The other day my esteemed colleague wrote on the Twitters:
Thought of the day: You want exceptional employees. What is exceptional about your organization to attract them? Be real with yourself.
There’s something missing, though. He doesn’t explain what exceptional really is. Well, he can’t in 140 characters.
When my wife and I started dating she was appalled I was playing video games. They were for children, teenagers at best. For years we went back and forth. I earnestly tried to explain the positive effects and the social aspect. She said they were for children and was not being swayed. I never played games like World of Warcraft. I played silly first person shooters. The important thing is that I could get up from at any time.
I’m thinking about what progress means.
Progress is hard to quantify. In some cases it’s about going from point A, which is easy to define to point B, which is also easy to define. In most scenarios the path is impossible to define, though. What really is B? Is it clear enough? Is it known? Have we been there before?
The world is hard.
It infuriates me when I see attempts to put processes in place because the notion it makes hard problems simple. That is not what processes are for. Processes are a safety rope.
I am opinionated but please, listen. The advice below can get you additional customers. Simply by not having potential customers immediately close the browser and move on. It’s hard for a business owner to build a web presence. They’re at the mercy of other people. It’s hard for them to gauge quality and skill. Obviously, everyone wants someone good to work with.
Debt seems to be a hard concept to truly understand. I think everybody gets it, but then sink themselves in debt. As Brother Ali puts it, everybody wants to look good while they’re drowning.
Understanging debt in practice is hard. I think it’s because debt has many perceptions. Debt on its own is not really harmful. Sometimes it’s a good thing. Too much debt certainly is. Everything in moderation, right? Interest rates really makes the difference between good and bad debt. On the surface.
I’m amazed at how many people seem to think they can improve in life by wishing. I’m amazed every time I see lottery pots. Not even the big ones, just thinking of $30 million. That’s a lot. That’s often the best attempt at improvement and that’s pretty sad. Improving is really hard, though.
People say funny things. Sometimes inane, inflammatory, loving or just pointless. My favorite is when a simple comment is made that unwittingly alters the listeners reality. I think it happens more frequently than expected.
Years ago when I was young and (more) troublesome I was complaining about a project. My friend and coworker was listening. He turns to me, “Someone once said character is continuing on when you don’t want to anymore.” It affected me deeply that day. I incorporated that quote into my life. I buckled down and got the project done. Several years late I told him how significant of an impact it made. H just looked at me with a blank stare. There was no recollection. Life’s great.
Confidence is an interested thing. I’m a man so it’s hard for me to identify with the emotions and thoughts of a cute girl in a bar. I imagine that there really is not a large amount of confidence. I say this because if the girl was so pretty why couldn’t she find Prince Charming already? Where was his white horse? Why is she still here.
Delicious (or del.icio.us) is a good site. It was a great idea when it came out. I think it still is. I really do like the idea. I always think to myself, “I really should use Delicious more.”
I never do.
I’ve criticised software because it is, in general, low quality. I define quality software in 3 ways: