Personal & Professional Assumptions

It is a difficult line to draw between personal and professional assumptions but to understand the value of each can be beneficial in the long run. I knew some people through events I have organized and they attended these events. They were not the most polite or clean looking people. If you saw them on the street you would probably try to avoid them but when I needed help with fundraising for a community project or helping a family to fix up their house they were some of the first ones there and some of the last to leave.

Although the cover of the book may be worn and tattered what the pages hold may be rich and beautiful.

Technology: Good or Bad?

I don't believe it is a win or lose situation. There are so many positive and productive things technology has enabled us to do it would not be fair to label it a losing situation. I would, however, classify it a difficult balancing act. How do we, as a culture and individuals, enjoy the convenience of technology without losing our identity to it. How did we ever communicate before Facebook and Twitter. My children have never known life without email, cell phones or video games. How does that shape their world to be different than mine? And ultimately, where do we draw the line? When is it too much? Will there come a day when we will say enough is enough and get rid of technology?

Like so many things it is tough, if not impossible, to go back once a threshold has been crossed. The challenge becomes one of balance instead of resistance. We can no longer ignore the necessities of technology so we must learn to balance our dependence on it.

Prisoners of Technology?

I believe in a sense we are prisoners of our own ingenuity. The development of new technologies for the purpose of 'convenience' has created a culture of necessity. Through the creation of technology we have the ability to manufacture products at a much more efficient and quality level than ever before but what else have we created. Our advancements have also created a culture that can no longer survive without the technology. As we progress further and further into the future our dependency on technology will only increase and as such will our submission to it.

Technology: Productivity, Intelligence, Hectic?

Technology has made us more productive but at what cost? When I first went to college right out of high school in 1990 I was going for an education degree to teach high school math. I enjoy math and the mental exercise it gives you. At that time the big thing was graphing calculators and every math class required the use of the calculator. Schooling, for me, up to this point had restricted the use of calculators for math so to have them required was not what I expected. Also, looking forward to being a math teacher I wanted to be able to teach the information without the use of the calculator. I had nothing against the calculator and what it could do but I felt it best to learn it first without the calculator. I searched and found the only math class on campus that was taught without the calculator as a requirement. You still used it at times but the majority of class was done with pencil and paper. This was the last time this class was offered.

I don't have anything against technology and the abilities it gives us but when it replaces the need for us to think logically and make a decision I would rather do without. I use technology every day but I could do all the same things without the technology. It may take me longer but I could get it done. The use of gadgets has made us a more hectic and busy society. We now feel that we can get so much more done because of technology that we don't even realize all that we are missing and how busy we really are.

Misuse of Language in Marketing

The use of language in advertising is done in such a way as to create a sense of need and a sense of urgency in those the advertising targets. Language is used as a means of reaching people in a way that gets them to respond in a specific way. The ability to create a vision in peoples minds of what a product or service will do through the use of language is a powerful tool that can be used to inform or persuade. More often than not many marketing/advertising mediums are filled with misleading or incorrect information about a product or service. Many times it is also the fact that the advertising portrays an idea that through logical thought processes makes no sense.

TV service providers are very strategic about their advertising to do it in such a way that makes sense in the context of the advertising but otherwise would be a waste of money. When you have a basic package you are able to add on movie or premium packages to get more channels. When the TV companies promote these packages to their customers it is presented under the idea of 'the more you spend the more you save.' When you add on more than one package the price for the individual packages goes down but overall you are spending more. Very misleading advertising strategy that in most situations would not make sense.

Critical Thinking - Globally

Critical thinking skills aide us in analyzing, troubleshooting and recognizing the best way to approach and handle situations. Within the global marketplace this would seem to be a benefit in understanding and relating to those in other regions of the world. I do not have specific experience within the global market but I do have experience working with diverse groups of people and / or organizations representing different cultures, socio-economic classes and races.

With any level of diversity there are difficulties in communication or relationships that need to be overcome. Having the skills to critically analyze, interpret and develop plans for relating to others is beneficial in any environment. During one of my previous classes I was on a team with 4 other people, one of which had a much different understandings of teamwork and leadership. During introductions we all share some of our background but I did not expect or understand how those backgrounds would factor in to our abilities to work as a team. We had some difficult and challenging moments in our team that almost cost the team our final project in the class. Had we taken the time initially to think about our cultural difference and how those might factor into our communication we could have possibly avoided lots of frustration.

"House" Ethics - 1

I do think many people live vicariously through House but there is one thing he has that many of us do not. He is very confident in himself and his abilities. Many of us do not have this same level of confidence in our beliefs or ethical standards in our place of work. Or we are so concerned with what others may think or how it will affect our job that we don't speak out. Too many times I have not spoken up about one issue or another and in turn caused more problems because of it. His actions may come across as arrogant and unethical but he ultimately is doing what is in the best interest of the patient.

