Thrive Where You are Planted

When you look at a fat, round and fuzzy bee, doesn't seem like an ideal design to take flight - or produce a sweet attractive nectar. The Wright Brothers did not design The Spirit of Saint Louis in the shape of a water balloon, after all. Using their logic, they designed the infrastructure of their wing like a bird's wing.

The bee has none of the aerodynamic traits of a bird. Yet, it still flies, and for relatively long distances, too. It builds a great life where it lands. Literally. Like on top of a building in downtown New Orleans - tens of thousands of bees made a home atop of a stone building. They found food in flower boxes and along the river, and made a sixteen foot wide home where now one expected a thriving colony.

No one has ever been promised that life would be a bowl of cherries. You may find yourself in a less-than-ideal situation. But there are always opportunities to make the best of it. You have the creativity to make good things happen.

Do you believe you can fly? Take a lesson from the honey bee and use the tools you were given to do great things, no matter the challenges that seem to be in your way.

http://www.theneworleansadvocate.com/news/13580331-123/sting-operation-beekeepers-go-after

Dog Days

Global warming studies by a variety of sources say we are having the hottest summers ever recorded.  Proof of the lyrical "Dog Days of Summer" that have just passed us by with the beginning of fall.  The saying 'dog days' was originated by the Greek poets, who noted that the constellation with Sirius - the brightest star - was always prominent in the Mediterranean skies during the hottest points of the year.  Homer eloquently wrote in The Iliad:

Sirius rises late in the dark, liquid sky

On summer nights, star of stars,

Orion's Dog they call it, brightest

of all, but an evil portent, bringing heat

And fevers to suffering humanity.

The suffering references pestilence, plaque, fever and then ravages of war that would occur during these same days of summer.  Not lazy days, as the spring had troop movements and attacks could easily be cast during summer and early harvest season (when food would be plentiful) prior to returning to their homelands and the onset of winter.

Dogs on the Earth (as opposed to the heavens above) are in more than 36% of American households according to statistics posted on the American Veterinarian Medical Association website (yes, cats are second at 30%).  Between heaven and earth, our four legged friends remind us about unconditional love, friendship, loyalty - and a host of worthy attributes for any kind of friends.

But remember - if you aren't in the northern hemisphere, the throws of winter are upon you during the Greek's dog days of summer.  Then, dogs are trying to keep warm along with their owners.

It's all about perspective, isn't it?  That's the way it is with everything... including walking your dog or someone else's well-loved pup or with projects and relationships with others.  Think about the perspective of others (including your poochie) before you take actions that will make others think twice about walking with you.

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/09/the-dog-walking-economy/407971/

Ready for Winter?

This is the time of year that squirrels begin hoarding food for the winter.  Chubby little cheeks full of seeds and nuts, running back to their homes so they know they'll be prepared for the future months to come.  Cute and smart!

People can take a lesson from squirrels.  While the economy hasn't been stellar in many years, we should adjust our living styles so that we can prepare for a winter ahead, too.

Framing things in the hopeful context leads to more success than thinking about things in the deprivation lingo. Instead of thinking: "I won't go on a vacation if I save $X per paycheck for a rainy day", try dreaming: "I'm saving for a great relaxing getaway instead some smaller half-way weekend trips."

Goals of losing weight, eating healthier, exercising or walking more are much more successful not only if you do them with a friend, but also you vision the future good that comes from your moves.

Finding that you can be home ten more minutes in the morning with family instead of leaving early for an expensive cup of coffee, or walking in your neighborhood rather than using a gym membership can help you not spend money on things you don't need and let you spend more valuable time on your family and friends.  It's all about what matters most - not whoever has the most toys.

Need some tips to help take a human-approach to the squirrel's smart move?  Try this http://www.businessinsider.com/tricks-real-people-use-to-be-better-with-money-2015-8

What Is Your Legacy?

We spend a lot of time considering how others see us and what other people think about us.  Honestly, if this describes you - then you are going about life all wrong.

Esse Quam Videri.  To be rather than to seem.

