(originally published January 21, 2017 after Trump inauguration & updated given consistent Trump ‘join or else’ messaging)

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“Authority without wisdom is like a heavy axe without an edge, fitter to bruise than polish.”

―

Anne Bradstreet

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……… tweet from Republican National Party on June 14, 2018 ………….

Join or Else. If there is one common theme Trump and his merry band of corrupt amoral yahoos have espoused, this is it. Yeah. They may cloak it in some vapid superficial niceties, but, in the end,  it “Join or Else.

That said. (stepping back to my words of January 2017)

———————————-

Well.

Yesterday was an interestingly disturbing day to begin “the new era of The United States of America.”

I listened to the Trump inauguration speech with growing horror. It had all the trappings of authoritarianism wrapped snugly in a blanket of patriotism & promises of wealth, security, strength and ‘greatness.’

I listened to it not just as a citizen but as a business guy.

Yeah. Populism can be seen in business just as it can be seen in politics. In business it can be called ‘the cult mentality’ and more often than not its leader is a ‘less-than-benevolent’ dictator. Let’s call it a ‘join, or else’ culture. You can drive membership in this culture a couple of ways … both grounded in fear.

Fear of losing <part 1>. Outsiders are trying to steal what is ours … people who don’t believe in what we believe in are trying to steal what is ours … join us because we are the people who count and matter.

I do not want to lose what is rightfully mine.

Fear of losing <part 2>. I am on the outside looking in and … well … holy shit … if I don’t join I am gonna lose everything <or be branded as a non joiner>.

I will join because if I don’t I am up shit creek without a paddle and lose what I have.

Businesses try this shit all the time. It is their way of building a strong culture, claiming it is inclusive, albeit inclusive is grounded by ‘a tight set of club rules.’ They will argue it is not a tight set but rather a basic construct which binds people in a good way … you call it tomato and I call it rotten. This Trump version of populism is, well, it goes beyond corporate cult culture. This version is close to being batshit crazy dangerous thought leadership.

Let’s look at the brochure and talk a minute with the Trump Club recruiter.

The cover of the brochure suggests an unstoppable America, driven solely by self-interest, in other words, our Club wins at all costs at the expense of anyone who stands in our way! <“if you want to win, join us” it says …>.

It further reads with threatening all those who might stand in the way of this Club and it’s winning/great objective. It contains an adamant stance of ‘no real choice’, i.e., a demanded unity not an asked for unity.

Yeah.

Some of the club benefits look awful good in the brochure … more & better jobs, stronger economy, stronger security, less business regulations and country pride. And then I turn over the brochure just to check out the legalese, the cost of the benefits as it were, to explore how the promises of the Club will be delivered.

The headline on the back of the brochure really wanted me to join this club … the message of “join today because today is the day the people become the rulers of this country.” I vaguely remember that being the call of the French Revolution but it sounds cool <although I could swear we, the people, have been voting in people as representatives for awhile>.

But. Whew. It sounds good. I like it.

It feels empowering and inspirational with the added comfort that I will no longer be one of “the forgotten people which will be forgotten no longer.” I know for sure that would like to not be forgotten and being part of a club would be nice and … well … gosh … uhm … now that I think about it … I didn’t know I had been forgotten.

• The recruiter leans forward and says “of course you were, the intellectual globalist elite in Washington and around the world have been keeping you down … they don’t care about you … they have forgotten that it was you that made them part of the wealthy elite.”

Ok. But didn’t your Club President build his wealth off the backs of ‘forgotten people’ and … well … it seems like they aren’t any better off but he is a shitload better off, doesn’t it?

• Oh … no, no, no … he appreciates everything they have done for him. Hey. And don’t you want to be wealthy too?

I look down at the brochure and I see the bolded ‘make wealthy’ words and have to ask the club recruiter, decked out in an ‘America first’ hat and neatly pressed ‘make America great’ uniform like shirt, I ask the recruiter … “this becoming wealthy thing … its sounds an awful lot like Amway.”

• Oh, no, it is nothing like that at all. Our Club will make everything great for everyone and you will have great opportunities to get the wealth you have always deserved, but haven’t got, because the lazy, less than hard working elite will not get it anymore … we will make sure you get your fair share. Hey. Look at this picture of the Club President in his office … check out the gold curtains … the gold rug and the gold fixtures … that is wealth. That is what you can be part of!

Oh.

• And, look, if you join today you get a hat <which you should wear as often as possible so that we can tell who is in the club and who isn’t>.

And, even better, we should have some additional pieces of apparel you can wear soon. In fact … we will have special uniforms & badges for the original club members to showcase their elite status in the club … everyone will want to wear them.

Ok. One last question … your club is “God’s chosen.” I didn’t know God chose … I thought he was all about equal among all men. Does this mean that other clubs don’t believe in God or does God just favor us? And does this mean I have to believe in your version of God and … well … what exactly is your version of God?

• “Oh.

Well.

We are a Christian based club … but of course we accept anyone. But don’t forget … Christianity, above all, outlines all the values which lead to a better version of yourself … and, well, that is what we want all Club members to be able to achieve. Everyone should have values, don’t you think?”

Whew. This is fucking crazy shit going on

To be clear. A shitload of the club leaders and followers are going to try and draw some false comparisons and equivalents to past American heroes.

To be clear. This is significantly different than Thomas Jefferson’s plea for unity in his inaugural address in 1800 — “every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle.”

The Trump club has one principle and one opinion.

There is no room for anything else. More important than color of skin, religion, gender … this may actually be my root concern with ‘the club’.

The main principle?

Believe what I believe … or you are not a true believer.

That kind of seems to be the club. Kind of an “us versus them” attitude … uhm … although us <being a US citizen> is actually also them <being US citizens>.

• “Oh no … no … why wouldn’t you believe in the United States of America if you lived in there? … everyone believes that. And if they don’t? … well … they should.”

Anyway. Oh. One last question. I didn’t hear it anywhere from the Club President or see it in the brochure … do you guys have a constitution?

• Oh, we don’t need one. We just demand a ‘total allegiance to the Club’ … oh … which believes the same things as the country wants … so you should be all for it.”

(ME) Gosh. I am not sure I can join this club … I already have a constitution I live by … and my allegiance is, first & foremost, to that and not some Club and how they think. <period … end of statement>

Look. The one thing Trump was 100% right on is that January 20, 2017 was the dawn of a new era.

“Now comes the hour of action.”

That was the call for the Trump Club. “Join or else” is what should be heard.

Just to be clear.

I am a believer in God <however you want to define it>.

I am a patriot <however you want to define it>.

I am a proud American <however you want to define it>.

But I am not joining the club called “Trump America.”

In fact … I say ‘fuck you and your fucking club.’

As for what I will do? …………….

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“I was not born to be forced. I will breathe after my own fashion.  Let us see who is the strongest.”

Henry David Thoreau

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“Every single one of us is good at something. Some of us just give up on what that is before we even discover it. “

=

William Chapman

—-
“I told her once i wasn’t good at anything.

She told me survival is a talent. You never need to apologize for how you chose to survive.”

=

Clementine von Radics

— 

“To paraphrase someone smarter than me, who still knows nothing, the philosophical task of our age is for each of us to decide what it means to be a successful human being.

I don’t know the answer to that, but I would like to find out.”

=

Ottmer <the futurist>

— 

Well. Let me begin by saying, well, being better is better.

Or better said: better is good.

In addition. Being good at something is good.

Those are two basic Life thoughts. Simple thoughts, but kind of important thoughts. Important because they are pervasive throughout civilization, culture, attitudes and certainly drives behavior.

Now. The most basic aspect of this whole thing of people wanting to be really good at something and, I imagine why people want to be passionate about something, is that they have experience with lack of passion. I say that last thought because <here is a Life truth> the reason why we’re not passionate about stuff we’re not really good at is because we aren’t <cannot be> passionate about stuff we suck at.

Yup. Think about that. Passion is inextricably tied to ‘not sucking’ <or ‘being good at’>.

Here is where it gets a little screwy. Being good at something is a minefield mentally.

Huh? What do you mean <you ask me>??

How many times have you heard some version of the following phrases?

• “Everyone has a special skill!“

• “You just need to practice!“

• “You haven’t tried everything yet!“

• “You better work out what special skill you have and then use it for the rest of your life because if you don’t you’ll live in a dumpster fighting with cats for food!“

That trite advice is fine for people who are good at things, but what if you just suck at everything?

<or at least have sucked at everything you have tried to date>

Well. Here is the good news. It is next to impossible to suck at everything. It is much more likely that “… some of us just give up on what that is before we even discover it.”

As a corollary, in reality, it’s impossible to be good at every single thing you try.

Oh. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you suck. It’s all about perspective and how you define whether you’re good at something. For instance, are you basing how bad you are at something on your own standards or are you comparing yourself to others? If it’s the latter then you need to stop and remind yourself that we are all individuals. You’re not inferior or inept, you’re just different <kind of like snowflakes … okay … maybe not>.

Suffice it to say that insecurities and doubts limit your potential <regardless of whether you suck or are actually good> so if you intend to succeed at something you must first get rid of them.

Ah. But here is the curve ball Life throws at you <or is it a screwball??> — while you are figuring out what you are good at a whole shit load of incompetent assholes around you are trying to convince everyone what they are good at <of which they are actually not good at what they think they are>.

Yup <part 1>.

Incompetent assholes rarely know they are <a> incompetent & <b> assholes.

Yup <part2>.

Incompetent people don’t know they are incompetent <in other words … they don’t think they suck>.

——

When asked, most individuals will describe themselves as better-than-average in areas such as leadership, social skills, written expression, or just about anything where the individual has an interest.

This tendency of the average person to believe he or she is better-than-average is known as the “above-average effect,” and it flies in the face of logic … by definition, descriptive statistics says that it is impossible absurdly improbable for a majority of people to be above average.

It follows, therefore, that a large number of the self-described “above average” individuals are in fact below average in those areas, and they are simply unaware of their incompetence.

——-

It seems that the reason for this phenomenon is obvious:

–      The more incompetent someone is in a particular area, the less qualified that person is to assess anyone’s skill in that space, including their own.

–      When one fails to recognize that he or she has performed poorly, the individual is left assuming that they have performed well.

Anyway. What this means is that the incompetent tend to grossly overestimate their skills and abilities.

—

“He felt he was himself and did not want to be otherwise. He only wanted to be better than he had been before. “

Leo Tolstoy

—

The Department of Psychology at Cornell University made an effort to determine just how profoundly one mistakenly overestimates one’s own skills in relation to one’s actual abilities.

They made the following predictions before the studies:

–       Incompetent individuals, compared with their more competent peers, will dramatically overestimate their ability and performance relative to objective criteria.

–       Incompetent individuals will suffer from deficient metacognitive skills, in that they will be less able than their more competent peers to recognize competence when they see it–be it their own or anyone else’s.

–      Incompetent individuals will be less able than their more competent peers to gain insight into their true level of performance by means of social comparison information. In particular, because of their difficulty recognizing competence in others, incompetent individuals will be unable to use information about the choices and performances of others to form more accurate impressions of their own ability.

Rather than showcase the study and the results let me just say … they were correct in their assumptions.

Look. While I have spent a lot of time talking about incompetence and the incompetent, there is nothing more beautiful than watching competence in action. Especially if they are just good, not great, and have the awareness to build on their good in pursuit of … well … not great … but something better.

—-

“No one is good at everything, but everyone is good at something.”

any after school 1990’s special

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“Sucking is the first step to being sorta good at something” 

Thorin Klosowski

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And maybe that is why competence <or being good> is so beautiful to watch … it is the pursuit.

The pursuit? Being good at something mostly means you weren’t as good, or even sucked, at some point. This means the true competent people keep pushing.

Being good at something means no dumb questions, no dumb answers and no low <or stagnant> standards. And that is where I believe the whole concept of ‘being good at something’ should be grounded.

It’s not passion.

And, frankly, it may not even be something that comes easily to you.

It is more about holding yourself to some higher standard.

It is about the desire to keep pushing.

It is about being responsible for not quitting.

—-

“Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody else expects of you, never excuse yourself.”

Henry Ward Beecher

—–

In the end. Set aside ‘higher standards’ or ‘accepting you are good at something’ … in the end I respect … well … caring.

Giving a shit.

Or maybe call it … ‘nerdy as fuck about something.’

—-

“I respect people who get nerdy as fuck about something they love.”

Leah Raeder

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Caring enough about what you do is a good thing … and it makes you good at something.

It’s not passion.

It’s maybe not any real ability.

It’s just about the fact that you care.

By the way. Getting back to the first quote I used.

This also suggests, on those tough days and tough stretches in Life, simple survival is a talent because it means you care about Life.

Uhm. And that is a good thing to be good at.

Care about Life and never, never, apologize for how you choose to survive.

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“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.”

–

Michelangelo

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“ … they don’t thrive on non stop goals & objectives and “milestones.”

They thrive on dreams, and possibilities and “what ifs” and “why nots.”

–

Me from my “The Greatest Danger” post

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I recently reread “Fixed versus Growth: The Two Basic Mindsets that Shape Our Lives” on brainpickings and one Carol Dweck quote stood out to me:

“Do people with this mindset believe that anyone can be anything, that anyone with proper motivation or education can become Einstein or Beethoven? No, but they believe that a person’s true potential is unknown (and unknowable)”

This made me write today about personal limitations. We all have them. We all hate ‘em. We all ignore them.

I tend to believe most of suck at managing our lives against our limitations.

Heck. I tend to believe we suck at even defining them.

Now. To give everyone a break; it is hard.

I believe it is really really hard <mainly> because mentally it is extremely difficult to always have a finely tuned instrument of realism, pessimism and optimism. A mental instrument perfectly pitched for your life where you doubt just enough to be humble and realistic, optimistic enough to aim high and stretch your limitations and realistic enough to know when enough is enough <you have gone as far as you can go and do what you can do>.

Once again, simply recognizing your limitations is a challenge (really difficult) but it is compounded by respecting those limitations and ultimately finally submitting to them <realistically>.

So. While having personal limitations is human, aligning yourself mentally, emotionally and realistically takes an almost inhuman amount of effort. We struggle to admit not being perfect, okay, maybe not perfect, but that some things are just not possible or that we may not actually be good at something or to admit that there is a gap between our best and what the best is.

A truth? It can be extremely healthy, freeing, to recognize and accept limitations because once you have done that you can figure out how to move forward from there.

Ah. Moving forward. That is another tricky part in this limitations acknowledgement equation.

Once you recognize limitations, does doubt creep in?

Do you stop trying?

Do you accept your best as not being good enough or just good enough?

Or.

Is this as good as <I> it gets?

Limitations weave a wicked web in the head. It is constant tug of war in our heads with tendencies of  overbearing pride and a lack of self-confidence. Both are very dangerous.

Pride makes you overestimate your abilities. you think you’re capable of a lot more than you can really handle.

Lack of confidence makes you underestimate your potential. you don’t think you can accomplish things you can actually do <if you did them>. you never truly find out what you are capable of.

Anyway. Letting one of these tendencies dominate you makes it impossible to form an accurate self-image and an accurate assessment of what your real opportunities <and possibilities> are, let alone even know what your real possibilities are. While you seek to keep a mindset of realism, optimism and pessimism in tune, you also have to seek to accept the gap between your abilities and the best. Because, remember, the best is the pinnacle and at best there are few <if not one> who can truly be the best of the best. This is not meant to suggest you shouldn’t be striving to close the gap, but by recognizing limitations you see the gap closing and at the same time kind of recognize it will never be completely closed — and are okay with that. Despite that you study, learn, practice and keep trying to develop – stretching and challenging your limitations.

We certainly cannot all be Michelangelo, but that doesn’t mean we can’t aim as high as we can. Uhm. With realism.

Now. About that idea of ‘realism.’ Now. I am not a big fan of Malcolm Gladwell’s books and I got even grumpier when I read this in Outliers: the Story of Success about how we can all become ‘experts’ regardless of our limitations or skill set:

 “In fact, researchers have settled on what they believe is the magic number for true expertise: ten thousand hours“

“… to become an expert in a field of study, it merely takes 10,000 hour of focus and practice on the topic at hand“.

“Outside of the top 1% and the bottom 1%, anyone can become a professional musician if they practice enough”. 

==

Ok.

This is bullshit.

This is nuts.

Absolutely crazy.

I love to work and I am all for working hard and developing your best to be the best it can be but, c’mon, a formula for being an expert? And, worse, suggesting that if you simply work hard and invest time you will be an expert?

That is frickin’ nuts.

Look. I worked 10,000 hours in a 4 year span <yeah … that’s what averaging 50 hours a week 50 weeks a year will get ya> in my late 20’s and I loved almost every minute and I absolutely became better than I was and maybe better than some others. But an expert? Not even close.

Maybe I am the village idiot and I need 20,000 hours to become an ‘expert’ but suffice it to say while at the end of that stretch I was being paid way too much money and I had a high falutin’ title before I was even 30 … and I was not even close to being an expert.

<update: The author of the original 10,00o research – a guy named Ericsson – has already gone on record that Gladwell sorely missed the point of his research and oversimplified. In addition, a study found in ‘The Sports Gene’ actually suggests that 10,000 hours will not matter if you are not genetically blessed to begin with>

Anyway. This insane 10,000 thought Malcolm so flippantly throws out there also disregards a couple of things:

–          Passion and true talent are not always matched.

Experts have some passion. A love of what they do combined with a real talent for that particular talent or skill.

My definition of an expert may not match Malcolm’s. Simply putting in the hours may make me better than I was <it will> and maybe make me better than most <it will>, but that will not necessarily make me an expert. Experts have talent intermingled with some emotional investment to make them better than the better. Emotional investment without talent is like falling in love with someone who doesn’t really love you. You may get married <mistakenly> but something will always be missing.

Final truth?

Not all of us can be experts. Sorry. That is what understanding limitations is all about. It is a difficult lesson … it is a lesson that no one seems to want to say out loud … but it is a Life truth.

–          Expertise learned is not the same as being a learned expert.

