Tag: Neighborhood

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S4 E40 — Don’t Bet Against Montezuma or the Yavapai-Apache Nation

Still not remembering that Mesa Verde National Park is in Colorado, not Arizona, I noted the Montezuma Castle was constructed on the face of the cliff here in the Verde Valley created by the Verde River.  

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Table of Contents

Hi and welcome to Saturday’s 40th Episode in Season 4 of  “Our Disruptively Resilient Year” on this 14th day of May in the spring of 2022.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll

    • @KnowLabs suite of 36 digital magazines, according to my analytics, grew from 12880 this week to 12943 organically grown followers.
    • Orange County Beach Towns 204 viewers stopped by the week before.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Context

Jay’s smashes avocados and whips them up into his secret recipe for an awesome breakfast of avocado toast. About 45 minutes later Jay switches to Elle’s Lexus SUV and I ride shotgun while the chicks gab in the back. 

But this time they want the air conditioner to work.

Image Credit: Apple Maps

Pulling out of their shared driveway and winding downhill we escape into the Verde Valley southeast of Prescott.

Maybe an hour later, Jay pulls into the Cliff Castle Casino grounds operated by the Yavapai-Apache Nation Indian tribe on our right. 

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

We then we immediately turn left,  winding down towards the national monument. 

Almost simultaneously all four of us realize that we left park passes at home or in the other SUV without backseat air conditioning. 

At the bottom of the hill Jay commandeers a parking slot up close to the main entrance immediately after a Camry exits. 

Some people have all the luck. 

Welcome to Montezuma’s Castle. 

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

But still following COVID space protocols there’s a limit to how many can occupy the combination souvenir store, history displays and the ticket counter. 

So, Jay does the talking about our forgetfulness as he has in other situations when he used to ask for professional courtesy as a fireman to talk his way out of speeding tickets or to explain why he’s driving without a California Driver’s License.

Getting up there in age with a bum knee getting bummer from climbing ladders, he no longer can get away with appeals for firemen favors, but he does have away about him, and we all pass without pay.

We pick up a folding brochure and a white map with black lines showing “Highways & Public Campgrounds” with a squared in “Points of Interest” legend showing the US Forest and Arizona State Parks camp grounds if that was our mission.

But it wasn’t.

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

Emma the Baroness and I both gazed over it quickly enough to see a dark thick black line labeled I-17 meandering from the upper left boarder (with an arrow to Flagstaff) down to the near middle page terminating under the corner of the legend square (with an arrow to Phoenix).

Near the mid range meandering above the legend “Points of Interest”  we saw a thinner, but dark line all squiggly yet paved road (89A) with an arrow pointing west towards Prescott.

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

Since this wasn’t inside South Coast Plaza and we weren’t standing next to the directory map, it took a few moments longer to zero in to “You Are Here” in this case Montezuma Castle National Monument.

“ WTF?” I muttered to myself.  I didn’t know what I expected as we strolled down a cement sidewalk through a clump of trees until they parted revealing the side of a cliff wall.

These are the Mesa Verde 5-story cliff dwellings, only not here in Arizona and not called by the right name.

Don’t take my  word for it, try Wikipedia:

When European-Americans first observed the ruins in the 1860s, by then long-abandoned, they named them for the famous Aztec emperor Montezuma in the mistaken belief that he had been connected to their construction. 

Having no connections to the Aztecs, the Montezuma Castle was given that name due to the fact that the public had this image of the Aztecs creating any archaeological site.

In fact, the dwelling was abandoned more than 40 years before Montezuma was born, and was not a “castle” in the traditional sense, but instead functioned more like a “prehistoric high rise apartment complex”.

Still not knowing where we were exactly, I asked our local European-American couple —Jay and Elle —who hosted us and drove us here, if they had been to Mesa Verde National Park which lies south of Durango on 1-160, where they used to live and we visited twice, once before they moved in when we explored the Balcony House and the Cliff Palace?

Elle flicked a fly that buzzed around her face and said she and Jay had talked about it, but didn’t.

Still not remembering that Mesa Verde National Park is in Colorado, not Arizona, I noted the Montezuma Castle were constructed on the face of the cliff here in the Verde Valley created by the Verde River.  

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

“Mesa Verde” and “Verde Valley”  and “Verde River” have to be connected, right?  I mean look up at the five stories main structure with about 20 rooms built over the course of three centuries.

Oops, I now recall it was the Anasazi people — ancestral Pueblo-ans — that lived for roughly 700 years in Mesa Verde, having migrated from the Four Corners region.

Here in Camp Verde, Arizona, built by the Sinagua people:

A pre-Columbian culture closely related to the Hohokam and other indigenous peoples of the southwestern United States, between approximately AD 1100 and 1425.

Like it was way back then, the Verde River is one of Arizona’s last free-flowing river systems. But, now like the I-17, the water flows to over 2 million people in the greater Phoenix area. 

Mesa Verde, now that was like the Trump Towers compared to Montezuma’s Castle.  

The first time we visited Durango, Colorado we left the Grand Canyon and came to a fork in the road.

Image Credit: Google Maps

East takes us past Mesa Verde National Park, on 160 towards Durango.

Bummer. 

We’re twenty minutes away from the first set of Mesa Verde ruins and the ranger told us they close in an hour. We lost an hour during the time change — something we hadn’t counted on. And, that put us into the park entrance later than we wanted. 

Image Credit: Mesa Verde National Park

That means that the Balcony House and the Cliff Palace tours would be closed. 

Where did we mess up? We plotted our route taking us near Mexican Hat to the 666 and towards Cortez,

I didn’t even consider a time change for Mesa Verde and Durango. 

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

This has been one trip with a lot of driving. All I had thought about is next stop the Mesa Verde and then 45 minute drive to Durango, our outpost for three nights and two days before pressing on to Denver. 

But this time, here now at Montezuma’s Castle in Arizona Jay is doing all the driving.

Turning Montezuma’s Castles brochure over sitting in Jay’s passenger seat I noticed Sedona in the upper right hand corner.  First we’d spend a day in Jerome, and then bid goodbye to our Prescott friends and end our vacation in Red Rock country.

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “New communities and circles intrigue you. You can’t tell from the storefront what this is all about; you have to go in and feel the vibes. You’ll know within the first dozen interactions.” Scorpio

We concluded the three-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed — during the “normal” pre-pandemic year compared to the pandemic year, and more recently to the paradoxically normal year. 

Season Four continues now within domestic and global chaos.

Previously in Season Four, The Disruptively Resilient Year

S4 E39 — Closing in on Uncle Billy’s Lynx Creek Mining Claim ; S4 E38 — Billy and Buckey Blow My Brain in Whiskey Row’s Palace; S4 E37 — Racing a Little Wobbly on Whiskey Row

Related from Season Three, the Paradoxically Normal Year

S3 E40 — How Stealing Your Sign Led Me to a Nobel Prize; S3 E39 — Ready for Your Big Leap Forward?; S3 E38 — Sliding on a Super Slippery Slope to 2nd or 3rd Cousins; S3 E37 — Tell Me More Lies I Can Believe In

Related from Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E40 — The Profound Impact of the Pandemic on Nouns; S2 E39 — The Best Tau for the Pandemic Year, Don’t You Agree?; S2 E38 — What Should You Do If You Stumble Across Loaded Information?; S2 E37 — How Deep is the Chasm? What Do We Do?

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E40 — Nothing to See Here, Keep Moving On; S1 E39 — What’s Up with Facebook?; S1 E38 — Day 38 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E37 — Day 37 of My 1-Year Experiment

Evidence

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “New communities and circles intrigue you. You can’t tell from the storefront what this is all about; you have to go in and feel the vibes. You’ll know within the first dozen interactions.” Scorpio

Let’s see now.  We’ve visited Durango, Colorado twice.  The last time when Jay and Elle lived there.  Of course we spent almost two weeks with Jay and Elle on our anniversary vacation in Italy, when they had moved back from Colorado to Mission Viejo, but struggled to keep the documents flowing for closing escrow in time for their current home, here in Prescott.  

So yes, new communities do intrigue me, especially the history. I love to imagine what things were like in the past.  And of course, I wrote the series, The Knowledge Path: Live, Love, Work, Play, Invest and Leave a Legacy which I’m now describing as Volume One all about the “where” — and two of the books drill down into the “how” of finding the best quality of life communities for you in California and in Colorado.

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

Today’s Holiday Birthday: 

You’ve faced a lot of challenges that conditioned your grit. Now you’ll put that knowledge to the test on a wondrous challenge. You will create yourself. Through actions, wishes, exercises, work and reflection you’ll become someone navigating a life you once only dreamed about. Your support system and your family tree will expand.

“4”  Steve Kerr, 54: “As the sign of balance and fairness, you are keenly aware of how the quest for justice often leads to injustice. And yet, you still try to make things right, a mission that will absorb some of your hours today.” Libra

Well, if you scroll down near the bottom, you’ll see how I’m stuck on “accountability” and the shrinking “justice role” so prevalent today.  What my dear friend Jay calls conservatism and the Baroness and I call selfish, shady, corrupt and definitely not good business as one of her sorority sisters described the former president.

“3”  Steve Aoki, 41; Steven Spielberg, 74: “You’re exciting because you entertain risky ideas, not because you always do them — that would make you foolhardy! What you’re cooking up in that playful mind of yours is making you very attractive to someone.” Sagittarius

I’m chalking this up to wish fulfillment.  If you’re like Jay you don’t favor anything that threatens a status quo — taking something away.  Or entertaining ideas like AI or quantum physics or any of the trends and forces influencing the direction and opportunities available to those of us who pull our heads out of the sand.  There, I said it.

“4” Steve Nash, 45: “This role you took on no longer feels like a good fit. Now what? Well, this script you’re going by is not the Ten Commandments. It wasn’t written on stone tablets. You can change it without a chisel.” Aquarius

What we’re talking about here is what I cover in “Volume Two Manuscript”.  How in your work life, if you now realized the misfit and are pursuing a better fit, I’ve got you covered. Of, course this also applies to how a one-year natural experiment turned into the 4th season and dragged me into the middle of it kicking and screaming.  Wink.

“4”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “It will be challenging to lead others to your purposes today. The key is to be consistent and repetitive. People will learn and dance to your rhythm, but first you have to start banging that drum.”Pisces

Bang. Bang. Bang.

Long-Form

    • “Here, Right Matters: An American Story” by Alexander Vindman. “We’d long been confused by the president’s policy of accommodation and appeasement of Russia, the United States’ most pressing major adversary. Russia’s president Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, seizing the Crimean Peninsula, attacking its industrial heartland, the Donbass, from the capital, Kyiv. By 2019, little had changed, Russian military and security forces and their proxy separatists continued to occupy the Donbass. The biggest change was to Ukraine’s importance as a bulwark against Russian aggression weeks earlier, the White House had abruptly put a hold on nearly four hundred million dollars.” 
    • David Enrich begins his book with a suicide in “Deutsche Bank Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction” and then meticulously details the bank’s Russian money laundering operations. Deutsche’s Russian business surged after revenues had fallen 50% due to the 2008 financial crisis. Putin’s Russia, poured in to Deutsche from deals it did with VTB Bank, linked to the Kremlin’s intelligence apparatus. Deutsche positioned itself as a crucial cog in “The Laundromat” by doing what couldn’t be done — processing cross-border transactions for banks that were too small  and didn’t have offices outside their home countries.
    • “Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy” by Jamie Raskin recalls one tragedy no parent should endure — the suicide of his son — and then a second tragedy at almost the same time — the insurrection on January 6th 2021, that terrified he and his congressional peers who were tasked by the Constitution to routinely oversee the orderly transfer of power from one former president to the duly elected new President. 
    • “A Warning” by Anonymous (Miles Taylor) written prior to the January 6th Insurrection as an insider’s account documenting how frequently the former President’s behavior and rage without any “guard rails” showed just how far he would go to win the next election at any cost while spinning lies and misinformation on top of each other.  
    • “Peril” by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa provides anecdotes, stories and inside reporting documenting the controversial last days of Donald Trump’s presidency, as well as the presidential transition and early presidency of Joe Biden. 
    • “Devil’s Bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the Nationalist Uprising,” by Joshua Green tracks the money behind the scenes leading up to the 2016 presidential election and the growing influence of Steve Bannon’s network of extreme nationalists.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

 

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S4 E39 — Closing in on Uncle Billy’s Lynx Creek Mining Claim

“Stop” I yell as movement to my right catches my eye. Jay slams on the brakes.  He’d been glancing off into the trees on the left side of the road. “What?”

