Peace one day

You are either a visionary or a crazy man.

One man is searching for like-minded people. Believing that there could be a simultaneous cease fire. Peace one day. Globally.

Currently, the current normal is that everyone is aggressive.

He keeps on doing it for years.

What is the difference between normal and crazy? Normal is what the majority accepts.

This year I heard about it one day after 21 Septermber

Can we change the majority's perception? Can we find and reach the right majority?

Will I hear it on the date next year? Will I have done something to implement the idea?

Terry Pratchet on Money. The Matrix. Silly Money.

I never stop amazing at the amount of everyday issues covered in the books of Terry Pratchet. As I was re-reading Going Postal, I enjoyed the examples he gives on money, greed and consequences. Probably you will enjoy it more to find them on your own. I will just hint you here the one that I like the most: "money ... is kind of a shared dream". The magic works until somebody wakes up. Just like in the Matrix. While you sleep - you are fine. When you wake up - you are scared. In the end it is up to you which life or pill you choose.

To keep the smile on your face, here is a link to the wonderful Bird and Fortune explanation of the current Financial Crisis.

Dressed for Success - a practical example

People tend to change their attitude towards you based on their perception of your clothes.

To check this statement, I have made a simple experiment.

One day I went to buy fresh bread from the nearby shop, I wore a leather jacket (that actually makes me looks pretty nice). The next time, the morning was particularly cold, so I wore my skate boarding jacket. Interestingly people treated me with more respect when I was with the leather one, even though it is three times cheaper.

The reverse experiment is to go on the skiing slope. You get more respect based only on the correct choice of clothes.

So, no matter where you go, do your research and get dressed for success.

good at Lobbying is not equal to good at Inventing

I watched a documentary on a Viasat channel about the Wright brothers. The story describes how they have managed to achieve what others backed by $ 50,000 of government funding could not.

This brought me to the obvious conclusion that:
"Good at Lobbying is not equal to good at inventing, nevertheless it seems that good at lobbying is equal to good at spending."

Check how the government money are used by the big companies during the crisis. It will not become obvious right away. We need to wait till someone involved starts to talk. But it will be just like the Wright brothers story - somebody small, based on enthusiasm will find and implement the solution, while big spenders will charm us with their heroically futile eloquence.

Check the 18 billion in Wall Street bonuses of the top bank managers, who needed urgently government backup... I suppose that they could have lived this year without these money.

Where are the people in BPM?

As I am reading through the second part of the BPM Roadmap, I cannot help but ask myself the question:

"Among so much information about processes and technologies, why there is no information about the people who will actually contribute to this revolutionary evolution?"

Is it just that I have not finished reading the book, or simply the people factor is not on the agenda?

Observations on People

To find out what is the population in a given area are, you should do what explorers are doing while researching different animal species. It is - visit the places where the subjects engage in the basic and most common activities. Simplistically, these activities are: eat (or buy food), drink (or have fun), mate (or have sex) and sleep. Note, that the values in the parenthesis describe the human equivalent to the animal activities.

From time to time I try to do such observations to get an idea about the society around me. Honestly speaking, the results are not promising.

over (DE)centralization

Centralizing the control and knowledge in one point is in effect creating a single-point-of-failure and multiple points willing to relocate to the center. As a result motivation to work is reduced, creativity is restricted by burdening and tangled communication channels,

Over decentralization is equally dangerous. Surprisingly for the very similar reasons.

To me, this rule is equally true for countries, governments and enterprises. I hope to find some guidance how to balance between these two extremities.

Motivating the Change

I have finished the first, theoretical part of the SAP book about BPM. It contains a very good summary of the history and theory of the matter.

However, one of the strongest summaries of the whole improvement idea is the one from Exupery:



"If you want to build a ship, don't drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless see"

I have tried to connect it with my experience: persuading separate people to yearn is difficult and requires a lot of tact. It is even more problematic in a large organization as it meets different kinds of resistance on different levels and in different locations.

Well, I am most than willing to assist in helping people yearn about the see. I just hope that more of the people I meet will be able to see the poor elephant in the snake's stomach.

Being Good vs. Being Respected

As a young kid I watched A Bronx Tale movie. One of the many topics is about the borderline between being good to people around you and being respected by them.

The gang boss Sonny had an interesting summary of the survival rules:
You should be tough on people, so that they fear you. At the same time you should be kind to people, so that they need and maybe love you and do not feel urged to kill you. The secret is in the balance between love and hate.

Nowadays, thinking about murder is not among the widespread fears. Nevertheless there are many different forms of deaths in our society. At work your idea might not win if you are not pushy enough. Or if people think you are too light-hearthed even though this is a sign of a life-philosophy (Happy Gilmore) and not a problem solving capability.

Sadly, even though we are mostly not living in a gangster environment, we are still guided by such rules.

