Tag: Barack Obama

How Faith and Forgiveness Can Come in the Wake of Trayvon Martin

Rabbi Evan MofficI am the latest Rabbi Evan Moffic fanboy — he actually stopped to comment on a post I did [did I mention lately I <3 the internet?] curating his work this morning…

As I explore the body of his work online, I came across this post on a topic of current interest and I share his reasoned perspective here:

As President Obama said, the jury has spoken. The case has concluded. One side won, and another side lost. Yet, no one is happy. A 17-year-old boy is dead. Grieving parents will never be the same. What now?
Some want to continue the conflict. Facebook and Twitter are filled with words of vitriol and vengeance. Others, like Trayvon Martin‘s parents, have conveyed their sadness and hope. They have turned to faith not in the name of anger. They have turned to God in the name of healing. This morning Trayvon Martin’s mom tweeted, “Lord during my darkest hour I lean on you. You are all that I have. At the end of the day, God is still in control. Thank you all for your prayers and support.”

Amen. There is a time for conflict. There is a time for healing. Now is the time for healing. What insights and support can our faith give us? Continue reading “How Faith and Forgiveness Can Come in the Wake of Trayvon Martin” →

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Your Time Has Come

If you are reading this column, count your blessings – you have survived a potentially catastrophic 2012. But the media tells us ‘Not so fast!’ Now we have to prepare to be sucked over the Fiscal Cliff. 2013 doesn’t have to be the new end of our old world. In fact, it can be the beginning of our new, sustainable, progressive world. But before we make plans for the future, let’s take some time to assess how far we’ve come recently. As the year winds down, we have the perfect opportunity to set ourselves up for a good new year – and maybe even the best for the rest of our lives.” Full story at:  Your Time Has Come | Psychology Today.

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Pat Hopkins of Imaginasium in Green Bay [yes, we have very smart people here too!] wrote:

Steve Jobs had it. Bill Gates did, too. Their successors? Not so much.

Don’t get me wrong — Apple and Microsoft may still be successful. It’s just that they’ll never be the same companies that they set out to be.

These days, they’re operating based solely on sound business practices, rather than rallying around a unified, inspiring vision that made them the undisputed leaders in their field.

Same scenario in government: In 2008, Barack Obama had it in droves. This year? Both he and Mitt Romney have played it safe — relying on tried & true tactics rather than a bold vision to rally around. Thus, there’s been no clear leader in the race to date.

And remember good ol’ George H.W. Bush? After serving as Vice President to Reagan — an unequaled storyteller with a clear, compelling vision — he sought to continue the same successful policies for another eight years. Yet, he only served one term.

Bush 41 had an incredible resume — on paper, there was perhaps no one more qualified in recent history than he to serve as president. As he focused on the comfortable role of handling issues one-by-one and in the here-and-now, his advisors urged him to speak to broader themes. He referred to it as “that vision thing,” and didn’t see it as important as solving problems and letting his record speak for itself.

It cost him the election — voters instead rallied around a new candidate who urged them to “don’t stop thinking about tomorrow.” (And Clinton went on to serve two terms, with unparalleled popularity even today).

Vision is what every successful leader and company thrives on, yet one of the hardest things to truly communicate and achieve. In fact, it’s the most critical long-term success factor and challenge you’ll face.

You can get by for a while without it. But you won’t lead your industry. Or make as much profit as your competitor. Or retain the best talent.

And unless you also weave it into a compelling story and get good at telling it, you’re likely to face the same fate.” via About That Vision Thing….