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trips

Knowledge ATMs 

A peak behind the scenes of self-publishing, crowdfunding, and working for yourself

Table of Contents

Hi and welcome to Friday’s 39th Episode in Season 4 of  “Our Disruptively Resilient Year” on this 13th day of May in the spring of 2022.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll

    • @KnowLabs suite of 36 digital magazines, according to my analytics, grew from 12880 this week to 12943 organically grown followers.
    • Orange County Beach Towns 204 viewers stopped by the week before.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Context

Jay began to twitch.  He needed to stretch his legs and he had more on his mind, like the agenda for our afternoon sightseeing before we hit the road for Sedona in a day and a half.

Elle and Emma the Baroness were all for it, but first they wanted to check out where the music came from near where the cyclists entered Whiskey Row to our right as we walked out the front door of The Palace.  

There he was in the flesh.  Kind of like the Greeter in Laguna Beach, only instead of a Scandinavian named Lars, it was a local costumed in Wyatt Earp cowboy with dark pants, a holstered revolver, a billowy white shirt with a dark vest, handlebar mustache and Stetson.  

He nodded.  

We nodded. 

We crossed the street, retraced our steps to the left of the old white courthouse past Buckey O’Neill’s statue and to the street parallel to Whiskey Row.  Picnickers stretched out on blankets on the green grass in the shade under towering trees.  Some leaned their bikes against the trunks.

Just like how the Prescott streets were barricaded for the race the area in front of the bandstand so too was with an orange mesh barrier that sagged and with traffic cones.

Image Copyright 2022 Stephen G. Howard

The message was clear.  It was a pay to hear them play.  Jay twitch returned.  He negotiated with Elle as only husband and wife can out of earshot.  Elle directed us across the intersection to jump into their SUV for the continuing tour.

“Where we going?” I asked Jay after resuming my post riding shotgun in the passenger front seat.  

“You’ll see.”

He took us on a tour of the Prescott suburb so we could see luxury homes overlooking distant vistas and the lush fairways and greens in the valley below.  

Elle suggested stopping in at the Club as the sun began casting long shadows where she would host a Derby-day party for members on the day we headed out.  But, an ‘80s themed party was just started which meant only partiers were allowed.  

Now what?

“I know,” Jay said.

We hit the road for the wilderness.  

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard Copyright 2022

“I think we can get close to where your Uncle Billy worked his 400 ft. claim at Lynx Creek.”  

Surprisingly it wasn’t that far in the late afternoon.  Soon we meandered down an asphalt road deeper into the forest. 

Oops.  We encounter a road closed sign.  Fire threat.

I crane my neck as we begin to turn around down to where Jay had pointed towards Lynx Lake.

But, except for the place you can rent boats I couldn’t see through the trees to anything that would fuel my Uncle Billy imagination.

Moments later I turn to look straight ahead.

“Stop” I yell as movement to my right catches my eye.

Jay slams on the brakes.  He’d been glancing off into the trees on the left side of the road.

“What?”

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

A half a dozen deer clear a fence on the passenger side road and leap in front of Jay’s black SUV and down into a wooded meadow.  Three more do the same behind our vehicle

Through the one-way street maze which throws Jay into a frustrating loop we just can’t seem to find our way through to our destination.

Wait, there’s a city truck with workers in yellow safety vests hanging off the back end grabbing orange cones which allows Jay to navigate through two malls side-by-side.

We only half to walk a block and a half to the entrance of El Gato Azul.

At 316 W. Goodwin, EL Gato Azul’s reputation was “Preskit’s Quirky, Cozy, Friendly Place to Meet!” and known as “Southwest Inspired Tapas & Cuisine”

El Gato Front pic painting

The small yellow building with a blue door framed by a variety of flowers in a dark purple and gray containers in wood and cement.

Our waitress doubles as bartender, she tells us.  El Gato Azul is by popular restaurant standards.  And that equation translates into a small, cramped kitchen and bar.  

Our hostess leads the way to our table.  Not known for ambience, a sheet of plastic separates our table from 3 tanks of propane.

Looking up and out onto the street, we see couples and groups of couples returning from the square which we sense is closing down — party over.

Instead of passing in front of the restaurant, they follow a path down a green overgrown slope onto what would have been a creek. 

Jay says it’s a shortcut to a parallel street behind El Gato Azul.

We pass on any hint of dessert, I pick up the check and we climb up to the street from the restaurant’s entrance, turn right and make our way back to the strip mall’s parking spot.

Before the night is over I describe the article about Prescott, prefacing it with how infrequently Siri finds something for me in Apple News.  

“We know her.”

The headline read, Aggressive coyote attacks woman walking dog — and nips at others, Arizona police say” and, get this it ran in The Kansas City Star.

Jay’s daughter, who lives in Northern California,  saw it too and sent it to him.  Elle said she’s a fitness instructor and used to getting out on the trails around their community.  

Joe stood up, poured more wine from the bottle we brought as we continued to relax on their back patio and then he put more wood in their outdoor fireplace to take away the chill.

“Adding insult to injury” Elle said .“She had to get all of those rabies shots too.”

“It’s pronounced like ‘Havelina’” Elle corrected me.  Like La Hoya instead of La Jolla she suggested as I brought up the other Apple News story about a Javelina in Sedona, “Hungry Javelina Gets Stuck in Car, Goes for a Ride in Arizona” from Chedder News.

Image Credit: WikiMedia Commons

They have a family of Javelinas that pass through in their back gravel and rock “yard” into their neighbors.

We thought they were a wild pig or something, but apparently they are their own species, they said.

In Sedona the Javelina rooted around in an empty vehicle, knocked it out of gear into neutral and took a joy ride.

Not quite as accomplished, nor as notorious as the Lake Tahoe bears, we trade stories about bears demolishing cars and trucks and breaking into kitchens usually through Tahoe garages and hibernating under second homes while unintended.

The next morning I swore I heard that Javelina family outside our window in the guest bedroom, but now I believe it was just Jay sweeping dust off his sidewalk and front entry.

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

“5” Steve Carell, 57; Steve Martin, 74; Steve Wozniak, 69: “You’ll notice you’re of a different mind entirely from where you were last year. You’ve dispelled a few myths and course-corrected accordingly. You’ll get a chance to go back and pick up something you lost along the way.” Leo

We concluded the three-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed — during the “normal” pre-pandemic year compared to the pandemic year, and more recently to the paradoxically normal year. 

Season Four continues now within domestic and global chaos.

Previously in Season Four, The Disruptively Resilient Year

S4 E38 — Billy and Buckey Blow My Brain in Whiskey Row’s Palace; S4 E37 — Racing a Little Wobbly on Whiskey Row; S4 E36 — Big Rigs, Skull Valley and Yarnell Hotshots

Related from Season Three, the Paradoxically Normal Year

S3 E39 — Ready for Your Big Leap Forward?; S3 E38 — Sliding on a Super Slippery Slope to 2nd or 3rd Cousins; S3 E37 — Tell Me More Lies I Can Believe In; S3 E36 — Placebo, Meaningful Coincidence or Just Feeling Lucky

Related from Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E39 — The Best Tau for the Pandemic Year, Don’t You Agree?; S2 E38 — What Should You Do If You Stumble Across Loaded Information?; S2 E37 — How Deep is the Chasm? What Do We Do?; S2 E36 — Turning Lemons into Margaritas

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E39 — What’s Up with Facebook?; S1 E38 — Day 38 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E37 — Day 37 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E36 — Day 36 of My 1-Year Experiment

Evidence

Holiday Theme for Friday the 13th:  

Many tall buildings avoid naming the 13th floor and go right to the 14th (or more conspicuously to “12B”) in hopes of getting around the bad luck. There are airports without a 13th gate and teams without a player No. 13. What superstition do you keep alive to avoid bad luck or engender good luck? Is it working?

“4”  Steve Zahn, 51: “Some say everything happens for a reason. Others say life is random. You’ll have a little evidence for both arguments today and whatever you get you’ll leverage into a tidy chunk of good fortune.” Scorpio

Okay, this appears to be sufficiently mysterious.  Yes, my mother after something bad happened would say, “Everything happens for a reason.”  She never could tell me why.  Now I should wait for my good fortune to appear, right?

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

“5” Steve Carell, 57; Steve Martin, 74; Steve Wozniak, 69: “You’ll notice you’re of a different mind entirely from where you were last year. You’ve dispelled a few myths and course-corrected accordingly. You’ll get a chance to go back and pick up something you lost along the way.” Leo

Wait, isn’t this all about how events conspired to entice me to drag this natural experiment into four seasons now? But, what was it that I lost along the way? 

“4”  Steve Aoki, 41; Steven Spielberg, 74: “There will be pressure to take life at a hurried speed. Push back — change lanes or remove yourself from the race entirely. You’ll be happier going at your own pace.” Sagittarius

Well, I am an introvert.  And like all introverts, our brains are wired differently.  It just takes more time to process what’s being shot at us through a firehose of events.  Is that why I’m an advocate for anticipating how the convergence of trends shapes our futures?  So I have more time to plan contingencies?  And at the slightest hint of a pivot or a new direction required I’ve anticipated enough that I can activate if this, then that plans.

“4”  Steve Harvey, 62; Stephan Patis, 53;  Stephen Hawking (1943 – 2018): “‘No matter how brilliant your work may be, it won’t play in the wrong crowd. Do your research, find out what appetites you’re dealing with, and aim your efforts to serve those desires.” Capricorn 

This just seems to be a lesson I still haven’t learned the hard way.

“5”  Steve Nash, 45: “It’s weird, but it does happen… people can be good, enjoyable company and yet be, nonetheless, bad for you. For whatever reason certain people bring out a side of you that you’d rather keep in. Noted!”Aquarius 

I don’t know if it is arrogant or from a streak of elitist in me, but just like Ian one of my clients told me, “I don’t suffer fools” easily.  If you’re asking my opinion, I believe our former President took advantage of the ignorance of his followers like PT Barnum had all those decades ago.

“4”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “You have something that the others need. Position yourself to be available to those who have best earned your offering or those who most desperately need it.” Pisces

Except for making myself available for people one-at-a-time I don’t seem to command a wide enough audience for those who desperately need something from me can find me.