I also think the show feeds into the philosophy that the easy answer is not always the best answer. So many times the other doctors on the show see the patients symptoms and automatically think they know what is wrong but they have not looked deep enough. This is where I believe Dr. House follows his ethical beliefs further and in turn comes across as rude or arrogant. He does not want to misdiagnose or not look deep enough so he has to ethically search for the core of the problem not just the surface symptom.

Constructive Ethics - Positive Work Environment

Ethical practices which are positive, encouraging, affirming and consistent will entice performance at a high level because the team will feel challenged, appreciated, comfortable and excited about the organization.

I have worked in several different retail environments and been successful at developing into management at most of them. Two organizations in particular had quite different ethical standards and as such different levels of performance.

In one environment there was no encouraging, team building going on. There was only ridicule and personal attacks for not reaching goal or making a sale. There was no opportunity for advancement because the organization believed in hiring those with experience rather than developing someone into a leader. This environment contributed to a very uncomfortable and unproductive work setting because everyone was a competitor to each other for sales and the manager knew none of us would move up to his job so he didn't care.

The other organization was as opposite as it could be. From day one with the company you were told about all the possibilities for advancement, you were rewarded with in-store recognition for doing your job well and treated with respect as a fellow co-worker. The General Manager once told me that his and the organizations intention was for managers to train up new leaders in the organization to be better at the job than they were. Everyone gave 110% because they were appreciated and we all knew we were working towards the some goals.

Out Of Work - Compromise Ethics for Work?

I have thought through this dilemma many times and how to best address it. I cannot speak for everyone but I can relate my personal experience with this decision and why I feel the way I do.

I have been our of full time work since May of 08 with no success in finding a new job. There have been possibilities presented to me that I knew would not be a good fit for me ethically. I am in desperate need of a decent full time job but my past experience has shown me to be careful how much you compromise for the sake of making a buck.

Many years ago I was offered a job which I knew I could do and would easily support my family. The only catch I had was that the organization would not hire me unless I would agree to work on Sundays. It was a retail sales environment and weekends were their busiest times. Sunday was our family day for church and family time but the organization did not care about my personal beliefs or my family. They just cared about numbers on a paper. But I needed the job and so agreed to make this sacrifice. Within six months of working there I had lost most of my personal relationships along with the connection with my spouse. My wife and I ended up separating and almost divorcing during this time until I was able to find other employment which allowed me the flexibility to get back into the relationships I had lost.

The compromise for the benefit of the job were not worth it in the long run and during all this the organization's management was unwilling to work with me on adjusting my schedule. I had the job with the pay but almost lost everything else.

Personal & Professional Ethics

When there is a good fit between organization and employee the relation between personal and professional ethics should be consistent and identical. The personal ethics of an individual are the motivations and basis for how they interact with and relate to others on a daily basis. When an individual works within a team or organization they look for like minded people of whom they have a connection and can work with on a daily basis. To work in an organization of which the business ethics are not in line with personal ethics is a challenging and sometimes overwhelming task that can lead to poor work habits and lower productivity.

I currently work in an organization of which the ethics of the organization are directly in line with my personal ethics. This makes for a pleasant and productive work environment, if not for one minor detail...other people work there too. Although the organizations ethics are in line with mine that is not the case for all the management of the organization and in turn the organizations ethics are not reflected in the leadership of the organization. An organization can have the best business ethics and intentions but we, as individuals, join these organizations and taint or alter the ethics of the organization.

Personal and profession ethics feed off each other and can lead to a positive or negative alteration of those ethics.

Personal / Professional Ethics Changes

I think it is a two-way street. An organization's ethics can change personal ethics and vice versa.

Having over 15 years of sales experience I know that salespeople are not always seen as the most ethical people. I made it a point to work for organizations that saw the value in the customers they serve to do the job with high ethical standards. I recently had a job interview for a sales and marketing position. I was told this interview was with an organization that valued customer relationships and had the goal of servicing their customer with integrity. I went for a second interview which involved riding along with and shadowing a current rep in the organization. At the first stop I watched this rep walk into an account and lie to person working there to get information from them about the business. This was the case at several businesses we visited. This rep then proceeded to inform me that the three things the organization valued was Character, Honesty and Integrity. None of which had this guy shown in the time I had spent with him.

I would hope that he had a personal understanding of the meaning of these values but he seemed to have lost sight of that in his time with this particular organization. I did not continue my interview because I saw the possibility of the organizations ethical standards having a negative affect on me and my family.

American Culture - Priority of Marriage

I agree that while the perception is that Americans give up on marriage and turn to divorce rather easily the idea that they do not put their children first is misguided. I have not known anyone getting a divorce, no matter what the reason, who has not been concerned with how it will affect their children. Many couples stay married because they don't want to negatively affect the children and in turn they end up making changes in their relationship that keeps them from getting divorced.

There are very few things which I believe are justifiable reasons for divorce of which abuse and adultery would be the most significant. Unfortunately, I believe that most of the time the reason a marriage ends in divorce is because one or both of the people in the relationship have given up on trying to make it work. The excuse of irreconcilable differences is a cop out for people to get out of the relationship. Marriage is not always easy but no one ever said it would be. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy.