Dodgeball - Not What It Used To Be

Mostly Cloudy - Hi 55 Lo 39 for Baghdad, Iraq
Rain - Hi 58 Lo 35 for Qandahar, Afghanistan
Cloudy - Hi 31 Lo 26 for Northern KY, USA

Song of the week: Channel Z, B-52's



The B-52's are part of my teen years. I think the first song I heard by this group out of Athens GA was Private Idaho... and it must have been on 97X... "The future of Rock N Roll". The FM radio dial was limited back in the day... at that time there was easy listening, album oriented rock, oldies (from the 50's), country (not like today's country- Slim Whitman, Loretta Lynn, Conway Twitty...) and pop radio stations (Hall & Oates, Genesis, Elton John and disco out the wazoo) on the FM dial... 97X was the exception.. Based out of Oxford, Ohio- This little station played stuff that could not be heard anywhere else... It was cutting edge new music-- imports and a lot of experimental stuff. This was even before MTV-- back when they played music videos... Anyway the B-52's were all about the fun - the party - youthful energy - and most important - it had to be danceable. Yah... B-52's are part of my youth...

So with all the hype about television going digital and all the tax dollars that have been spent making sure we all don't get static... Channel Z has been going through my head for days now...so enjoy... Dance away... Besides there isn't much else to do... Now where the heck did I put that $40.00 coupon???

Ramble:

I have worked from the time I was 16 years old.... and since that age I have never been unemployed. Since I am 43 now... that is a heck of a good track record. Oh my gosh... 43... I'm 43... I don't feel like I'm 43... don't think I look 43... I digress. I credit my mother for instilling me with a strong work ethic.

When I worked in retail and the chain I worked for had filed Chapter 11... I was spared and eventually transferred 4 times in order that the company keep me employed. When the company finally sold to another retail chain, I was absorbed and hired by that company. When I worked in the staffing industry, it was by my choice that I finally leave-- a decision that did not come easily, but one I felt and now know was the correct decision for my well being. In each career path, I moved up the ranks... I've always thought of myself as an "enlisted grunt" that moves from private to master gunny. I've been asked to go to officer training school, but I do not see myself as officer material-- I like hanging out with the fellas... that is where reality is. Upper management likes me because I understand the macro, however my strength has always been working in the details... make sense?

The company I have been with for nearly 10 years has been tightening it's belt... We have a lean philosophy as it stands and we are already very skinny... but through attrition folks are leaving of their own choice and are not being replaced. Of course this is the most preferred method... No one has to be the bad guy. However, management is now going through and culling the folks that are not so productive. Jobs are being eliminated... Last week was a strange one... There were some folks that were upset because a nice guy was being released. Look, no one wants to see anyone lose their job... especially now, but over the past few years, whenever I needed to go speak with him or past by his desk, he was "busy" looking at entertainment websites. Now, of course this could be coincidence... however, he was also very social and spent a lot of time chatting. So, when management needed to make a decision-- they will hopefully remove those that are least productive. He is a nice intelligent guy, but at the end of the day... he was lazy and not productive and not bringing anything to the table... revenue. There is one thing I can not stand and that is lazy... I will work with anything else including stupid... but lazy is intolerable. In today's climate, I find it offensive that anyone squander time and effort... We should all be working harder-smarter to maintain our jobs... making that extra phone call, networking with customers and vendors, going beyond our job description, getting that customer to the right department... There is no time for sitting back and just waiting for business. I am thankful that my mom instilled that sense in me. I have consciously declined going into management with my current company several times--- After my previous company I did not want to be responsible for others. People whine too much and you can never do enough for them... even though you fight tooth and nail for them... So, I know what it is like to be in management... I've seen both sides of that fence... I feel bad for the good managers... I have disdain for the bad managers...

Anyway, I work, I understand my marketplace, I understand other teams markets and look for opportunities everywhere... I really don't socialize much... I do have my moments of levity. I am a pacesetter and I know I set a tone and mood. If I am asked to do something beyond my job description, I take it on without hesitation, I volunteer for projects... especially lean efforts. I make myself available for new endeavors, I learn, I teach, I am professional, I am not a clock watcher and I make myself as valuable as possible to as many teams as I can and I have been doing this since the day I was hired. That is why management has continued to ask me to join their ranks and even though I politely decline, they are happy to keep me. So, when leadership and management get together despite my salary, I hope that my name is in the column of "keep her" and not "cut her."

I fully realize that everyone is replaceable... In today's climate anything is possible. The shift in industrial and consumer spending is definitely making an impact on our company. We are pretty diversified as a company, so we have businesses that are pretty robust and profitable right now, others are in the tank.... Thankfully, I am with a company that has been very smart in it's business decisions... However, knowing that everyone is replaceable, I hope I am the last one hit in this adult game of dodgeball.

Have a great week everyone!