Lawrence Fine

A black tie New Years Eve ball with champagne, caviar and everyone who is anyone.

A luxury cruise around the world.

A mega mansion in the Hamptons.

A prime tee time at Pebble Beach.

A small cabin in the woods.

A rod, a reel and a great fishing spot.

A great book to read.

Depending upon the person, someone might find any one of these possibilities either an ultimate goal or a complete nightmare.

For some, the formal New Years Eve ball would be a once in a lifetime opportunity. For others, it’s a “not in my lifetime” awful experience.

For some, a good book, a quiet cabin and a peaceful existence is a dream come true. For others, it’s the ultimate in boredom.

It’s important to realize that what you look forward to, others avoid. What you find distasteful, others dream about.

We are all quite different so it’s important to not assume others feel the same way about things as we do.

Be careful about assuming others have the same values, beliefs and dreams that you do. It’s also important to remember that just because someone has different beliefs, it doesn’t mean you are right and they are wrong.

We are all different, it’s what makes us special.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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There was a time when the bank in each town was a regal building that provided a feeling of safety and security when it came to your money. A person could just look at the building and feel confident that their money was secure.

Nowadays, because so much is done electronically the physical buildings aren’t nearly as impressive (in many cases) since less is done with physical transactions and more is done through the computer.

We assume that these electronic transactions are being done in a secure manner. We take it for granted they are using secure certificates etc in their work.

The reason I started thinking about this is yesterday I walked past 3 bank branches in downtown Charleston WV and each of them had desks situated so that it was easy to see their computer screens and to see the information they were entering.

Much of the hacking being done these isn’t from some elaborate technology but rather from people giving out or showing their information and then the hackers using that information for their own purposes.

In the same way that you should make sure you aren’t exposing your private information to others, make sure that others aren’t exposing your private information for you.

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Because of bad weather yesterday I took a bus to get downtown. When I got on the bus a lady was talking on her cell phone (in a loud voice so everyone could hear her). Ten minutes when I got off the bus she was still talking.

Later on, I took a break and went to a coffee shop. A guy was sitting there screaming into his phone for all to hear.

Leaving the coffee shop I had to go to a meeting and while in the elevator to go to the meeting someone was speaking on their phone.

Maybe it’s just me but while it nice to have access to a phone while out in public it doesn’t mean that others want to be exposed to our conversations. In cases of emergencies it’s fine to make a call while others are around but in general it’s just bad manners.

Is time so short that we can’t wait to call someone back when we are in a more private location?

Are things so important that they have to be dealt with that moment?

Is what we are doing so unimportant that it’s ok to not focus?

If you are sitting at a restaurant with people and your phone rings and you choose to have a conversation with the caller do you realize you are sending a message to the people you are with that they aren’t important?

If you are driving with people in the car and you choose to answer do you realize the message that is sending to the others in the car? It’s saying that not only is the caller more important than them in terms of who you want to be speaking with but also the caller is more important than their safety (I don’t care if you are using a Bluetooth, or speakerphone or what, no one can convince me it’s as safe to drive while you are speaking on the phone as driving while you are focusing on the road).

Remember, multi tasking frequently means doing a few things half assed at the same time. Wouldn’t it be better to focus on what you are currently doing and do it right (even if that just means relaxing) than to be rude, dangerous and mediocre at what you are doing?

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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I was reading a newsletter yesterday encouraging people to avoid activities that are energy drains. The belief was that doing something that drains you of energy will affect you in other activities so whenever possible, avoid, delegate, outsource or find another way but rid yourself of these energy draining activities when possible.

While I agree with this in theory, in reality, most of us have to do things that might be considered energy drains so while we can try to avoid them, in practice some can’t be avoided at all.

On the other hand, we can and should do everything we can to avoid people who are energy drains. We all know them (and unfortunately, some of us might be them). These are the negative people who leave you feeling empty after spending time with them. They are the ones who encourage us to do as little as possible. They find a reason why nothing will work. They would rather not try than take a chance at trying something new.

If you spend enough time around an energy drain you will eventually become just like them. The alternative is to try to lift them out of the negativity OR, if that can’t be done, leave them and move on.

An energy drain can have a negative impact on your work, on your health and on your life. Take the time to move on and see how far you can go

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Many people use To Do lists to manage their projects. It’s an effective way to keep track of what still needs to be done but it’s really not enough.

When managing others I do want to see their To Do lists (and they should be ordered by priority with due dates etc) but I also want to see their “To Done” lists (I realize that isn’t the correct term but it’s basically a way to track the things that are already finished) and most importantly the Overdue lists (items from the previous To Do lists that are past their due dates)

If I can see the To Do lists, the To Done lists and the Overdue lists I have a pretty good idea of where things are in various projects and can avoid unnecessary meetings to get updates since this type of information is readily available.

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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I was speaking with a colleague yesterday and when I mentioned that I was disappointed by the lack of response from a third party he said “the thing I have learned over the years is in order to avoid disappointment one should LOWER YOUR EXPECTATIONS”

Is that really the answer? Rather than demanding a higher level and raising the bar (starting with ourselves) we should simply lower our expectations.

Why aren’t we raising standards? Expect more and then over perform yourself.

I guess if we want to “strive for mediocrity” it’s ok to lower expectations and it will allow for less stress (complacency isn’t a stressful way to live for the most part) but if we want to do something special, make a difference, have a positive impact on the world then we should NOT lower the bar or lower our expectations but rather we should raise the bar, raise expectations and over perform.

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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There are opportunities everywhere. When we find one we think is worth pursuing we will frequently “bet the ranch” or come close to going “all in”. If we aren’t willing to make a real commitment to the opportunity it’s not worth pursuing at all.

On the other hand, there does come a time to know when to fold them. At some point it’s important for people to realize it’s not worth going any further and for whatever reason, it’s best to simply say “I”m done”.

The challenge is to know when we should quit and when we should keep pushing ahead (Seth Godin has a wonderful book titled The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick).

If we quit too early, we miss a great opportunity. If we quit too late, we might lose everything.

I’m not sure there is a good way to know when to hold them and when to fold them but if you can figure it out, it makes things a LOT easier.

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Sometimes if a tree grows too fast the roots don’t have time to take hold and if you aren’t careful, the tree will fall over.

This can happen with organizations as well. If the organization grows too fast and the foundation doesn’t have time to be established the organization will fail.

As difficult as it might to do, it’s sometimes better to slow the growth, allow the roots time to establish and the resume growing.

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Give a person a fish and they have food for a day.

Teach a person to fish and they have food for a lifetime.

Teach people how to teach and encourage others how to fish and now we are really making a difference!

It’s not enough to do things to make ourselves better. It’s not enough to help make others better. To truly make a difference we need to teach and encourage others to make a difference in other peoples lives.

Is this easy to do? No but if it was easy, anyone can do it!

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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A pig with lip stick is still just a pig.

A newly painted house with a bad foundation is still a bad house.

A company with a nice logo and bad management is still a bad company.

It’s easy to focus on ways to make something good but looks can be deceiving. Concentrate on the things that really matter and the rest will work itself out.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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