Tag: United States

10,000 Boomers on the Beach

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Boomers on the Beach

Today, more than 10,000 Baby Boomers will retire. This is going to happen day after day, month after month, year after year until 2030.  That is a lot of Boomers on the Beach!  Will there be enough adult beverages with little umbrellas available?

The US is about to go through an unprecedented demographic shift with all these boomers entering retirement age.  During the first half of this century, the number of senior citizens in the United States is being projected to more than double. Problem is, most of them are not ready to retire as the economic challenges over the last 10-15 years have compromised their ability to retire gracefully and just relax.  Take a look at these statistics:

  • Today there are about 40 million senior citizens in the United States. By 2050 that number is projected to skyrocket to 89 million
  • According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 46 percent of all American workers have less than $10,000 saved for retirement, and 29 percent of all American workers have less than $1,000 saved for retirement.
  • One poll discovered that 26 percent of all Americans in the 46 to 64-year-old age bracket have no personal savings whatsoever.
  • According to a survey conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, “60 percent of American workers said the total value of their savings and investments is less than $25,000”.
  • 67 percent of all American workers believe that they “are a little or a lot behind schedule on saving for retirement”.
  • A study conducted by Boston College‘s Center for Retirement Research found that American workers are $6.6 trillion short of what they need to retire comfortably
  • Overall, the Social Security system is facing a 134 trillion dollar shortfall over the next 75 years.
  • The U.S. government is facing a total of 222 trillion dollars in unfunded liabilities during the years ahead. Social Security and Medicare make up the bulk of that.
Ouch.  This is not the way the boomers envisioned how their retirement would be.  Looks like they may still be working well into their golden years – serving those umbrella drinks to the 1% that can actually afford to be on that beach buying $15 drinks 😦
Original article can be found at http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-02-11/22-facts-about-coming-us-demographic-shock-wave
Webman

Not Another Con Call

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Given the remarkable changes in technology, why do conference calls still suck?  I was on one yesterday and all the classic issues happened:

  • The leader was late – so the participants were stuck listening to music – The Rolling Stones were singing Time is On My Side.  I was OK with that 🙂 A benefit!
  • It  is very difficult to understand people who are speaking, especially if they have even the slightest accent
  • Background noise is terrible
  • Folks speaking when they are on mute – We cannot hear you 🙂
  • Babies crying and dogs barking in the background – Ah the benefits of working from home!
  • Two people speaking at once, telling the other to go first, and then both speaking at the same time again

This video has been going around but if you have not seen it, take a look.  It is just awesome, accurate and laugh out loud funny!

And now for some Stones.

Someone, please innovate!

Webman

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It is Up to You!

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Interviewed a great person a few years ago for a business development position.  When I asked her why she had been so successful, she responded, “If it is to be, it is up to me.”  Best answer ever!

Seems to be a lot of excuses going around these days.  In the workplace, many associates seem to blame circumstances or other people for their failure to get stuff done.  In government, does anyone take accountability for anything?  Been stuck on a bridge in New Jersey  lately?  Too many examples of people making commitments that they just do not live up to.  Does anyone just stand up and take responsibility anymore?  How about some honesty and integrity?  Pretty rare these days.  What are the drivers of this behavior?

Well, here is some great advice for you to remember and live by everyday:

  • Accountability starts with you. Grab a glove and get in the game!
  • Accountability is about being reliable. Do as you say!
  • Accountability is ownership. Own it.  If it fails, fix it.
  • Accountability creates clarity. No questions required.
  • Accountability is about trustworthiness. You deliver, maybe others will follow your lead.
  • Accountability is a partnership. Do you want your partners/teammates letting you down?  Did not think so!
  • Successful leaders always show accountability.

Stop the noise. No more excuses.  Get it done and do it with excellence.  Why would you ever do less than your best?  Original article can be found at http://www.lollydaskal.com/leadership/accountability-if-it-is-to-be-its-up-to-me/

And now for some comic relief from Bruce Springsteen and Jimmy Fallon.

Webman

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Are you awake?

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Focused on expanding my horizons the last couple of week by reading about some topics that I am not familiar with.  One I focused on was the concept of being awake, living in the moment. Being awake you say?  But I am awake 12+ hours a day you say!

