Jeff Davidson's Blog, page 30
May 4, 2015
A "Technology Bill of Rights"
Technology puts independent workers in the driver's seat, so to speak. But it can create such dependency, say my pals, Larry Rosen and Michelle Weil, that it might even lead to questioning one's own creativity and capabilities. To keep technology in it's proper perspective, they say to declare your independence.
1. I am the boss, not my technology.
2. Technology is available to help me express my creativity.
3. I decide when to use the tools technology provides.
4. I have the right to choose what technology to use and what to put aside.
5. I can use technology to stay connected, informed, and productive – my way.
6. Technology offers a world of information. I get to choose what information is important to me.
7. Technology will have problems, but I will be prepared to handle them.
8. Technology can work 24-hour days, but I can choose when to begin and when to stop working.
9. Technology never needs to rest, but I do.
10. I can work successfully by enforcing my boundary needs.
Source: Technostress by Larry Rosen Ph.D. and Michelle Weil PhD.
1. I am the boss, not my technology.
2. Technology is available to help me express my creativity.
3. I decide when to use the tools technology provides.
4. I have the right to choose what technology to use and what to put aside.
5. I can use technology to stay connected, informed, and productive – my way.
6. Technology offers a world of information. I get to choose what information is important to me.
7. Technology will have problems, but I will be prepared to handle them.
8. Technology can work 24-hour days, but I can choose when to begin and when to stop working.
9. Technology never needs to rest, but I do.
10. I can work successfully by enforcing my boundary needs.
Source: Technostress by Larry Rosen Ph.D. and Michelle Weil PhD.
April 24, 2015
Do Not Litter My Lawn
Writing in the New York Times years back, Sewall Chan offers a wonderful article about local efforts to Halt Unwanted Paper Deliveries. Excerpted, he says:
"In an era of spam, telemarketing, moving billboards and other forms of aggressive commercial solicitation, an old-fashioned form of advertising is surprisingly - many say irritatingly - resilient: fliers, restaurant menus and business cards slipped under the doors, wedged in door jambs or left on the stoops of houses and apartment buildings in New York City."
"Until now, homeowners have had no recourse to block the unwanted paper, often called 'lawn litter' because in neighborhoods with yards much of the paper ends up on the lawn." Now however, the city is "enforcing a recent state law that prohibits the placement of 'unsolicited papers, fliers, pamphlets, handbills, circulars or other materials advertising a business or soliciting business" at homes in New York City if the property owner has posted a sign saying such materials are not wanted." Bravo!
"Advertisers who violate the law face fines from $250 for a first offense to $1,000 for repeat violations... Under the new law, the property owner's sign must be at least five inches tall and seven inches wide, and display the following language in legible letters at least one inch high: "Do Not Place Unsolicited Advertising Materials on This Property."
"...property owners who receive unwanted advertisements will be able to fill out a citizen complaint form and mail it, along with the unwanted ads, to the Sanitation Department's enforcement office in Brooklyn."
"In an era of spam, telemarketing, moving billboards and other forms of aggressive commercial solicitation, an old-fashioned form of advertising is surprisingly - many say irritatingly - resilient: fliers, restaurant menus and business cards slipped under the doors, wedged in door jambs or left on the stoops of houses and apartment buildings in New York City."
"Until now, homeowners have had no recourse to block the unwanted paper, often called 'lawn litter' because in neighborhoods with yards much of the paper ends up on the lawn." Now however, the city is "enforcing a recent state law that prohibits the placement of 'unsolicited papers, fliers, pamphlets, handbills, circulars or other materials advertising a business or soliciting business" at homes in New York City if the property owner has posted a sign saying such materials are not wanted." Bravo!
"Advertisers who violate the law face fines from $250 for a first offense to $1,000 for repeat violations... Under the new law, the property owner's sign must be at least five inches tall and seven inches wide, and display the following language in legible letters at least one inch high: "Do Not Place Unsolicited Advertising Materials on This Property."
"...property owners who receive unwanted advertisements will be able to fill out a citizen complaint form and mail it, along with the unwanted ads, to the Sanitation Department's enforcement office in Brooklyn."
