Tag Archives: life lessons

December 16, 2016 · 12:55 pm

Your Dishwasher And Your Business

This Foodie Friday we’re going to take a business point from the aftermath of our foodie experiences. Unless you’re in the habit of using paper plates and plastic cutlery, you usually have some dishes to wash after you eat. Many of us are fortunate to have dishwashers to do that job for us. We load the dishes, glassware, and cutlery into the box, add some soap, and go watch TV or read. Of course, the dishwasher can be used for so much more.

A dishwasher containing clean dishes

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

You can pretty much put anything that’s not wood or cast iron into your dishwasher for a good cleaning. OK, electronics aren’t such a great idea either. You can, however, let the dishwasher take care of doing some otherwise nasty cleaning jobs such as washing those pop-out range filters or all the buttons and drip pans from your stove. I’ve been known to stick my sweaty, smelly golf hats in there for a good washing (they actually sell plastic forms so the hats won’t shrink) and I also ran some glass light fixtures that were filthy through it. Obviously you don’t want to put anything through that’s hollow and can collect water that might precipitate mold formation later on but otherwise, with the aforementioned exceptions, anything plastic, metal, or glass is a candidate for a trip through the dishwasher.

What does this have to do with business? Most of us think of the dishwasher as a single-task machine. It washes kitchen stuff – dishes, etc. The truth is that it’s way more versatile. I think many of us think about many people this way. We don’t think the accountants are creative nor that the lawyers are marketers. I’ve worked with accountants and lawyers who definitely were. While it’s usually pretty apparent what someone’s strengths are, we don’t ask often enough how those strengths – critical thinking, writing, etc – can be applied in areas other than the one in which the person is currently using them.

You might have to remove the top rack to fit something like a garbage can in there. You might have to ask the accountant to adjust his or her paradigm too. The results, however, are worth it in both cases (who likes to wash a garbage can?). We need to keep an open mind about all things in business, don’t you think?

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December 14, 2016 · 10:51 am

Willfully Ignorant

At the risk of being redundant, I’m going on a bit of a rant today about ignorance. It’s a topic I’ve touched on before but it seems as if something happens each day, either in the business world or elsewhere, that makes me feel as if I need to get this off my chest.

The hardest thing in business these days is seeing over the horizon. I think the people and enterprises that “win” are the ones whose horizon is just a bit further off, allowing them to see a little more of the road in front of them. I also believe that the way we can extend our horizons is through information. That impels each of us to seek out information about anything and everything that can help us improve our vision. Information about our market. Information about our customers. Information about our competitors. Information about the world around us.

What has me ranting today is the amount of willful ignorance I see. It’s one thing not to have information. It’s another thing if the information doesn’t exist. It’s absurd, however, to know that information is out there and even to have it offered to you and to decline it. Even worse is to hear about what the information source has to say and to challenge its reality based on nothing other than your own gut feel. That’s insane.

The worst part is that some of the folks who participate in this insanity do so out of hubris. They are the personifications of “let’s not let the facts get in the way of a good story” or in the way of their own ignorant beliefs. That’s not to say they’re stupid. Many of the folks I’ve met who act this way are quite intelligent. They’re just too smitten with their own success to date to believe anything but their own guts.

I wrote about the role of intuition in business (there is one!) a little while back. Intuition is NOT “I know better than anyone.” It’s not throwing out factual information because it conflicts with your world view. It’s certainly not being willfully ignorant.

So today’s bit of business advice is to choose knowledge. Rather than willfully ignorant, be aggressively knowledgable. See further over the horizon and you’ll make better decisions. OK?

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November 23, 2016 · 10:20 am

Turkey Day

It’s time for the annual Thanksgiving post. Many years I’ve posted about the 3F’s that drive this holiday – family, football, and food. This year I’ve gone back to 2008 for a take that has little to do with business and a lot to do with why this is a special holiday. Enjoy!

My family loves Thanksgiving.  For the most part, so do I.  The entire family getting together is not something that happens with great regularity anymore – grandparents winter in Florida, kids are in college or living their own lives, brothers and sisters and other relations have busy schedules too.  So when 20 or 25 of us can pile into one location, it’s special, and each gathering is unique.  Except for one thing.Thanksgiving’s menu in my house is something that descended directly from the Pilgrims.  It is etched in two tablets made from the skin of the original bird (and we can have the discussion about whether that bird was in Plymouth or in St.Augustine another time).  Turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes and apricots, cranberry mold, cranberry bread, veggies, stuffing and gallons of gravy are pretty much it.

English: "The First Thanksgiving at Plymo...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I cook every year and love to do it.  Except I can do it in my sleep at this point. I am under strict orders from all parties NOT TO FOOL (they use another word) WITH THE MENU.  The only choices I get to make are what kinds of stuffing and which veggies to serve.  But I don’t, really.

One year I caused a huge ruckus by announcing in advance (mistake) that I would be frying one of the birds (we usually have two).  The discovery of a cure for cancer would have caused less of a ruckus.  Of course, now a fried turkey is mandatory.  Another year I made four dressings – one a cornbread and andouille, one a sausage and herb, one an oyster, and one a vegetarian version that was very traditional.  Of course, only the last one was eaten up.  No more oysters (and don’t even start the discussion about that’s what the Indians ate) in the damn dressing and leave that andouille stuff south of the Mason-Dixon line.

Another year, I slow cooked the green beans with bacon.  “Darling, do you have any less cooked?  I’m not sure I know what I’m eating…”  Another year I served carrots with a tangerine glaze.  The next, I was berated for not serving carrots.

I’m writing this now because there are only two weeks to go and my Mom is asking if I’ve shopped yet (Mom is always ready well in advance).  I tell her I haven’t shopped because I haven’t planned the menu yet but who am I kidding?  The menu was done years ago.  I don’t have the heart to tell her I’m roasting the other bird in a Caja China and not an oven and that I’m seriously considering bringing back the cornbread thing.  But I’ll cook them whatever they want since having the family all together is more important to me than my exercising my chefly prerogatives.

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