Long-Form

    • “Here, Right Matters: An American Story” by Alexander Vindman. “We’d long been confused by the president’s policy of accommodation and appeasement of Russia, the United States’ most pressing major adversary. Russia’s president Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, seizing the Crimean Peninsula, attacking its industrial heartland, the Donbass, from the capital, Kyiv. By 2019, little had changed, Russian military and security forces and their proxy separatists continued to occupy the Donbass. The biggest change was to Ukraine’s importance as a bulwark against Russian aggression weeks earlier, the White House had abruptly put a hold on nearly four hundred million dollars.” 
    • David Enrich begins his book with a suicide in “Deutsche Bank Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction” and then meticulously details the bank’s Russian money laundering operations. Deutsche’s Russian business surged after revenues had fallen 50% due to the 2008 financial crisis. Putin’s Russia, poured in to Deutsche from deals it did with VTB Bank, linked to the Kremlin’s intelligence apparatus. Deutsche positioned itself as a crucial cog in “The Laundromat” by doing what couldn’t be done — processing cross-border transactions for banks that were too small  and didn’t have offices outside their home countries.
    • “Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy” by Jamie Raskin recalls one tragedy no parent should endure — the suicide of his son — and then a second tragedy at almost the same time — the insurrection on January 6th 2021, that terrified he and his congressional peers who were tasked by the Constitution to routinely oversee the orderly transfer of power from one former president to the duly elected new President. 
    • “A Warning” by Anonymous (Miles Taylor) written prior to the January 6th Insurrection as an insider’s account documenting how frequently the former President’s behavior and rage without any “guard rails” showed just how far he would go to win the next election at any cost while spinning lies and misinformation on top of each other.  
    • “Peril” by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa provides anecdotes, stories and inside reporting documenting the controversial last days of Donald Trump’s presidency, as well as the presidential transition and early presidency of Joe Biden. 
    • “Devil’s Bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the Nationalist Uprising,” by Joshua Green tracks the money behind the scenes leading up to the 2016 presidential election and the growing influence of Steve Bannon’s network of extreme nationalists.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

Posted on

S3 E50 — Swinging with Systematic-Professionals, Sorta

Sig went missing.  As did Mary.  The rumor that floated in gossip streams at the state hospital was he suffered a heart attack and Mary caught a flight back to upstate New York.

“5”  Steve Aoki, 41: “You’ll reach a turning point in your work. Pause here a while to really consider the options. Once you pick a direction, its reversal, though not impossible, will be awkward and time-consuming.” Sagittarius

Hi and welcome to Saturday’s Episode 50 in Season 3 of  “My Paradoxically Normal Year” on this 22nd day of May in the spring of 2021 — which is a three-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed during the “normal” pre-pandemic year and then in the pandemic year, and now months after.

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

Previously from Season Three, the Paradoxically Normal Year

S3 E49 — Stealing Your Sign Without Doing the Time; S3 E48 — Is That an Ace Up Your Sleeve or Are You Just Glad to See Me?; S3 E47 — Why’s and How’s of the Genius Art of Procrastination

Related from Season Two, The Pandemic Year

S2 E50 — 5 Fundamental Uncertainties; S2 E49 — Navigating Waves of Disruption When You’ve Lost Your Bearings; S2 E48 — Tracking Millennials from One Resort to Another; S2 E47 — 27 Adventure Regions for Your Remote-Working Bucket List

Related from Season One, The Normal Year

S1 E50 – The Bias Brothers or Just Plain Losers?; S1 E49 — Magnetize the Version You Imagine; S1 E48 — Holiday TauBit Trumps Funk; S1 E47 — Day 47 of My 1-Year Experiment

I initially introduced this story as: 

17. Graduate Assistant Internship — 

Working for the State of California half time and professional services startup in the afternoons, as my first job in the field of psychology, and first mentioned in the beginning of “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit,” a work-in-progress.

Sig went missing.  As did Mary.  The rumor that floated in gossip streams at the state hospital was he suffered a heart attack and Mary caught a flight back to upstate New York.   

I wasn’t buying it.  

My sweet deal blew up.  

I’d been living the dream nestled in a small bungalow on Fernleaf in Corona del Mar on the western side of Pacific Coast Highway.  I hiked on a walkway over Bayside Drive, what for what may be 3 or 4 blocks to the bluffs overlooking the mouth to Newport Harbor and the small beach at Pirates Cove.  

If I walked the same distance, but east of my rental, I spooked ground squirrels and those owls who burrow in the ground through and open field to the office in Newport Center.  

Two things saved me.  

    • I could still hang on to my internship at the state hospital at the beginning of my psychology career and I met the love of my life, Emma the Baroness. At the hospital he supervised be in one program full of developmentally delayed clients and Les in another.   
    • As a business model was a doctor-knows-all in a pecking order of nurses and administrative staff. I was shocked with his out of the blue comment and his prescience when he told me I wouldn’t stay married long. I chalked up to his wisdom as a clinician, until looking back I wondered if he had recruited me for something else entirely.

In their private life, Sig and Mary swung if that is how you say swingers in the past tense.  

That fact only slowly emerged as celebrity-like friends of theirs visited our Institute office near the athletic club and the shopping destination overlooking Corona del Mar hidden in swaying palm trees and Balboa Island and Peninsula off in the distance, but still at the edge of the Pacific Ocean.  

Sig needed money to keep the Institute’s doors open.  

He put the touch on several of their swinging friends from Beverly Hills and others who streamed through our suite of offices to sample our bio-feedback services.  

The background story I eventually heard was Sig fled New York, left his wife, son and a psychology practice with Mary, his girlfriend,  and settled a mile or two just outside the border of Huntington Beach. 

Sig envisioned a business model similar to a franchise of bio-feedback centers in Southern California.  

We couldn’t find clients, let alone celebrity investors or potential franchisers.  But, the challenge opened my eyes to corporate medical and wellness centers in large organizations and eventually to several career changes.

So what happened to Sig?  

Did he fake his death to throw off his creditors?  I never found out and it wasn’t until later that I understood organizations and organization types that I see we were Systematic-Professionals.

We Systematic-Professionals come in four flavors — talent brands of experts who love their profession and their local location. In general we are known for methods and metrics. 

    • We prefer to distance themselves to remain objective and follow a well-articulated and tested methodology.
    • We find occupational homes in university research centers, professional practices, academic institutions and in standards-setting associations. 
    • Our identity is tied to their profession.

Systematic-Professionals by the very nature of their work make the best candidates for developing a Mobile KnowCo that allows them to live and work anywhere in the world. 

Which made it easy for Sig to leave his practice in New York, affiliate with a state hospital in Orange County, and launch BMI.

But, many stay in one place –- in or around university towns or urban and suburban centers where they find clients for their services.

Which led to “Knowledge Banking” many years later, when I looked around and asked, “Should I stay or should I go?”

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

Ha!  Too bad this wasn’t Sig’s birthday, right.  Maybe we could travel back in time and find his investors to fund BMI.  And, this ain’t my birthday, but the lessons I learned and took note of paid dividends for me over my career trajectories.

Today’s Holiday Birthday:

A rebellious spirit pervades. The rules you break will liberate you. You’ll attract investors. The money helps you get a project off the ground, but there’s even more value in the time and lessons you gain. To repeat this success will bring you exponentially more, so take careful notes, pay attention and be methodical.

“5”  Steve McQueen (1930 – 1980): “Success in one area of life won’t automatically bring success in other areas, but certain basic principles will apply universally. The work is best chunked down into small steps and mastered in order.” Aries

Yup, Steve chunking is good.  I used to call it knowledge chunking, breaking down lessons learned into knowledge nuggets so you could apply them in a variety of settings.

“4”  Steve Smith, 30, Stevie Nicks, 72: “There’s a time to keep score, and a time to indulge and share without worrying the least bit about who gave what. Scorekeeping turns giving and receiving into a job or a game instead of a spiritual act or a pure pleasure.” Gemini

Thanks Smithy and Stevie.  This reminds me of research I stumbled upon in my behavior modification days.  If you rewarded kids who truly enjoyed math with stars and tokens they grew to hate math.  I’m not sure about the spiritual corollary, but I’ll take it.

“5”  Steve Aoki, 41: “You’ll reach a turning point in your work. Pause here a while to really consider the options. Once you pick a direction, its reversal, though not impossible, will be awkward and time-consuming.” Sagittarius

Wow, Steve.  Not only did my physical therapist know who you were and shared your sign, but your Holiday Tau proves meaningful to me today.  I’m writing up my report about Phase 1, including the expansion of the 1-year natural experimental format into our pandemic year somewhat reluctantly, while I figure out Phase 2 in which I solicit TauBits from real Steves.  I’m thinking through my strategy attempting to gauge how much time and effort it will require, versus my return-on-investment.

“4”  Steve Harvey, 62: “While you’d rather go into a game with a strategy, those require time you won’t have today. So, the best strategy will be to stay on high alert for clues and trust your instincts.”  Capricorn

Since when Steve are you in collusion with Aoki?  Here’s my takeaway when I combine both of your Holiday Taus — keep an evolving scenario in the background, but start with small steps so I can iterate without reinventing the wheel and essentially starting over.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll 

    • @KnowLabs suite of 36 digital magazines jumps from 8203 to 8218 organically grown followers.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Long-Form

    • “Why?: What Makes Us Curious,” by Mario Livio. “… socially shared myths, rituals, and symbolism were most likely the first sophisticated responses to nagging why and how questions and were therefore the fruits of curiosity. The chain reaction that resulted from the positive feedback between curiosity and language turned Homo sapiens into a powerful intellect, with self-awareness and an inner life.”

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by: Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

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S2 E103 — Confronting Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt, Resistance and Unrelenting Stress

Attempting so much, so fast to meet the more drastic measures in a shorter time frame while in steep decline, created larger than expected stress levels in a climate of fear, uncertainty and doubt.  Large scale, mature organizations, I learned resist change like an immune system does.

“5” Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “When you can’t be knowledgeable (no one can know all things, and if they could, they’d be insufferable) then be versatile. The ability to adapt and respond is more important than the ability to know and stand correct.” Pisces

Hi and welcome to Thursday’s Episode 103 in Season 2 of  “My Pandemic Year Natural Experiment” on this 27th day of August in the summer of 2020.  

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

Season One and Two are a two-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed during the “normal” pre-pandemic and then in this unfolding pandemic year.

Previously in Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E102 — Caught by Surprise in a Major Gut-Wrenching Decline; S2 E101 — The Story of Strange Bedfellows Saving the Day; S2 E100 — Live, Love, Work, Play, Invest and Leave a Legacy

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E103 — Innies and Outies and Other Potential Catastrophes; S1 E102 — Why Is It Always Hidden in the Fine Print?; S1 E101 — From Saint to Soul Mate and Trusted Friend; S1 E100 — Running out of Determination and Grit by the 100th Day

Context

This is a continuation of “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit” a work-in-progress.

In previous episodes we described Start Up, Emerging Growth, Rapid Growth, Sustained Growth, Maturity and Decline stages.  But, each with the emphasis on how a specific stage provides another better fit opportunity for one or more of 16 Talent Profiles.

We described two mini case studies of what it was like working behind the scenes at a mature companies in a financial, in a consumer industries and in another century-old university system — Part One and Two. 

Consequences of Not Mastering Growth Crises

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

We now shift to a fourth example of a century-old mature organization, a multinational engineering and construction company, but this time caught by surprise which led to a major decline. We continue with Part Two describing restructuring initiatives.

22. Internal Consultant MD&T 

Part Two

Matrix Management

This was a matrix organization of large scale construction projects staffed by engineering disciplines which for performance and salary reviews made management administration difficult and complex.  As oil refinery and energy construction orders disappeared in the “income pipeline” minor initial adjustments  turned more drastic as the industry downturn lasted much longer than expected.  

Then Came The Restructuring 

And, then the industry-wide turn down blew into town.  During the downturn doing things the way they had always been done gave way to cutting back — introduction of new project efficiencies, quality improvements, new technologies, expansion of sales and marketing tools and orientation, and outplacement for hundreds of employees receiving their Friday pink slips.

So Much Change = FUD

Attempting so much, so fast to meet the more drastic measures in a shorter time frame while declining created larger than expected stress levels in a climate of fear, uncertainty and doubt.  Large scale organizations, I learned resist change like an immune system does.  

