Bill Maher has recently made a movie entitled Religulous...a contraction I suspect of religion and ridiculous...which in short his summary perspective on those who are of religious faith, or more pointedly believe in what he finds to be myths that are a little too incredulous.
maybe its the combination of religion and incredulous that led to the concoction of his title. Maher himself talks about the fact that he is merely doubtful ...not agnostic, not atheistic just doubts that there is merit in the teachings of a great many of the major religions that have captivated the American population. He does not explore the eastern religions but he does include islam.
The effort to question the rationality of believers amidst a seemingly irrational world in which so many violent /destructive behaviors are fueled by religion or religious philosophy is a worthy question. Are those of faith really exercising their logical faculties or have they merely put them aside for reasons of faith? The less surety or confidence in our own resourcefulness the more likely it appears we are to follow even the most absurd of stories that are the basic teachings of many of the world's religions. Adam and Eve created simultaneously with animals that existed in another era, or the story of immaculate conception or the story of Sodom and Gomorroh and Lot's righteousness in giving his daughters to save the angels...not exactly the most moral or defensible of tales.
But what he fails to offer is an alternative. It's one thing to point out the absurdity and another to strike out to create an alternative. Does he support a leaderless model for mankind...a ouiji board without any gimmicks way of moving forward in the world?
If there is a leadership model Bold enough to step us forward into the unknown, lead in the face of uncertainty is it collective wisdom? Whether you believe that collective to be a majority, plurality or system based on unanimity is an expression of our willingness to be like reeds, flexible or strong and fast like the cedars. Hey not my comparison, but one found in the book of ecclisastes. The poetryin this book of verse remains far more powerful than the provocations Maher has attempted, besides Pete Seeger and the Byrds made it more tuneful and easy to keep ever mindful.
To everything, turn, turn turn.......
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Sunday, August 31, 2008
grasping for a strategy
I attended the Illinois Institute of Technology Entrepreneur Center's monthly mixer in oreder to learn more about Threadless. Of course, I had forgotten that the Center brings the organization in but does not require any type of presentation. That worked out well.
I had the opportunity to meet someone who is in the product development business. We spoke about learning strategy and also a little about knowledge management.
I will do my best to repiece together the conversation.
Imagine that you are two weeks on the job and an emergency arises and your boss asks you to put something together on a topic you really don't have a handle on. There is of course a limit to how many questions you can redirect to your boss. You want to be able to assure your boss of that their decision to hire you was wise, and yet you don't feel wise enough to perform the task. You need more information and you have not yet met anyone in the company and barely have a good handle on what the various departments do let alone who in the organization would be helpful without exposing your ignorance.
In short, you need a network and you need information stat.
Scenario 1, you call your old network and find out what they know and lean heavily on them for information and links to resources and put together a frame that still doesn't have the imprint of an insider's perspective. This might be suitable, but the emergency involves an area of great sensitivity and it is not something that should come to light outside the organization. This greatly limits your ability to share enough information to others to really help you.
Scenario 2, the new organization has an internal online social network that you have not yet mastered. You decide that there's no time to waste and begin the process of learning who's who and their areas of expertise. you make lunch dates and set up a series of coffee meetings on the ruse of merely wanting to get to know them and see how you in your new role might be able to help them in their role etc.
After a few days, your boss has heard a report from one of his peers that you have become quite the social butterly and wonders what the hell is going on. They are old school and have been with the company for over a decade, are well connected and have yet to understand the new online network and in fact blew off the requisite training a few months back. He confronts you.
I'm not sure I like either scenario but it certainly does outline some of the ongoing barriers to infromation sharing both internally and also when leaning on outside expertise.
Is this familiar?
what are the right strategies for this person, and how should the firm support that strategy?
Please share your reactions and thoughts.
I had the opportunity to meet someone who is in the product development business. We spoke about learning strategy and also a little about knowledge management.
I will do my best to repiece together the conversation.
