You can’t make this stuff up

Ethel was 5’1″ tall, age 23. A guy she dated, Hector, filed a domestic abuse complaint against her. He was 6’1, 220 pounds. Ethel did not have a history of finding great guys.

She solicited help from the public defenders office, the assistant district attorney (ADA). The ADA told the prosecuting attorney that if he didn’t find in Ethel’s favor and drop the case, she would look forward to taking it to court and watching the judges reaction to Ethel, 5’1″ allegedly abusing Hector, 6’1, 220 pounds.

Ethel was in the ADA office when the 6’1″, 220 pound plaintiff, Hector, walked in the building. He passed the ADA in the hallway. The ADA immediately hunted down two police offers in the building and told them that the guy smelled like a marijuana joint. The cops approach the guy, gained entry to his car and told the ADA that there was smoking joint in the car. Hector was arrested for possession and the prosecuting attorney dropped the case against Ethel.

You just can’t make that stuff up… : < )

***** S&E *****

Thoughts on bell shaped curves and charting

Bell shaped curves can be applied to data on an almost infinite number of subjects.

In the example below, the curve displays an example of employee performance; where the vertical axis is the number of employees, the horizontal axis performance levels or ratings.

Bell shaped curves only work if the data sample or universe is sufficiently large. In the case of employee performance, it likely would not work work for a group of 20 employees, but probably would work for 100 employees.

More to the point, it can be informative and assist with decision making if you considered the curve for data like:

  • Doctors ratings for a certain specialties
  • Automotive quality ratings
  • Employee performance
  • Data on consumer products
  • Investment performance
  • Technical data analysis
  • There are almost an infinite number of examples

Curves are useful as they tell the user on what data groupings to focus on to move the data/distribution in a favorable direction.

In the example of employee performance, if some of the population in the “meets expectations” or “below exceptions” groupings on the graph could be moved to the right then one might assume that with this improvement, business performance may improve as well.

Charts and graphs and numbers are the language of business. Notwithstanding the type of business, numbers and their graphical representation, assuming the data is accurate, tell the story of how well the business is performing and of equal importance, the performance of the leadership team.

Skills in graphical presentation are particularly important to support functions (HR, purchasing, IT, etc.) as they can be persuasive in supporting recommendations to operating executives.

***** S&E *****

Feedback…

Feedback is given in a variety of situations. Some examples are for performance reviews at work, soliciting behavior changes, and social interaction and parenting, to name a few. Feedback usually seeks a desired response which is sought by the one providing the feedback. The response could be verbal or behavioral.

Responses to feedback can be varied depending on how it was given and how it was received. Some factors that affect responses are tone (verbal or written), the message itself, and body language. Also if the the sender and receiver have a history of interactions on a regular or occasional basis, the quality of those interactions can also affect the current message and response.

Generally a message is always intended to solicit a response/feedback. So if a positive reaction or response is desired, the feedback needs to be given in such a way that:

It is given with genuine interest, care, and integrity.

It should not be just negative.

It can be both positive and negative.

It needs to be given in such a way that it provides an opportunity for improvement and response.

A consultant I used to retain for leadership meetings provided some of the advice above. She also reinforced the fact that when something goes awry in a relationship, organization or social situation, 90 percent of the time it can be traced to inappropriate, poor, inaccurate, or an absence of communications.

***** S&E *****

A letter to the Chairwoman, Republican National Committee

Just received a Republican Congressional District Questionnaire. It was so biased, unbalanced, and pathetic, I had to send it to the Republican National Committee Chairwoman with the following letter.

Chairwoman, Republican National Committee        August 16, 2022

Ronna R. McDaniel. Chairwoman

310 First Street, SE. 

Washington, DC 20003. 

Re: August 2202 Republican Party Congressional District Canvas

Dear Chairwoman

The canvas cover letter starts with “Stopping Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and Radical Democrats…”  Well, that statement plainly speaks to its all about the party not the country.  The two parties are so divided it’s now just all about “stopping” the other.  And you wonder why the country is divided.

And the cover letter asks me for money to help ensure fair elections.  We’ll, prior to the Trump Administration, the country never heard about unfair elections.  So what happened Republicans?  Maybe bad leadership?  Leadership that led to January 6th?  Leadership that divided the country like it has not been divided in decades?

And the cover letter also includes a questionnaire that asks me questions like:

  • Is the country going in the right direction
  • Concern about Biden and the Democrats
  • Media related questions: Oligarchs, media suppression
  • Immigration, abortion, military spending, policy funding
  • Top issues and you want me to pick top five of a list of 20
  • Many questions you ask about Biden hoping us “good” Republicans will condemn him on most

If you were connected to the country’s citizenry, you would know the answers to these questions. Most of the citizenry is boiling with disgust with “DC”. I’m not listing all 44 questions. The country is a mess and it is that way as you guys on both sides of the isle can’t manage the country and the special interests that drive it. 

About you Republicans and Trump:  He’s not a leader, he can’t pick talent, he fired most of his hires, he’s a micro manager, he lies, he’s dishonest, it is all about him … plainly one ugly human being.  And the majority of you guys don’t have the courage to stand as leaders and tell him to stick it. If you owned a business in the private sector would you hire Trump as one of your reporting executives, based on his record to date?  The only reason he’s not in prison is he has teams of attorneys holding authorities at bay.  If a private citizen did what Trump did the private citizen would be serving many consecutive life sentences.

I’m changing my voter registration to Independent as I no longer want to receive these self-serving, biased, unbalanced communications from the party, nor do I want to be associated with it.

For the record, I don’t vote for a party, I research candidates and vote for the best qualified that has the judgment and balance to address the critical issues in the country.  Unfortunately, most candidates are consumed by the party.

***** S&E *****

C’Mon DC

Get it together (literally) and elect a Speaker.  Do your jobs and lead the country.  Want some ideas of who should be Speaker?

List the names in the house in order of best LEADER, just select the name on the top of the list!

What was  that?  You can’t find one.  The list is a straight line (no vertical order – no leaders).  We understand, that is not new to us. 

C’Mon DC! There has to be one in there somewhere….

***** S&E*****

Degreed or not degreed

There is no doubt in this blogger’s mind that a degree from a college or university adds value for the graduate. It enhances critical thinking, analytical ability, and in many cases is valuable in “getting your foot in the door” for employment opportunities.

Taking a look back over 34 years in human resources, domestic and international work and locations, the performance graph for degreed employees is not a straight line relationship with having a college degree. That is, a degree is no guarantee of competitive, professional success. If anything I would suggest that looking at a meaningful universe of degreed professionals, the relationship of success and earnings to degrees may be closer to a bell shaped curve.

And in balance, there are definitely earnings opportunities that come with other than a university degree, when one chooses a skilled trade or technical school degree or certification.

Thoughts for this blog entry come from an interesting article from CNN Business, “Perspectives”. https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/13/perspectives/college-degrees-careers-roslansky-auguste/index.html

The perspective for the CNN article is driven by the changing employment environment employers have and are facing in recent years.

Of course I would have to cite my opinion on the value of behavioral competencies related to professional success. No matter the type or level of education, absent competencies like integrity, hard work, intellectual rigor, team work, professional presence, analytical ability humor, good judgment, kindness, and others, there is not much chance of building a successful career or business.

***** S&E *****

Saying goodbye to Shelby

After 15 years we had to put our dog, Shelby, down due to hind quarter hip failure… common on big dogs. She had the best of care over the years, was loved by friends and family. The vets staff was so kind when we put her down (December 16, 2022) . Even the vets boarding staff came to see her as the final injections ended our Labradoodle’s life.

It was time for her as her arthritis had gotten the best of her and the quality of her life was at the point where there was no other decision to make.

She could catch a tennis ball at 20 yards, like most was a beggar when food was around, enjoyed peanuts and snacks and a little beer (all in moderation) in the man cave, and like most well cared for dogs, gave back more then anyone ever gave her.

Much to my wife’s dismay, I always said the beer and peanuts were the key to her very long life.

The grief associated with this is awful, losing a “family member” for after 15 years… I’m 75 and the time with her amounted to 20% of my life.

I read that writing about this helped with the grieving process so I did this log entry.

…just working through it…

***** S&E *****

Interviewing…?

From Fast Company and Flex Jobs… here are some things to watch for during the interview.

  • Too long an interview process
  • You are not sure about the boss
  • The job is unclear
  • An uncomfortable interview
  • Lots of tests
  • High staff turnover
  • Mandatory overtime
  • Bad mouthing
  • Money matters
  • Lack of transparency

Get the details: https://www.fastcompany.com/90734998/10-signs-you-shouldnt-take-the-job

You have done your research about the company and you feel confident that it is a good company to work for… during and after the interview you should feel the same way about the boss. If there is a significant dichotomy between the two, and you join the company, you may find yourself an employment casualty and an example of the following tried and true adage:

“Join a company, quit a boss” …

***** S&E *****

America’s Newest Warplane

1440 News 12.3.2022
The US Air Force yesterday evening debuted America’s first new nuclear stealth bomber in more than 30 years. The aircraft, known as the B-21 Raider, is part of the Pentagon’s efforts to modernize all three pillars of its nuclear triad, consisting of nuclear missile submarines, land-based nuclear missiles, and nuclear-capable aircraft. The B-21 Raider is expected to make its first flight in 2023 and succeeds the B-2 Spirit, first presented in 1988. Watch the rollout here. 

The public reveal comes days after the Department of Defense released its annual report on China, saying it poses the most consequential challenge to America’s national security. China has more than 400 operational nuclear warheads and is on track to have 1,500 nuclear weapons by 2035. See an estimate of global warhead inventories here. The Air Force plans to build 100 B-21 Raiders, with six currently in production, that can deploy either nuclear weapons or conventional bombs—with or without a crew. It’s unclear how much 100 aircraft will actually cost; estimates suggest about $753M each.

Ya just gotta wonder if the citizenry in the big countries really want a build up of nuclear war machine capability or do they just want to live in an nonthreatening, peaceful environment where they can safely raise their families absent the threat of war. I’d bet they would vote for the peaceful side of the equation. So who are the governments actually representing?

****** S&E *****