My Colleagues

A crisis threw me and all my colleagues in our internal consulting unit into high alert.   For us trainers the announcement that the entire Supervisors Certificate program had been cancelled caused a group panic.  

But, as it turned out we huddled with our new leader who filled the 30-day leader vacuum and launched a conspiracy.  

We focused on applying lessons learned in consulting engagements.  We partnered with another internal consultant in our group for coaching and advising reluctant formerly high potential leaders into entrepreneurial or cost-cutting projects that would test their meddle.

Sales Training, Situational Leadership, Quality Improvement, OD team building

before the new boss, Dr. Paul assumed the position.  Luckily, his vision for the department was pretty much a reinvention of what it had been years earlier — internal consultants 

New Technology Introduction

From a trial demonstration and research into technology introductions I helped shape the initial drafts of new plant design and 3-D graphics proposal, 

Key components:

    • Management Strategy and Role, 
    • Employee Involvement, 
    • Formal Education Considerations, 
    • Organizational Design, and 
    • Rewards and Incentives, 

Each section generated a different set of problems and challenges to be worked through.  

If the new technology was to have a positive rather than a costly non-productive impact, those issues needed to be addressed.

Distilled from USC and UCI 102 Thought Leaders one major conclusion was it didn’t matter what the specific technology was, the reception of it by the employees could lead to a sabotaging disaster or a career advancing success.  

Sabotage Followed from Shock and Surprise.  

No advanced warnings.  Just execution.  Career advancing ended with execution, but began with widespread organizational planning.  

Out of that naturally flowed the development of requirements.  Not everyone had to be involved, but they needed to receive communications about progress, especially during the planning about implementation and integration strategies.  

Why, who, what, when, where, and how it would impacted those affected.  If you laid the ground work, then and only then do you entertain bids and select the best fit technology solutions.  

And finally, you execute.

Upskilling Sales and Marketing 

Sheila, a Ph.D and 102 Thought Leaders, like our new leader Paul brought a more academic, yet faster paced urgency to new initiatives. 

I partnered with Sheila and Irv in the complex Sales Training Program 

Sales and marketing presentation case studies of wins and losses replaced boom time deals done over country club handshakes We addressed pressures on sales and marketing when the backlog of new major projects dwindled and new proposals met with demand by the huge clients to interview not just the executives, but the technical staff and project administrators as well.  

If each person in group panels contradicted another person’s expert assessment, that multi-million project would be awarded to a competitor. In one actual deal gone south two engineers argued over the company’s “bottom of the barrel” extraction capabilities in front of the client team charged with choosing among competitors.

It didn’t go well!

First came the classroom training emphasizing presentation skills and sales techniques that most engineers cringed at, being Systematic-Professionals, 116 Institutional Traditionalists and 114 Brand-as-Experts as they participated.  But, during the competing teams challenge they appreciated the additional skills required once a real case study had been analyzed, compared to competitor strengths and weaknesses and a sales theme emphasizing our strengths and their weaknesses against the stated and unstated client requirements.

Then each team member presented a portion of the proposal to a team of judges taped for debrief and prizes. One-on-one individual feedback sessions followed.

Quality Improvement Program

As more managers got the cost-cutting imperative message I began facilitating meetings using agendas from one of our canceled classes, which emphasized collaborative problem solving including inviting cross-department participation, brainstorming potential solutions, assessing the best ones, getting buy-in for implementation and scheduling action steps.

In my partnered quality consultant role, I enjoyed working “in the snake pit” with the maverick process engineering department.  One of the major issues to emerge was activating our “unsatisfactory counseling procedures” to help resolve an older opinionated employee who hated working for a newly assigned rookie supervisor.

I advised the quality improvement steering committee set up in the process engineering department.  Sometimes it boiled down to just “giving permission” for them to be creative in their own coordination of their approach to QIP implementation.  Initially the process engineers were the biggest skeptics of the “make certain” and “do it right the first time” slogans injected from a popular canned program bought in from the outside.

They are the Prima Dona department.  On any project they are the ones who design the processes and technology to be engineered.  Many times it is trial and error in the beginning and is by its nature creative

But, they are isolated.  Having only one department meeting someone remembered happening 20 years ago.  Therefore, they didn’t act as a team or have a core identity.  We began low key with setting up informal get togethers to help boost their morale, define themselves and to one to grips with their unique quality issues and dilemmas.

Eventually, they figured out the benefits accruing to them as they participated, especially when after they took off their “training wheels” the tackled the problems and challenges they all wanted fixed “by someone” else.  And they enjoyed it.

Evidence

“4”  Steve Zahn, 51: “Part of you has been making plans without the other part. Get all sides together for a sit-down talk aimed at naming a few common goals. You’re as powerful as you are unified.”Scorpio

During declining restructuring from a position of leadership, you can be a good corporate citizen, but know your best interests may not be what the executives have in mind.  Therefore, plot out a plan A for surviving, but a plan B for when you don’t.

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

“3”  Steve McQueen (1930 – 1980): “Nice isn’t always good, and not nice isn’t always bad. There are many reasons people have for doing what they do and for being in the mood they are in. Stay aware of the bigger picture.”  Aries 

During conditions of fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD) sometimes a more directive leadership style is required due to the urgency.  

“5” Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “When you can’t be knowledgeable (no one can know all things, and if they could, they’d be insufferable) then be versatile. The ability to adapt and respond is more important than the ability to know and stand correct.” Pisces

Engineers often require a fail-safe perspective because what they design can endanger workers in the field, in the plants and in their offices.  A strength taken too far — deployed over and over again no matter the situation — becomes a weakness.  Analysis-paralysis leads to overthinking at a time when action is required.  And resistance turns to indirect sabotage.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll 

    • @knowlabs followers of one or more of my 35 digital magazines organically grew from 4733 to 4807.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Long-Form

    • Saw the movie, didn’t realize that one of my favorite authors, Michael Connelly — his detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch book series and Amazon Prime series — also wrote, “The Lincoln Lawyer” which I just finished. Gotta tell you I can’t not see his lead character (Mickey Haller, Bosch’s half brother) as anyone else but Matthew McConaughey. 

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by: Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

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S4 E37 — Racing a Little Wobbly on Whiskey Row

Over the loud speaker we heard, “And, here comes #32 Alan Lars.” The cyclists ended their race at the intersection to our right.  Jay told us across the street were Prescott’s historic buildings, including The Palace, Arizona’s oldest restaurant and bar.

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trips

Knowledge ATMs 

A peak behind the scenes of self-publishing, crowdfunding, and working for yourself

Table of Contents

Hi and welcome to Sunday’s 37th Episode in Season 4 of  “Our Disruptively Resilient Year” on this 8th day of May in the spring of 2022.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll

    • @KnowLabs suite of 36 digital magazines, according to my analytics, grew from 12880 this week to 12943 organically grown followers.
    • Orange County Beach Towns 220 viewers stopped by the week before.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Context

By the time Jay and I returned from inspecting their property in a cookie-cutter suburb that might have been a stereotypical community in California, except instead of anything green for this spring time of year, all you could see was Palm Springs-like decor but without the palm trees.  

Like at Jay and Elle’s house smaller and larger rocks filled in their landscape.  At least in their front dry-rock gulch instead of a lawn, trees shaded their entryway.  Not so much at their house they had intended to flip or rent to other California investors.

There, the sun reflected off the street, the dry rock landscape and brownish block walls adding to the morning temperature without a breeze.

Image Credit: https://www.visitarizona.com/

As Jay navigated through The Dells (Granite Dells), on each side of the road made up of large boulder granite outcroppings that have eroded into a spectacular appearance of bumpy rock features, we talked a bit about his former career in firefighting, but more specifically about the Yarnell Hill Fire years before he moved to Prescott.

The wildfire near Yarnell, Arizona ignited by dry lightning on June 28, 2013. By June 30, it overran and killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots. Just one of the hotshots on the crew survived—he was posted as a lookout on the fire and was not with the others when the fire overtook them. The Yarnell Hill Fire was one of the deadliest U.S. wildfires.

Jay vaguely remembered how the widows survivor benefits weren’t paid, getting tangled up in some sort of finger-pointing and counter lawsuits.  I thought the hotshots were independent contractors so they weren’t entitled to benefits.

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard copyright 2022

We pull into his driveway.  Apparently the two wives had run out of stories to share about us, so they’re ready jump into Jay’s dark blue SUV for a drive into historic downtown Prescott.

As a footnote, Elle points out Jays rearview air conditioner doesn’t work properly and  suggests we switch to her SUV for our next sight seeing adventure.

Jay and Elle point out a few restaurants and shops on the way down the hill towards the main town.  They discuss parking tactics.  Jay swings left and crosses a few intersections until he spies public parking lots near the destination he has in mind.

Image Credit: https://www.visitarizona.com/

The old courthouse.  The one where they have public rest rooms.

Negotiating the space, he tells us he’ll let us out on the passenger side, so he can squeeze in as close as he can to the cement wall.  Elle winces a little as he moves back and forth inching closer and closer to the wall.  She’s now glad he’s not driving her car.

From a distance, the town seems to be laid out like other western towns.  In fact, I’m reminded of a combination of Durango and Telluride in Colorado. Everything old time western radiates out from core frontier square.

My new, left knee replacement holds up well as we walk downhill two blocks and hear cheering, an announcer and gazed over to our left and notice where it looks like a bandstand had been set up and picnickers sat on blankets in front of it.

Wait, I remember the headline of an article that made its way into my Apple News feed before we hit the road in California.  

This must be that race known as the Cocodona 250.  More specifically, Here’s Who To Watch For At The Cocodona 250 – And How.  

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard copyright 2022

Over the loud speaker we heard, “And, here comes #32 Alan Lars.” And over there too must be where you can watch, right?

Jay picked up the pace heading towards a statue.  I joined him as instead of climbing the stairs to the courthouse straight ahead, he veered off to our right and trotted around the side to the back entrance and bolted for the door which said, “Men”.  

I joined him.

Having done our business, we mingled in among a crowd of cyclists and made our was to where the race was under way.

Between occasional cyclists the announcer chattered about how long he’d been calling the race, how you can listen to him and where you could catch his webcast I think.  Honestly it was hard to tell above the general din of supporters, spectators and tourists like us.

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard copyright 2022

I hung back a little scanning the row of cycling gear marketing tents and began to read a vertical banner hung on a light pole, like at a bus stop listing all the stops and transfers you should know before boarding.

I could only make out that this race, it was a race at all, included tiers of participants based upon I knew not what.  But, it burst my assumption about it being the Cocodona 250.

“What?”  I only faintly recognized Jay’s voice.

Jay had to yell out what he told Emma the Baroness and Elle for me.  “This is Whiskey Row.”

The cyclists ended their race at the intersection to our right.  Jay told us across the street were Prescott’s historic buildings, including The Palace, Arizona’s oldest restaurant and bar.  

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “Maybe you feel your pattern is very predictable, but people around you still don’t seem to know what you’ll do next. There are advantages to keeping mystery alive as long as possible.” Scorpio

We concluded the three-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed — during the “normal” pre-pandemic year compared to the pandemic year, and more recently to the paradoxically normal year. 

Season Four continues now within domestic and global chaos.

Previously in Season Four, The Disruptively Resilient Year

S4 E36 — Big Rigs, Skull Valley and Yarnell Hotshots; S4 E35 — Prescott Pitstop Knocks Me Off Balance; S4 E34 — Preconceived Notions Hit the Road for Prescott

Related from Season Three, the Paradoxically Normal Year

S3 E37 — Tell Me More Lies I Can Believe In; S3 E36 — Placebo, Meaningful Coincidence or Just Feeling Lucky; S3 E35 — This Ain’t No Zemblanity; S3 E34 — Why You’re Susceptible to Subliminal Suggestions Like …

Related from Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E37 — How Deep is the Chasm? What Do We Do?; S2 E36 — Turning Lemons into Margaritas; S2 E35 — Was this Pandemic Year a 1-Off or New Way of Life?; S2 E34 — Why Is This Kicking Off the 4th Industrial Revolution? 