Are you really awake or are you just going through the motions?  Do you live in the past, present and future all at the same time? When you are engaged in a discussion, are you thinking about something that has previously happened or other things that you need to do? Or are you truly focused in the moment with all attention on that one idea, thought, person or event?

Initial thoughts:

  • Focus solely on what you are doing – this will not be easy at first but keep trying
  • Look people directly in the eye and listen hard to what they are saying – As my friend Brendan says, God gave you two ears and only one mouth, so listen twice as much as you speak
  • Give the gift of attention – focus on the present/the moment

I will spend more on this topic moving forward.  If you want some further information now, please visit http://freedomfromtheknown.com/living-in-the-moment/

And for you music lovers, let’s go to a song that you can sing and remember as you embark on your new journey of focus.

Enjoy the day and your new found focus 🙂  Wake up!

Webman

Let me get this straight….

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This is not a political column but sometimes we need to shine a light on this topic.

Our government is shut down because our leadership can no longer communicate with one another.  A bit of a groundhog day moment, don’t you think?  Haven’t we seen this dance before?  Well, for all of the folks in Washington, here is a headline for you – Get out!  One thing you have excelled at is incompetency.  Incompetency is not an attribute we look for in our employees.  Do you think you would have a job if you worked for anyone else? The answer is no!

How is it that 800,000 hard working Americans can be laid off from their positions because of your inability to lead, but you, our leaders, continue to get paid?  How does that work?  Let’s peel the onion back another layer and look at yet another perk of yours that has not been shut down.  The Members Only Congressional Gym remains open as it was deemed essential. Really?

Head Start programs have been shuttered, small businesses can’t get loans and hundreds of thousands of federal government employees are furloughed. But the exclusive members-only Congressional gyms have remained open throughout the shutdown.

A House aide confirmed that the House member’s gym is open. The House gym features a swimming pool, basketball courts, paddleball courts, a sauna, a steam room and flat screen TVs. While towel service is unavailable, taxpayers remain on the hook for cleaning and maintenance, which has been performed daily throughout the shutdown. There are also costs associated with the power required to heat the pools and keep the lights on.

According to the aide, the decision to keep the gym open — even while other critical government services were shelved — came directly from Speaker Boehner’s office. Meanwhile, the staff gym available to Congressional staff has been closed.  It appears that the members gym in the Senate remains open on similar terms. Yesterday, Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-SC) complained to a reporter from the Omaha World-Herald that the members gym was getting “rank.”

The daily operating cost of the House and Senate gyms remains shrouded in secrecy. The Architect of the Capitol, which oversees both gyms, has previously refused to provide information about the gyms for “security reasons.” A call to the Architect of the Capitol for this story was not immediately returned.

And here is another one from my friend Armand that is sure to tweak you a bit (Not twerk you 🙂 )

The US has entered into a contract with a real estate firm to sell 56 buildings that currently house U.S. Post Offices. The government has decided it no longer needs these buildings, most of which are located on prime land in towns and cities across the country. The sale of these properties will fetch about $19 billion.  A regular real estate commission will be paid to the company that was given the exclusive listing for handling the sales. That company is CRI and it belongs to a man named Richard Blum.  Richard Blum is the husband of Senator Dianne Feinstein. (Most voters and many of the government people who approved the deal have not made the connection between the two because they have different last names).

Senator Feinstein and her husband stand to make a fortune (est at between $950 million and $1.1 billion!!) from these transactions. His company is the sole real estate on the sale. CRI will be making a minimum of 3% and as much as 6% commission on each and every sale.

So our leaders get to work out while our government employees deemed non-essential get to sit home and not get paid.  And then one of our Senators gets right because her husband is awarded an exclusive agreement to sell $19 billion dollars worth of government owned real estate.  And we wonder why we have little or no faith in leadership.

Webman

Nice Face

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Facial recognition software will end privacy once and for all.  Your face now provides marketers and the government with the ability to link that fabulous mug shot you put on Facebook to everything there is to know about you.  That’s right.  You thought you were just posting your smiley face for your friends to see?  Not exactly.

Queue the music:

The government has some restrictions with facial recognition software, but they are spending a ton of money to figure this out.  Retailers on the other hand have the ability to use your face to send you promotional offers – the linking between the on-line world and the off-line world.  Europe has tougher rules (You need to opt in there), but here in the US, the technology is way ahead of the law.  Even if you have never put your own picture up anywhere in the internet you can be found if you were included in any picture any one has ever taken of you.  So yes, Grandpa or Grandma who have refused to embrace anything digital and still read the paper in the morning, have been digitized and are therefore searchable.