My high school motto had the classes think often about how we wanted to be.  You didn't want to just seem kind - you wanted to be kind.  You didn't want to just seem intelligent; you needed on a granular personal level to be intelligent.   

Genuine people seem exactly as they are.  You can only seem genuine if you are genuine.  And if you are focused on the good things in life, that reflects outward from you, and is kind of contagious. Instead of misery attracting company, energy and inspiration will attract enthusiasm and happiness.  Let your experiences and sharing be absorbed and then reflected by others.

When people discover things about you, what do you want them to discover? Don't automatically think about what you want to hide.  Think about the true you, the center of who you are - the goodness, the creativeness, the inspiration.  People are initially attracted by how you may seem, but rapidly unwrap the layers to find out what really makes you tick.

In the office, that happens sometimes sooner than people may realize.  Being together 40 hours a week is a lot of awake time!  Items in your workspace reveal more than you probably ever considered. The pieces of life you share in stories also shows your true self.  

Be thoughtful, but not over-planned.  Be considerate, but not condescending.  Be honest, but not brutal.  

An epitaph was the original tweet, limited to the sum of someone's life work engraved boldly on a tombstone.  Bleak considering how people tend to put off thinking about funerals and such, spending much more time living in the moment.  How you lived your life, though, can be an inspiration.

Every day of your life is a step toward your legacy.  Live it with intension and passion.

Do the Right Thing

We need to be kind to one another and help each other out.  Different people are given different talents and different abilities - it's what makes the world so interesting.

And when we stop to help one another, it makes life all worth while.   It's free to be nice.  Being mean takes more work and ends up costing you in the long run.

Don't think about the dollar, don't think about "not my job" - benefits will come flowing back to you when you do the right thing.  You can't blame other people for everything that's wrong if you don't help to make it right.

This is what being part of a community truly means.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/javiermoreno/this-photo-of-a-mcdonalds-worker-helping-an-old-man-eat-will#.ugW9E4yq2

It's Time

Today is the autumn equinox.  But do you realize what an equinox really means?  It's all about time - it's about a moment, actually.  National Geographic explains that it is the very moment when the sun is on the equator at noon.  Northern people get longer nights, Southern ones get longer days.

But, what about an equinox in your life?  It's about seizing a moment when the sun is shining on you exactly the right way.  It's when you have the ability to filter the truth from the darkness in your life, to take charge of your next moment in destiny.

When you don't follow the well-trodden path by the drudgery of managers pointing down a predictable direction, when you challenge all of those mainstream busybodies as you are reaching upwards for the stars, some people call that rebellion or being a rebel.

Consider this: there are quite a few noteworthy people in this rebel category. Johannes Gutenberg was considered a terrorist rebel - because he developed a fast way to release the magic of the written word to paper by inventing the printing press.  William Wallace, a treasonous rebel, wouldn't just change allegiance to a different king in another country, and instead inspired his people to fight for their heritage.  Galileo Galilei, a heretic rebel, was put on trial by the church for the mere suggestion the Earth moved around the Sun... leading to more knowledge about the stars and today's equinox.

Are you a rebel, a rogue, a renegade? My first example of knowing I was not going to accept the status quo came in the second grade (a story for another day).  For others, it comes later in life.  Everyone is gifted with varying levels of creativity and energy, inspiring their own story and accomplishments.

For those of you who are rebels, it's time.  Begin charting your route with inspiration on today's equinox - or, if you are well on the way to forging a new direction, motivate those around you toward greater heights.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/250075

The Games People Should Still Play

What better test of problem solving than to have a puzzle scattered on the tabletop and points for being able to solve it?  The only better thing to test your skill may be having only eight puzzle pieces and creatively designing solutions.

Think it's the Apollo 13 mission to Mars? It very well could be.  But, consider the more "reachable" tabletop of the dining room - and Scrabble.  The lessons we learn there, and games in general, are applicable to every day life.  And if we stop playing games, sometimes we forget the lessons we learned as a child.