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E37 — Day 37 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E36 — Day 36 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E35 — Day 35 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E34 — Day 34 of My 1-Year Experiment;

Evidence

Today’s Holiday Theme: 

Mother’s Day, a celebration of a commonality that goes beyond the human species. This tribute to the person who is, at best, a first friend in life, and at least the double-X chromosome contributing to our physical existence … children, playfulness and theatrics.

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “Maybe you feel your pattern is very predictable, but people around you still don’t seem to know what you’ll do next. There are advantages to keeping mystery alive as long as possible.” Scorpio

Haha I remember Jay asking if I was an influencer yet.  He had no idea what I described as phase two of my natural experiment which will lead to “The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

Today’s Holiday Birthday: 

Your magic formula for success starts with curiosity — a most alluring quality that will keep you in the best and brightest company this year. Ask questions, even if you think you know the answers. Thinking you know the answers is disadvantageous, but the rewards you find as you continue to clarify the world will make you positively rich.

Curiosity killed the cat. I’m glad I’m not a cat.  I’m sad. I so wanted to claim this birthday, but it’s not for me.  I hope it is yours.

“4” Steve Winwood, 71; Stevie Wonder, 69; Stephen Colbert, 56: “You’re friendly and inclusive, and yet still careful about who gets into your inner circle. It’s not that you’re afraid, more like practical. It’s cleaner and smarter to keep some things on a need-to-know basis.” Taurus

We’re friends with Jay and Elle.  But, not to the extreme fear of an impending argument about politics, I know something may erupt to harsh our vacation mellow along divisive party lines.   

“3”  Steve Harvey, 62; Stephan Patis, 53;  Stephen Hawking (1943 – 2018): “‘Talk is cheap,’ they say… But if that were true, public speakers and spokespeople wouldn’t be paid nearly so well. Words paint mental pictures that inspire action. Yours are definitely worth something today.” Capricorn

That’s so flattering.  I’m not sure if I hit the 14,000 hours necessary to claim the ability to paint mental images to inspire you, but I’d lie if I weren’t aspiring towards the goal.

“4”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “The secret to your success is that you don’t show up once or twice, rather you do so consistently over long periods of time. Good things are coming to you, hard-earned and well-deserved.” Pisces

I prided myself as a Executive MBA career advisor to be there for the students over the two years they attended, and to stay in touch with them after graduation to see how or if they actually applied what they learned, especially if I had matched them to a mentor.

Long-Form

    • “Here, Right Matters: An American Story” by Alexander Vindman. “We’d long been confused by the president’s policy of accommodation and appeasement of Russia, the United States’ most pressing major adversary. Russia’s president Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, seizing the Crimean Peninsula, attacking its industrial heartland, the Donbass, from the capital, Kyiv. By 2019, little had changed, Russian military and security forces and their proxy separatists continued to occupy the Donbass. The biggest change was to Ukraine’s importance as a bulwark against Russian aggression weeks earlier, the White House had abruptly put a hold on nearly four hundred million dollars.” 
    • David Enrich begins his book with a suicide in “Deutsche Bank Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction” and then meticulously details the bank’s Russian money laundering operations. Deutsche’s Russian business surged after revenues had fallen 50% due to the 2008 financial crisis. Putin’s Russia, poured in to Deutsche from deals it did with VTB Bank, linked to the Kremlin’s intelligence apparatus. Deutsche positioned itself as a crucial cog in “The Laundromat” by doing what couldn’t be done — processing cross-border transactions for banks that were too small  and didn’t have offices outside their home countries.
    • “Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy” by Jamie Raskin recalls one tragedy no parent should endure — the suicide of his son — and then a second tragedy at almost the same time — the insurrection on January 6th 2021, that terrified he and his congressional peers who were tasked by the Constitution to routinely oversee the orderly transfer of power from one former president to the duly elected new President. 
    • “A Warning” by Anonymous (Miles Taylor) written prior to the January 6th Insurrection as an insider’s account documenting how frequently the former President’s behavior and rage without any “guard rails” showed just how far he would go to win the next election at any cost while spinning lies and misinformation on top of each other.  
    • “Peril” by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa provides anecdotes, stories and inside reporting documenting the controversial last days of Donald Trump’s presidency, as well as the presidential transition and early presidency of Joe Biden. 
    • “Devil’s Bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the Nationalist Uprising,” by Joshua Green tracks the money behind the scenes leading up to the 2016 presidential election and the growing influence of Steve Bannon’s network of extreme nationalists.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

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S4 E36 — Big Rigs, Skull Valley and Yarnell Hotshots

“Why are there so many trucks on the road?” Emma the Baroness asked rhetorically. And, then I glanced in my rearview mirror and spotted a white hatchback riding the right shoulder, “Like he was frustrated by the slow pace and wanted to cheat.”

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trips

Knowledge ATMs 

A peak behind the scenes of self-publishing, crowdfunding, and working for yourself

Table of Contents

Hi and welcome to Saturday’s 36th Episode in Season 4 of  “Our Disruptively Resilient Year” on this 7th day of May in the spring of 2022.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll

    • @KnowLabs suite of 36 digital magazines, according to my analytics, grew from 12817 this week to 12880 organically grown followers.
    • Orange County Beach Towns 220 viewers stopped by the week before.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Context

I felt much better after sleeping in on Saturday morning.  Jay made coffee and waited for us to emerge from their guest room. Elle exercised and stretched upstairs. 

While Jay and Elle claimed nobody was in a hurry to do something I could tell Jay itched to take us on a tour.

But, our conversations continued about how when we transitioned to the 10 freeway our CarPlay Apple Maps cautioned us that all lanes were block up ahead.  Emma the Baroness and I exchanged anxious glances not knowing what to do while Siri assured us we were still on the fastest route.

A few hours later we saw no sign of blocked lanes.  Sure the traffic flow slowed, but the lane blockage cleared as far as we could tell.

A couple of times Siri would announce a traffic slowdown and gave us an option to exit.  We declined.  “We followed your advice not to take alternative routes, Jay.”

Emma the Baroness and I took turns telling the story about the portion an hour or two west of Blythe and Quartzite while in the middle of nowhere and climbing two lanes our progress again slowed by back-to-back big rigs ever so slowly passing each other.

“Why are there so many trucks on the road?” Emma the Baroness asked rhetorically.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

And, then I glanced in my rearview mirror and spotted a white hatchback riding the right shoulder, “Like he was frustrated by the slow pace and wanted to cheat.”

“One CHP with siren and lights flashing from the opposite direction, drives down the median embankment to turn and speed in our direction,” I add.

They wanted to know if we ever found out what was going on.  Emma the Baroness told them we were dead stopped in traffic, a tanker had pulled over into the shoulder, but when all four CHP cars finally began waving everybody through we saw the white car catty-cornered with its hatchback open.

The last time we slowed behind a huge bulldozer as we headed downhill after we passed through Skull Valley and Kirkland following Jay’s texted directions as we approached Prescott.

Skull Valley, Arizona Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

   

Jay added, “You noticed the basecamp for firefighters on your way in, right?” He told us Elle had raised money to donate food for them, as they’re on high alert for fires in this part of the West — Prescott National Forest.

Image Credit: Apple Maps

“Yeah,” I said. And, we crested on a hill where a memorial honors those hotshot firefighters who lost their lives a few years ago when surrounded by flames and they couldn’t make their way out.  

Yarnell Hill Fire Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Emma the Baroness wanted to know why the haze seemed more than usual for the part of I-10 which cut through the Coachella Valley, even when we passed exits for Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage and La Quinta.

“Where are the fires?” she asked.  Here in California, in Arizona where we’re headed or is smoke blowing west from New Mexico we both wanted to know.

And with that, he said he had to check on their property which was closing escrow and invited me along while our wives talked about us and got ready for adventure.

His realtor who represented him and the buyer had tempted him to sell it when she told him how much he could get for it and, oh by the way, she had a buyer for it.  

The only sticking point that Jay felt the builder should fix and the new buyer should be responsible for was a flaw in the guest bathroom bathtub.

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

“5”  Steve Smith, 30, Stevie Nicks, 72: “You’ll sort the puzzle, decipher the meaning of the code, or discover the intention. This ability to sense what’s really going on will serve you well and help a friend too.” Gemini

We concluded the three-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed — during the “normal” pre-pandemic year compared to the pandemic year, and more recently to the paradoxically normal year. 

Season Four continues now within domestic and global chaos.

Previously in Season Four, The Disruptively Resilient Year

S4 E35 — Prescott Pitstop Knocks Me Off Balance; S4 E34 — Preconceived Notions Hit the Road for Prescott; S4 E33 — When Was The Last Time Honesty and Character Counted?

Related from Season Three, the Paradoxically Normal Year

S3 E36 — Placebo, Meaningful Coincidence or Just Feeling Lucky; S3 E35 — This Ain’t No Zemblanity; S3 E34 — Why You’re Susceptible to Subliminal Suggestions Like …; S3 E33 — Do Meaningful Coincidences Really Exist?

Related from Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E36 — Turning Lemons into Margaritas; S2 E35 — Was this Pandemic Year a 1-Off or New Way of Life?; S2 E34 — Why Is This Kicking Off the 4th Industrial Revolution?; S2 E33 — What Happens When Your Business Collapses?

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E36 — Day 36 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E35 — Day 35 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E34 — Day 34 of My 1-Year Experiment; S1 E33 — Day 33 of My 1-Year Experiment;

Evidence

Today’s Holiday Birthday: 

Though inspiration has been known to strike you, in the months ahead it occurs with a gentler and more constant touch. You’ll absorb the wisdom of great minds. Acting on the pulse of creativity, you’ll bring into form: events, teams, systems, presentations and more. Key relationships will bring sweetness and surprise to your days.

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

“4”  Steve Winwood, 71; Stevie Wonder, 69; Stephen Colbert, 56: “It’s scary to go from what you know and love to what you don’t know and aren’t sure you’re going to like. But this is also the way to find out who you are, so it’s worth it.” Taurus 

I guess so.  Wait, I know so based on how many career transitions I negotiated in my life so far.  What’s that old marketing and startup saying, “Fake it until you make it?” I’m re-rating your TauBit, because it just dawned on me that I’m following the full cycle aspect of this roadtrip into a different website I administer.  How will that work out?

“5”  Steve Smith, 30, Stevie Nicks, 72: “You’ll sort the puzzle, decipher the meaning of the code, or discover the intention. This ability to sense what’s really going on will serve you well and help a friend too.” Gemini

Is this all about the sheer number of “Patriot” flags flying in Arizona and specifically in Jay and Elle’s neighborhood including at their home?

“4”  Steve Greene, 34; Steve Guttenberg, 61; Stephen King, 72: “To the outsider watching you mingle, it looks like you’re having a good time, but inwardly it feels like work. Rightly so. Building relationships is the essential labor of success.” Virgo

Negotiating these encounters make me seem like and ENTP — the emphasis on extrovert.  But, the shear energy depletion I feel at the end of engagement clearly signals I’m a card-carrying introvert, INTP.

“4”  Steve Nash, 45: “You’ll get carried away with a project and you may forget about various responsibilities and healthful necessities. But your complete involvement is warranted — you’re about to make a breakthrough.” Aquarius

 Did I pick this TauBit because it was true, or because it is just wishful thinking like many others over four seasons?