A company called redpepper (www.redpepperland.com) has started a program called Facedeals.  Here is how it works.  Facial recognition cameras are installed at local businesses. These cameras recognize your face when you pass by, then check you in at the location. Simultaneously, your smartphone notifies you of a customized deal based on your Like history on Facebook.  Creepy?

Yes, there are companies out there today that are putting all the little fragments of your life together, both on-line and off-line to get to know you a little better.  They might know you, but you will never know them.  Minority Report is much closer than you might think.

Webman

Leadership Made Simple

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One of the greatest leaders of our time was Peter Drucker.  Peter Ferdinand Drucker (November 19, 1909 – November 11, 2005) was an Austrian-born American management consultant, educator, and author, whose writings contributed to the philosophical and practical foundations of the modern business corporation. He was also a leader in the development of management education, and he invented the concept known as management by objectives.

Drucker’s books and scholarly and popular articles explored how humans are organized across the business, government, and nonprofit sectors of society.  He is one of the best-known and most widely influential thinkers and writers on the subject of management theory and practice. His writings have predicted many of the major developments of the late twentieth century, including privatization and decentralization; the rise of Japan to economic world power; the decisive importance of marketing; and the emergence of the information society with its necessity of lifelong learning.  In 1959, Drucker coined the term “knowledge worker” and later in his life considered knowledge worker productivity to be the next frontier of management.

Here is what Peter Drucker believed about leadership:

  • A leader is someone who has followers
  • Popularity is not leadership, results are
  • Leaders are highly visible, they set examples
  • Leadership is not rank, privilege, titles or money; it is responsibility

Leaders do not hide behind issues; they confront and resolve them.  Leaders do not avoid conflict; they embrace it and learn from it.  Leaders don’t sit in their offices all day; they interact and work closely with their co-workers.  Leaders don’t need control; they know how to get things done by understanding the business issues clearly and resolving them through collaboration.  Leaders listen.  Leaders change and embrace change.  Leaders lead change.

Do you work for a great leader?  Are you a great leader?  Do you have what it takes?

Don’t follow, lead.

A classic tune from the 80’s to begin your day today.

Thanks to Wikipedia www.wikipedia.org for the brief overview of Mr. Drucker.

Webman

Ain’t Wastin Time No More

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Had a chance to see the Red Sox vs Angels game yesterday.  What is it about a live baseball game that I love?  Everything 🙂

Looking around the ball park, it is easy to observe just how many people are on their smartphones.  We see it at work everyday, but when you see 37,000 people in one place, it provides an interesting perspective.  Did you know, on average, people check their smartphones or feature phones 150 times per day.  My favorite yesterday at Fenway, was people taking pictures of themselves when their faces appeared on the jumbotron in center field.  Sweet Caroline indeed!  So good, so good, so good….

In 2010, Nokia found 150 to be the number of times the average individual views their phone on a daily basis, which includes both smartphones and feature phones. U.S. carrier T-Mobile, meanwhile, confirmed the same figure for the American market in its own study conducted during 2012. In the United Kingdom, meanwhile, the figure is claimed to have reached 200.

Well, one thing you should not do is walk and text.  Fort Lee, N.J. police said they will begin issuing $85 jaywalking tickets to pedestrians who are caught texting while walking.  “It’s a big distraction. Pedestrians aren’t watching where they are going and they are not aware,” said Thomas Ripoli, chief of the Fort Lee Police Department.

Tough to stay focused, isn’t it.  Well, when we are at work there are a number of things that get in our way during the course of the day.  Check out this cool infographic.

Time Wasters

So, stay focused and stop wasting time.  So many good things for you to focus on 🙂

And now a little Allman Brothers to start your Monday – Classic indeed!

Enjoy the day.

Webman

Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay

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As summer is now upon us here in New England , there are a number of great tunes that just capture the moment.  Wanted to share a few with you.

Have an awesome weekend!

“(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” is a song co-written by soul singer Otis Redding and guitarist Steve Cropper. It was first recorded by Otis Redding in 1967, just days before his death. It was released posthumously on Stax Records‘ Volt label in 1968, becoming the first posthumous single to top the charts in the US. It charted at number 3 on the UK Singles Chart.

