Strategic Brilliance

Worth a Re-listen...

Mon, 31 Dec 2012 13:39:00 +0000

I have a select few books on my IPod which I ‘re-listen’ to over and over and over and over and...

For a book to be 'ear-worthy', the topic is not really the litmus test. I crave the books which reveal something new to me each and every time I re-listen.

Deep Survival - Who Lives, Who Dies and Why. by Laurence Gonzales
To understand how to survive everyday, check out the mental processes of those who survived while those around them perished. I can't overstate the life lessons learned and the brain function explained by this book.

How to Win Friends and Influence People in the Digital Age , a modern revision of Dale Carnegie's life changing book updated to take advantage of modern technology

My current favorite: Linchpin by Seth Godin.
If you want to do work that matters, and have a career that you love, it is a must read (listen) and re-read.
Not too many things that I try to foist on my grown children, but this book is one of them.
Perhaps in their next decade...

So, Live already!

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 19:51:00 +0000

On about my 20^th listen of Linchpin by Seth Godin, I finally caught this great quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson (missed it somehow the first 19 times).

Since 2013 is my year of FOCUS…this seems appropriate for the next to the last day of 2012.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

If our young men miscarry in their first enterprises, they lose all heart. If the young merchant fails, men say he is ruined. If the finest genius studies at one of our colleges, and is not installed in an office within one year afterwards in the cities or suburbs of Boston or New York, it seems to his friends and to himself that he is right in being disheartened, and in complaining the rest of his life. A sturdy lad from New Hampshire or Vermont, who in turn tries all the professions, who teams it, farms it, peddles, keeps a school, preaches, edits a newspaper, goes to Congress, buys a township, and so forth, in successive years, and always, like a cat, falls on his feet, is worth a hundred of these city dolls. He walks abreast with his days, and feels no shame in not “studying a profession,” for he does not postpone his life, but lives already.

He has not one chance, but a hundred chances.

Let's take a closer look at this contrarian view of career building.

If our young men miscarry in their first enterprises, they lose all heart.
Setting a goal indicates a desire to reach it! If our eye is on the last super buy at the outlet mall, we are disappointed and kicking our selves for sleeping in 5 minutes too long before leaving home. We wanted it, we didn't get it, we are disappointed. To lose heart, however implies loss of faith, in ones-self, in the process. We deserved it. We should get it. To lose heart implies: The system sucks (and so do I).

If the young merchant fails, men say he is ruined.
The village clucks it's tongue at his wasted time, energy and focus.

If the finest genius studies at one of our colleges, and is not installed in an office within one year afterwards in the cities or suburbs of Boston or New York, it seems to his friends and to himself that he is right in being disheartened, and in complaining the rest of his life.
Everyone knows! Everyone is looking down on your crumpled, bleeding body and lamenting the sad tale that got you there. This is where the 'shoulding starts.' He should have done this...She should have seen that... this phase can take a week...or a lifetime.

A sturdy lad from New Hampshire or Vermont, who in turn tries all the professions, who teams it, farms it, peddles, keeps a school, preaches, edits a newspaper, goes to Congress, buys a township, and so forth, in successive years, and always, like a cat, falls on his feet, is worth a hundred of these city dolls. He walks abreast with his days, and feels no shame in not “studying a profession,” for he does not postpone his life, but lives already. OUTCOME? He has not one chance, but a hundred chances.

Perhaps the best focus is on collecting skills...instead of on collecting degree or job titles ...

Rich People are Skill Collectors!

Thu, 15 Nov 2012 01:14:00 +0000

I was reading 21 Ways Rich People Think Differently Than Average People by HQ Roosevelt about

Steve Siebold, author of “How Rich People Think,” who spent nearly three decades interviewing millionaires around the world to find out what separates them from everyone else.
His findings are pretty amazing (and controversial). Haven't finished the article yet, because I was stopped by this one:

Average people think the road to riches is paved with formal education. Rich people believe in acquiring specific knowledge.

“Many world-class performers have little formal education, and have amassed their wealth through the acquisition and subsequent sale of specific knowledge,” Siebold writes. “Meanwhile, the masses are convinced that master’s degrees and doctorates are the way to wealth, mostly because they are trapped in the linear line of thought that holds them back from higher levels of consciousness…The wealthy aren’t interested in the means, only the end.”

They sound like Skill Collectors to me!

NO matter how little time I have with a group of young adults, I strive to shift their self-concept to see themselves as Skill Collectors. This, above all else, puts their future outcomes in their hands and creates buy-in for effective investment of their assets:

Time
Energy
Focus

Skill Collectors never stop learning, because they understand that the skills they collect determine their value in the marketplace. No one wants a lousy life....but they need perspective to realize that, ultimately, they are in control of the life they get!

Are you building Skill Collectors?

I Just Pulled a Beth!

Tue, 06 Nov 2012 16:46:00 +0000

Isn't it incredible how we identify with the people we know?