Imagine that you are two weeks on the job and an emergency arises and your boss asks you to put something together on a topic you really don't have a handle on. There is of course a limit to how many questions you can redirect to your boss. You want to be able to assure your boss of that their decision to hire you was wise, and yet you don't feel wise enough to perform the task. You need more information and you have not yet met anyone in the company and barely have a good handle on what the various departments do let alone who in the organization would be helpful without exposing your ignorance.
In short, you need a network and you need information stat.
Scenario 1, you call your old network and find out what they know and lean heavily on them for information and links to resources and put together a frame that still doesn't have the imprint of an insider's perspective. This might be suitable, but the emergency involves an area of great sensitivity and it is not something that should come to light outside the organization. This greatly limits your ability to share enough information to others to really help you.
Scenario 2, the new organization has an internal online social network that you have not yet mastered. You decide that there's no time to waste and begin the process of learning who's who and their areas of expertise. you make lunch dates and set up a series of coffee meetings on the ruse of merely wanting to get to know them and see how you in your new role might be able to help them in their role etc.
After a few days, your boss has heard a report from one of his peers that you have become quite the social butterly and wonders what the hell is going on. They are old school and have been with the company for over a decade, are well connected and have yet to understand the new online network and in fact blew off the requisite training a few months back. He confronts you.
I'm not sure I like either scenario but it certainly does outline some of the ongoing barriers to infromation sharing both internally and also when leaning on outside expertise.
Is this familiar?
what are the right strategies for this person, and how should the firm support that strategy?
Please share your reactions and thoughts.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Getting off the Dime
Are you unable to move from a (stagnating) position? The dime is the (physically) smallest U.S. coin, making it difficult to grasp and the subject of metaphor.
In other words, "Getting off the dime" is more than telling someone emotionally paralyzed, unable or unwilling to decide to act, to change, but hasn't....
To be "on a dime" or "off a dime" most likely derives from an older saying: "This car stops on a dime..." where the rest of the original statement is usually omitted, "... and leaves a nickel change." If so, then "on a dime" would equate with being at a standstill, or making no progress at all. "Off a dime" and "get off the dime" would then be the same as saying, "get busy, start moving, make progress", etc.
A similar expression derives from Arthur Miller's usage of the phrase in one of his many plays. Although I couldn't track down the play itself (and therefore cannot be certain of this person's derivation), it is supposedly a line spoken by one of the characters to another who is emotionally unable or unwilling to move forward.
Further speculation suggests that the phrase, "Mister, have you gotta a dime?" (supposedly a common phrase uttered by more than a few down-and-outers during the Great Depression, and, according to the source you read, either the price of a meal or a bottle) is the truer source where this phrase springs. In this case, "on a dime" would be someone who's very tight with his money (support, goods, etc.); "off the dime" would be a generous soul; and "get off the dime" would equate with "stop being so nitpicky..."
Either way, the metaphor has entered the American lexicon and we can explore it practically as well as conceptually.
In other words, "Getting off the dime" is more than telling someone emotionally paralyzed, unable or unwilling to decide to act, to change, but hasn't....
To be "on a dime" or "off a dime" most likely derives from an older saying: "This car stops on a dime..." where the rest of the original statement is usually omitted, "... and leaves a nickel change." If so, then "on a dime" would equate with being at a standstill, or making no progress at all. "Off a dime" and "get off the dime" would then be the same as saying, "get busy, start moving, make progress", etc.
A similar expression derives from Arthur Miller's usage of the phrase in one of his many plays. Although I couldn't track down the play itself (and therefore cannot be certain of this person's derivation), it is supposedly a line spoken by one of the characters to another who is emotionally unable or unwilling to move forward.
Further speculation suggests that the phrase, "Mister, have you gotta a dime?" (supposedly a common phrase uttered by more than a few down-and-outers during the Great Depression, and, according to the source you read, either the price of a meal or a bottle) is the truer source where this phrase springs. In this case, "on a dime" would be someone who's very tight with his money (support, goods, etc.); "off the dime" would be a generous soul; and "get off the dime" would equate with "stop being so nitpicky..."
Either way, the metaphor has entered the American lexicon and we can explore it practically as well as conceptually.
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