Catching up

 Focus  2 Responses »
Jun 272010
 

I went home to Boise for the weekend and was caught up in the whirlwind of trying to get our house back on the market. We were able to get it all done after a full Saturday of work. Denise and I got up at 5:30 and made a trip to the temple. Then, we dug into the chores, finishing up around 9:00. We received a request to show the house Sunday morning, so our motivation was high. I think between the rototilling, trimming, weed pulling, pond cleaning, bark spreading and shop and garage cleaning, I might have gotten my ‘body’ work done. Maybe.

Late Saturday, we received word our offer on a house in Cedar Hills was accepted. I think we confused our agent in Utah with our lack of excitement. We really feel the pressure to sell or rent our house up here now. Yes, we are excited as it is a lovely house and we are really going to enjoy it – once we get all the steps lined up to get there. Clock is ticking.

As for my mind, this weekend didn’t hold a lot of progress. I did get to read the Wall Street Journal. I miss not having it during the week. I started a science fiction book – Anvil of the Stars by Greg Bear. I have a couple other books to read, but I didn’t even get to pull them out. Maybe next weekend.

 Posted by Dan at 11:37 am

Spirit Day

 Focus  No Responses »
Jun 222010
 

Mind: I didn’t do anything special to invigorate my mind. I was too busy with other things. One task took up most of my evening. We are making an offer on a house down here. I hope that we get it because that would really take a lot of stress off my mind. That in itself would be great for me. So, I’m counting it. We will know in a few days whether we are going to get this house or not.

Body: Again, didn’t do a thing yet. I will do a few sit ups and push ups before I go to bed so that I will have something done.

Spirit: I listened to two BYU-Idaho devotionals. They were terrific. The first one was by Kevin Miyasaki. His talk, “Loves Thou Me?“, focused on loving God first and all others second. It was a very powerful talk, especially near the end where he described the death of his wife and their last moments together. It was very powerful and had me in tears, which is not especially good while driving to work on the freeway. He reminded me just how special my relationship with my wife is and how much more special my relationship with my Heavenly Father should be. I have a lot to improve on.

One the way home tonight, I listened to Susan Black speak on “The Last Week” of Christ’s life. It was a very informative talk on the events of the last week of the Savior’s life and some of the background that only a professor of ancient scripture could provide. I learned more than I knew about the events, the fulfillment of prophesy and how it all fits together. I really enjoyed learning more. It created a desire to go back and read those events from the scriptures again.

That’s it for me. As soon as I get this offer sent back to the real estate agent, I will be heading for bed. It was a good day. I had to go in early and it paid off in getting senior executive understanding of the project I have been trying to communicate to them for months. Today, I think they finally heard and understood. Whew!

 Posted by Dan at 9:58 pm  Tagged with: , ,

Fish! by Stephen C. Lundin – Jun 2010

 Business  2 Responses »
Jun 222010
 

I sat down last night and read “Fish!”, a tale about improving productivity through making our workplaces fun. The Pikes Place Fish Market is now quite famous for their having a fun time and selling plenty of fish in the process. The authors of the book, Stephen Lundin, Harry Paul, and John Christensen , share the amazing story of how they do it and posit that it can be replicated everywhere. The book is a fable of how a manager transformed her “toxic waste dump” of a department to the most exciting place to work at her company. She did it by following the advice of the fish mongers:

1. Choose your attitude,
2. Play,
3. Make their day and
4. Be Present.

The advice is good. I don’t quite know how to apply it to my office, even after reading their story. There needs to be a few more ideas and perhaps even some setbacks to overcome. I have tried to adopt these axioms and have had some success. “Play” is important and has had some success in my teams. I haven’t ever got it to the point of the Fish Market guys, though.

A whole market of business management fables has sprung up over the past twenty years. These books use the story to tell their, er, story. Books like “Who Moved My Cheese?“, “The Present” and “Whale Done!” have graced the shelves and best seller lists. I suppose their attraction is the easy read that can be done in an hour or two. I find them to be sugar coated pablum. I dislike their contrived stories and easy to apply theories. Reality is different, much harder. I have never had as much success from these fables than the hardcore books like ‘Seven Habits” or “Getting Things Done“. I need more in depth analysis and experience to interest me. I will probably continue to read books like “Fish!”, but only for a quick hit, like a bowl of Sugar Smacks.

A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve ResultsA Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results
 Posted by Dan at 9:21 pm

Day One: Mind, Body Spirit

 Focus  No Responses »
Jun 212010
 

It is much later than I had hoped, but I am here to report back the results of my first day on the Mind, Body, Spirit challenge.

Success!!

I started the day by not listening to talk radio on the way to work. I got in the car, turned on the radio and was depressed by the talk before I drove the first block. I turned on my iPod instead. I listened to a devotional given Steven D. Bennion at Brigham Young University – Idaho back on February 23, 2010. It was titled, “Fulfilling your Divine Nature”. It was a good talk and a nice way to start the day. There is my Spirit challenge fulfilled.

After work, I mowed the lawn for my wife’s aunt and uncle. They have been so giving to let me stay with them until we move the family down to Utah. The very least I can do is mow the lawn. It is a bit of a workout. They have a small yard (compared to my current acre in Boise), but the elevation change makes it interesting. By the time I am done, I am winded. Body Challenge… check!

I had a lot of things I was supposed to get done tonight, but didn’t get to them. Instead, I read a book I received at work. The book is “Fish!” and is about the Pike’s Place Fish Market guys. They have a lot of fun at work. It has been a long time since I have done anything fun at work . I think I forgot how to do it. It was a quick read. It only took me a couple hours to read. Mind Challenge done.

Not bad for the first day. I have some things I am going to improve upon. I have much to do, but I have started. First thing to improve? Not writing blog posts at 11:50 at night. I already learned that it isn’t a good time to be writing. I write poorly when I can’t see my own eyelids.

 Posted by Dan at 11:51 pm  Tagged with: , , , ,
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