10,000 hours may teach someone the mechanics very very well. How to think, what to think and how to ‘do’ efficiently and effectively. They have become learned of the expertise. The problem? They can’t think it, feel it or abstractly maneuver within it. This is how you recognize these people: they act robotically. Each stimulus has an exact calculated response. A learned expert adapts.

Final truth?

Limitations can keep you from being an expert. Some limitations can be stretched … bent … sometimes even broken to be recreated at a different spot, but a limitation is a limitation.

Anyway.

Even if you are in the top 1%, practice harder than anyone alive, and have the right attitude it can still go wrong:

“I continuously go further and further learning about my own limitations, my body limitation, psychological limitations. It’s a way of life for me.”

Ayrton Senna

Senna was one of the greatest Formula One drivers of all time. It seemed like every year, even while being the best, he got better.

He died in a Formula One race car crash.

It’s dangerous to be propelled by pride, but also by unrealistic expectations of your own limitations. In other words, stretching the limits and your limitations too far can be dangerous.

Expecting too much of yourself and those forces can drive you to a tragic end. If you are not careful ,you can construct and fairly elaborate construct of personal expectations far beyond your limitations. Simply put – you don’t build in the fact you are human.

Everybody has a wall they can hit. That is called ‘a limitation.’

Which leads me to knowing “when to hold ’em and when to fold ’em.” This is part of understanding your limitations.

It suggests a couple of key things with regard to limitations: getting in the game in combination with knowing when to get out of the game.

Look. I may have too high expectations of people. I don’t think I do. I just sometimes think many people have very low expectations of themselves.

So there are some things you can’t do right now. Who cares? Get in the game.

What you’re doing is more than you have done in the past. As your confidence grows more and more possibilities open to you and things you can do that you never imagined before. In other words, your limitations have been redefined.

Cope with your limitations.

In recognizing your inherent limitations you begin to do everything you can and yet know you can’t do everything. You do everything you can with an understanding that “everything you can” cannot be everything.

And when you get close to ‘the wall’? Get out of the game. Fold ‘em.

I recognize it’s not easy.

Sometimes … just when you think you know yourself … you disappoint yourself.

And sometimes … just when you think you know yourself … you surprise yourself.

And while I slammed Gladwell a little earlier I will use a smart <obvious but oft overlooked> insightful quote to close this out:

—-

“We prematurely write off people as failures. We are too much in awe of those who succeed and far too dismissive of those who fail.”

Malcolm Gladwell

—–

Limitations can be drawn by yourself <and they should be> as well as by others <which most often they shouldn’t be>.

You know what you are capable of.

You know what you are not capable of.

You don’t really need someone else writing you off on something … until you have decided you should be.

In addition, we are too often in awe of those who succeed and certainly invest far far too much energy trying to emulate them.

I do believe the whole limitations thing is one of Life’s most difficult ongoing challenges.

The best I often think we can do is to continuously tinker with our mindset continuously tuning realism, optimism and pessimism — all important to keep things in balance and a finely tuned Life.

Constantly nudging up against the “why nots” and “what ifs” because possibilities keep us going. We all want something better or just simply to be better.

We are not all Michelangelo.

But we can all aim as high as we can … recognizing that our best … may not be Michelangelo best … but it is the best we can be.

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“Courage and grace is a formidable mixture. The only place to see it is the bullring.”

—-

Marlene Dietrich

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Lots of discussion about Purpose in business and having a meaningful job which reminded me of a great little article, Cape Crusader, in an old New Yorker about Justo Algaba (great website) who is “one of the world’s most respected matador tailors.” This article made me think of a couple of things.

First is “that perfect job for you.” Perfection is a myth but, on occasion, someone actually does find their dream job. Algaba? This hombre loves his job and ultimately calls it “his destiny” (oh. Don’t we all wish we could say that). Being able to do your passion for work, well, I am not sure there is anything better <careerwise>.

Second. The article reminded me of the time my parents took me to a bullfight in Spain years ago.

But, first, the perfect job.

Justo Algaba’s Madrid business just produces matador outfits (called trajes de luces (“suits of light”), because of their shimmery, multicolored adornments). That’s it. He makes more than a hundred and fifty matador suits each year for matadors around the world.

——

“Every suit I make is like having a child.”

Justo Algaba

———–

Just so you know, a good matador will order between six and ten suits a year. Anyway. As a youngster he had a different dream – to be a pilot. But when Algaba was 18 he saw a help wanted ad for a tailor’s shop, wandered in and met the famous bullfighter El Cordobés being fitted for a suit. While I would have been speechless meeting El Cordobes, Algaba remembered four years earlier he’d made a promise to himself that he’d either be a bullfighter or make clothes for them. Thus began the life of a Matador tailor – one of five matador tailors IN THE WORLD (all the tailors know each other and they all live in Madrid).

Interestingly, matador suit appear to be a personal thing & customized based on a combination of style, superstition and showmanship. I was surprised to find out many bullfighters let Algaba take creative license. For instance, for Paco Ojeda, a Mexican bullfighter whom Algaba considered a star he created a suit with stars and poinsettia flowers. Other matadors are picky & superstitious – especially about color.

Algaba:

“There was one bullfighter” (Jesulín de Ubrique, of Spain) “who was very lucky with the ladies. And there was another bullfighter” (Manolo Mejia, of Mexico) “who’d seen that de Ubrique had so much luck he was wondering if wearing the same kind of yellow suit would work for him as well.” So the Mexican tried a yellow suit—“and it worked.”

Okay. So the suit is sometimes less about in the bullring and more about outside the ring. But hey. I don’t begrudge these guys some fun outside the ring before taking on some half ton pissed off snorting hunk of beef with really big horns.

So this is a great story about a guy who found his dream job in a pretty cool ‘industry.’ But, I imagine, the real thought here is that he found ‘the coolness’ <or passion> in an unexpected place in an unexpected way. It is kind of a behind the scenes glamor job. It is not glamorous, in fact, I imagine it is quite tedious day to day . Yet this person has found a happy place in which to find satisfaction in his work.

The lesson? Great jobs exist outside the spotlight. In fact, many of the greatest jobs ENABLE the spotlight.

Secondly. The bullfight.

My memory of my bullfight day is fuzzy but distinct in some ways. If you want me to recall the particulars I cannot (beyond the fact I know I was mortified that my mother cheered for the bulls). Anyway. Think of a bullfight like a boxing match – a number of undercard matches and then the main match. I do remember distinct bits & pieces. The bullfight is a spectacle. At its worst it was a bloody mess. At its best it was stunningly scary and majestic. The pageantry remains in my mind even today. The horses, the horsemen (the picadors), the matadors sweeping in, the smallish stadium with uncomfortable seats packed to the top with shouting people and these massive bulls. It is marred by death but underlined with a heroic grace – from the matadors as well as the bulls (even the greatest bulls of all time have names). I don’t regret having had the experience. For a little boy it teetered between horrifying and delightfully, and manly, brutal.

With that said here are five bullfighters whose names you should know (I have missed some but figured if I stuck with Andalucía and southern Spain I would be able to share some of the best “matadors” of all time):

1. Antonio Ordóñez 1932-1998

Antonio Ordoñez was one of Spain’s most famous bullfighters. Born in Ronda in 1932, he made his first public appearance as a bullfighter in 1948 and in 1951, aged 19, he appeared in the bullring in Madrid. In the amazing career which followed, Ordoñez came face to face with over 1000 bulls.

His father was “El Niño de la Palmas”, also a well-known bullfighter. He fought in Pamplona in the 1920s where he met Ernest Hemingway, who had developed a great interest in bullfighting. Antonio knew Hemingway as a boy and called him ‘Father Ernest’.

Antonio virtually retired in 1968 and turned to bull breeding on his estate near Ronda.

Following the family tradition, his grandson Francisco Rivera Ordóñez also became a bullfighter.

2. Francisco Rivera Ordóñez 1974 to present

Legend has it that Francisco Rivera Ordoñez was born to fight bulls. His father was the famous bullfighter Paquirri who died bullfighting in Pozoblanco, Córdoba in 1984 when he was caught by the horns of a bull named “Avispado” (from the Spanish for wasp, “avispa”). Antonio Ordoñez, his grandfather, was one of Spain’s most famous bullfighters. At the age of 17 he was out in the bullring for his inaugural fight at the Ronda Bullring, which his grandfather was running. That was the beginning of what has so far been a spectacular career. The bullfighter’s mother Carmina Ordoñez, was known as the Queen of Exclusives by the press in Spain. As daughter of a bullfighter, she surely understood better than anyone else the risks her son was taking by embarking on this career.

3. Manolete 1917-1947

Manolete was born in 1917 in Cordoba and died in the bullring at Linares in Jaen in 1947. What transpired during the years in between was the making of a myth and legend so great, the world of bullfighting in Spain will forever remember the name of Manolete.

This distinguished bullfighter was named after his father, who was also known as Manolete and was also a bullfighter. With natural grace and talent he rose to legendary status with a style of bullfighting that would serve as a model for generations to come. He was caught by the horns of a Miura bull on the 28th of August as he pe
rformed in the Linares bullring.

