SOY VIVO – A Phillip Roman Blog!

Character Counts

Phillip Roman — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 16:59:04 +0000

Character is an important component to success. With some luck, any has-not can strike it big. There is the lotto and casino for those who have rabbit foot key chains. Putting aside the extraordinary instances of multimillionaire CEOs, success can be measured by one’s character.

Don’t get me wrong, being cut throat and playing politics can get you real far. However, the ethical, resourceful and understanding employees make their way up the corporate later.

Why? Leadership. Companies need leaders to direct their teams. Modern companies have no need for employees that lie, cheat, or are rude. In this new economy, one can be replaced in a heartbeat.

During a job interview, I was told that to make it far in the company, I had to stay clean, learn a lot and not burn any bridges. When dealing with sales, government regulations, and confidentiality, companies can not jeopardize their brand or money on a louse.

Geek Speak: Understanding Your Industry

Phillip Roman — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:26:43 +0000

It is really important to know your industry. Often in the workplace, we get caught up in the daily grind. Procedures become the norm, after A is B. We miss the big picture.

How does this help my customer? How does this make/save money for my company?

Today’s workforce must be adaptive because industry standards are at a constant change (financial regulation, corporate responsibility, new media, etc.). To be successful, you have to know what you do, you have to love what you do.

Take the time to understand your role in the company and the industry. Industry knowledge is not only crucial to career growth, but it allows you to work better now. By understanding the bigger picture, your work will highlight what is the most important and work more efficiently. Upon promotion, your industry knowledge will be used to guide your team to further success.

I want to be noticed!

Phillip Roman — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 06:19:53 +0000

What is the key to getting noticed in life and work?

Confidence!

Being noticed is the key to success. It will land you the girl and it will land you the next promotion. Hard work should not go unnoticed but all too often it does.

People will slowly begin to expect you to continue performing at your current workload and ethic, without realizing that you are going above and beyond everyone else.

How do you get others to notice your greatness? Tell them how great you are!

Be confident in the work that you do! Be confident in yourself! Being your own cheerleader is the only way to ensure that the message you want portrayed about yourself is delivered.

My Sis is in the Porterville Recorder!

Phillip Roman — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 19:41:10 +0000

Porterville woman marches through Officer’s School
A Porterville resident has graduated from Officer ’s Candidate School in Fort Benning, in Columbus, Georgia. Second Lt. Analisa Roman, from B Company, 3rd Battalion, 11th Infantry with the United States Army, graduated from the OCS class on March 18. A 2003 graduate of Porterville High School, 2005 graduate of Porterville College and a University of California Santa Barbara graduate of 2008, Roman said her involvement in school bands and collegiate and community sports were key factors in her decision to join the military. “I feel that everything I did during my life prepared me to be where I am today,” Roman said. Her parents, Rudy and Maria Roman of Porterville, said that being in the Burton Middle School Band and the Porterville Panther Band taught her a lot about discipline and endurance. “Band had a lot to do with it, but honestly, my parents had a lot more to do with it. They always taught me to do what ’s right — key skills in discipline,” Roman said. Roman has also been an athlete since age 5 — playing soccer, softball, tennis and Frisbee on city leagues, American Youth Soccer Organization, and on school teams — at Burton, Porterville High and at UC Santa Barbara — playing tennis one year, and varsity softball and soccer all four years of high school. “She was very patriotic, even as a child,” said her mother, Maria Roman. “She always went to the parades and participated in the Veterans Day and other patriotic activities. ” But joining the Army was something she wanted to do since high school, Maria Roman said. “Her dad suggested she finish her education — to give her more time to mature,” said Maria Roman. “But she always knew she wanted to serve her country. She knew what she wanted to do. ” Roman, who graduated from UCSB with a bachelor ’s degree in anthropology, agreed. “Honestly, [joining the Army] was the best decision I have ever made. I love it,” Analisa Roman said. “It teaches you a lot about yourself and who you are and challenges you, ” Analisa Roman said. The 12-week Officer’s Candidate School for Class 303-10 began in December. During that time, the candidates were presented with challenges and opportunities for personal growth as well as received classroom instruction. They were tested on military tactics and operations, training management, operations orders and military history. Field work included land navigation, collective battle tasks and leadership testing. They also competed in the Combat Water Survival Test, which consisted of three stages — a 15-meter swim with rifle, a blindfolded jump off a three-meter diving board with rifle, and a tactical vest and weapon ditch challenge — all performed in full action combat uniform. “The three-meter drop was by far the scariest part of the CWST,” Analisa Roman said. “You can’t see anything and have to jump 10-feet down to the water. You just don ’t know when it’s going to hit.” Analisa Roman said she was fortunate to have a good friend with her throughout the experience — Second Lieutenant Janine Mahan of Miami, Fl. The two women met and became friends in July of 2009 when they were both in boot camp at Fort Jackson in South Carolina. Following graduation, they roomed together from October to December. Mahan said she admired Roman’s confidence and described her friend as hardworking, competitive, and selfless. “She always tried to do her best and is a team player but she always puts others first. She ’s very independent and very confident. She is always able to do things alone and is not afraid to ask questions, ” Mahan said. “She’s also very friendly and approachable.” Officers tend to be viewed as elitists, Mahan said. “She sets the standards differently. She has demonstrated that not all officers are stuck up. They can still be professional and approachable, ” Mahan said. “She sets the bar without being overbearing.” Roman and Mahan have both been accepted into the U.S. Army ’s Intelligence Division in Fort Huachuca in  Arizona.

http://www.recorderonline.com/news/officer-45450-porterville-school.html

The Club.