Whenever my friend Diane locks her keys in the car she slaps her forehead and says. "I just pulled a Lorraine!", referring to her sister-in-law. I, myself, have caught myself exclaiming,"I just pulled a Pat!" when I arrive at a meeting with the wrong folder of material.

We know ourselves and we know our friends.
We all know the habits and patterns of the people we live and work with.
-- Know anyone who always arrives 10 minutes late?
-- Know anyone who never has enough money to pay their share of the bill?
-- Know someone who consistently stretches the truth?

In your world, everyone in the room knows exactly what you mean when you say," He pulled a Jake!'
How interesting that we are so aware of the negative, disruptive patterns of those around us.

Well, I just pulled a Beth this morning!

I had an epiphany and jotted down a note before the 'Ah-ha' could dissolve and disappear forever.
This morning , however, I came back later, fleshed out the idea and turned it into a blog which I immediately uploaded to my blog and pushed the Publish button to upload it to the Web!

I pulled a Beth! (dance of joy)

Beth, my long time friend's oldest daughter is a brilliant young playwright, author and actress. Her continuous output of high quality material would indicate that she must have 40 hours in every day to get things done.

Pulling a Beth, to me, means that I FINISHED something in an effective and efficient fashion. I DID it!

I have decided to begin to note the positive, effective patterns and habits of people around me and strive to 'Pull a Diane', 'Pull a Sue' and 'Pull a Jo'. Time to Mimic my Mentors to jump start my forward momentum.

How about you? Who would you like to emulate to fast forward your personal growth?

Wham! Getting the Point about Diabetes Complications

Sat, 07 Feb 2009 14:33:00 +0000

Just when it seems no one wants to hear the value of long term thinking, One headline hits and people shift into LTT in droves.

Larry Miller, owner of the Utah Jazz, recently had both legs amputated below the knees due to complications of his diabetes. Suddenly, podiatrists are being flooded with new patients concerned about the progression of foot problems related to diabetes.

By its very nature, prevention requires looking down the road to ramifications of today's actions (or lack of action). Americans avoid thinking long term whenever possible and it often takes a life or death scare or hit up along side the head to take off the blinders and look around at what needs done. For once, we seem to be learning from someone else's mistake.

"If a wealthy American with unlimited access to the best medical care can lose both legs to diabetes, I'd better start paying attention and make sure that doesn't happen to me!" Hmmmm, thinking long term might save us all a bundle of money, time and heartache. Interesting concept.

Teens not too brilliant choices about tanning

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 17:15:00 +0000

Interesting article today from sunny Australia.

It's National Skin Cancer Action Week there, yet teens in Victoria have the highest rate of sunburn. A new survey, commissioned by the Cancer Council shows teens spend almost two hours in the sun during peak UV times.

When we remember that the risk assessment portion of the human brain is still developing up to about age 22 in females and 28 or so for males it's makes a little more sense. Efforts will need to be linked more to social status and less to risk to have an impact with young adults.

Here's the link to the article

Teens stick head in sand over sun risk

by Nick Miller

SIT this one out!-stop doing and start daydreaming

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:19:00 +0000

Brain research has shown that there are connection zones within our neo cortex that lie dormant until our brain is at rest. When we are NOT focusing on a specific task, these SIT regions (Stimulus Independent Thought regions) light up with energy and activity as our brains, momentarily unfocused, flit from thought to thought, sampling what our brain has to offer. This seemingly random thought pattern can bring creativity, truly original thought and those epiphanies and ah-hah moments that require connection of thoughts from unrelated parts of our consciousness and life experience.

Remember daydreaming?? Now in my 50’s, I can still vividly remember long summer days spent without TV or IPods and languid after school hours without karate, violin and tutoring sessions. We invented games, created wild stories and imagined how incredible the world of the future would be! Being bored allowed our minds to bring to the surface connections and ideas no one could have taught us.

What is the cost of today’s version of childhood with every moment scheduled to prevent an hour staring at passing clouds or skipping stones across a pond? Constant doing can fill us with experiences that never truly get processed and integrated across the hemispheres of our brains. (Picture busily filling your Bingo card, but never noticing that you have BINGO! ) If our thoughts are constantly shepherded from class to class, from task to task and goal to goal, when do the SIT parts of our brain come out to play? Brains of Tibetan monks, skilled in the conscious emptying of the mind that is meditation, light up like Christmas trees when monitored. No wonder people from all over the world cross continents to learn their insights!

Try this experiment: “SIT this one out” … gift yourself with 20 minutes of unfocused, unstructured relaxation. (If it’s a struggle, it may take several attempts to really set your “doing” habit aside.) Let your SIT regions do what they do best - connect the wonderful thoughts and experiences that make you uniquely you and allow yourself to expand and become what only you are capable of becoming. Bingo!

Strategic Brilliance

Just want to say THANKS to my pancreas!

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 03:21:00 +0000

This summer I experienced two conferences focused on the tidal wave of diabetes and pre-diabetes in this country. What an eye opener.