4. Pedro Romero Martínez 1754-1839

Martínez was a legendary bullfighter from the Romero family in Ronda, Spain. His grandfather Francisco is credited with advancing the art of using the muletilla; his father and two brothers were also toreros. As a child he participated in two bullfights in Algeciras then fought in Seville in 1772 and in Madrid in 1775. In 1776 he killed 285 bulls, fully establishing his reputation. He allegedly slew over 6000 bulls before retiring in 1799, all without a scar on his body. He was equally famous for being the first matador to view his job as an art form rather than just a display of courage. After retiring, Romero was appointed the head of a bullfighting school in Seville. At the age of eighty, a crowd looked on as he allegedly killed numerous bulls in a bullring in Madrid, probably the last bullfight he ever participated in. (All these guys were nuts)

Ernest Hemingway’s novel The Sun Also Rises often alludes to the legend of Pedro Romero. He is referred to as the “perfect” male, or a representation thereof. Romero was immortalized in Goya’s famous portrait.

Lastly. Probably the most famous bullfighter of all time. El Cordobes.

5. Manuel Benítez Pérez

Born in 1936 in Palma del Río near Córdoba and is known as El Cordobés (“The Cordobese” – “The Cordovan”).

This famous matador of the 1960s brought to the bullring an unorthodox acrobatic and theatrical style. (In other words he was a nut. Ok. a brave nut.)

His signature move was one that I can only envision was spectacular live. Breathtaking and scary and beautiful all at the same time. This original and dangerous technique which El Cordobés frequently demonstrated was first shown to the world at Anjucar. In a massive departure from the traditional formality of bullfighting he would wave his Banderillero (called a Columpio formally) away, then broke his banderillas down to pencil length, stand with his back to the bull as it charged, then moved his right leg out moments before the bull was upon him causing the bull to swerve which allowed him a moment to slam in the bandrillas from just behind the left horn. (Ok. See? That is nuts. A bull typically weighed over a half a ton and was typically slightly pissed at having been stabbed with a variety of sharp objects by this time.)

This maneuver was subsequently repeated in bullfights across Spain sometimes with even more dangerous variations such as standing with his back to the barerra and driving in the banderillas after the horns passed either side of him.

El Cordobes was born in poverty brought up in an orphanage in a village near Córdoba. He was a construction worker and petty criminal who dreamed of being a bullfighter (and achieved that dream by jumping into the ring and showing he could fight a bull). This was extremely rare to become a toreador with that background.

A highly memorable point in his career was his first appearance at Las Ventas, the bullring of Madrid, on May 20, 1964. An event watched on television by many Spaniards which ended tragically with the near-fatal goring of El Cordobés on the horns of the bull “Impulsivo”. Oh. You want to understand what a matador is like? Well, just 22 later El Cordobés fought again <again, this guy ,,, well … these guys … was nuts.>

There you go.

Now you know about a matador’s tailor and some of the most famous matadors of all time.

=======================

“But I will find new habits, new thoughts, new rules. I will become something else.”

—–

Divergent

========================

Well. I encountered a neat thing called the “20 Things” which is a little assignment this small consulting company sometimes uses with people they are considering adding to staff:  “What are the 20 things that have defined you – experiences, books, movies, people, travel, challenges, etc.”  When a friend told me about it I immediately began scribbling down ‘things.’ It was surprising how fast the important ones are noted and how easy it is to “fill in” to get to 20.

That said … and me being quite comfortable not following rules … I ended up with 15. They show up in no real order except number 1 and number 15.

I purposefully bookended the list with the two most impactful in terms of immediate and ongoing impact. 2 thru 14 can be juggled any way you want.

–          my grandfather

The greatest man I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. A simple kind man who honored integrity, kindness and truth above all. He taught me more about me, life and how to live Life <without overtly teaching> than anyone I have ever known. He remains my North Star for my life. I can only hope to be half the man he ever was … but at least he gave me something to aim for.

–          the pulled foul ball

Sports always came quite easily to me. And then I pulled a foul ball off a Tom Seaver fastball <before I struck out swinging on a slider which disappeared just before I was sure I had the fat part of my bat on it … hey, c’mon, the guy did win 3 Cy Youngs>. Regardless. I realized this was as good as it was going to get with me & sports. It didn’t mean I stopped sports, it just meant that I realized I needed to get going on the rest of my life.

–          The Hobbit

The first “real” book I remember. I devoured Hardy Boys & Nancy Drew until there were no more, but when I heard The Hobbit read to me during reading period in elementary school I entered a world of words & imagery & imagination — and thinking of ‘what if.’  It hooked me on books and reading and thinking. The first time I read The Hobbit myself I was still too young to see anything but goblins & elves. I have read it maybe 10 times <probably more> and I still see new things every time I read it.

–          Diplomacy <by Henry Kissinger>

I wish I had found this book earlier in my life. On the other hand, I may not have understood it earlier. Kissinger writes about diplomacy, but he is really discussing problem solving. He gave me one thing: “studying history is not analogous but contextual.” More people should heed this lesson. I certainly have learned this lesson.

–          Supertramp <my first concert, and more specifically, their encore song “crime of the century”>

I grew up in a house with music, but it all changed at my first concert and especially the encore. The encore was maybe 10 plus minutes of music and film with a growing image of hands on prison bars in space and I walked out of there in a thoughtful excited daze. I had words & notes & imagery imprinted in my brain from that point on as a powerful tool to inspire me to think in different & creative ways. Music has never left my life <and I have forgiven Supertramp for doing Breakfast in America>. Music and imagery is at the core of how I think and like to express myself <when it is possible and relevant to do so>.

–          Spike Lee

I was in my early 30’s in the audience when I heard Spike Lee say these words about his films: “I recognize everything I do impacts how people think … and even what they do … I have a responsibility every time I create anything.” It changed how I viewed what I did and actually how I did it moving forward. Basically I began assuming responsibility for everything I created. I have never stopped assuming that responsibility.

–          unstuck

I was a young manager with far to much responsibility doing the best I could and after one meeting my boss looked at me and said “nice job, they’ve been stuck on that for years, but you got them past it.” It was when I realized it appeared like my skill, or ability, was to “unstuck” people, businesses & situations. The truth is from that point on I actively began seeking things to ‘unstuck’. Maybe an odd version of ‘finding my passion’ or ‘doing what I love to do’, but I preferred thinking of it as making things unstuck.

–          St. Chappelle

I grew up in a home where we were expected to understand religious choices, but was, in general, ambivalent to religion. I was always indifferently interested in religion. I imagine I just took a pragmatic view on life in which God didn’t really enter into the equation. And then I visited St. Chappelle in Paris <across the street from Notre Dame>. As I entered the petit chapel and the sunlight filtered through the floor to ceiling stained glass it is the closest I have ever felt to not only believing in God, but actually believing I was in the presence of God. I am still not religious, but I respect religion and I imagine, in some small way, I better understand how God can positively affect someone’s life.

–          Madman Across the Water

The first time I heard Elton John’s Madman Across the Water album I think I immediately stole the lyrics from the album sleeve. The words made me think. The words made me create images in my head. The words inspired me to try and create words of my own that made others think & create images. That album made me a “words guy.” Plus. Every song on that album was just darn good.

–          suicide

I believe anyone who has been impacted by someone close to them committing suicide is never the same again. She was beautiful, kind and a friend. And she left with an entire life ahead of her. I imagine I felt like I did not do my part to show her what great things lay ahead of her. I vowed to never make that mistake again.

–          “I do not really care”

Graduate school. Case study discussion

“Mr. McTague … what would you do?” Me? “Well … I do not really care.”

Flippant careless response. It ended up on the front board for the remainder of the semester. And I should have been hung out to dry. I was technically correct that the point <of which I seemed to have grasped fairly early in business life> is that there are several ‘right’ or even ‘best’ solutions to a challenge, but I should have realized that words and how you articulate an idea & thought are almost as important as the idea itself. I vowed to never make that mistake ever again. A good thought can die if it is not articulated well.

–          “do not go gentle into that good night”

I have a love/hate relationship with poetry. I am fascinated with how words can be put together in ways that make you feel something inside, but all the rules of ‘effective and proper’ poetry drove me nuts. It was so constricting for something that should be so free. And then I came across Dylan Thomas’ “do not go gentle.” Whew. I found my anthem. Some call it ‘bull in a china shop living’ I simply point to ‘do not go gentle into the good night.’ It isn’t about dying it is about living. Rage, rage against the dying of the light. It was a great lesson.

–          Polly

My first boss. A woman in a man’s industry <advertising> who was in a senior position and did it her way, but with the flexibility to permit the next generation to flourish. She didn’t know shit about these new fangled computers that all the young people were talking about <this was in the 80’s>, but she put one on every one of our desks. She could do the same thing by hand faster than we could do it on the computer, but she kept sending us back to our computers. She mentored the youngest, guided the more experienced and managed everyone. She permitted individuality and built a team. Oh. And she set me up with her daughter. Anyway. She taught me how to be a boss and I was straight out of school. Most importantly, she taught me women were essential to progress & productivity in business. Simplistically, I owe everything in my career to a woman.

–          Kiev war museum <although I could have put the Holocaust Museum here>

Perspective. Nothing provides perspective in life than viewing the kind of death inflicted by one human on another human. And not just ordinary death but death in the extreme. I cried in both of these places. I could pound out some horrible numbers on my keyboard that would make your head hurt to express this learning tangibly … but why?