This particular game was created during the Great Depression, as an outlet for creativity (and the source of income for its inventor).  Until this point, there were essentially two types of games - strategic moves and number-based games (mostly geared to adults - kids were allowed free play.  Imagine that.)  The formation of this new outlet engaged new "buyers" that were previously left out of the fun if they weren't chess players or enjoyed bingo.  The marketing types, the visual types, the literary crowd and families together were previously discounted for games and now could engage in activities geared to them.

At work, do you give assignments that are geared toward someone's natural abilities?  You should.  This is what leaders do - they set employees up to succeed and encourage them.  Leaders challenge themselves with a version of game theory (which is economics, but still a game) when they are mentoring and figuring out the puzzle pieces with who can contribute with their skills in the best manner.  This keeps a leader's interest - the path to the outcomes - and makes the job fun and engaging for both employees and leaders. 

Leaders also make sure they communicate in the various ways that their team members understand.  Adult learning theory shows many ways to interact with people, so they can "hear" the message as it's intended, without having extraneous noise disrupt the message because in the manner it was delivered.  

When a solution initially yields a $20 loss, don't give up - Scrabble shows that not only learning something new can be fun, but instead of selling just 84 'widgets', your new idea could sell more than 150 million.

"Never give in, except to the convictions of honour and good sense."  "Lead by example. " And let games into your life.

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20150911-word-up-the-secret-story-of-scrabble 

Keep the Spice in Your Life

Variety is the spice in life.  Making sure you don't work too hard... or play too hard... ensures that you have balance and diversity in the things you do everyday.

But, it seems that as we do more things in the workplace and rely more on technology, we forget the basics of life.  Trust the experts (that what they teach above all else in the MBA schools, as they teach you to be an expert in your field).  Food sustains life.  What if we balance our food plate with a variety of colors... just like we should be encouraging our workplaces to have a variety of races and ethnicities?

The basics of life, according to Maslow's hierarchy of need, is food and shelter.  Most people don't forget about shelter, but the importance of the right food choices goes to the wayside.  If you don't fuel your car properly, it shuts down (and is expensive to repair) and likewise for the human body!

Balance in your meals is important, just like balance in other areas of life.  When you skip a meal, you are imbalanced.  You become sluggish and unable to concentrate.  When you over-indulge, you are so uncomfortable that you also are unable to concentrate (as all the blood is being used to digest your food).

What if we, in the business world, committed to working toward something better?  When we are able to encourage or set good examples - either in our workplace cafeterias or when little ones watch our food choices - so that we aren't always skipping fresh veggies or don't always drown our meat in rich sauces.  The same thing goes for selecting the right employees to work for our company mission.

If you don't have something from each food group representing the different nutrients you need, you will fall short.  Same thing in business - if you just have one type of employee, you won't be able to creatively grow and increase your revenue.  Life doesn't work when you just eat one thing, what makes us think creating and sustaining business would work that way, either?

Create and encourage more of what you need - either in food or the food of business (employees!)

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/09/19/441494432/the-u-s-doesnt-have-enough-of-the-vegetables-were-supposed-to-eat

Inspiration

Music is colorblind.  It’s fabulous and soaring.  It’s one of the true places where the product is able to be judged on its own merits.  As one of the pillars of the fine arts, music can be created by anyone - and when you can play or sing in one of the finest halls in the world, there’s no feeling quite like it.

Two other fine arts outlets are similarly situated as equal opportunity.  Painting is similar, moving the person with colors and emotion.  Literature and writing can also transport the reader to far away lands, all with the descriptions that bring vivid life to your own living room.

But, why are we still a community that, indeed, judges a book by it’s cover?  I was surprised in this article that the industry person make such a grotesque and blatant statement of prejudice and generalization.  Many times, personal beliefs creep in under the darkness of contracts and promotional outlets and brand positioning.  To see it in black and white, no pun intended, brings a realization that we have a lot more work to do in order to appreciate creativity and vivaciousness for the blessings they truly are.

If you work, work hard at ensuring equality and fairness and promoting an open-minded culture.  The benefits reaped by companies who are socially responsible as well as encouraging of brilliance will see the bottom line increase exponentially.  You will miss so much if you take steps forward looking only in one direction - explore and expand your horizons.  And if you are one of the creative souls, keep at it - your light will be seen.  We promise.