Takeaway? Find yours — vision, that is — and pursue it while you still can…

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Cocaine

I hate voting years and getting stupid emails like this. I couldn’t help but reply to this one:

On Fri, Jul 20, 2012 at 12:20 PM, Mark Neumann <email> wrote:

Todd–Can you believe our government spent $400,000 dollars to study the effect of cocaine on the sex habits of Japanese quails? Its too ridiculous to make up…Help us keep our latest ad on the air–holding Barack Obama accountable for his out of control spending, and moving America towards a balanced budget is the only responsible course of action.Right now, you can sponsor an ad in Milwaukee, Green Bay, Madison, La Crosse and Eau Claire, or Wausau and Rhinelander. Watch our ad now and help keep it on air.Outraged,

Mark Neumann
Friend on Facebook – Follow on Twitter – Sign up to Volunteer
Click here to unsubscribe to future messages

My reply? “Mark, I hear cocaine is expensive!”

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Greece in colour, c.1920s

Retronaut. Get more here: Greece in colour, c.1920s.

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Tolerance and Diversity…

I’m against all forms of intolerance. Even my own! Tolerance and Diversity… | Liberal Logic 101.

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The Freedom of Not Needing To Be Right

Hannah Eagle writes:

“You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist.” Friedrich Nietzsche.

Yesterday I drove my mother and father to the VA hospital in Albuquerque for a doctor’s appointment. I had never been to a VA hospital before. I guess I should have expected the numbers of crutches and canes, armless and legless veterans, young and weathered faces alike.

I was personally witnessing the costs endured when humans war against each other.

“Isn’t it odd,” I said to my mother, “that human beings war with each other?”

Why in the world do we do that?

Then I considered the ways in which we war on an interpersonal level. We humans war to varying degrees with our partners, our friends, our bosses, our co-workers, our siblings, our parents—pretty much all in the name of our need to be “right” or the need not to be wrong.

We war over ideas and beliefs that we often have never questioned. These include ideas from our upbringings, our religions, our scars and wounds, and our existential need to identify ourselves in some way.

How early did we lose our childlike wonder? When did we lose that innocent state in which we did not judge others, nor need to be “right”—when we saw the best in everything and everyone, and when it did not matter that someone was Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, atheist, republican, democrat, omnivorous, vegetarian, gay, or of a different race?

When I observe my 10-year-old grandson, he appears to have no tendency to judge other people, not yet anyway. He has no need to diminish others, nor does he feel threatened by them.

Would we, as children, have told lies about someone just because we wanted to win an election? Would we have been dismissive or even cruel to someone because they were of another race or religion? I don’t think so.

As little children we only cared that we were loved. And we were still curious about everything.

Somewhere along the way we lose our innocence and start to judge others. This becomes a primary source of our social anxiety and the undermining of our self-esteem, because if we are judging others. we fear that we are also being judged.

Could we perhaps untangle and re-do ourselves? Could we resist closing ourselves off with dogma or beliefs, prejudice, and rules? Could we allow ourselves the freedom of not knowing and reclaim our curiosity?

A beautiful YouTube called We Love You Iran & Israel, depicts an Israeli man reaching out to Iranian people. He says, “Our countries are talking war. In order to go to war . . . I have to hate you. I don’t hate you. I don’t even know you. No Iranian has ever done me harm. I have only met one Iranian in a museum in Paris. Nice dude.”

Reality is malleable. The reality, which we have imposed upon ourselves or had planted in our heads by others to make us feel safe, is also the reality that keeps us from really appreciating our own humanness and really loving other human beings—those beings who are more like us than we realize, even if we don’t know them.

Source: The Freedom of Not Needing To Be Right | Tiny Buddha: Wisdom Quotes, Letting Go, Letting Happiness In

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Wisconsin Recall Election Seen as Referendum

You might be thinking to yourself “Hey, what’s this political crap doing on Todd’s blog?” Well, I got my start in political blogging and stopped 3 years ago because I found it wasn’t healthy for me or my family or my business. The things I learned as a political blogger I now apply in my business practice and to the ideas I post here…

I’m going back to politics for one post simply because I feel that this recall election affects everyone in the country — not just us cheeseheads — but at the same time, I think people don’t have much bandwidth for civic issues they perceive don’t affect them. Here’s ABC’s perspective on the Wisconsin recall…

“In a battle viewed largely as a barometer for November’s showdown between President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney, Wisconsin voters on Tuesday will decide whether to oust Gov. Scott Walker for what Democrats contend is an unacceptable attack on organized labor by the GOP lawmaker.