Simply. I cried. Humans can be very cruel if they are not careful.

–          To Kill a Mockingbird

My bookshelves are strewn with books I value and love. It is tempting to list the best of the best because they all made a positive impact and have been reread time and time again. But when one book is simply ‘the one’ why invest energy overthinking. To Kill a Mockingbird is my ‘one.’ I fell in love with Scout – her words and thoughts and questions. I still ask the same questions looking at today’s world and think of Scout’s thoughts daily. Harper Lee showed us that sometimes a child can see clearer than the most brilliant adults in the world. Listening to the young reminds us of things we have forgotten and they can actually teach us many things through the simplicity of youth. Regardless. Everyone should read this book.

That’s it. I had a bunch of other ‘things’ fighting for the 16 thru 20 slots but, frankly, they were just at a different level than 1 thru 15. I believe lists like this should be about quality and not quantity.

This is a worthwhile exercise for everyone. Everyone’s list will look different and some people may actually have 20 worthwhile events/learning moments instead of just 15, but who cares. It isn’t a competition. It is simply reflecting upon who you are as a person. This exercise reminded me we are all architects of our own Life. While many things are out of our control, many things are ours to do … or not do.

Is my list done? Gosh. I hope not. “This I am today … that I will be tomorrow.“

================

“Biology gives you a brain. Life turns it into a mind.”

—

Jeffrey Eugenides

===========

Ok.

So I thought I had left the whole right brain left brain discussion behind.

And it reared its ugly head again one more time just the other day. And <distressingly> it was in a business environment, with senior people, discussing people’s strengths & weaknesses.

Look.

This whole right brain, left brain thing about creativity versus ‘logical’ thinking has to stop.

Stop … now <please>.

The truth?

We use our whole brain for thinking. Not halves. And right brain left brain mumbo jumbo is just that … a bunch of mumbo jumbo crap.

Yup.

The whole thing is bullshit.

Trust me <you don’t really have to because I will share reasons why you should>. And if you don’t believe me … well … if you ever want to drive a psychologist/psychiatrist/neurologist/any ‘ist’ crazy … bring it up.

With that … a reminder on what his whole thing is. In the right-left mythology … the left brain is logical, ordered, and analytic, and it supports reading, speech, math, and reasoning. In the same myth … the right brain is more oriented towards feelings and emotions, spatial perception, and the arts, and is said to be more creative.

Well.

Interesting myth. And it is just a myth. It is wrong (wrong & wrong … and maybe even wrong again).

And we have actually known for at least 30 years that this characterization is incorrect.

In fact the guy who probably put us all in this mess originally <Mike Gazzaniga who created the study in the 60’s that some pop psychologist used to write some fantasy-like left/right brain business books that became best sellers> who was a pioneer of modern study of brain hemispheric differences immediately tried to put a stop to the craziness as soon as it began with a book chapter titled “Left brain, right brain: A debunking.”

And he did that 25 years ago.

<note: he wrote it because the original crap was begun after he did a brain hemisphere study in the 60’s>

And, yet, there is still plenty of bunk to go around.

Its crazy.

I myself have gnashed my teeth <and sometimes growled> against the “left brain / right brain” myth for years <probably not 25 but a bunch>. It usually is personal <and I believe this is so for most people>. People are always trying to tell me how “right-brained” I am <or left … I get confused>.

Which I always find amusing since whatever I am doing invariably needs whatever the other side of the brain was supposed to be doing.

Plus. I would like to think I am using my whole frickin’ brain.

But.

It mostly aggravates me ,and kind of disturbs me> because it is deliberately misleading.

It has been used to support endless management dialogue telling us that we should liberate ourselves from too much left-brain ‘logical’ thinking and enjoy the fruits of our liberated, right-brained creativity <or vice versa depending on your management belief system>.

Look.

People may be inherently more visual, aural, spatial, sequential, intuitive, rational <or irrational> talented or non-talented … but it ain’t because of anything to do with left versus right brain.

Ok.

If you don’t trust me I pulled this from a medical journal.

A more technical explanation of how the whole thing went haywire:

==

You’ve probably heard this left/ right brain dichotomy before. It goes something like this: the left hemisphere of the brain is logical, deductive, mathematical, etc., while the right hemisphere is artistic, visual and imaginative. The idea stems at least partly from the classic studies of split brain patients performed by Sperry and Gazzaniga in the 1960s.

There are some functional asymmetries in the brain, and it is true that certain regions of both hemispheres are specialized for particular functions. Speech illustrates this, but also shows that nothing is ever so simple when it comes to the brain: in most right-handed people, speech is processed in both hemispheres, but predominantly in the left. In some left-handers, speech is processed either predominantly in the right hemisphere or on both sides.

So the notion that someone is “left-brained” or “right-brained” is absolute nonsense. All complex behaviours and cognitive functions require the integrated actions of multiple brain regions in both hemispheres of the brain. All types of information are probably processed in both the left and right hemispheres (perhaps in different ways, so that the processing carried out on one side of the brain complements, rather than substitutes, that being carried out on the other).

An article was published this week in the venerable (and reliable) psychology journal Psychological Bulletin, which synthesized 67 brain imaging studies of creativity. Among other things, it showed that creativity is not especially a right-brain function. In fact, two of three broad classes of creative thought that have been studied seem not to depend on a single set of brain structures.

What we call “creativity” is so diverse that it can’t be localized in the brain very well.

One might think that this study would put to rest at least part of the left brain/right brain mythology, namely, that the right hemisphere of the brain is more responsible for creative thought than the left.

One would think so, but I wouldn’t count on it.

==

My conclusion?

I put the whole right/left brain thing in the same category as reading a horoscope or reading my own tarot cards. If you give someone a vague positive description in which they can see themselves they will tend to agree with you. And that is dangerous on a number of levels <if people actually believe it>.

Ok.

Here is the main reason I bring this up <beyond the fact it drives me crazy and it is still being seriously discussed in the business world>. It has a detrimental effect on education and how we manage our youth. It is as bad as social profiling when it comes to kids.

Left brain kid.

Right brain kid.

You carry that label and not only does the child begin to see themselves in that label <it is kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy> the adults tag the child with the label. And start treating them that way. And expecting things based on the labeling.

All of a sudden the child is placed on the left, or right, brain treadmill <oops … I meant to say moving sidewalk>.

And then they are left there.

Uh oh.

One day the child wants to jump off the treadmill to hop on the other one for a while … <adults> “whoa … get back on your treadmill … you know that other one is only for the right brainers … and you will be much more successful on the left brain treadmill <sidewalk>.”

That, my friends, reads scary even if it seems just a theory.

And we all know that at some place, at some time, with some children … this is actually happening.

We need to squash this left/right brain myth forever. Now <please … again>.

We use all of our brain.

Brains are ambidextrous.

And even if you, personally, do not want to believe this, well, please … at least teach kids that is is so.

====================================

“Rabbit’s clever,” said Pooh thoughtfully.
“Yes,” said Piglet, “Rabbit’s clever.”
“And he has Brain.”
“Yes,” said Piglet, “Rabbit has Brain.”
There was a long silence.
“I suppose,” said Pooh, “that that’s why he never understands anything.”

—

Winnie the Pooh

==============

====

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.

Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.

Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.

Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts.

Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”

—

Calvin Coolidge

===

“The ability to convert ideas to things is the secret of outward success.”

–

Henry Ward Beecher

===

Some people are born with a silver spoon <with money & status in Life>.

Some people are born with some extraordinary talent <albeit all of us born with some talent for something>.

Well.

Let’s be clear.

Those “some people” are certainly guaranteed some aspect of ‘easy’ or ‘easier’ in their lives.

However.

Those ‘some people’ have no Life guarantees … they are not guaranteed greatness nor are they guaranteed to slide down into derelict status.

The only real guarantees in Life are not external driven but internal driven … the engine that makes Life go is … uhm … you.

And speaking of the ‘you engine’ … while persistency is a nice thought I would suggest participation is the key.

<1>    If you participate you have a chance of elevating whatever you have to offer.

<2>     If you persistently participate I guarantee, yes, guarantee, … you will elevate above the majority.

Now.

You not only have to participate externally <involve yourself in the game of Life> but you also have to actively participate, with some persistence, within yourself.  You have to start the engine and engage the gears and keep it well oiled and … well … you get the metaphor.  Suffice it to say that the engine, whatever ability & physical/mental/intellectual resources you have available to you do not run on their own.

You have to be actively nurturing.

You have to be persistently honing your talents.

At the basis for my belief in what I say is that ‘good’ deteriorates without nurturing … and, maybe worse, never even has a chance to blossom without participation.

At the basis for my belief is that talent is not eternal. It naturally diminishes.

Actively participate with whatever you got and you can improve upon talent with determination and persistence and you can elevate it to some extraordinary place so that when at some point you want to relax it starts slipping downwards to a place where others reside. But, oh shit … let it lie dormant and it diminishes. No participation and everything, even your talent, simply atrophies.

Okay.

Babbling aside let me share the simple formulas for participation, persistence, talent and derelicts.

–       If you have no talent <or don’t identify the talent you do have>, and are not persistent … you are not a derelict … you are most likely living in your parents basement writing a blog about conspiracies and wearing a tin foil hat.