“5”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “While understanding what everyone stands to gain or lose from a situation may be key to achieving your goals, you mostly study people for the fun of it.” Pisces

Yup, that’s me.  I’m a quick read of intentions and motivations and incentives before leading the way forward.  And, yes it is shear fun!

Long-Form

    • “Here, Right Matters: An American Story” by Alexander Vindman. “We’d long been confused by the president’s policy of accommodation and appeasement of Russia, the United States’ most pressing major adversary. Russia’s president Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, seizing the Crimean Peninsula, attacking its industrial heartland, the Donbass, from the capital, Kyiv. By 2019, little had changed, Russian military and security forces and their proxy separatists continued to occupy the Donbass. The biggest change was to Ukraine’s importance as a bulwark against Russian aggression weeks earlier, the White House had abruptly put a hold on nearly four hundred million dollars.” 
    • David Enrich begins his book with a suicide in “Deutsche Bank Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction” and then meticulously details the bank’s Russian money laundering operations. Deutsche’s Russian business surged after revenues had fallen 50% due to the 2008 financial crisis. Putin’s Russia, poured in to Deutsche from deals it did with VTB Bank, linked to the Kremlin’s intelligence apparatus. Deutsche positioned itself as a crucial cog in “The Laundromat” by doing what couldn’t be done — processing cross-border transactions for banks that were too small  and didn’t have offices outside their home countries.
    • “Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy” by Jamie Raskin recalls one tragedy no parent should endure — the suicide of his son — and then a second tragedy at almost the same time — the insurrection on January 6th 2021, that terrified he and his congressional peers who were tasked by the Constitution to routinely oversee the orderly transfer of power from one former president to the duly elected new President. 
    • “A Warning” by Anonymous (Miles Taylor) written prior to the January 6th Insurrection as an insider’s account documenting how frequently the former President’s behavior and rage without any “guard rails” showed just how far he would go to win the next election at any cost while spinning lies and misinformation on top of each other.  
    • “Peril” by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa provides anecdotes, stories and inside reporting documenting the controversial last days of Donald Trump’s presidency, as well as the presidential transition and early presidency of Joe Biden. 
    • “Devil’s Bargain: Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and the Nationalist Uprising,” by Joshua Green tracks the money behind the scenes leading up to the 2016 presidential election and the growing influence of Steve Bannon’s network of extreme nationalists.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

 

Posted on

S2 E86 — How To Avoid a Disastrous Career Like Mine

Every organization, including our 4 fundamental aspires to grow. The growth stages follow one after another from Start Up to 3 Growth phases to Maturity and Decline unless a Reinvention transformation kicks off before it is too late. 

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “You will be attracted to a subject appreciated by many and understood by few. When you go deeper, you will learn how you are uniquely equipped to be among those few should you choose to devote focus to this.” Scorpio

Hi and welcome to Sunday’s Episode 86 in Season 2 of  “My Pandemic Year Natural Experiment” on this 26th day of July in the summer of 2020.  

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

Season One and Two are a two-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed during the “normal” pre-pandemic and then in this unfolding pandemic year.

Previously in Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E85 — How to Up the Odds in Your Favor: S2 E84 — Maybe Robin Hood Got It Right After All, Eh?; S2 E83 — Why Shouldn’t You Always Lean On Things That Worked Before?

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E86 — Day 86 of My 1-Year Natural Experiment; S1 E85 — What happens when the fear subsides?; S1 E84 — Crisis averted?  Energy depleted?  What are we going to do?; S1 E83 —The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book

Context

This is a continuation of “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit” a work-in-progress.

In the last episode I summarized everything you need to know about four basic organizations to stack the odds in your favor when shopping around for your next job opportunity.  

Oh, what disaster to avoid (unlike me) in your next career move. 

Now, we’ll build on better and worse fit options for each of the 16 talent profiles:

Paradoxy-Morons

      • 101 PMBI Breakpoint Inventors
      • 102 PMTL Thought Leaders
      • 103 PMCI Commercial Innovators 
      • 104 R&D Experimenters

Emerging-Entrepreneurs

      • 105 EEMA Marketing Athletes
      • 106 EEOA Operational Accelerants
      • 107 EERPT Resilient Product Teams 
      • 108 EECBG Core Business Groups

Sustaining-Associates

      • 109 SAICA Internal Change Agents
      • 110 SAAS Analytical Specialists
      • 111 SAAT Agile Tiger Teams 
      • 112 SALS  Loyal Survivalists

Systematic-Professionals

      • 113 SPIC Idea Packagers
      • 114 SPBE Brand-as-Experts
      • 115 SPPP Professional Practitioners 
      • 116 SPIT Institutional Traditionalists

Let’s we review stages of organizational growth from Start Up to Maturity and from Decline to Reinvention.

Five Major Stages of Growth for Organizations

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Key points to keep in mind:

  1. Every organization, including our 4 fundamental aspires to grow.
  2. The growth stages follow one after another from Start Up to 3 Growth phases to Maturity and Decline unless a Reinvention transformation kicks off before it is too late.
  3. Each new stage of growth requires a different talent culture than the previous one. One or two dominate at each stage.
  4. There’s no guarantee a specific company and organization will master the gap between stage its current and potential next stage.
  5. That fact represents a second set of better or worse fits.

Next up.

Let’s begin in the “beginning” with Start Up and build a case for “peeling off” two Paradoxy-Morons and one Emerging-Entrepreneur:

        • 101 PMBI Breakpoint Inventors
        • 103 PMCI Commercial Innovators
        • 105 EEMA Marketing Athletes

Did you notice we “skipped” some?  That’s odd, isn’t it

Evidence

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “You will be attracted to a subject appreciated by many and understood by few. When you go deeper, you will learn how you are uniquely equipped to be among those few should you choose to devote focus to this.” Scorpio

I forget finding the right fit remained frustrating elusive to me until I noticed how companies and organizations evolve into talent cultures that define them, until something forces a change and a different set of talent is required to survive.

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

“4”  Steve Winwood, 71; Stevie Wonder, 69; Stephen Colbert, 56: “Behind the door that’s a few stops down the lane exists another world, a world that you will lend some imagination to until you’re let in and can get a sense of its reality.” Taurus

Is that the portal to the Twilight Zone? There was a time when I lived in Cincinnati about a mile and a half from the house that Rod Serling lived as he imagined the original.

“3”  Steve Howey, 42: “Generally, most people feel automatically sure of what is reality. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to go about their day. To question your automatic responses is always an act of growth.” Cancer

Is it too late for me to challenge myself about why I selected this one?

“3”  Steve Carrell, 57; Steve Martin, 74; Steve Wozniak, 69: “It will occur to you that an area you’ve focused on seems devoid of juice. There’s nothing here for you now, if there ever was. Move on. There are other things to squeeze.” Leo

Only one area?  Haha. Another element to consider is just how long it takes an introvert like me to muddle through these passion projects.  Or, is this about Patreon?

“3”  Steve Kerr, 54: “You’re safe to let whimsy have its rule. Wish crazily. There is something of value in far-out or silly dreams. You can assess what is possible later. Right now, let your imagination soar.” Libra

Whimsy and silly don’t seem to be on my pandemic lock down agenda for the day.  But the day is still young and I have to say I’d love to let my imagination soar!

“4”  Steve Harvey, 62: “Don’t fight against problems. Struggle wastes energy. Sink to the bottom of a problem as if it were a swimming pool. It won’t take much to bounce off the bottom with your toes and resurface to a cleansing breath.”  Capricorn

My metaphor living on the California coast near the Pacific Ocean shifts to waves of change about to break over you while you body surf.  You dive quickly to the sandy bottom allowing the force of nature to push and pull you as it passes and then you spring to the surface mindful of a second and third set.  You select one and ride it to shore, or you duck dive one more time. 

“4”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011: “Why do people tell you their stories and share with you the intimate details of their lives? It’s because your warmth is a heart-opener that they do not get every day.”  Pisces

Early in my first career one school of psychology grew out of California’s North San Diego County and advocated for “unconditional positive regard.” I’m guessing that value has underpinned my engagements with clients, C-Suite executives, students and co-workers throughout all my careers.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll 

    • @knowlabs followers of one or more of my 35 digital magazines organically grew from 4427 to 4516.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Long-Form

    • Saw the movie, didn’t realize that one of my favorite authors, Michael Connelly — his detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch book series and Amazon Prime series — also wrote, “The Lincoln Lawyer” which I just finished. Gotta tell you I can’t not see his lead character (Mickey Haller, Bosch’s half brother) as anyone else but Matthew McConaughey. 

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by: Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trip

 

Posted on

S2 E85 — How to Up the Odds in Your Favor

Up until this point, the discussion about better and worse fit jobs and clients focused on me for illustrative purposes.  But you may have, hopefully, noticed an affinity for one or more of the four organizations.  And you may have felt an attraction to one or more of the 16 talent profiles which define an employer’s culture.  

“5”  Steve Greene, 34; Steve Guttenberg, 61; Stephen King, 72: “It would be cool if you had a manual for this project, but all the information out there is either too plentiful or too scanty to be of use to you. Reach out to a mentor for information that’s the right size.” Virgo

Hi and welcome to Saturday’s Episode 85 in Season 2 of  “My Pandemic Year Natural Experiment” on this 25th day of July in the summer of 2020.  

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

Season One and Two are a two-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed during the “normal” pre-pandemic and then in this unfolding pandemic year.

Previously in Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E84 — Maybe Robin Hood Got It Right After All, Eh?; S2 E83 — Why Shouldn’t You Always Lean On Things That Worked Before?; S2 E82 — How Do You Inject Innovation into a Century’s Old Company?

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E85 — What happens when the fear subsides?; S1 E84 — Crisis averted?  Energy depleted?  What are we going to do?; S1 E83 —The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book; S1 E82 — Why Writers Aren’t the Only Endangered Species. Sigh.

Context

This is a continuation of “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit” a work-in-progress.

In recent episodes (S2 E78, S2 E80, S2 E82 and S2 E84) I shared my Worse and Better fit experiences to illustrate a little more in depth description of what it is like working in and for clients in Paradoxy-Morons, Emerging-Entrepreneurs, Sustaining-Associates and Systematic-Professionals.

In this episode, let me summarize the key points you may to know to avoid your next career disaster.

Four Talent Profiles Attracted to Paradoxy-Moron Organizations

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Summary

What makes Paradoxy-Morons tick?

Disruptive Innovation, Independence and Speed

They notice how limited the traditional, status quo solves the really complex problems and challenges

Disrupting. 

A fast-paced, innovative culture that attracts and retains the best of the best. 

Motto?

“It’s better to seek forgiveness than to ask permission.”

What are their unique challenges? 

        • They champion paradigms based on new science discoveries.
        • Once is not enough. From one world beater to several again an again
        • Finding commercial applications of disruptive innovation in the form of new product categories — which haven’t been proven until flawed prototypes and buggy technology work themselves out

What are the takeaways?  

Innovations have to come faster.  Concurrent overlapping talent demands.

In the start up stage they are capable of anticipating something new and act decisively to establish a new market, industry, technology or a new scientific discipline.

Which Talent Profiles find a better fit with Paradoxy-Morons?

        • 101 PMBI Breakpoint Inventors
        • 102 PMTL Thought Leaders
        • 103 PMCI Commercial Innovators 
        • 104 R&D Experimenters

In which organization will they find a worse fit?

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Sustaining-Associates with their emphasis on:

          • Higher degrees of Sustained Improvement, Affiliation and Mastery
          • Building predictably upon past history and loyal customer retention.

Four Talent Profiles Attracted to Emerging-Entrepreneur Organizations

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Summary

What makes Emerging-Entrepreneurs tick?

They rapidly introduce new products into new rapidly moving niches while capturing emerging knowledge no-one else has and based on that experience introduce tweets to early business formulas.

Bias for Action. 