During the winter of 2011, the Badger State became locked in a standoff as Walker pushed to roll back union rights for many public employees, infuriating labor groups in the state and around the country. While the governor ultimately succeeded in signing a law that stripped most public employees of their collective bargaining rights on pensions and health care, and limited their pay increases, the backlash against Walker set the stage for this week’s recall vote.

“It’s a statement about what role we think the public sector ought to play,” said Barry Burden, a professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “There are fundamental differences between the two parties here, and they mimic the debate in Washington. Republicans want to reduce the size of government, and they view the public sector as a hindrance to job growth, while Democrats want to use the public sector to spur job growth, promote fairness and serve as a safety net. We can’t do both. Wisconsin is a swing state, and it represents a lot of the diversity we find in the country in general, so for that reason I think the recall here is a symbol of the larger argument going on.”

Recent polls show Walker leading his Democratic opponent, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. A survey of likely voters conducted by Marquette University Law School from May 23-26 showed Walker with a 52 percent to 45 percent advantage over Barrett. But public polling can be unpredictable because of the special nature of the summertime election, and that poll came before the two opponents engaged in a heated debate Thursday night.” Get more here: Wisconsin Scott Walker Recall Election Viewed ss Referendum – ABC News.

In 2008, I stepped down from my position as 3rd Vice Chairman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin due in large part to bad experiences in dealing with campaigns and party officials. While I never had a bad experience with Scott personally I did have one with his campaign. Despite the bitter taste in my mouth, I’ll be voting for Scott tomorrow. For me, there is an important issue at stake; namely, from my perspective powerful forces like unions outside our state are trying to influence how we live here for their own purposes. Scott Walker promised to bring fiscal sanity back to Wisconsin and for the most part he has kept those promises. Of course people and organizations who have been feeding at the public trough are pissed but Wisconsin and the United States cannot continue handing out public monies they way they have. Scott Walker has been good for Wisconsin and the US; I encourage you to support him tomorrow…

PS Did you know this is only the third time in our nation’s history that a governor has faced a recall election?

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Needs and boundaries

Todd Lohenry

“When we don’t ask for what we want and need, we discount ourselves. We deserve better. Maybe others taught us it wasn’t polite or appropriate to speak up for ourselves. The truth is, if we don’t, our unmet wants and needs may ultimately come back to haunt our relationships. We may end up feeling angry or resentful, or we may begin to punish someone else for not guessing what we need. We may end the relationship because it doesn’t meet our needs. Intimacy and closeness are only possible in a relationship when both people can say what they want and need. Sustained intimacy demands this. Sometimes, we may even have to demand what we want. That’s called setting a boundary. We do this not to control another person, but to gain control of our life. Our attitude toward our needs is important too. We must value them and take them seriously if we expect others to take us seriously. When we begin to place value and importance on our needs, we’ll see a remarkable change. Our wants and needs will begin to get met. Today, I will respect the wants and needs of myself and others. I will tell myself, others, and my Higher Power what I want and need. I will listen to what they want and need too.”

Beattie, Melody (2009-12-15). The Language of Letting Go (Hazelden Meditation Series) (pp. 355-356). Hazelden. Kindle Edition.

Amen!

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Press On!

“Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan ‘Press On’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”

– Calvin Coolidge, was the thirtieth President of the United States (1923-1929).

via thedailylove.com
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Twitter
Image via Wikipedia

Do you tweet? Or twitter? Victoria Harres does…

“The other day I sat down to write something about Twitter. I struggled with my thoughts, threw some words down, and came up with a question: “Why are you twittering?” I knew the answer people would give. I know Twitter, and I know the type of people who tweet. I know why my husband is on his iPhone flipping through tweets at 1:30 a.m. He insists on reading every tweet from every person he follows. Personally, I’m guilty of recently tweeting after midnight with a couple of people who tweet for major newspapers. So I know my husband and I are not the only ones afflicted with this social addiction.” Source: Why People Twitter – in one word.

So? Do you? Spill the beans in the comments…

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Things we’ve been tracking in the past 24 hours…

 

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Are you fascinating? I sure am and Google Reader is the reason why — well, one of them anyway!

“The primary goal of your social media activities—whether for your personal brand or your organization’s brand—is to establish yourself as a fascinating subject-matter expert. The only exception to this is if you are a household name celebrity like Lance Armstrong, Oprah or Barack Obama. If you are this level of celebrity, then tweeting or updating, “I’m at Starbucks on the way to fly VirginAmerica to Vegas” is cool.

For the rest of us, the challenge is to achieve a consistent level of fascinating information about your area of expertise. The answer is simple. First, it helps if you actually know what you’re talking about. If you don’t, it may be better to let people wonder if you’re clueless rather than participating in social media and removing all doubt. But let’s say you’ve crossed the Rubicon.

Then it’s all about finding good stories, videos and blog posts about your subject and providing links to these sources. For example, if you own a restaurant, then you could post a link to The Second Annual New York Foodie Photo Scavenger Hunt, Cilantro Haters, It’s Not Your Fault, and Check It Out: Get Your Groceries At The Library. Do this for a few months, and people will recognize you as a food expert. And guess what? They’ll come eat at your restaurant.

Then the next question is how you can find these stories, videos, and blog posts. I have four methods for you to use:” Source: How to Be Fascinating : The World :: American Express OPEN Forum

Guy goes on to offer these 4 tools:

  • StumbleUpon
  • SmartBrief
  • Interns
  • His own service, Alltop

As much as I love you Guy, I have to take issue here. Ummm, how could you NOT mention Google Reader? Yes, StumbleUpon and SmartBrief are two great sources but I can manage hundreds effectively in Google Reader. In fact, because of Reader I don’t need interns! True, Alltop is one of the places I tell every client to go but Google Reader is the killer app for news aggregation. I broke it down here a long time ago…

So to Guy, or whatever intern reads this, please add Google Reader to your list — nothing makes you fascinating faster than Reader!

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Slate vs. State

Jobs vs. Obama in the ultimate ‘reality distortion field’ knockdown. Who won? The results may surprise you…

“Two events dominated discussion last week: the unveiling of Apple’s iPad and President Obama’s State of the Union address. Leading up to last Wednesday, many wondered if Apple’s event would overshadow Obama’s. On social media, that was certainly the case.

Monitoring Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, blogs and the rest, social media analysts at Viralheat found over half a million mentions of the two happenings. Those mentions were overwhelmingly related to Apple’s new tablet computer.

As the infographic explains, however, even if Apple had the buzz, Obama brought the honey. Generally, 42% of Apple’s mentions were positive and 46% were indifferent, whereas 65% of his mentions approved of Obama’s address and only 19% were indifferent.” Source: The Slate Walloped the State in Social Media – apple ipad – Gizmodo

Go to the source to read the analysis…

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5 Reasons for Not Managing Your Pipeline

Colin Wilson writes… “I’ve been travelling the length and breadth of the UK last week and not been able to put up any posts on my blog and so feeling a little more than a tad guilty I’ve been trying to put one together during my lunch break on one of the training workshops that I’ve been running… to help me I enlisted the help of some friends and so my thanks go to Tony, Richard, Elaine, Mike and Dave (aka Ishbell) who helped me develop this list.

Here are our 5 best reasons why you should not manage your pipeline…” A tongue in cheek look at the problem of opportunity pipelines which is definitely worth the read. Click here to read more…

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