–      If you have a passion, and persistently pursue that passion, and … well … you have no particular talent for what you are doggedly pursuing … you are a frustrated unhappy person.

<note … lets say you are persistent enough to do the 10,000 hour Gladwell ‘expert’ path … despite Gladwell’s bullshit theory  – https://brucemctague.com/limitations     –  you will most likely attain at least competency status … and will still be frustrated and unhappy because with all that persistency you don’t seek being ‘competent‘>.

–      If you have talent and are not persistent … well … you are a derelict <good education or not>.

Worse. You are one of the silly people who have wasted their talent.

–      If you have talent and persistently nurture and use that talent you will be successful.

<note … not all talent is created equal … you can have ‘good’ talent and someone can have ‘great’ talent and while it sucks … all things equal … if both are persistent and determined … great will always be better than good>.

–      If you have talent and passion and are persistent … you actually have a chance of being the best of the best … laughing at the derelicts who may have had the same talent <and a shitload of education> but no passion and nor persistent determination. You also have a shot, not guaranteed but a shot, to actually be better than someone who is talented and simply is persistently dogged about being good at their art/skill … but it is not driven by a passion to be the best.

Look.

Formulas aside … we all have some capability and if we are persistent enough when focused on that capability we will most likely do relatively well in life. Society throws us a bullshit curve ball suggesting that Life is some competition in which your talent & persistency should be measured against others.

What bullshit.

The competition resides within ourselves … not to be measured against anyone else.

And, frankly, while we as individuals are unique and original … most likely most of us have some capability or talent that falls into the “a shitload of people can do something pretty similar.”

Who cares if someone else can do it? You should just care that you can do it. And go do it <rather than sitting around wondering how you can be better than someone else or have some unique skill>.

===

“And while I’d like to lay claim to some extraordinary act of originality, truth is I’m only taking advantage of capabilities inherent in everyone.”

–

Mark Z Danielewski

===

Just remember.

The first, and last, step to avoid being a derelict is to realize that we each have a role that requires us to persistently attend to Life and our talent, we have to participate internally & externally and, lastly, assume responsibility for shaping our own future. Everyone has some talent the difference usually resides in who actually uses it & who does not.

==================

“Sureness will always elude you.

The detective will always circle around what he wants, never seeing it whole. We do not go on despite this. We go on because of it.”

—–

Claire DeWitt

==================

<note: this thought piece skews toward learning & teaching our youth but is relevant to all ages & how we learn>

So. Everyone who knows me knows that overcoming ignorance is my thing <I always hesitate to use the ‘soapbox’ word so it’s ‘thing’ here>. In fact … I was tempted to call this post “enlightened Ignorance” <because I love contradictions>.

That said, I found a guy <Jim McGee on Future Tense blog> who has actually not only thought about learning & overcoming ignorance as much as I have but has also created some interesting diagrams which better articulate the dynamic between “learning and ignorance” then I ever could <plus … the diagrams look like something I would have scribbled on a piece of paper>.

What Jim did was to articulate this idea of “boundaries of ignorance” and “circles of knowledge” in a really interesting way. The foundational idea is that by expanding the circle of knowledge you are simultaneously expanding the boundaries of ignorance. In other words, the more things you learn, the more things you become aware you don’t know.

Now that is an awesome incredibly simple concept.

The thinking behind this concept? In the beginning of your knowledge gathering life <probably think mainly children> ignorance always outpaces knowledge and learning <side note:this is just one of the places where I believe people like you and I can make a difference – think about in viewing this first diagram and young people>.

Let me be clear. By ‘people like you and I’ I mean older people with more experience and a better understanding of how expansive true knowledge can be. Why do I say this? Because if you think about this circle diagram concept it means that gaining knowledge can be frustrating.

Frustrating? Frustrating in that every time you learn something ignorance still lies outside your existing knowledge base. This translates into a state of being perpetually dissatisfied <or the glass is never completely full with knowledge> which obviously can be either encouraging or discouraging with a person’s attitude to continue learning. This diagram also makes you think about the role of schools <and do they help or hinder or minimize or maximize>.

Schools fulfill their role in this process by focusing attention on the inside of the circle and keeping youth carefully inside the boundaries. What I mean by that is the credentialing system of education looks backward at what you are supposed to have learned in its testing and measurement of success. I imagine the good news is that a good school environment helps keep you from falling off the edge into material you are unable to understand or appreciate <and in the process hopefully limiting a type of discouragement>.

In addition.

A huge purpose of schools is to introduce students <of any age> to appropriate vocabulary in a logical order … so you can progressively move on to additional learning <this is the same in business>. For example, it’s difficult to skip to more complex physics until you have basic physics understanding. Or. It is difficult to read Tolkein if you haven’t mastered Dr. Suess.

Yet. The danger, or maybe better said, the potential limitations of formal schooling <even when well done> is too much focus on what you already know. In other words, if a person <or child> isn’t pushed out to the boundaries, opportunities become limited for significant new learning. This thought gets compounded by the fact today’s schooling tends to overly protect students from failure and, therefore, from opportunities for deeper learning.

Therefore. Learning and attacking ignorance <and the boundaries of ignorance> is a place where parents and outsiders <beyond teachers> can make a HUGE difference.

I do believe as we get older we come to appreciate, or at least understand, the importance of failure in real learning.

This is important learning beyond educational building blocks and assists in ongoing career development activity and personal intellectual growth. We need to insure children don’t get discouraged with two things:

——–

(1) slow paced learning as they learn necessary foundational elements <they get discouraged because their curiosity never gets sated>

(2) failure to learn everything <they get discouraged because by remaining in the ‘ignorance zone,’ despite having invested energy in knowledge gathering to actually get in that zone, they never feel a satisfaction of ‘something completed’>.

——–

With that thought …. we get to Jim’s second diagram where the circle of knowledge has inconsistent edges/boundaries. Yeah. It is uneven. When I saw this diagram I thought it perfectly reflected not only how people expand their learning knowledge outside a school construct but also my own personal challenge when it comes to increasing knowledge and ignorance.

The problem I have personally always had … is I run the risk of collecting information book by book and article by article and with each one my point of view slightly sways in the direction of what I read. I imagine, upon reflection, over time I have gained a better understanding of my own learning flaws and I tend to treat each piece of new learning as simply a breakthrough in my ignorance and I start gathering information around that particular piece of learning to round out my thought and point of views instead of solely being invested in the ‘breakthrough thought.’ In some variation I imagine most people are like this. This would also mean … uhm … there is no such thing as a well-rounded person.

So. All that said.

Assuming I could actually create a diagram without help from someone who knows how to build diagrams, my personal third diagram would probably be the rounding out of some of the points above. In other words … the spike is the initial breakthrough which inevitably leads to a curiosity driven rounding out of fuller understanding and knowledge. Beyond that rounding out I would imagine there is an inevitable new ‘spike’ somewhere else assuming I had read or heard something that piqued my curiosity. Therefore, and I believe this is the neatest thought, this is a perpetual process with spikes and rounding out but in the end the circle just keeps getting bigger and bigger. In my mind <and personal motto> … this suggests ‘seek truth’ just expands the mind with no end destination ever truly landed upon.

Anyway.

Jim makes a great point in his blog — you become more expert and informed on certain topics at the expense of others. The well rounded circle that might have theoretically characterized the end of classic education system but reality suggests it should be replaced with the profile of an expert (or increased passion on a topic) in some particular domain. Therefore, you will never end up with a perfect circle but rather an ellipse or some wacky trapezoid <or something>. I would also suggest that at the end of high school a teen will have the first diagram and just one spike out <I am making a generalization but you get my thought>. Most kids have some passion that they become comfortable with and expand their knowledge to a point that they are pushing the ignorance boundary out on that topic.

Ok.

Before I leave that thought. I believe every kid is passionate about something. And I believe it is up to us adults to find it <not the kid>. Once again … I do believe we more experienced <older> people have a responsibility here <note: as do more experienced manager in a business organization>.

It is a tricky challenge … but we should be encouraging other “spikes” in the boundary <note: I hesitate to call it rounding out because if you believe this diagram – as I do – we are seeking to look to create the sharp salient effect on the circle and then round out the salient>. As noted earlier we adults are in a balancing act role of encouraging and managing inevitable discouragement <because of the never ending aspect of curiosity>.

We need to think about this. Really think about this.

While it is a fascinating thought process that if we do not take time to think about we are likely to mismanage.

In the end?

We need to recognize that our smallest actions can make a big impact. And that is a responsibility.

Regardless.

Do I believe there should be tools, techniques and specific tactics to take advantage of this “boundary of ignorance” and guide ongoing learning? Shit. I don’t know. I am not an education expert.

I am sure someone can come up with some voodoo technique that gets people to enhance their knowledge base. For me the success lies within the understanding of the process. For when people understand these diagrams and this thought process I believe we are on our way to success. For, as I noted with the first diagram, the issue sometimes comes down to discouragement/encouragement. In our current world people are very focused on “attaining a goal” and what this “boundary of ignorance” suggests is you can never attain the goal.