But, my biggest learning experience was not even on the conference agenda! I roomed with a gloriously free and creative actress who is also a Type I diabetic. Although she has learned to guard her health and glucose level over decades of practice, it was amazing to see how quickly a physical change affected her mental state. In a matter of minutes, she could go from focused and clear minded to confused, wandering and fuzzy headed. An adjustment from her insulin pump or a snack and within minutes she was "back." Wow.

Watching her clarity and focus change in mere moments, dependent on the glucose level in her body drove home to me what a delicate balancing act our bodies carry on every single day. I am fortunate. Although diabetes is rampant in my family, I do not have that challenge in my life. My pancreas seems to be functioning quite well, thank you. I don't have to spend every moment of my day monitoring, measuring and reacting. My body takes care of all that for me.

I have noticed however that my moods swing wildly when I get hungry and how quickly I bounce back when I have eaten something healthy for me. This new awareness has taken me to a new level. When I put off eating breakfast I notice my mind beginning to wander and lose focus. A healthy snack and I'm back on track. When my energy seems to run out through my feet during exercise, I realize that my glucose level is low. Again, a little snack and some water and suddenly the lethargy drops away and my "I'll never make it" turns in to "I can do this!"

It makes me wonder how many times in life I have given up, gotten angry, felt depressed or acted badly because I didn't listen to my amazing body telling me to take care of myself. Awareness is only the first half of making a lifestyle change, the second is using new knowledge to make the change you want.

Another death by adolescence

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 10:41:00 +0000

Three Killed, One in Coma
Charlotte, NC
July 27,2008
©Marcey J. Walsh 2008

Another death by adolescence. In Albemarle, NC, three are teens dead and one in a coma after a late night crash on a local highway. Their car struck a second vehicle in the side at an approximate speed of 85 mph in a 55 mph zone. Four more families grieve, another community pulls together for support and comfort and still no one has an answer for why it happened and how this "accident" could have been prevented.

More than 500 teens have died on the roads of NC over the past three years. As a mother myself, I ached for the parents and family of every one.

As someone who works with thousands of young people every year, I also struggled with my anger. Given what we have learned in the past five years about neurological development of the brain, the question is not if, but rather when and to whom this will happen next. These are intelligent kids, often at the top of their class. They end up in a losing situation because we, as a community didn't tell them what they need to know in a way they can understand and use to protect themselves.

This is tough, people. Since we know why this happened and how to help teens prevent it, can these really be called accidents? Just as someone needs to eventually tell every teen about sex and alcohol and drugs and the gritty reality of what's "out there." Someone needs to tell them about what's "in there."

· Tell them that, although they are wonderful and brilliant, the risk assessment part of their brain isn't finished yet.

· Tell them that young people have wonderful ideas, but that, although they look like adults, they have a dangerous decade ahead when they will make life changing decisions before they are "playing with a full deck."

· Tell them that the truly brilliant among them will, as they grow and become independent; honor the brain they WILL have by tapping into the brains of older mentors before acting.

Telling this new information is important, but we also must model in every classroom, at every dinner table and in every situation one unchanging truth: that survivors look AND listen before leaping. Cars, drugs, smoking, alcohol - they have a lot to decide about and they count on us to give them the information they need.

We have learned so much, it's only fair to tell them. Accidents happen; tragedies don't have to.

Why Teachers are Essential in Todays Economy

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 17:36:00 +0000

I love Google News. I can set it to fill my startup page with articles on topics I’m interested in, like education! Despite cultural differences, articles from all over the world reinforce daily one consistent truth: no matter what continent, no matter what country, education is considered the catalyst for change.

Today, even I was floored! This time, two articles on the same day from opposite sides of the globe highlighted a basic difference in attitude toward effective education. These submissions are of differing scope and purpose of course, so draw your own conclusions, but I was struck speechless (an unheard of event for me!) by the difference in perspective - long term vs short term- reflected in the pieces.

I hear a long term, national commitment with a specific goal proposed in one article and a general “oh no, we’re really in trouble now”” approach in the other. with no As teachers, we see these articles in U.S. headlines every day. We know we have great kids and dedicated teachers and administrators. We need a specific “’sticky” goal to rally and guide us out of the current problem. I long for a “man on the moon by the end of this decade” kind of goal. ) To be “sticky “ a goal has to be easy to visualize and easy to communicate. NCLB just doesn’t do it for me.)

I don’t know about you, but I have chills reading such a firm commitment to long term educational growth from a country we have to compete with in the global market. Teachers, know that what you do is essential! Lots of food for thought.

Not sure how long the links will be useful, but check the articles out.

Low Education Scores Could Slow U.S. Growth

Let Education Be Our Revolution

Orange County Public Schools Rock!

Sun, 24 Aug 2008 20:29:00 +0000

Orange County Public Schools
Orlando, Florida

Marcey just spoke to standing room only crowds in Orlando! Her two sessions on"Moving Kids to Learn" packed the room for programs on math and science applications that "teach with the brain in mind." .

Elementary, middle school and even a few dynamic high school educators stood in the back and sat on the floor to laugh and learn to develop kinesthetic activities that reaches all their types of learners.