Keeping perspective
From Boom to Kaboom! Unconventional Thinking and Your Future
Today’s local morning news programs, CNN, MSNBC, and FoxNews, plus, of course, Bloomberg and CNBC are all talking about the US government bailout of Citigroup. It’s all frothy and dramatic. Last night one of my 80 year-old friends told me how much money she has lost in the market (in conservative investments), and she is scared. She said she has enough money to continue to take care of herself, thank goodness. I am almost half her age, so my fear, while palpable, is less urgent; I have more time to build up what I have lost.
But, the fear we feel is met in equal measure with bewilderment. It seems to me business(wo)men and consumers alike have been remarkably irresponsible these past few years. We have been living in a child’s…
The Power of Perception
A 42 year-old man watches Into the Wild with his father and sees a hurt and hopeful young man on an existential journey. The man’s father sees a movie about a naive kid who tried to survive in Alaska on his own without proper planning. A 2.5 year old girl looks down the hallway in broad daylight and sees the spooky forest. Her uncle looks down the hallway and sees four doors, one open to a messy bedroom. Who of the people mentioned perceives what is real and right?
Webster’s online dictionary calls perception “the act or faculty of apprehending by means of the senses or of the mind; cognition; understanding. 2. immediate or intuitive recognition or appreciation as, of moral, psychological, or aesthetic qualities; insight; intuition, discernment. 4. a single…
Get Real
A vice-president client we’ll call, Joe, recently presented to a group of peers and more senior executives. Half way through the material he lost his place. So, he stood there awkwardly for twenty seconds or so and tried to remember what he was supposed to say next. He cleared his throat, shuffled some papers and paced a few steps before he remembered and got him back on track.
Joe asked me what he could or should have done to avoid getting off track. I offered a few simple ideas about sticking to the core material and not getting into side-bar subjects.
A far bigger issue, though, was how Joe felt during those 20 seconds, and for four days afterward. Joe felt self-conscious, embarrassed and insecure. Why? Because “that is not…