New Knowledge, Affiliation and Speed

Knowledge creation — teams introduce new products by applying emerging new knowledge for a competitive advantage.

Motto?

“There’s no time like the present”

What are their unique challenges? 

        • The 20% accomplish 80% of the results.
        • They learn rapidly by doing.
        • Figuring out what has to happen to boost performance with fewer and fewer trials and errors.

What are the takeaways?  

Imagine a relay race with individual record holders.  But, it takes flawless baton passing as a team to achieve world-class status.

Affiliation bonding is to the team.  It’s up to the team to learn the fastest way to take a new idea and introduce it into the marketplace.

They need to guard their organization’s core capabilities and emerging proprietary processes while quickly managing increasing degrees of complexity as they grow.

Which Talent Profiles find a better fit with Emerging-Entrepreneurs?

          • 105 EEMA Marketing Athletes
          • 106 EEOA Operational Accelerants
          • 107 EERPT Resilient Product Teams 
          • 108 EECBG Core Business Groups

In which organization will they find a worse fit?

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020 

Systematic-Professionals with their emphasis on: 

          • Higher degrees of Embedded Knowledge, Independence and Mastery
          • Classified, categorized, tested and benchmarked knowledge.

Four Talent Profiles Attracted to Sustaining-Associate Organizations

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Summary

What makes Sustaining-Associates tick?

112 SALS Loyal Survivalists anchor the Sustaining-Associates culture. They manage people, technologies, processes, and organizational structures to sustain the innovation they’ve already mastered. Employees identify with the organization and have high affiliation needs that favor slower paced industries and cultures.

Brand Loyalty. 

Sustained Improvement, Affiliation and Mastery

Building predictably upon past history and loyal customer retention.

Motto?

“If it win’t broke don’t fix it.”

What are their unique challenges? 

        • Missing competitive threats and responding too late.
        • Resting on their traditional successes.
        • Preparing the next generation of leaders for a different competitive environment.

What are the takeaways?  

To mature and survive their brand needs to be accepted by the majority of the total available market.

A loyal affiliated talent culture needs constant retention so associates maintain the organization’s reputation.

Through their behaviors they develop a trust mark that keeps bringing long-term customers back again and again

Which Talent Profiles find a better fit with Sustaining-Associates?

      • 109 SAICA Internal Change Agents
      • 110 SAAS Analytical Specialists
      • 111 SAAT Agile Tiger Teams 
      • 112 SALS  Loyal Survivalists

In which organization will they find a worse fit?

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Paradoxy-Morons with their emphasis on: 

          • Higher degrees of Disruptive Innovation, Independence and Speed
          • How limited the traditional, status quo solves the really complex problems and challenges

Four Talent Profiles Attracted to Systematic-Professional Organizations

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Summary

What makes Systematic-Professionals tick?

These are the experts who love their profession instead of a specific organization like Sustaining-Associates do. They’re the Idea Packagers, Professional Practitioners, Traditional Institutionalists in standards-setting associations led by well-known Branded Experts in the field.

Advanced Degrees and Certifications. 

Embedded Knowledge, Independence and Mastery

Emerging knowledge is classified, categorized, tested and benchmarked.

Motto?

“Robin Hood had it right”

What are their unique challenges? 

        • Research into complex problems and complicated large systems
        • Working in knowledge organizations and consulting partnerships.
        • Application of proprietary best practices and knowledge gleaned from their benchmark databases.

What are the takeaways?  

Methods and Metrics.  They prefer to distance themselves to remain objective and follow a well-articulated and tested methodology.

Their majority of clients are large-cap companies, government partners and the medical industry systems.

Studying these organizations provides a giant learning laboratory.

Acknowledged expertise attracts potential clients.

Rainmakers play an outsized role developing new and repeat business. 

Which Talent Profiles find a better fit with Systematic-Professionals?

          • 113 SPIC Idea Packagers
          • 114 SPBE Brand-as-Experts
          • 115 SPPP Professional Practitioners 
          • 116 SPIT Institutional Traditionalists

In which organization will they find a worse fit?

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Emerging-Entrepreneurs with their emphasis on: 

          • Higher degrees of New Knowledge, Affiliation and Speed
          • Knowledge creation — teams introduce new products by applying emerging new knowledge for a competitive advantage.

Up until this point.

The discussion about better and worse fit focused on me, for illustrative purposes.  Hopefully, you may have noticed an affinity for one or more of the organizations.  And you may have felt a tendency for one or more of the 16 talent profiles.  

Next up,

We’ll build on better and worse fit options as we review stages of organizational growth from Start Up to Maturity and from Decline to Reinvention.  

But, first what do the Steves offer as TauBits of Wisdom?

Evidence

“5”  Steve Zahn, 51: “Things may not change immediately or even slowly, but the important thing is that they will change eventually. Never give in to cynicism. Your mind is made for beautiful thinking.” Scorpio

Got it, you are preaching to the choir with the first sentence.  It’s the second one that is extremely hard for me in this pandemic world today.

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

“4”  Steve McQueen (1930 – 1980): “If you worry about what you are going to say, then it will prevent you from listening to what is being said. Whatever you can do to put yourself at ease will give you an advantage.” Aries  

Gotta tell you I followed this TauBit of Wisdom after learning it the hard way.  I was so intimidated by advising former Vice Presidents and CEOs when I never was one, until I asked a simple question, “What have you been doing about …?” and listened.

“3”  Steve Winwood, 71; Stevie Wonder, 69; Stephen Colbert, 56: “Are you holding on to false hope? No. Hope, in and of itself, is an act of truth and light. Believe the best and hold on, white-knuckled, to that version.” Taurus 

Or does hope lead to false expectations? And do false expectations lead to confirmation bias.  And does confirmation bias lead on a slippery slope to conspiracy theories?  Seem like it, eh?

“4”  Steve Smith, 30: “Your head and your heart have not had a meeting in a while, and they will go in two different directions until you bring them into alignment through something peaceful, like meditation, dance or creative play.” Gemini

I choose the first and last alignment choices.

“4”  Steve Howey, 42: “Make space. Get rid of things before you have a replacement. Emptiness is not nothingness. Space is a “something” even if you don’t know what it is. Potential counts.” Cancer

Yeah, I see how being cooped up for so long drives you a little crazy without space.

“4”  Steve Carrell, 57; Steve Martin, 74; Steve Wozniak, 69: “Assume that people are doing their very best. If they don’t act like this is the case, they may be consumed with fighting a battle you do not know about. Give the benefit of the doubt wherever possible.” Leo

I’ll have to repeat this over and over today for when I venture out to my local Ralph’s grocery store and encounter the number of unmasked COVID-19 spreaders.

“5”  Steve Greene, 34; Steve Guttenberg, 61; Stephen King, 72: “It would be cool if you had a manual for this project, but all the information out there is either too plentiful or too scanty to be of use to you. Reach out to a mentor for information that’s the right size.” Virgo

OK, it would have been cool years ago when I conducted my original research for this work-in-progress, my WorkFit manuscript. Maybe you can use it as a manual for you.

“5”  Steve Harvey, 62: “You won’t get that push from the world today, so you’ll have to give it to yourself. Do so in the form of an intention. Setting an intention leads to actions you wouldn’t have taken otherwise.” Capricorn

Totally see how this TauBit applies — in a lockdown pandemic world intention comes a little easier for us introverts.

“4”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “You’ll thank the roadblock, as it helps you find your own path. You’ll thank the mistakes, as they are your best teachers. You’ll thank the enemy that keeps you so strong.” Pisces

So, two out of three is still pretty good, right?

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll 

    • @knowlabs followers of one or more of my 35 digital magazines organically grew from 4397 to 4427.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Long-Form

    • Saw the movie, didn’t realize that one of my favorite authors, Michael Connelly — his detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch book series and Amazon Prime series — also wrote, “The Lincoln Lawyer” which I just finished. Gotta tell you I can’t not see his lead character (Mickey Haller, Bosch’s half brother) as anyone else but Matthew McConaughey. 

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by: Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trip

Posted on

S2 E83 — Why Shouldn’t You Always Lean On Things That Worked Before?

We already know that a worse fit is found where higher degrees of affiliation, speed and new knowledge intersect in the “green box” of Emerging-Entrepreneurs.

“5”  Steve Kerr, 54: “Don’t lean on things that worked before. The same thing that caused a triumph yesterday could be ineffective tomorrow. The importance of context cannot be underestimated. Stay awake and alert.” Libra

Hi and welcome to Thursday’s Episode 83 in Season 2 of  “My Pandemic Year Natural Experiment” on this 23rd day of July in the summer of 2020.  

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

Season One and Two are a two-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed during the “normal” pre-pandemic and then in this unfolding pandemic year.

Previously in Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E82 — How Do You Inject Innovation into a Century’s Old Company?; S2 E81 — 3rd of 4 Secrets to a Better WorkFit; S2 E80 — Unrealistic Expectations Hatched Green Box Lessons the Hard Way

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E83 —The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book; S1 E82 — Why Writers Aren’t the Only Endangered Species. Sigh.; S1 E81— Is This My Wake Up Call, Steve?; S1 E80 — I’ll Give You Adverse Conditions, Steve

Context

This is a continuation of “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit” a work-in-progress.

In recent episodes we broke out talent profiles for each of the 4 Organization Types starting with Paradoxy-Morons, Emerging-Entrepreneurs, Sustaining-Associates and now Systematic-Professionals.

Four Organization Types

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Four Talent Profiles attracted to Sustaining-Associates:

    • 109 SAICA Internal Change Agents
    • 110 SAAS Analytical Specialists
    • 111 SAAT Agile Tiger Teams 
    • 112 SALS  Loyal Survivalists

Moving on to Systematic-Professionals

Image Credit: Stephen G. Howard  Copyright 2020

Counter clockwise from Sustaining-Associates we fill in last of 4 boxes, “above” the shared border with 109 SAICA Internal Change Agents and 110 SAAS Analytical Specialists and to the “right” of Paradoxy-Morons, sharing a bolder with 102 PMTL Thought Leaders and 104 R&D Experimenters.

Four Systematic-Professional Talent Profiles

If we follow the vertical border edge defined by high degrees of mastery anchored with 112 SALS Loyal Survivalists to 110 SAAS Analytical Specialists (high in affiliation) and into Systematic-Professional “territory” you encounter 116 SPIT (Systematic-Professionals) Institutional Traditionalists and finally 114 SPBE (Systematic-Professionals) Brand-as-Experts where highest degrees of embedded knowledge, independence and mastery intersect.

Worse Fit

We already know that a worse fit is found where higher degrees of affiliation, speed and new knowledge intersect in the “green box” of Emerging-Entrepreneurs.

Better Fit

Systematic-Professionals share a slower, higher degree of Mastery with Sustaining-Associates and a higher degree of independence with Paradoxy-Morons.

You’ll find a better fit if you value higher degrees of embedded knowledge too.

Within the “blue” Systematic-Professional “box” continue counter clockwise from 114 SPBE (Systematic-Professionals) Brand-as-Experts to the remaining two talent profiles who mirror their Paradoxy-Moron counterparts.

The 113 SPIC (Systematic-Professional) Idea Packagers  crave higher degree of independence but medium degrees of mastery and embedded knowledge. 

While the 115 SPPP (Systematic-Professional) Professional Practitioners are attracted to medium degrees of independence, mastery and embedded knowledge.

Up next I’ll share what it’s like working for Systematic-Professionals either as an employer or as a client.

Evidence

“4”  Steve Zahn, 51: “You don’t need to control a situation to work it to your advantage. You need only be ready to take your turn and hop on the opportunities that open up.”Scorpio

Seems to be so Sun Tzu-like the way it unfolds.  Originally titled “The Art of War” later versions named it “The Art of Strategy” for the executive business market.

