Mother's Day 2008

Once again, google offers a nice, understated salute to a national holiday. If your mother is still reminding you to "wash behind your ears" and spouting other such colourful expressions of love to you, give her a call if the distance is too great to "pop in" for a visit.

-ski

Wisdom :: Mike Murdock

Who are your mentors?

One of my heroes, is Mike Murdock. His web site is overflowing with profound thoughts on wisdom. I have heard him live and in person on a couple of occasions. Most excellent.

In the process of doing some office cleaning (more reorganizing than actual cleaning) I found a small (in physical size) book that Murdock wrote, Secrets of the Journey - Part I. So I flipped through it, and this passage caught my attention:

Reading affects your thinking
Listening affects your feelings
Reading affects your mind
Listening affects your emotions

This helps explain (in a small yet powerful way) why I love my iPod. I have created podcasts of my TV interviews with good friend, Ed McCullough and have been listening a lot of late to the most recent episode of Talk of the Town.

I shared the actual TV broadcast via the web (on SKI TV) with some friends, and one remarked how good of an interviewer Ed was, and how knowledgeable he was on Constraints Management fundamentals. In case you did not know, Ed was a partner in one of my old adventures (eDivision.net LLC) and wrote the landmark book review of Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point. In the review, written shortly after the release of Necessary but not Sufficient, Ed applied the tenets in Gladwell's book to the characters in NBNS. Great stuff... but I digress.

If your iPod is not full of podcasts, might I suggest that you are not really serious about the success of your business?

Too strong a statement?

Sorry. Life is too short.

Was it Col. John Boyd that said, "The victory goes to the wise?" Maybe not. But he was a big fan of reading. I would expect that he read King Solomon's thoughts on war, like this passage:

"For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war:
and in multitude of counsellers there is safety."
—Proverbs 24:6

Thanks Mike, for reminding me how important the spoken word is to our mental health and attitude. Your efforts are appreciated.


-ski

----
Jeff 'SKI' Kinsey, Jonah
www.throughput.us
+1 330 432-3533

tag: Mike Murdock
©2008 Throughput.us LLC. All rights reserved.

Congrats Son

So you got that promotion... Now, the fun begins! Friends that might not like taking orders from you... folks that want to be your friend, now that you have some control over their future. Oh the joys of the hidden agenda! I recall Earl Nightingale quoting from Shakespeare’s Hamlet:

"To thine own self be true..."

Not quite as polished a speaker, I prefer this quote from a Reggie Jackson TV commercial:

"The only person that I have to impress, is me."

Trust your gut. Of course, you might take time to re-read my book as well. There is a reason why I called it a business leadership guide. There were a number of reasons your grandfather wanted it published, and I have to believe that one of them was for your benefit. Focus. My key to any success that I have enjoyed. I am willing to stay on task until it is complete, or the circumstances demand a review. Study the facts, ask a lot of questions, then make a decision. Quickly. Then apply leverage at the focal point. Never second guess yourself. Life is too short.

"Its relationships, stupid."

I tell myself that most every morning. Not that I am all that stupid (or, all that smart), but we all make mistakes. But Jim Collins gave us a great gift in his Good to Great book, and that was the proof that the RIGHT people are your greatest asset. Not the smartest. Not the young (or the old). The right people. Surround yourself with great people, and you will be amazed at the victories that await your command. Find those loyal young hot shots (like you were just nine years ago!) and challenge them to contribute. You have my number, call if you need encouragement. Call to share your successes. But as you have learned over the years, I do not accept calls to complain. Life is too short. --the dad