April 20, 2015
Accuracy Matters
Check out news stories on your own before passing them along to others:
www.urbanlegends.about.com
www.thesmokinggun.com
www.quackwatch.org
www.politifact.com
www.straightdope.com
www.snopes.com
www.truthorfiction.com
www.museumofhoaxes.com
www.skeptic.com
www.urbanlegends.about.com
www.thesmokinggun.com
www.quackwatch.org
www.politifact.com
www.straightdope.com
www.snopes.com
www.truthorfiction.com
www.museumofhoaxes.com
www.skeptic.com
22 "Laws" of Life
Notes from Discovering the Laws of Life by John Templeton, Templeton Press, 1997.
* No one knows the weight of another’s burden.
* Enthusiasm is contagious.
* You fear what you do not understand.
* Thanksgiving leads to having more to give thanks for.
* Life is 10% what you make it and 90% how you take it.
* Every ending is a new beginning.
* Practice within when you are without.
* Perseverance makes a difference between success and defeat.
* The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention. ***
* Everyone and everything around you is your teacher.
* If you would find gold, you must search for where gold is. ***
* Happy relationships depend not on finding the right person, but on being the right person.
* You cannot discover new oceans until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.
* We receive freely when we give freely.
* Your life becomes what you think.
* The seven deadly sins are: pride, lust, sloth, envy, anger, covetousness, and gluttony.
* There is as much risk in doing nothing as in doing something.
* Find a need and fill it.
* Thoughts are like boomerangs.
* Of all the things you wear, your expression is the most important.
* Beautiful thoughts build a beautiful soul.
* Success feeds on itself and creates more success.
* No one knows the weight of another’s burden.
* Enthusiasm is contagious.
* You fear what you do not understand.
* Thanksgiving leads to having more to give thanks for.
* Life is 10% what you make it and 90% how you take it.
* Every ending is a new beginning.
* Practice within when you are without.
* Perseverance makes a difference between success and defeat.
* The greatest gift you can give another is the purity of your attention. ***
* Everyone and everything around you is your teacher.
* If you would find gold, you must search for where gold is. ***
* Happy relationships depend not on finding the right person, but on being the right person.
* You cannot discover new oceans until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.
* We receive freely when we give freely.
* Your life becomes what you think.
* The seven deadly sins are: pride, lust, sloth, envy, anger, covetousness, and gluttony.
* There is as much risk in doing nothing as in doing something.
* Find a need and fill it.
* Thoughts are like boomerangs.
* Of all the things you wear, your expression is the most important.
* Beautiful thoughts build a beautiful soul.
* Success feeds on itself and creates more success.
April 14, 2015
Medicated Passengers
On a plane trip from Raleigh to London it became abundantly clear that all of the electronics installed, including private movie screens on every seat back, music channels, and headsets were a way of "medicating" passengers. The plane's aisles had been designed so that no one could move about easily.
Instead, people were induced to stay in their seats, sit, eat, and not circulate. I guess the airline determined that most passengers would gladly accept electronic medication if it would make the time in the sky seemingly go faster.
Instead, people were induced to stay in their seats, sit, eat, and not circulate. I guess the airline determined that most passengers would gladly accept electronic medication if it would make the time in the sky seemingly go faster.
Too Much Noise!
Foruteen years ago, the article “Noise Busters” by Richard and Joyce Wolkomir appeared in Smithsonian Magazine. From the authors:
“Nature quiet is now preserved in only 7% of Arizona’s Grand Canyon national park and nowhere in Hawaii’s volcano’s National Park.”
“Among city dwelling Americans, 87% are exposed to noise so loud it has the potential to degrade hearing capacity over time. But you will not necessarily find peace in the suburbs or country side either, not with the on slot of leaf blowers, snow blowers, lawn mowers, chain saws, snow mobiles, power boats, and all terrain vehicles.
“Researchers have demonstrated that noise can raise your blood pressure and change your blood chemistry… Adrenaline levels can rise, indicating the imposition of stress.”
Noise is unwanted sound, derived from the Latin word for nausea. In 1960 there were no leaf blowers, no jet skis, no car alarms, and few snowmobiles.
Noise on one side of the school has been shown to diminish some children’s test scores, compared with that of children on the other side of the school in a relatively noise-free zone, who otherwise have the same academic capabilities and demographic profile.
Do you want to do your best work? Get away from the noise.
“Nature quiet is now preserved in only 7% of Arizona’s Grand Canyon national park and nowhere in Hawaii’s volcano’s National Park.”
“Among city dwelling Americans, 87% are exposed to noise so loud it has the potential to degrade hearing capacity over time. But you will not necessarily find peace in the suburbs or country side either, not with the on slot of leaf blowers, snow blowers, lawn mowers, chain saws, snow mobiles, power boats, and all terrain vehicles.
“Researchers have demonstrated that noise can raise your blood pressure and change your blood chemistry… Adrenaline levels can rise, indicating the imposition of stress.”
Noise is unwanted sound, derived from the Latin word for nausea. In 1960 there were no leaf blowers, no jet skis, no car alarms, and few snowmobiles.
Noise on one side of the school has been shown to diminish some children’s test scores, compared with that of children on the other side of the school in a relatively noise-free zone, who otherwise have the same academic capabilities and demographic profile.
Do you want to do your best work? Get away from the noise.
March 28, 2015
Aromatherapy Works Wonders
A study found "that sniffing lavender oil before bedtime was just as effective as sleep medication" for some insomniacs. "The oil may reduce the time it takes to fall asleep as well as the need for sleeping pills," says Dr. Alan Hirsch, the founder and neurological director of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago.
March 17, 2015
Your Home, Your Sanctuary
Whether it’s your home, car, office, or any other space, seek to accommodate the way you sleep, eat, drive, work, and live.
Never mind how your arrangement appears to someone else. When you manage your environment, it might not look conventional or "normal" to others. So what? Which do would prefer? Easier ways of doing things or more involved, more complex ways of doing things?
One good trip to a Home Depot store can work wonders. You can pick up a few green plants, curtain rods, and new light fixtures. Whatever rooms and areas of your home could use a mild upgrade, go ahead and make the effort. Even minimal positive effects to your home environment can make a difference in your work effectiveness.
Never mind how your arrangement appears to someone else. When you manage your environment, it might not look conventional or "normal" to others. So what? Which do would prefer? Easier ways of doing things or more involved, more complex ways of doing things?
One good trip to a Home Depot store can work wonders. You can pick up a few green plants, curtain rods, and new light fixtures. Whatever rooms and areas of your home could use a mild upgrade, go ahead and make the effort. Even minimal positive effects to your home environment can make a difference in your work effectiveness.
March 9, 2015
All About Making Decisions
Here is some sage advice about making decisions in both your professional and personal lives, from author and counselor Rebecca Merrill.
Rebecca Merrill, Living in Yes, c 2004
1. We all have to do it.
2. We never get to stop doing it.
3. Every new decision leads to more decisions. It's just a question of how
4. It's difficult to make good decisions for a multitude of reasons.
5. We spend a small percentage of our lives making decisions, but they determine the rest of our lives, which are the consequences.
6. There are no "right" or perfect decisions.
7. With every decision, you will experience some loss, especially if you choose to do nothing.
8. You can only make the decision you are capable of making when the decision is called for; all decisions are a function of who you are at the time you make them.
9. The quality of your life is directly related to the quality of your decisions.
10. It is well worth your while to learn how to make good ones.
Rebecca Merrill, Living in Yes, c 2004
1. We all have to do it.
2. We never get to stop doing it.
3. Every new decision leads to more decisions. It's just a question of how
4. It's difficult to make good decisions for a multitude of reasons.
5. We spend a small percentage of our lives making decisions, but they determine the rest of our lives, which are the consequences.
6. There are no "right" or perfect decisions.
7. With every decision, you will experience some loss, especially if you choose to do nothing.
8. You can only make the decision you are capable of making when the decision is called for; all decisions are a function of who you are at the time you make them.
9. The quality of your life is directly related to the quality of your decisions.
10. It is well worth your while to learn how to make good ones.
March 6, 2015
More Meetings, Less Breathing Space
A software firm named Atlassian indicates that the typical employee spends 31 hours monthly in meetings and regards at least half of that time to be unnecessary. Of those in the survey, 91% indicated that they daydream, 75% tend to other work, and 39% doze off some of the time. The calculated cost of unnecessary meetings is $37 billion a year.
Research by Bain & Company indicates that the typical manager comsumers at least one full day each week in meetings, and that senior executives devote 40% of the work week in ineffective meetings. None of the findings above includes the time preparation and follow up time consumed before and after meetings.
Research by Bain & Company indicates that the typical manager comsumers at least one full day each week in meetings, and that senior executives devote 40% of the work week in ineffective meetings. None of the findings above includes the time preparation and follow up time consumed before and after meetings.