You read the article, but listen to the youtube clip first… with your eyes closed and let your imagination soar, then see the book’s cover in the article below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEIVzWCRSg8  

http://www.npr.org/2015/09/17/440603268/with-stereotypes-a-duo-raised-on-hip-hop-and-classical-has-it-both-ways 

Using All The King's Horses When Up Against A Wall

Children's nursery rhymes have fantastic origins and were actually created to deliver lessons to children and the lesser-educated population.  For instance, "Ring Around The Rosey" continues to the next phrase with "pocket full of posey", or herbs and flowers, which was a method used to try to keep germs away during the plague in London in the mid-1600s.  Another English story created "Humpty Dumpty", who was likely an allusion to England's King Richard III (a rather portly and humpbacked fellow) when he was defeated in battle even though there were many soldiers around that should have won the fight, and the English learned they had a new leader.

Creative ways to deliver a message - even with death, the posey tries to put a positive light on things can be done in the fight of "good versus evil" - gives encouragement and provides a ladder for building energy for more creative solutions.

In more recent times, the media prefers to sensationalize everything, and many times the good news is lost or buried or never even investigated.  Media loves a good train wreck, and the public falls for it every time.  No demands for strong writing, investigations, or "homework" pieces.  Bah, humbug!

But if you look, you can find success stories - even ones that were built in response to one brick wall and seemingly continued to hit brick walls.  Another childhood activity, a game rather than a story, encourages children to be creative.  "Let's go on a bear hunt" reaches multiple states of "Can't go over it... can't go under it... can't go around it..." and has teamwork to "let's go through it!"  The power of creativity, teamwork and the promise of a brighter tomorrow should enlighten and empower even the toughest of Scrooges.

I know this story below was published a few months ago, but as all of the "stats" are coming out now with the Fed meetings, campaigning, as well as it being federal budget time, we cannot forget the great lessons of our past (even our recent past).  People are mud slinging and pointing fingers to remind of all the failures.  Taking something that was coined "a spectacular failure" and using common sense, expertise and creativity to turn around a hot-mess-train-wreck is a staggering accomplishment that should be celebrated (regardless of your opinion on why the project was necessary, this was a great fix-it job!)

When all the king's horses and all the king's men not only can't fix a problem but fail to admit they made the problem worse, take your creative confidence and know that you can achieve whatever you decide you want to do.  Focus on what you can do rather than what you can't do, and you'll surprise yourself at how much you get done.  Make sure you spread good news, too, so that success can be shared.

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/07/the-secret-startup-saved-healthcare-gov-the-worst-website-in-america/397784/

Cheese!

The '90s book about moving cheese gave people a reason to consider their personal reasons for Hem and Haw.  Procrastination, fear, loss of control - all reasons why people don't want to change.

Sometimes, however, there are bigger impediments to why things can't change.  Teams can try and try again on projects to get changes to work - and they just don't.  Is this a failure?

No!  Consider it a success of the unique components of the existing project.  Somethings, and the cartoon genie said in Aladdin, are " ever impressive... often imitated, but never duplicated... Genie of the Lamp!"

Adults call it synergy; kids call it magic.  Some things just seem magical, and adults could take a lesson from children on how to enjoy the imagination.  When trying to implement cost savings, some of the creative process can be spoiled.

Take this literal case of spoiling: http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20150630-the-swedish-cheese-that-cant-be-moved - great product, but they wanted to try it in a different place.  Reasons could be lowering personnel costs, political changes, cows wanted greener grass... whatever the reason, the wheel could not be recreated.

Consider it as a lesson that there are some unique things that shouldn't be moved.  That gives you time to smell the roses and figure out what really needs your attention.

How Much Is Your Two Cents Really Worth?

Think of all the things you have to on your "to do" list today.  Besides work and groceries, after school sports and pressing your clothes for tomorrow - what do you really accomplish?

What matters most to you? Sure, getting your paycheck is important.  But spending time with loved ones and communicating with them is more important.  Making sure you tell your family and friends how you feel and checking on friends with more than a text means a lot.