Phillip Roman — Mon, 31 May 2010 20:22:00 +0000

Suzanne and I recently purchased a Nespresso machine. We had been looking at espresso machines for a while and had listened to the whole 19 Bars of pressure speech from various sales reps. A few weeks ago, we walked into the Williams and Sonoma store in Bell Square. We passed by the see-through bread toaster and straight to the espresso machines. On the way we lifted our noses at the sight of the capsule espresso machines. Anyway, this sales rep came over and asked us if we had any questions. We let her know that we were in the market for a new machine. Her eyes sparkled. Buys equal commission. She started her pitch. She pointed to the traditional machines and said that they are great for the weekends but she knows that we don’t care about the weekend. We are a young couple, which means we are busy. Here it came- for everyday use, Nespresso is your machine. She placed us well. She went beyond the 19 bars of pressure (which is at least 3 more bars then the typical machine) and made us see ourselves making Nespresso everyday in the morning. We were sold.

We researched Nespresso and discovered the exclusive nature of THE CLUB! We researched the machines and decided that the new Citiz model was really cool and modern but not worth the extra money. We decided to go with Le Cube. It is the classic model that is timeless and looks like a typical machine.

Sur La Table had a special Le Cube and Aeroccino combo set. We ran over to The Bravern in Bellevue to pick up a machine. When we left, we only had 20 minutes before the store closed but we already knew what we wanted. We walked into the store and straight to the espresso machines. A sales guy saw us and was probably going over his 19 bars of pressure speech in his head. We told him that we wanted to buy the Titanium Gray Le Cube and Aeroccino bundle. Guess what? THEY WERE SOLD OUT!!! They offered us free shipping and we had to wait a week to get the machine.

Once we got it, we placed our first order of capsules and got a membership number to The Club. We were finally members, so what was next?

We took a random last- minute trip to Canada to visit the Nespresso Boutique in Vancouver. We got to the Boutique a half hour before it closed and we hung out at “our bar” while sampling various espressos. We bought another 50 capsules and realized that we should probably start heading home since I had work in the morning. I knew that getting up would be difficult but I had Nespresso to help me.

Blackberry vs iPhone

Phillip Roman — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 04:07:23 +0000

A few posts back, I stated that I would be an iPhone user for as long as my parents payed for it. Well I lied. I recently bought a Blackberry Bold 9700 and I love it. I have been bored with the iPhone for a while. I had been an iPhone user since the day it was released. I remember waiting in line and wondering if I was making a smart choice to give up my first BB and go with the latest craze. As a Mac user I had to take the chance and I made the switch. I loved the possibilities the iPhone had but it lacked the features that I found most compelling about my first BB, emails (plus cut and paste). I had to wait 15 minutes for an incoming email to be received on the iPhone. The iPhone’s apps were fun for the first ten minutes, but the interface had stayed the same for the last three years. I jailbroke my iPhone the minute I could and that did unlock many possibilities the iPhone has but the general flaws in messaging and communication still persisted. The iPhone revolutionized the mobile web. Safari is the sole reason why I loved the iPhone. Since graduating, my primary device in accessing the web had been my iPhone. The iPhone’s Safari was able to replace my MacBook Air’s Safari. That’s huge.

However, my recent switch to the BB Bold 9700 is mostly due to not having a new toy in a while. The BB is able to do everything I need a phone for and most of it better. I user Tethering, Twitter, Pandora, E-Mail, SMS, chat, WordPress, Pictures, and Web. Tethering, Twitter, Pandora, SMS, chat and WordPress are comparable on both systems. The iPhone does have a better web but Opera Mini 5 is not bad. The BB does have a better camera and E-Mail, plus it is a new toy.

Funny Money

Phillip Roman — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 18:33:59 +0000

I have not posted in a long while. Hey! I have been busy. This post is materializing because I am using it as a tool to further my procrastination. I am supposed to be studying for the CFA exam but I find myself here talking to myself (or maybe you).

A few days ago I was surfing on Drudge (this was on my MacBook Air and not my iPhone because the underaged workers who built my iPhone did a crappy job and I have been recently running into a few problems). I read an article about George Soros and the evil speculators who are planning on making tons of $$$ on the fall of the euro. Soros’ explanation of the underlining problems are very logical, Greece cries and the euro dies.

He believes that unless the European Commission is given sweeping powers over taxation and spending, the single currency will always be vulnerable to financial turbulence in individual states.

Then I notice another article that states the IMF is considering a global currency to replace the dollar in the future. Ok, that makes a lot of sense. Lets just impose the problems and flaws of the euro onto the whole world. Globalization is fun!

Analisa: the soon ARMY Officer

Phillip Roman — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 06:50:19 +0000

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Heroes!

Phillip Roman — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:14:21 +0000

These guys are doing really interesting and important work. Be safe JR!

“That’s Phelim!”

Phillip Roman — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 04:19:02 +0000

I was just watching the news and they announced that an Irish documentarian was cut off in a Q&A session with Al Gore. While over hearing the accent, Suzanne shouted, “That’s Phelim!”. Sure it was. Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney are the Irish directors the movie, Mine Your Own Business. When I was at Seattle University, I hosted Phelim and Ann on campus. It was a great honor to be involved with their Seattle premiere of the film. After the showing, Phelim invited me to have a drink at a pub. I was sad to remind him that the American drinking age was 21 and that I was only 19.

Phelim was at an Al Gore talk at The Society of Environmental Journalists. Phelim is making a documentary titled Not Evil Just Wrong. He is looking at many of the errors that the British High Court has found in Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth.

Would you believe what happened to Phelim when he asked Gore about the Court’s ruling? Journalists killed his mic. Journalists censored Phelim and protected a politician.

Watch for yourselves.

Link