From the Archives – Oldies but Goodies from Make HR Happen v.5

 

This is a re-posting of five previous articles from Make HR Happen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When the Experts Disagree – My father and his brother had a disagreement which began from my earliest recollection as a child and continued throughout their lives. They were as close as brothers living in two different cities could be, but when they got together this topic always came up: Which is better, a Ford or a Chevrolet? They had other differences: Dad was an under-the-hood kind of guy and I remember that my uncle adorned his car with gadgets.

 

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Made-up Rules: Mindless or Meaningful – My mother had a set of unwritten rules which my sister and I learned to respect and never question. One such rule was not to slam the screen door. “Tommy, you go outside and come back in again without slamming the door this time!” There was no defense. It made no difference that my father had installed a spring powerful enough to launch that door into space.

 

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What You Don’t Know About Networking – Everybody talks about networking. It is no coincidence that the dictionary definition of the word can be either a system of interconnected computers or a supportive collection of individuals or groups with a common interest. The analogy of computer networking and people networking is not a coincidence since both involve the effective communication of information.

 

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What Do You Want To Do When You Grow Up? -  There is an old joke that most stand-up comedians have “borrowed” from time to time which goes something like this: “Adults are always asking little kids what they want to be when they grow up because they’re looking for ideas.” The original is attributed to comic Paula Poundstone. I have heard it from other sources and even borrowed it myself on occasion.

 

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Avoiding Nasty Communication – Sometimes it is not so easy to determine that a simple fix could improve communications. It could be that we never step away and look at the signs from a distance as a reality check. Most of the time, we find reasons or excuses to continue with the message even if it is wrong.

 

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