Sometimes, picking up the phone can be difficult when you are knee-deep in "crazy-makers" at work... certainly at the kids' soccer games no conversation on a phone happens there.  But how can you make the important people in your life know that they are important, as we are all so connected by phones and laptops and things.

Once upon a time, handwriting was taught in school.  The correct slant of a line, the appropriate length of the bar on the letter "t", spacing between letters and lines was important.  Your writing and your signature could not be replicated by someone else.  That doesn't happen any more.  People don't even take the time to write thank you notes for presents on special occasions.

So with people being stingy with their handwritten notes, think how valuable this would be to someone close to you.  Yes, the cost of the ink is likely two cents or less - but your time to pick a card, inscribing a hand written note, and sending it to someone to let them know you care... that's worth more than all the gold in Fort Knox, than all the tea in China.

The completion of forms isn't worth the commoditization of hiring someone to pick your friend's birthday card or to automate the "production" of your holiday cards with the engraved signature.  Take time to smell the roses and send a personal note to someone that truly matters.

If you have a burning desire to see the figures, you can click here to see exactly how much your two cents is worth.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/do-you-know-what-your-time-is-really-worth-1437500727

What Happens When You Embrace Change

People don't realize how influential their attitude can be.  How often have you smiled at someone who seemed to be having a bad day - and your smile got reflected back?  Rarely do people ignore a smile, even when in a really wretched mood.

In a workplace environment, supervisors have many ways to encourage behavior, but frequently they choose to discourage bad behaviors.  Humans orient around negative things as that's protected us for several thousand years.  But as an article posted last week proves, focusing on the good leaves no room for the bad and the good improves your health, too.

If people react more positively to reinforcement of good traits, why do managers focus on punishing the bad traits so often?  The answer is because they are managers and not truly leaders.  They may like to think they are leaders, they may tell people they are leaders - but leaders just do it, they don't tell people about how they are leading!

An article recently tried to explain why Leaders are afraid of change - but uses the wrong "title" in the headline.  This article is really about why managers are afraid of change.  Leaders embrace and encourage change.  They already do things like create a safe environment for workers to express opinions and give suggestions.  They already know that comments aren't directed at them personally by staff, but at the fear and frustration of uncertainty.    And they definitely aren't afraid of a new idea!

Leaders embrace change and persuade people to move forward, to try the new thing before complaining about it.  Leaders know "it" isn't all about them.  And when we have more people realize the way to improve is by action and not just talk, what a happier workplace we'll have.

If you want to check that you don't make manager mistakes - to focus on your leadership lessons - read more: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/249422

Thank You...

To all of those who give their all to protect our way of life.

Never forget.

Info, Info Everywhere

There's a lot of information out there... but it's not all good data and certainly isn't all smart.  What's the difference?

Consider your kitchen.  Everything is inside it to make a meal, but it's not all relevant at every meal.  You may not use a skillet when baking a pie, for instance.  Your kitchen has "information" in it; data are the relevant components to your project.

The internet helps people and also gets them into trouble.  Millennials are typically the generation that will run to the web and look up information to refute what someone says or to throw together a paper for class.  But information isn't useful if you don't know how to identify the data within...

If you don't have the skills to set yourself apart, you don't just go online, read about a topic and consider yourself an expert. (Well, you shouldn't... anyway.)  To learn about something or understand how to analyze a topic, you need to research, identify important pieces of information, whittle it down to data points, and then see how these pieces play together, fit together, work together, or cause disruption together.

If your big pond of information is drained down to some key pieces of data, how (or if) they interact is called intelligence.  Projects that use higher level of intelligence typically present their findings in logical, clear, and direct manners.  Projects that don't rate as high on the "good to great" factors usually just throw some data your way.  The manner in which you put your eggs and flour together says if you will get bread or a cake.  Your data put together smartly makes it intelligent - or not.

One of the biggest information oceans right now are US political races.  If you don't understand how the information is being presented to you, then you can't determine if you are getting real intelligence or some neatly-strung data points.  Make sure you know the difference when it comes to topics that are important to you and your family, you and your business, you and your community.

