Getting Naked With Jack Bauer – A Cautionary Tale!
Warning: This blog contains material that may be offensive to those with delicate sensibilities or a deep appreciation for Jack Bauer. Reader discretion is advised.
Let me clarify right at the outset that I am no fan of Jack Bauer. I have probably watched the series 24 for a total of 24 minutes, if not less. I get motion sickness from the way the camera and the story lurches from one crisis to another. It reminds me of my life. Which I try to escape by watching TV.
So, it is perfectly reasonable for you to ask what I was doing, Getting Naked with Jack Bauer. While eating. In public. And you may not be surprised or sympathetic to learn that he almost made me choke on my food and cough it up on the ladies at the next table.
From Nojo to Mojo in the Dojo – Part 3
Yes, baseball season has finally started. And many of us gluttons for punishment will now have a new source for our daily dose of pain. For me personally, the preferred sources of pain are the (mis)fortunes of the Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Cowboys. They generally keep me well supplied from September to around June or a Mavs play-off exit (whichever comes first) each year. However, after the Mavs season ends and before the Cowboys season begins, there is a certain emptiness in my life each year. I have considered diversifying my couch potato portfolio of pain by subscribing to the miseries of the Texas Rangers, but it is too radical a lifestyle change for me to make all of a sudden.
But perhaps I digress, my friends.
From Nojo to Mojo in the Dojo – Part 2
“When my children grow up, I want them to be…”
Thus begins the Coda in Marshall Goldsmith’s new book – Mojo. This is the question Marshall asked thousands of parents across the world. They could only respond in one word. What do you think it was?
Tweak the question…
“I want all my loved ones to be…”
How would you answer it?
From Nojo to Mojo in the Dojo – Part 1
Last month, I attended a conference call on Marshall Goldsmith’s new book – Mojo, and decided I just had to read it! Last week I finished reading the book and wanted to share some of his inspiring thoughts with you.
Marshal defines Mojo as the state of an individual or an organization in which everything goes right and one success leads to another, kind of like being in the zone. Nojo, on the other hand, is the exact opposite – a state where there is boredom, frustration and misery. Life is too short for us to have Nojo in our Dojo 🙂 Mojo provides simple tools and techniques to measure and boost our Mojo on a daily basis.
One of the most touching chapters in the book is the one on Daily Questions…
The Riveting Tale of Estelle Jones and Indy F Potter – Part 4
So what does all this mean?
* Is there a reason behind the differences in the way we respond to situations or do we do it just to * irritate each other?
* Is there a way for us to understand our preferred responses and adjust them if our natural first response hurts us?
* How can we understand, appreciate and capitalize on our differences instead of allowing them to obstruct our progress?
Quite like the hand we prefer to use for writing, we are all born with certain innate preferences for interacting with the world, processing information, making decisions and implementing our ideas. These preferences influence the situations in which we feel natural, relaxed and confident, and those in which we feel uncomfortable, awkward and strained.
The Riveting Tale of Estelle Jones and Indy F Potter – Part 3
Did that story seem familiar? Is there an Estelle or Indy in your office?
Who do you think was right?
What do you think the Boss should have done next? And how would you have handled this situation?
Can you identify with either one of them? Or, maybe a little bit with both of them?
Have you reflected on the different personality types at your work place and how they affect your ability to get things done? Take a blank piece of paper and jot down answers to these questions…
The Riveting Tale of Estelle Jones and Indy F Potter – Part 2
The decibel level in the office started rising. That meant that others had read the mail and the reactions were pouring out in the hallway. Indy started reflecting and planning a response. He brought out a pad and started jotting down the approach he would take-
Step 1: Learn about the target operating system
Step 2: Check if there were any 3rd party…
Before he could finish the sentence…
The Riveting Tale of Estelle Jones and Indy F Potter – Part 1
That morning started like any other. Indiana F Potter, or “Indy” got to work, made himself a cup of coffee, mumbled hello to anyone he could not avoid eye contact with and headed right to his desk. Given a choice, Indy preferred to be in his inner world of concepts and ideas. Especially at the start of a day, he got his energy by reflecting inwards, rather than interacting with others. Indy started catching up on what was going on in the world, moving on next to his mail and then started to plan out his day.
From Shawshank to Shorefront
In 1944, an aspiring model was told by the director of the Blue Book Modeling Agency that she’d “better learn secretarial work or get married”.
In 1954, after a teenager had just performed at the Grand Ole Opry, an organizer that him “to go back to drivin’ a truck”.
In 1962, a band auditioned for Decca Records and was rejected because “guitar groups were on their way out” and the band “had no future in show business”.
In each case, ‘experts’ made decisions based on their assumptions.
Lucky for us that their assumptions were incorrect. And the world got to know…
Linked Lists and Chicken Heads…
Wikipedia defines the word ‘geek’ as
‘…a slang term, noting individuals as “a peculiar or otherwise odd person, especially one who is perceived to be overly obsessed with one or more things including those of intellectuality, electronics, etc.’
But wait, it gets better…
‘…Formerly, the term referred to a carnival performer often billed as a wild man whose act usually includes biting the head off a live chicken, bat, snake or bugs.’
Mercifully, I do not remember ever biting off or wanting to bite off ‘the head of a live chicken, bat, snake or bugs’. However, I do remember many incidents that would make me eligible for the more contemporary definition of geek.
For instance, …