Mind Mapping.

I know that the mind mapping assignment was turned in a while ago but i cant help but refer back to it. I have a hard time time managing with school work, when to study, and work. I made a mind map that would help me get more of these things done, organized and accomplished. The mind map consisted of time management and what to do during these allotted periods of time. I didn't make it as fancy or colorful as the ones we turned in for the assignment from Pam but overall this process of using a mind map has made my midterms a lot less stressful. :)
-Lauren Bagley 

LESSONS FROM THE SANDBOX

I have really enjoyed the book Winners Never Cheat. The first chapter, lessons from the sandbox was very interesting. It is said that 'everything we need for today's marketplace we learned as kids'. This is said because because the values you learn at home, in the sandbox, and playground stick with you even when you become an older into the business world. honesty is a value the book focuses on. 'Human beings inherently prize honesty over deceit...' They say that even lost tribes in India that have different cultures and languages still value honesty. The book talks about how having behavioral values will help us with long-term success and not have temptation. This reminded me of how I saw this lady cheat in the Palm Beach Marathon in Florida this last December. I would drive from check point to check point ever three miles to encourage my friend. At one checkpoint around mile 15 I saw a lady go of the road and hop in a car and i saw her get dropped off at mile 21...she cheated herself and she may have finished the race but she cheated herself. "forget about who finished first and last. Decent, honorable people finish races-and their lives- in grand style and with respect."

ANDREW HOSTETLER

I think now would be as good of a time as any to remind ourselves about the importance of beginning with the end in mind. As I've listened to the class groups present on their books and the thing's they've learned, I am reminded of how Dr. Covey tells us to always keep in mind our deepest values and life goals. For me personally, a lot of what I learned from my group's book and from other presenters seems to be very appropriate in reaching my own goals in life and becoming the person I want to be. It makes me think of this country song where the singer tells about the qualities and values he would like to be remembered by when he's gone.

Perspective

It is sad. Not even "it's kinda sad" or "it is sorta sad" it is sad and even pathetic that we as people get our priorities so screwed up. I speak of my own perspective really. Last week my wife and I could not decide for the life of us what color to make our counter tops in our new townhouse. We thought it is kind of a big deal.

The news about the tsunami really didn't hit me til today, days later, when someone just made it so real for me. 10,000+ people have died. Many homes and businesses have been destroyed. That is a much bigger deal. We should be working to prevent those situations, and help out when they do occur.

MY MESSAGE IS SIMPLE. BE GRATEFUL FOR WHAT YOU HAVE, WHILE YOU HAVE IT. DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE LITTLE THINGS, THEY DON'T MATTER. WHAT MATTERS IS YOUR FAMILY.

John talks about it in the book we are reading. He says that at your funeral, nobody mentions your schooling, your work accomplishments or what color of counter tops you had. They talk about how you affected those that were around you.

The tsnami is what really drove that home for me. Right now imagine this, no matter what your situation. You just lost both of your cars, you were lucky enough to have your house escape. Your sister died, your fathers place of business is now gone. Plus on top of everything else the country has shut off power to your house and plus plus you don't know how this radiation is going to effect you and your family.

How would your life change? What is really important to you? Do you know what is important to you? Do the people around you know how important they are to you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxL36ngIJA8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cciUXpITsu0&feature=topvideos

Unseen Investments

After finishing Winners Never Cheat, one of the main concepts that stuck out to me was that being an honest business person and keeping your values high is an investment. Not only do you feel a high sense of self respect for doing so, but it always turns out better in the end. That doesn't mean however that you wont have bumps along the way, but it is always better to stay true to your values. I thought two specific examples from the book illustrate this exceptionally well. One, when Jon Huntsman was working with Mitsubishi in Thailand and they told him that he needed to give money to officials to ensure they could do business there. Essentially, Mitsubishi had been bribing them and now the Huntsman Corp. was expected to pull their share. Huntsman stood up and said that he would not do so,  but instead would sell their portion of the company. In that transaction he sacrificed $3 million. His integrity was not worth a shady business deal, even at the cost of $3 million. This really made me contemplate if there were any times in my life when I was willing to go along with something because I wasn't courageous enough to stand up and say that what we were doing was wrong. If Jon Huntsman can do it at the cost of $3 million, why can't I stand up for the value of my own integrity- especially in situations where it costs me nothing. The other great example to me was when he worked in the West Wing, and stood up to his boss when he knew if he followed through with his assignment it would go against his conscience. Even when it would be for someone as high up as the President, he wasn't willing to sacrifice his honesty and integrity. I think Huntsman is a fabulous example and after reading this book I have an extremely high level of respect and admiration for him and the way that he runs his business. I was also taught that in the end, even if you have nothing else you will have your self respect and the respect of those around you if you are being honest. Even if this may be unseen in the beginning, it truly is a great investment.

Made to Stick

Making Ideas stick as a tough task that many people seem to pass up with out much thought, we often have many ideas but getting the ideas to be obsorbed by our peers. In the book it talk about a story that was on the internet about bananas, some one posted that there was a terrible diseases being passed along by the fruit and that it was causing some very harmful side effects, the email spread like wild fire, no one stopped to think why isnt this on the news? The email used crediable sources like FDA  to make the story even more realsitc. Using crediable sources to make our ideas stick is huge in convincing people to by into the idea. We must find ways to get into the heads and hearts of the customer and make them really want the idea.

Law of the Harvest

There are many cases that come to mind of examples of people that want the entire goose that is giving the golden eggs instead of being patient and just being greatful for what is at hand. One instance that comes to my mind is how young adults are extremely inpatient. They see life long investments such as cars and homes that there parents have spent a lifetime saving for, and want them instantaley with out the work ethic. I have many friends that have made very poor decisions on money, seeing a new truck for instance and thinking " all the chicks will dig it!" even though they dont have the financial stability to make a purchase like that. We need to really think about our investments and how we can better spend our money and not get greedy. Taking the egg one day at a time and not whole goose.