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/08/25/could-google-inc-really-decide-the-2016-presidenti.aspx

Don't Plan To Fit In - Have The Vision to Lead

In today's quick bite, think about this: 

Kids often want to fit in with everyone else - from clothes to lunch boxes and backpacks, they want to be one of the crowd.  They are young, inexperienced, timid when it comes to try new things.  In many ways, new employees have the same attributes.  New employees also try hard to fit in and not rock the boat, because they yearn to be part of the team instead of the new kid in the group.

But why in the world should you want to be like anyone else? In the prime of your career, you should be looking at the unique ways you bring value to an organization!  Perhaps it's your creativity, or it could be your coding ability.  You may be a fabulous writer with a knack for MarCom.  Or you are a great forensic accountant that can follow a money trail to get the bad guys.

Whatever your niche, act like a king and lead your own story.  Set the bar high.  There's no one else like you, so do what you are meant to do and lead.

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/09/the-king-of-couture/402952/ 

How Plus Can Help Get Rid of Minus

Misery loves company.  When did we start focusing on this little nugget of joy?  Actually, ancient philosophers pontificated on this topic - Sophocles, around 408 b.c., used words to this effect in his writings.  It appeared in the 1300 in English.  And, of course there is that particular Misery where Kathy Bates definitely wanted "company" in her "home".

Back in the hunter/gatherer days, it makes sense that humans paid attention to the negative minutia as it could save lives.  The direction of the wind brings a new unpleasant scent - a fire or predator could be approaching.  A plant tastes bitter when we try it - because in larger quantities, it could be poison.  Today, we still sniff milk around the expiration date so we don't drink sour milk; not lifesaving, but certainly saving us from an unpleasant addition to a bowl of cereal or cup of coffee.

But a "minus" is only half a "plus", and indeed, a positive effect exponentially is contagious.  Harvard did a study in the workplace about how noticing small nice things at work can significantly reduce stress.  People normally share horrible experiences, "this tastes awful, try it" or "then when I opened the box I found this gross..."; instead, Harvard's study said to write three pleasant things each day.

Writing and then likely sharing these positive experiences increase bonds with people.  After all you want to be around happy people, not miserable people.  It lifts spirits - think of all the cute animal videos that you see, and don't you typically share them?  Having positive-oriented bonds with people helps reduce our stress, which also helps improve our sleep.  With more and better-quality sleep, we are likely to wake up on the "right" side of the bed.

As the positives grow, the negatives decrease.  We don't focus on ugly when we can choose to see and share more pretty.  It also helps diffuse a toxic environment and brings you "above the pack."  Perhaps this is a reason why having pictures of our family at our desks, our offices painted soothing color, hallways and bathrooms having a pleasant atmosphere.

Three good things every day.  You can set a timer that orients around when you may feel stress - rolling up into the office, back to your desk after work, and mid afternoon when you really just want to bug out.   You can even do team building with it, that each week employees deposit "nice" things in a box and once a week you share them electronically with everyone on the team.  Lead by example and start today.  And you can do this with your kids, too, to help set them on the right path now.

For more on the study and results of the power of positive thinking at work, read more here: https://hbr.org/2015/09/the-powerful-effect-of-noticing-good-things-at-work

Perception is Everything

They say that perception is everything.  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  Art is subjective.  Freedom of speech is an inalienable right.

But, when you say something and it is perceived otherwise, what happens then? Do you keep a list of mistakes? Frequently, we all hear stories of one person bringing up a "list" of things that went wrong, freely pointing out the fault of others.

It's been a hot topic on social media that women use the self-depreciating posturing by over-using an apology.  When you take your perceptions and apply them to group action - not an individual or a sub-group - it just doesn't make much sense.  These perception problems stem from the erosion of manners.  ["Pardon me" doesn't imply fault; it doesn't require a response or blame - and since there isn't an actual infraction there is NO need for an apology.  It doesn't give all the power to the other person like "sorry" does.  Lackluster manners contribute to social ills - good manners should be at the top of everyone's to-do list - and when children see adults acting their age, the good role model will carry to a further generation.]