The Original Zebra

It is Madagascar time again. The focus this time will be on the existentially confused Zebra. He is enjoying and dreaming of the colorful world. Yet, he is trapped by the impossibility to answer the quesiton:

"Am I a black Zebra with white stripes
or white zebra with black stripes?"

Can somebody help him answer it?

"Hours Passed In Exile"

Dark Tranquillity

Lost to our many obligations, we often forget the real important things in life. Thanks to the Christmas festivities I had a chance to spend some quality time with my family.

After all, money are not important for themselves. It is the independence that they give us in this money-oriented world.

Strangely enough, the monk in a Frederick Lenz's book says something similar to: You have to be successful in this world, to help people believe you about the spiritual one.

For the New Year holidays I plan to stick to the spiritual and the snowflakes. After that... who knows.

Make a Positive Change

The Patrician from the Discworld stories says that there are two differences between good and bad people. The first is, that no matter what, the people on our side are the good ones. The second is that bad people make plans how to fulfill their evil deeds, while good people just sit and wait for the good hopes to become reality.

I have nothing to say about the first. However, as it is Christmas time, I would like to ask you to think about the second one. If you are a good person, please:

1. Make a wish.
   
2. Then make a plan.
3. Execute the plan.
4. Make a positive change.
5. Multiply the message.
6. Stick to the good side of the force.
7. On the seventh day - relax.
   

The Street Wisdom

When I was younger, I used to listen to a lot of rap music. My favorite was a verse from the late 2Pac. It sounded like: "You can be a lawyer or doctor someday. So set your priorities right." Is it not funny how some of the wisest words reach us not from the academics but from the street-wise?

How many books should I read to understand that no matter what seems important to me at the moment - like drinking and fighting, it is the long term goals that should guide my way.

Another such street wisdom that hit me this month is the band Deep Puddle Dynamics and their song The Scarecrow Speaks.

Anyway, it is Christmas time. I wish you maaaany, many happy things and even more clever wisdom.

Merry Christmas!

The Penguins

It is sometimes funny how many real life stories can be related to an animated movie. A simple 82 minutes of fun for the kids might hold characters description that can help us related them to our real world experience.

This time I will focus on the penguins simply because their picture is the easiest one to draw. I present you the Madagascar.

Look how sad and disappointed are the four penguins staying on the cold Antarctic beach. They have built an image of it in the cosines of their zoo cages. Now this image is somehow frozen and mostly shattered by the snowy winds.

They are just like the people pursuing their dreams. Occasionally when they fulfill their wishes and their dreams come true, the longing for a refreshing scent turns into a freezing stench.

However, what I especially like about the penguins is that they never give up and find another dream to dream.

Just like the Brand New Heavies song says: "Dream on, dreamer"

You can do the talk, but can you do the walk?

Realizing a problem is not the same as talking about it. See the post for GM (from TED).

The same is said about the Toyota model and the fact that only a few companies are able to reach similar perfectness.

If a manager in a company speaks about a problem and an intention to solve it, then we can measure his or her character, by watching closely the steps the manager takes.

A plasticine example

Sometimes when you are making plasticine figures you need flexible joints. Sometimes you need stick joints. It depends on how you treat the plasticine. You can warm it with your hands or you can freeze it in the fridge.

People are the same. With the right approach you can either stiffen or soften them. The BIG question it to know the magic word.

THANK YOU ;- )))

"Do onto yourself, before others do onto you"

Larry Burns on TED

A very interesting summary of a principle I have heard long time ago. At that time I was looking for a new job. I am glad that I found one before the company decided to shrink its volume.

It also connects with the Spencer Johnson's Who moved my cheese and the principle of preparing for the future. This is a lovely book about big changes. You might consider it a little bit unserious. However, one of the high-level managers at the company I currently work for has used it to prepare the management for the coming changes.

For some reason GM got out of luck and others did it onto GM. Now they need a bail out instead of being the grand saviors of the auto industry.

The frog and its pond

Somebody wise (probably from China) has said that you cannot speak to a frog about the sea as the frog knows only its pond.


At school we were really good compared to the other children in our pond. What made me sad was that whatever I do I will not get up to the height of the frogs from the bigger ponds. Except move to their pond.

Every task is like that. Either you are exceptionally good and eclipse the sea frogs, or you are the best in your pond, or you do not try at all.

"Get big, get niche or get out."

I am still looking for the source of both proverbs.

"Your Attitude is Your Life"

Everyday is full of choices:
- choose an university
- choose a job
- choose a project
...
Choosing actually is not bad. It is a nice exercise for the brain. What matters is your attitude. Your attitude changes your life and the lives of the people around you.

Choose your attitude.
Choose Life.

Mental Institution?

Zeitgesit is an interesting movie. So interesting in fact, that it made me feel the same as the movie The Twelve Monkeys.

While you watch them, the distinction between sanity and insanity will become unreal. Probably it is because it have never existed? In the end you wonder on which side of the mental institution wall you are standing and what good is the medical attention for.

Uuuuk?