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

“3”  Steve McQueen (1930 – 1980): “You can thank today’s smooth ride to your own clean karma. Moral questions come up this evening, but nothing that needs to be solved immediately. Think it over.”  Aries 

Haha.  Another one to look forward to like the TauBit of Wisdom below unfolding in the afternoon.  Check back.

“3”  Steve Winwood, 71; Stevie Wonder, 69; Stephen Colbert, 56: “Your fantasy of a relationship doesn’t quite match the reality of it, and this is causing some tension. It’s easy enough to resolve, if you’re willing to adjust your expectations.” Taurus 

While important wisdom, Emma the Baroness and I adjusted our expectations of each other while dating, becoming an item as she says and then as parents when you undergo the a transformation no-one understands until the day after, and then for the rest of your life.

“4”  Steve Smith, 30: “If you place too much significance and value in the wrong things, this is a human mistake. You’ll learn quickly. Experience is the only way to really understand what’s important and what’s not.” Gemini

Of course all the “book” learning goes out the window until you apply, learn and build your knowledge.

“5”  Steve Carrell, 57; Steve Martin, 74; Steve Wozniak, 69: “You’re wanting a result, and you’ll get it, but the timeframe is the matter in question. It is very difficult to predict how long things will take. Be patient and willing to adjust.” Leo

Look, for someone wired like me this corundum is the hardest part of preparing a consulting proposal — estimating the realistic timeframe for meeting clients’ demands.  At risk was either a nonstarter, because they expected to spend far less, or anticipating their budget I’d low ball my submission and end up with a lot less income.

“3”  Steve Greene, 34; Steve Guttenberg, 61; Stephen King, 72: “You’ve been a leader, and you’ve been a follower. When you’re acting to the best of your ability, the roles are equally demanding. You’ll be at the top of your game this afternoon.” Virgo

Well, true but I’m not seeing this one playing out.  But then it’s not afternoon yet.  So, I may have to change my rating tonight.

“5”  Steve Kerr, 54: “Don’t lean on things that worked before. The same thing that caused a triumph yesterday could be ineffective tomorrow. The importance of context cannot be underestimated. Stay awake and alert.” Libra

What is it “they” say?  An overused strength becomes a weakness.  And as we’ll see in later episodes you could definitely describe the “gap” between stages of growth from Start Up to Maturity and from Decline to Reinvention in the same way.

“3”  Steve Aoki, 41: “You don’t have to comment on every statement or have a judgment of everything going on around you. It’s enough to be a witness. Save your energy. You’ll need it later.” Sagittarius

Except as the evidence for relevance applied to my day, eh?

“3”  Steve Harvey, 62: “People find you attractive, and they will want your attention and time. Both of these commodities are precious, and today they will be best given in the spirit of investment instead of charity.” Capricorn 

The reverse doesn’t seem to be working for my Patreon supported episodes.  Oh, well.

“4”  Steve Nash, 45: “A sense of calm will alight on your decision-making process. There is no need to overanalyze — if you even need to analyze at all. You simply know what to do.”  Aquarius

Ha ha, I’m sensing a theme about methodological problem-solving and decision-making approaches setting up this next one.

“4”  Steve Jobs, (1955 – 2011): “You don’t have to anticipate every outcome. Get a general idea and then act. There is an opportunity that can only present itself when things aren’t exactly going as planned.” Pisces

So, even though I’m a card-carrying Systematic-Professional as a 113 SPIP Idea Packager, I only anticipate the broader horizon to set up If That, Then This actions, instead of sinking into analysis-paralysis.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll 

    • @knowlabs followers of one or more of my 35 digital magazines organically grew from 4397 to 4427.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Long-Form

    • Saw the movie, didn’t realize that one of my favorite authors, Michael Connelly — his detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch book series and Amazon Prime series — also wrote, “The Lincoln Lawyer” which I just finished. Gotta tell you I can’t not see his lead character (Mickey Haller, Bosch’s half brother) as anyone else but Matthew McConaughey. 

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by: Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trip

Posted on

S2 E81 — 3rd of 4 Secrets to a Better WorkFit

Usually when people ask what do you do, you probably say something like I work for … (fill in the blank with the name of your employer) and say it with pride.  It might be Nike or Pepsi or The Gap or O’Neal.  The point is if you cut yourself, you’d bleed the colors of the organization.

“5”  Steve Harvey, 62: “The better days that are coming will not come because you hope they will. They’ll come as a direct result of the actions you take today. You’re creating better days right now.”  Capricorn

Hi and welcome to Saturday’s Episode 81 in Season 2 of  “My Pandemic Year Natural Experiment” on this 18th day of July in the summer of 2020.  

“The Tau of Steves: What You Don’t Know Could Fill a Book”

Table of Contents

Season One and Two are a two-year examination of how bits of wisdom changed during the “normal” pre-pandemic and then in this unfolding pandemic year.

Previously in Season Two, the Pandemic Year

S2 E80 — Unrealistic Expectations Hatched Green Box Lessons the Hard Way; S2 E79 — Ain’t No Paradoxy-Moron? How About an Emerging-Entrepreneur?; S2 E78 — What Do Paradoxy-Morons Want and Need?

Related from Season One, the Normal Year

S1 E81— Is This My Wake Up Call, Steve?; S1 E80 — I’ll Give You Adverse Conditions, Steve; S1 E79 — Can I Keep It Up? For a Year?; S1 E78 — Drag Me to Obsolescence, Clear the Way to the Future

Context

This is a continuation of “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit” a work-in-progress.

In a recent episode we broke out talent profiles for each of the 4 Organization Types starting with Paradoxy-Morons and Emerging-Entrepreneurs.

    • 105 EEMA Marketing Athletes
    • 106 EEOA Operational Accelerants
    • 107 EERPT Resilient Product Teams 
    • 108 EECBG Core Business Groups

Moving in a counterclockwise direction we shift to Sustaining-Associates, the third Organization Type.

You’ll find a better fit working here if your identity is with the organization — expressed as falling along the scale of medium to high degrees of affiliation.  

Usually when people ask what do you do, you probably say something like I work for … (fill in the blank with the name of your employer) and say it with pride.  It might be Nike or Pepsi or The Gap or O’Neal.  The point is if you cut yourself, you’d bleed the colors of the organization.

Now, if you’re a high affiliation kind of person, you’re probably struggling the most with forced quarantines and working from home.  Zoom meeting may help, but it’s just not the same thing.

Worse Fit

We already know that a worse fit is found where higher degrees of disruption innovation, speed and independence define Paradoxy-Morons.  In fact I should point out that at the opposite ends of fit, you couldn’t be more distant and farther apart than 101 PMBI (Paradoxy-Moron) Breakpoint Inventors and 112 SALS (Sustaining-Associate) Loyal Survivalists. 

Better Fit

112 SALS Loyal Survivalists represent the talent profile where higher degrees of sustained improvement, mastery and affiliation meet.

Feeling no need to disruptively innovate, Sustaining-Associates place more value on sustained improvement instead.

Higher degrees of affiliation is what Sustaining-Associates share with Emerging-Entrepreneurs, but without a high degree of speed.

In fact, we can say “sharing a border” with Emerging-Entrepreneurs translates into “medium degrees of speed meet medium degrees of mastery.” 

Emerging-Entrepreneurs, 106 EEOA Operational Accelerants and 108 EECBC Core Business Group share their border with 109 SAICA (Sustaining-Associates) Internal Change Agents and 111 SAAT (Sustaining-Associates) Agile Tiger Teams. 

If we focus on high degrees of affiliation (the “row” stretching from Emerging-Entrepreneurs to Sustaining-Associates) you’ll notice a progression starting with 107 Resilient Product Team to  108 Core Business Group (team of teams) which jumps into Sustaining-Associates with similar 111 Agile Tiger Teams and finally 112 Loyal Survivalists.

Or speed and new knowledge transitions into mastery and sustained improvement.

As we’ll see later when we continue in our counter clockwise sequence, 110 SAAS (Sustaining-Associates) Analytical Specialists share higher degrees of improvement and mastery with 112 Loyal Survivalists and they share a border with Systematic-Professionals.

But, up next I’ll share what it’s like working for Sustaining-Associates either as an employer or as a consultant.

Evidence

“4”  Steve Zahn, 51: “As a rule, you like to think about things before you act. So it will be interesting for you to witness the brilliance that comes from acting naturally, subconsciously and/or automatically today.” Scorpio

So true.  Thinking, but maybe more to the point visualizing how events might play out.  Even when I’m confronted with a problem, I run visualize different ways of solving it — probably entangling memories of solutions similar it.  

Random ones that make me want change my sign.

Today’s Holiday Birthday: 

You’ll pick up hard and soft skills this year and be well-paid in more ways than one. A new style of communication will improve your relationships across the board, including your relationship with yourself. You’ll be the star of someone’s life and revel in the role. Your talent for creating memorable experiences will be oft employed.

Wow, this is heady and humbling forecast for getting out of this damn pandemic.  I wish today was my birthday, but you know it isn’t  Hopefully, it is yours and will come true for you.

“3”  Steve McQueen (1930 – 1980): “Willpower is a muscle that, like the other muscles you have, if worked too hard will become vulnerable to fatigue. Avoid using it until you really have to. Work on systems that will make the desired action a no-brainer.” Aries  

Systems, eh?  Sounds good.  I do feel fatigued, but I’m not sure it is for the same reason.  I guessing it’s just uncertainty, disease and partisan  politics.

“4”  Steve Howey, 42: “You’ll do purposeful work, unrelated to the job you do for money. You are creative and have a fresh take on this, unbound by rules you don’t know.” Cancer

I love this one,  sure I’ll take it.

“4”  Steve Kerr, 54: “You have an artistic eye and you care how things look, feel, how they are lit and the message they send. You care how things fill the senses and the emotion that is released as that happens.” Libra

Can I throw this in with Howey’s?  I feel it describes what you do with a fresh take.

“3”  Steve Aoki, 41: “Since you really don’t know what’s possible, it would be foolish to limit yourself your own ideas about that. What’s impossible? Maybe you should start there and work your way back.” Sagittarius

I don’t quite understand the message, but it seems positive. Maybe it fits with how to start brainstorming without eliminating 

“5”  Steve Harvey, 62: “The better days that are coming will not come because you hope they will. They’ll come as a direct result of the actions you take today. You’re creating better days right now.”  Capricorn

Well, all I can say is when this Pandemic Year’s Natural Experiment comes to a close that the content I’m drafting for this work-in-progress, “Volume Two Manuscript — WorkFit” helps you as you position yourself today for better days ahead. 

“4”  Steve Nash, 45: “What’s relaxing for one person is stressful for someone else. Be sure to do what works for you to create a neutral state of being from which you can recharge and thrive.” Aquarius 

I chose this TauBit of Wisdom, because I need to remind myself to meditate or I won’t be able to recharge and find opportunity in all this chaos.

What’s Going On …

Literally Bottled and Set Adrift from KnowWhere Atoll 

    • @knowlabs followers of one or more of my 35 digital magazines organically grew from 4341 to 4397.

Foresight

Quality-of-Life

Long-Form

    • Saw the movie, didn’t realize that one of my favorite authors, Michael Connelly — his detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch book series and Amazon Prime series — also wrote, “The Lincoln Lawyer” which I just finished. Gotta tell you I can’t not see his lead character (Mickey Haller, Bosch’s half brother) as anyone else but Matthew McConaughey. 

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Inspired by: Holiday Mathis – Creators Syndicate

CENTER FOR KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND INNOVATION

The Knowledge Path | Know Laboratories | Knowledge Banking | Knowledge ATMs | Western Skies and Island Currents | Best West Road Trip

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