Perception is also very different based on personal background and educational training.  Generally, it wouldn't be a straight link to think of a physicist talking about a beautiful life.  They consider small parts and velocity and heat, right?

A scientist that wins the Nobel Prize actually can think about art and history and music in a non-scientist way.  The perception of "appreciating the complex" is very interesting when this particular man talks about the beauty of nature.

http://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2015/09/06/438031629/the-multiverse-of-perception

Consider someone else's point of view - you might learn a thing or two.

Four Elements and Driving Success

Astrological signs look at them.  Music draws us to them. Sports revolves around them. Life's moments are separated by nature's elements: earth, wind, fire and water.

Creativity links elements in the most unique way. Paper is typically made of plant "earth" material (wood, bamboo, etc) and previously, one of these posts showed how paper and ink (also made originally of plant material or minerals), was reforming water when high-technology isn't viable for poorer countries, poorer people. Cheap and easy, water becomes safe to drink. Earth and water supporting life.

Yesterday, descriptions of inspiring curiosity and the magnification of objects very small all for the cost of a dollar. Energizing young minds, the designer describes kids' natural ability to go look at anything - holding up the microscope in the air, putting anything underneath the snap-card form to see what is held in the air and the world around them. The "creative fire" is sparked to look at land, sea and sky.

On Wednesday, reports reveal self-healing material that rebinds itself by just adding water. "The researchers cut it, then put the two pieces back together with a drop of water" and it was just as strong as before the damage. This could hasten ship repairs, change the design of telecommunications infrastructure... So many things that could be improved with a single drop of water. And, who knew squid had this many teeth! Makes you rethink that swim in the ocean, huh?

While these are our world's four elements, you need to balance four elements in your life. Imagine the possibilities when you stop having uneven force on one area and can balance the elements of your career and your life for even greater success. Maybe your personal elements are creativity, passion, determination and social responsibility. Define your elements today and start improving your tomorrow.

http://www.popsci.com/researchers-create-self-healing-material-inspired-by-squid-teeth

What Can Your Dollar Get You?

There's a song that includes the refrain "don't tell me what to say." Thank goodness we have people who embody this as well as the previous line to that song, "don't tell me what to do."


Last week, I shared a story how paper was used to filter water in order to make it safe to drink. This week, paper is a microscope that enhances an image 2,000 times - and can be a projector, too.


If even just these two inventors of the filter and microscope did what people suggested, the world wouldn't be as rich as it is today.  Both of them relayed stories about nay-sayers and people that discouraged their creativity.  Be brave and don't listen to people who don't encourage you!


If you are working on your alphabet from Monday's post and need a good "E", perhaps "encouraging curiosity" is a good fit.  And consider "I" to be "invest" - in socially responsible projects, in things that can change the world (and not just fill it with more stuff).


http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/09/one-dollar-origami-microscope-foldscope/403156/

Crack the Code

There are puzzles that seem to just not be solvable - until the right piece fits into place.  When we are young, the pieces are huge and portray very simple pictures.  As we get older, the pieces get smaller, the designs more intricate.  Things get more difficult to solve because of the many distractions that surround us.


But when you invent something new - start a business, create a new device, write a book - there isn't a "script" from which you can start.  Many professions have a template for "do x, then y" and only slight details change each time a new project starts.  But what if you are starting from the very beginning?


The American forefathers started our country from the very beginning, and had to take precautions that their early plans weren't intercepted by foreign spies. We all know that in today's world, the NSA and others have a network that feeds information to keep track of criminals as well as companies encode things so that proprietary information doesn't get into the competitions' hands.


Would you have ever imagined that Thomas Jefferson was probably the first cryptographer for our nation?  He had to invent a way to keep our young country's secrets from the wrong hands.  Protecting lives required careful planning and ingenious planning.


Just because something isn't done before doesn't mean it can't be done.  If you are in a tough spot, take inspiration from nearly 250 years ago - look for brand new ways to solve your problems. Jefferson's new idea is now one of the "foundations of our infrastructure."  Be a leader with your new idea, and avoid disasters by planning ahead.


http://www.forbes.com/sites/ygrauer/2015/08/31/encryption-thomas-jefferson/