The cheese gets moved every time you get close to getting it. Maybe the trick is to make learning become visible so you recognize the next step is to further cluster more learning around something that interested you <and encouraging that gathering/clustering>. But. I am not sure how to do that.

So. Here is what I do know <or believe> from this:

–          School systems are built to create a rounded foundational learning and accumulate enough knowledge to “attack” ignorance as you get older.

That is good. And it probably pays for parents and influential people in kid’s lives to understand this. And encourage kids because there is a high risk they will sometimes get frustrated with the basics and want more.

–          In general … learning is discouraging <that is a big thought we need to wrap our heads around>.

Until maybe you attain Albert Einstein status on quantum physics you can never reach your goal. Or maybe better said you are always reaching for something and finding out there is something more to reach for. In people’s formative thinking/learning years it is helpful to remember this.

–          Personal understanding is important.

I recognized pretty early on my learning challenge. Each book contained a thought that could drive my newest “thinking” or point of view. I discovered a way to deal with it.

Do I still fall into the “tunnel vision learning” trap? Sure. Who doesn’t fall in love with a well articulated logical idea on occasion? Am I trapped for long? Nope. I know now to seek out additional learning on thoughts to round off the spikes.

–          Single topic pushing out versus multiple topics pushing out.

There is no formula. I know for a fact my own parents were scared shitless that when I picked up a science fiction book, and then another, and then another, that all I was going to read and learn about was that. But then I would find something else and then that would be my new eternal focus. Ok. Eternal until the next interesting factoid smacked me in the head.

Other people push out on multiple topics at the same time. The only thing I know for sure? Encouragement.

I don’t like the way my own parents encouraged my curiosity <it was a negative approach … “you shouldn’t just read about this .. you know there are other interesting things in the world”> … but, regardless, the intent was good.

Go get more.

More is good.

Okay. Maybe that’s the bottom line to this thought.

More is good.

More learning begets more enlightened ignorance. Question everything. Even your own knowledge.

So. In this case, oddly enough, maybe I am suggesting ignorance is good. Good in that the more you don’t know makes you want to know more. Ok. Maybe it’s the more you know makes you want to know more.

Anyway. In the end … despite the fact I abhor ignorance & fight ignorance everyday from my little corner of the world … after writing this … well … maybe I should say “Up with ignorance!” because it fosters more learning. Go figure.

============

Please remember:

Amazing takes time.

And legendary

Takes patience.

—–

Robin Sharma

===============

“The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.

Still round the corner there may wait,

A new road or a secret gate.”

–

Tolkein

==================

So.

I just spoke with one of my favorite people, a good friend, who as I hung up the phone I thought “he is a multiple night success.”

Oh.

We hear a lot about overnight successes … probably too much. Too much <and misguided> because it is more likely that any successful person you know is a … well … multiple night success.

Now.

I am going to talk about a different type of multiple night here. Most times we talk about people who have toiled in one industry, honing their expertise until some point where they hit a tipping point and a window of opportunity at the exact time. Let’s call this version the ‘axis mundi’ of a hard worker.

The version I am speaking of today is more of a ‘not all who wander are lost’ type exploration of some roads … following each with eager feet hoping it would at some point join a ‘larger way.’ This version is more about spending nights searching for “what is it I am meant to do.”

That was my friend.

I say it that way because I may not know a nicer, more well-grounded from a character standpoint, hard working person. But character & working hard does not guarantee that you will advance in some career. I would argue, and have, that Life for many people is more like a ragged diagonal.

You make some good choices and make some bad choices.

You attach yourself to some people who further your progress and some others who don’t end up doing shit.

You sacrifice some passion for some paying of bills.

You take advantage of some opportunities and miss out on some others <we tend to do more of the latter than the former>.

And maybe worse?

The choices are often not particularly clear.

Life choices are more likely to be like the infamous “trolley ethical problem:”

—————

Imagine you are standing beside some tram tracks. In the distance, you spot a runaway trolley hurtling down the tracks towards five workers who cannot hear it coming. Even if they do spot it, they won’t be able to move out of the way in time.

As this disaster looms, you glance down and see a lever connected to the tracks. You realise that if you pull the lever, the tram will be diverted down a second set of tracks away from the five unsuspecting workers.

However, down this side track is one lone worker, just as oblivious as his colleagues.

So, would you pull the lever, leading to one death but saving five?

This is the crux of the classic thought experiment known as the trolley dilemma, developed by philosopher Philippa Foot in 1967 and adapted by Judith Jarvis Thomson in 1985.

—————–

“The Trolley Problem” reminds us that, in fact, in Life there rarely a single correct answer, and all choices have consequences <some good and some bad>.

We have a tendency to perceive Life as a continuous string of days in which we make choices with a clear 360degree vision.

The reality is that string of days is more likely to have long periods of dense fog in which you are attempting to make choices where you can barely see your hand in front of your face.

People who believe success happens overnight are sadly mistaken.

People who believe success is always doing one thing, choosing one path, and sticking to it are sadly mistaken.

People who believe grinding and working away will insure you will not be overlooked <at some point> or not be taken for granted are sadly mistaken.

People who believe if you work hard enough there are no limitations <to progress or your own capabilities> are sadly mistaken.

People who believe they work REALLY hard they will automatically become exceptional at their craft and ‘experts’ … are sadly mistaken.

Suffice it to say … it is slightly naïve to believe if you work hard and be patient … well … it will all work itself out.

Suffice it to say … Life is relatively indifferent to what you want, destiny does not lend you a hand and the universe, in general, is a shitty guide.

Success takes a tremendous amount of effort.

Yeah … the impatient tend to progress faster … but also crash more often.

Success is more often a delicate balance of patience & impatience.

That said.

I have always balked at the “do what you are passionate” career advice. Only because in its simplistic guidance it suggests that your passion is always tied to what you are actually good at. This kind of advice kind of sucks because if you suck at what you are passionate about you are more likely to end up a bitter, slightly angry, poor individual than a successful one.

My suggestion is to do … well … something that is going to sound crappy.

Do what you love as a side project to your day job.  Doing what you want as a side project gives you opportunities to not only do something you want to do but it kind of ‘tests the market for what you have to offer.’

Obviously this also gives you some stability in that you are still paying bills.

I would note that this is exactly what my ‘multiple night success’ friend did.

All that said. Within the multiple nights effort there is a less discussed aspect.

Multiple night success more often than not depends on emotionally intelligence or … well … a strongly grounded character.

I couldn’t figure out exactly which of those phrases I wanted here.

The high falutin’ thought is emotional intelligence or emotional IQ … but I think it may be simpler than that.

Character.

Solid moral compass.

Integrity.

A persistent belief in the fact the good within will be able to deflect the majority of the bad Life throws at you.

It may have a tinge of unrealistic expectations but I would argue that the tinge is what colors what could appear to be a bleak landscape that their Life could appear like on occasion.

It also permits you to ground yourself in “I” and not in the eyes of “them.” It permits you so that no matter what other people are thinking or saying about you … well … your self-worth comes from within and your grounding permits you to ignore the noise.

Ok.

Let me try this.

Regardless of what people think of you at any particular moment, one thing is certain — you’re never as good or bad as they say you are. Knowing that your firm grasp of who you are makes it difficult for someone to say or do something that can dent your resilience & belief in character.

=================

“all that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;

The old that is strong does not wither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.”

–

Tolkein

======================

Ok.

Not all those who wander are lost.

We spend gobs of time talking about career success and planning your future and all of that bullshit when the truth is that not everyone knows their “destination” from day one.

While we use that thought most often with our youth, I could argue that a shitload of people at any age takes time to figure out not only what you are good at but what makes you happy <which may not be the same thing> as well as what feeds your life vitality <the shit that makes waking up every morning fun>.

People wander.

Ok.

Not all do … but those who do tend to be some pretty interesting people <not necessarily the most successful … but interesting>.

I often use a clip from the old tv show Felicity to make this point:

<it is called “Ben’s big mom speech … and yes … I am actually using a clip from Felicity to make a point here … but YouTube doesn’t offer the actual clip because of licensing>

————————-

Ben:

“I’d like to think that people take a good look at me before they make up their minds… He’s this guy, he doesn’t know what he wants to be yet, and he doesn’t have a major yet, he’s got his dad as this dark character … has a drinking problem.

I’m not really selling myself here, am I? … Look I understand why you guys needed to see Felicity with someone like Noel… I mean, he’s obviously gonna make it. And probably long before, I mean, I figure out what I ‘m gonna be in my life. But I always remember this one thing my teacher said, which was, all these people she knew they had no idea what they were gonna do with their lives when they were twenty. So, chances are, I’m gonna turn out to be a pretty interesting guy.

—————————

It’s a great message.

The wanderer usually feels like there is something wrong with themselves. And there is an inherent danger in defending yourself in that in doing so you stop seeking an actual destination and revel in the seeming rebellion of wandering.

Regardless.

Wandering doesn’t mean you are lost. You may simply be discovering. And the discovery is needed to make whatever gold you have in you shine.

Time just needs to buff away the dullness a little.

Next.

Part B … “deep roots are not reached by frost.”

Well.

As I have said a bunch of times … “life can be a real motherfucker.” Not only can it be relatively indifferent to what you want it can actually actively make Life a real shitshow on occasion.

