Monday, December 15, 2008

Momma's Got Your Back...

Have you ever had one of those moments at work where something occurs and you are rendered speechless by the audacity of the situation? I think I have seen much in the world of human behavior..however last week I encountered a situation that confirmed for me as a leader what our next generation will bring to us and the work place....
It gave me pause to think about what we have created in our effort to give our children the perfect world to live in; we have created overly confident,entitlement believing, dependent children. Ahhh..the millenniums..

Don't get me wrong, I think there is great value in self confidence, but self confidence is earned, not given as a false sense..There is value in failure of self, and learning to overcome our shortcomings, dealing with the reality of life, the pecking order of life so to speak; teaches us great things about who we are, who we can become or who we won't become. Giving your child the opportunity to fail, fall down, and then pick themselves up is one of the best life lessons we can do as parents...Yet,very few parents are able to stomach watching the reality of this. Instead, we now salve our parental angst with guilt ridden support for situations that if left to their own devices and outcomes could bring maturity and growth value beyond measure.

Hence my topic. Imagine your momma calling your boss to fight for your job; that you lost on your own volition due to attendance, attitude and work ethic. That's right, momma's got your back.

Huh..never thought of my mom as my labor negotiator or muscle..especially when I was 25 years old.

Monday, December 8, 2008

The Newest Fairy Tale...

Interesting times they found themselves in. Jobs were scarce, money was tight, bills were surmounting, houses were being taken; blame was being handed out like candy canes from Santa, credit was no longer, retirement savings were diminished, vacations and frivolity were cancelled..the poor were hungry, and health care became a privilege..Yet no one could account for what had happened...They walked amongst themselves mumbling and grumbling about responsibility and argued over fault and blame. Who could have allowed this to happen? Who did this to us they asked over and over...

Not I said the UAW worker, "I simply take my check, retirement and benefits and go home at night, I work hard for my pay and benefits I deserve it and am owed".

Not I said the home owner; "I bought my house with 0 percent down, and could make the payments when I was working, but now my house is worth less then when I bought it; so I shall just leave; the bank should have known better".

Not I said the credit card user; "I pay my minimum payments, so I have been late a few times, everyone else is too". The card was given to me to use; so what if I don't pay it off...no else is either".

Not I said the auto CEO, "my company vision is what people want and crave; we must give them what they want; who cares about what they need", our product may be overpriced because of labor inputs, and outdated for fuel efficiency..but people want to buy American".


Not I said the lender; "I put people in homes who could never have afforded one, I met their need for instant gratification, it is what they wanted". They deserve their high percentage of interest..they agreed to it..

Not I said the bureaucrat, "I vote for what people tell me they want; they want more regulations and more government services", I am giving service to my country; and I deserve a full service retirement and benefits...

SO, they all pulled together and voted in a touted savior..He shall lead them to light and fix the wrongs that have been thrust upon them..and they shall follow his lead and words...blaming someone else for the problem but never themselves..And they will all live happily ever after in that place called Nirvana..

Yes this is the new American Fairy Tale..feel free to print and share..I am looking forward to reading it to my grandchildren as we sit in our box known as a home and I share stories about what once was a great nation and how we fell...blaming each other for the wrongs of our life, and looking for someone to rescue us from our own making of demise...