A modern version of the song goes global – Awesome.

The Grass Roots is an American rock band that charted between 1966 and 1975 that was originally the brainchild of songwriting duo P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri.  The Grass Roots achieved two gold albums, one gold single and charted singles a total of 21 times. Among their charting singles, they achieved Top 10 three times, Top 20 three times and Top 40 eight times. They have sold over twenty million records worldwide.

The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey (lead vocals, guitar, harmonica), Pete Townshend (guitar, vocals, keyboards) and John Entwistle (bass, brass, vocals), and joined shortly after by Keith Moon (drums, vocals). They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction.The Who have sold about 100 million records and have charted 27 top forty singles in the United Kingdom and United States, as well as 17 top ten albums, with 18 Gold, 12 Platinum and 5 Multi-Platinum album awards in the United States alone.

Best band I ever saw live in concert.  And I have seen all the great ones except for the greatest band of all, The Beatles.

And one from the 70’s.

Mungo Jerry is a British rock group whose greatest success was in the early 1970s, though they have continued throughout the years with an ever-changing line-up, always fronted by Ray Dorset. They are remembered above all for their hit “In the Summertime“. It remains their most successful and most instantly recognizable song, and their only hit outside of the UK

Ah, the summer classics.

Webman

Lead, Follow or Get Out of the Way

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With all of the talk, books, seminars, training and discussion about leadership, why is it so hard to find?  Do you work for a leader?  Someone that has passion, curiosity, compassion, daring, generosity, accountability and grit?  Or do you work for someone that is just looking out for numero uno, protecting his or her ass at all times?  No really, who do you work for?

Do you think about the person that you work for as a leader?  Do you come into work everyday and wonder what you will learn today?  Or think, I hope he/she spends some time with me today, because I want to learn something new?  I want to develop skills like them.  Well do you?

Who do you look up to in your company, in your life?  Who do you admire?  Where do you get your inspiration?  Is anyone out there that stirs your mind, your intellect, your curiosity, your passion?

A brief musical interlude………..

You might work for the greatest leader in the world, someone you respect and admire.  I hope you do.  Most of you do not.  You are subjected to bosses (Not leaders) that merely sit in the spot above you in the organization chart.  Someone that might have a bit more experience, someone who is resting on their accomplishments from years before, someone that has figured out how to work the system, someone that never does anything proactive for the business, you, your career or anyone other than themselves. Maybe you work for the dreaded “Insecure Manager”. (Blog on that next week)

Well if you are blessed with a great leader, what are you doing to learn the most you can?  If you are working for Sluggo, what are you doing to change it?  A recent Harvard Business Review article mentions the following attributes as true signs of a modern leader.  The leader that does not need authority to make a difference.  Do these describe you?

Seers — individuals who are living in the future, who possess a compelling vision of “what could be.” As human beings, we’re constantly looking forward, and we love to sign on with individuals who are already working on “the next big thing.”

Contrarians — free of the shackles of conventional wisdom and eager to help others stage a jailbreak. It’s exciting to be around these free-spirited thinkers who liberate us from the status quo and open our minds to new possibilities.

Architects — adept at building systems that elicit contribution and facilitate collaboration. They leverage social technologies in ways that amplify dissident voices, coalesce communities of passion and unleash the forces of change.

Mentors — rather than hoarding power, they give it away. They believe the primary job of a leader is to create more leaders. To this end, they coach, tutor, challenge and encourage.

Connectors — with a gift for spotting the “combinational chemistry” between ideas and individuals. They help others achieve their dreams by connecting them with sponsors, like-minded peers, and complementary resources.

Bushwhackers — they clear the trail for new ideas and initiatives by chopping away at the undergrowth of bureaucracy. They’re more committed to doing the right thing than to doing things right.

Guardians — vigilant defenders of core values and enemies of expediency. Their unflinching commitment to a higher purpose inspires others and encourages them to stand tall for their beliefs.

Citizens — true activists, their courage to challenge the status quo comes from their abiding commitment to doing as much good as possible for as many as possible. They are other-centered, not self-centered.

So who are you and what are you doing about leadership or lack there-of.

More details can be found at http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/05/how_to_lead_when_youre_not_in.html?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pulsenews

Get moving.

Webman