That said.

A wanderer needs deep roots just to survive some of the shit Life throws at you.

Deep roots is the shit that matters within.

Your passion.

Your soul.

Your character.

Your beliefs.

The kind of stuff that no matter how much someone may challenge or try to make sound silly … well … they are your deep roots.

Here is the tricky part.

I think deep roots takes time.

And I don’t mean cultural roots or family roots … I mean personal roots.

Unfortunately many of us don’t get deep <healthy> roots until you are older. It seems like life experience creates deep roots.

But.

It’s worth the wait.

Because even in the coldest and darkest of time … deep roots can never be touched by frost <which means they will grow again>.

And that is what has happened with my good friend. His roots have found a home and his paths have joined to meet at some destination which, after many years, is his new success.

Look.

I do not believe that journey is for the faint of heart and I do believe ‘wandering’ takes deep roots, resilience and a good healthy dose that good overcomes bad if you keep believing that.

But I would argue his journey has made his Life interesting … and him more interesting.

Sigh.

What you cannot see around the corner.

That new road.

Or that secret gate.

The unknown.

To me each step in life is driven on by curiosity and the joy of discovery. And then not settling with that discovery but rather pocketing it as a new experience and immediately stepping back out on the road seeking the next gate, door or errand …. ‘pursuing it with eager feet’ as it may be.

I do think it is helpful to remind ourselves that big is more often found in small than anywhere else … that there is always another gate or door … and that even the ‘least’ among us can actually be the ‘most’ for the health of a strong society.

Some people take more time to grow more into who and what you are … and some people need more doors & gates to grow into the place their deep roots belong.

And some people made of gold do not <obviously> glitter … and, yet, they find their personal pot of gold.

<well done DMan>

Today I discuss mandating standing for the national anthem <as President Donald J Trump appears to be advocating>.

While I will share my views and while I doubt Mr. Trump has ever looked at the Constitution or googled “Supreme Court decisions with regard to enforcing patriotic compulsory routines” I will share what the US Supreme Court HAS said about this:

===================

 

“To believe that patriotism will not flourish if patriotic ceremonies are voluntary and spontaneous, instead of a compulsory routine, is to make an unflattering estimate of the appeal of our institutions to free minds.”

 

——

US Supreme Court 1943

 

==============================

To be clear.

I stand for the national anthem.

I don’t burn flags.

I believe people should do the former and the latter.

That said.

I could give a shit if people stand, place their hand on their heart or sing along. It’s a ridiculous empty faux act of patriotism to simply do something because <a> you have to or <b> you do it because everyone else is doing it.

I respect the flag and the country but if you truly want to respect those who served, well, try not acting like an asshole to those who have served.

I respect the flag and the country but if you truly want to respect those who served, well, try conducting yourself in ways that make this country look like it’s less full of shitheads and more like a country whose military teaches dignity, honor & integrity.

I respect the flag and the country but if you truly want to respect those who served, well, try and act like we are not at war or our freedom is under attack from some outside enemy and recognize that the only attack we are under are from dickheads like Trump who claim to value freedom and independence but espouse conformity & hollow patriotism.

Beyond all of that, and whatever constitutional freedom of speech stuff you want to attach to this discussion, there is an additional fairly basic business management aspect – building an organizational culture is never about enforced conformity.

===========================

“Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.”

―

John F. Kennedy

=============

“The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice, it’s conformity.”

―

Rollo May

================================

Yeah.

I admit.

I hate codes of conduct <in general>.

I have never been a fan of conformity in general … and absolutely hate forced conformity.

I hate dress codes.

I hate office rules.

I hate meeting rules.

Yeah.

I say that tied to the thought of how some people are discussing creating laws, or establishing rules, for standing for the national anthem.

I say that because this entire discussion isn’t just about being patriotic, and being a ‘patriot’… but enforcing conformity or specific behavior.

We try and do that shit in business all the time.

Well.

Leaders who do not understand how to build a strong self-sustaining organizational culture try this shit all the time.

To be clear.

90% of the time, enforced behavior, fails miserably.

What do I mean>?

90% of the time the desired behavior, which you have always forced & enforced, stops when you stop looking and stop enforcing.

At the core of ‘enforced’ is that it isn’t something people want to do, or maybe it isn’t something they naturally inherently do, and they do it because they have to do it.

At the core of ‘enforced’ is failure. People, in general, don’t like to be told to be honest, do things certain way and how to think. Trying to enforce organizational attitudes & behaviors works just as well as forced changes of behavior in personal Life <diets, quitting smoking, chewing on your fingernails, etc> — it does not work

By the way.

Here is the other weird thing about ‘enforced conformity.’

Failure even happens with the shit that <a> people really don’t mind doing and <b> people kind of know is the right thing to do.

It’s just that people do not like to be forced to do things … even things they kind of want to do anyway.

—————————-

Seek to impose your will, and more men will kneel (if they’re permitted), and when they rise, it will be with resentment in their hearts.

Embrace liberty, and more men will rise, and they’ll do so with joy.

I want those players to stand.

I want to see their hands over their hearts.

But I want to see that happen out of love, not fear, and so long as the fear remains, a decision to stand means nothing but an empty victory in a culture war that will tear this nation apart.
———————————

Look.

We would love it in business if everyone did what you wanted them to do.

We would love it if everyone in a society did things the way they were supposed to do.

But you cannot enforce conformity and, in fact, just as the Supreme Court suggested with the national anthem in 1943 … you really do not want to force behavior. You want behavior to come from within the individual and not enforced from ‘without.’

Oh.

This is where the role of “social norms” can come into play.

Different from enforcement, that promotes top-down direction, administration and monitoring, encouraging social norms can spur, and inspire … uhm … conformity.

It is conformity by choice.

It is having the freedom to conform … and choosing to do so.

This is a powerful conformity.

Anyway.

The Supreme Court got it right back in 1943 when a small group of Jehovah’s Witnesses declined to salute the flag. They were patriots but their beliefs wouldn’t allow them to demonstrate reverence for a flag <a symbol>. The Supreme Court rendered its verdict — with words that should be etched into the minds of anyone who truly cares about who and what America is:

 

If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion, or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein.

Those are the most famous words of Supreme Court case West Virginia v. Barnette, but it is these words which any true patriot, or leader, should ponder:

–—————

Nevertheless, we apply the limitations of the Constitution with no fear that freedom to be intellectually and spiritually diverse or even contrary will disintegrate the social organization. To believe that patriotism will not flourish if patriotic ceremonies are voluntary and spontaneous, instead of a compulsory routine, is to make an unflattering estimate of the appeal of our institutions to free minds.

——————-

In other words, the power of the symbolism & patriotism lies with the choice to honor & dignify the symbolism of a fag & an anthem.

In other words, compelled patriotism … the effort to force a person to say or do what they do not believe … doesn’t touch upon the true spirit of what the country stands for.

In other words, if I have to compel someone to be patriotic, or do acts which imply patriotism, the American Idea isn’t working.

In other words, mandatory patriotism isn’t patriotism at all.

In other words, the government cannot force someone to violate their conscience and they shouldn’t bully private businesses into doing what a government cannot legally dictate.

I will say this over and over and over again until the day I die — the cure for bad speech is better speech, the cure for bad behavior is better behavior and the cure for dealing with any ‘the American ideal (and idea)’ doubts is not bad enforced conformity.

We should inform, educate, and recommend policies, ideas & behavior that improve America but allow its citizens their freedom of choice.

For the best compliance, don’t just enforce the rules, establish the norms.

Yeah.

I am sure some NFL owners will attempt some behavior-shaping constraints <fines, suspensions, etc.>. And they have that right as a business owner managing their own business & culture.

But I will tell them a secret <and I am hoping President Trump, who has never managed a business which demanded building a culture, is listening in> … that will not shape behavior but it will certainly shape attitudes <unfortunately, most likely not the attitudes truly desired>.

Forcing functional behavior is not always the best approach to shaping behavior.

Here is what any business leader who has ever run a business knows:

It takes your own to govern your own.

Not rules of conduct.

Not enforced conformity.

Lastly.

Just to conclude this piece.

Trump the asshat.

He has no fucking clue how to build a company culture. To him culture is having all the women wear their hair the same way, everyone wear a certain type of clothes that appeal to him and wear name tags with the Trump brand on it.

How do I know he has no clue how to build a culture without ‘enforcing conformity’?

The one people skill he has exhibited to date – it seems like Trump has this unique capability of bringing out the worst of people on actually the best of things.

Huh?

By using patriotism and pride in country <good> he encourages … well … wrong thinking, wrong thoughts and wrong behavior.

What he has done is bring out the worst in people who actually believe in a good thing.

What an asshat.

I would remind President Asshat what every god business leader knows about their employees and their culture … both good and evil lies within the hearts of most men (Alexander Solzhenitsyn) .

Most of us have the capacity to do great and good things … uhm … do very bad and evil things.

Leaders have a choice.

Either bring the best of the good out of people or bring the worst of the bad out of people.

You cannot bring out ‘good’ from within through some type of enforcement nor should you be seeking to try to ‘conform’ good.

Good has to be encouraged, not enforced <someone should print that off and put it on Trump’s mirror so he can see it every morning>.