a backseat to getting the task done. As Katrina reminds us, bureaucracy sucks.

3. Put less stock in things. Houses and cars and furniture and clothes and TVs. They're nice to have. But don't love them so much that your life seems to end once they disappear. Nothing is forever. NOTHING. When you understand that we exist in a perpetual state of temporary at every moment, life becomes much easier to deal with.

Billions will be spent to rebuild, reimburse and restore the illusion of permanence we prefer to believe in. And something else, natural or man-made, will take it all away in seconds. The less you hold on to or need to add meaning to your life, the better off you are.

4. Finally, use this experience to peek through the veil of hypocrisy our society wraps itself in. We see again that in the absence of leadership, chaos thrives. We see that we (our families, communities, nation, economy) are inches away internal combustion. What would happen if three natural, biological, economic, political, military, terrorist disasters happened at roughly the same time?

My counsel, don't put too much faith in tomorrow or the muddied ideologies of yesterday. Only believe in today -- this moment. What beliefs have you clung to for too long only to realize they were false and harmful to your being?

Don't put your faith in what other people say either. Instead, challenge what you're fed and dare to create your own rules, your own contingency plans. Act on your dreams. Honor your promises. Love with reckless abandon. Be impulsive. Live life on your terms while you have a choice. The levees of life will break. With no guarantee of surviving, you know death is inevitable. Doesn't it make sense to embrace the time you have left?

On Protest

In America, protesting is an undeniable right. But the protesters we've seen canvassed across the newspaper pages and television screens of the world doing it all wrong! Walking single file in the pouring rain. Listening to zealous speakers link their pet issue to the war or a US President. These interpretations of protest may make a nice Kodak moment, and it's certainly better than just complaining about it from the comforts of your easy chair. But, it doesn't change anything .

Why not show your protest by contesting?

Remember how it took just a few uncooperative workers to bring Venezuelan oil production to a screeching halt? Now, that's how it needs to be done. Get a bunch of people together and leverage the greatest power you have - your purchasing power. As a political, racial or religious minority, you're the 96-pound weakling. As a current or potential customer, you can bring entire industries, even nations to their knees. Why not kick your adversaries in the head by organizing:

Movie studio boycotts - pick one movie (any big production feature that's slated for national distribution) and get as many people as possible not to see it or purchase related merchandise or support any of the products used in the movie. That would get Hollywood's attention -- FAST

Fast-food boycotts - what would happen if people across the nation banded together and agreed to stay away from all McDonald's, Burger Kings, Wendy's, Arby's, Carl Jrs. and the like for 60-days? In addition to losing a lot of weight, it might just get the fast-food associations and their respective lobbyist to pressure Uncle Sam's gang to rethink the way they handle things.

TV-Bans - No TV watching for 30-days? You'd make advertisers fume and TV stations very eager to pull a few strings. Heck, you might end up smarter and back in control of your own opinions. Or, you and your family might actually be forced to have conversations, and get this, actually eat together -- at the dinner table!

Walk, Bike or Roller-skate to Work- if this is all about oil, as some contend, then reduce your dependency on it. What would happen if everyone in your workplace or neighborhood or city or county or state were to use transportation that didn't require gas to get from point A to B?Oil companies and lobbyists with serious political leverage might step up to reverse the ensuing oil and gas drought. Plus, we'd all be healthier thanks to the extra exercise and it might create stronger families who talk to each other and stay home instead seeking external diversions.

Are you courageous enough to make your protest really count? Are you passionate enough about your cause or agenda to re-direct your energies from activities that get you nowhere. If you are, give off your assets and use this boiling passion to mobilize others to participate in one of contests above. Or create your own, the possibilities are endless. Go on ... I dare you!

You Are What You Listen To

A report released in the May issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology confirms what we've known for some time; Listening to music with violent lyrics leads to increased rage and negativity. Many have long believed that listening to music with negative lyrics provided an outlet to deal with existing emotions, but the study, which involved more than 500 college students, demonstrated that listening to violent songs had increased feelings of hostility. In the study, undertaken by researchers from Iowa State University and the Texas Department of Human Services, participating students listened to seven violent songs by seven artists and then eight nonviolent songs by seven artists

The results showed that violent songs had increased feelings of hostility, confirming a concept I've taught for a decade: G.I.G.O., P.I.P.O. - Garbage In, Garbage Out, Passion In, Passion Out. My research also supports that negative media impacts its audience in similar ways. The same goes for the avalanche of 'poor-me', 'I can never love again' music that pervades music of virtually every genre.

Bottom line, you must monitor the information and people and environments you expose yourself to. We have a choice in most matters, and being positively passionate requires the discipline and awareness to make the best choice for ourselves and those we love.

Brian Norris is available to speak at your next event or as a consultant to improve your company's sales, leadership and morale. For more information, call 414-899-1905, or email us today.

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