10 People at work

Work work work.  While you are in school, you are learning.  Learning to read and write and figure out numbers.  Why?  to prepare you for a lifetime of work.  You will spend most of your life working if you are a productive member of society.  If you aren't working, you are learning more so you can be working.  Well, while you are at work, you don't actually spend ALL of your time working.  In fact, some estimates put your productive time at work at about 4 hours.  If you are there for 8 hours that puts you at 4 hours of productivity.  Well, during those unproductive times, you have probably noticed several people where you work.  Maybe one of them is you.

- Me?  I'm always here - There are some people that work hard and there are other people that would at least like to LOOK like they are working hard.  This person is the one that shows up before everyone and tries to say after everyone has left.  Sub categories of this guy are early guy and late guy.  I am early guy.  I usually get to work at 7 hoping to leave between 3:30 and 4 depending on the kind of lunch I take.  OFTEN I find myself staying late anyway promising myself that I will leave early when it suits me.  I rarely if ever do.  The alternate is late guy.  He comes in late, but stays late.  This is likely the better option because you are never paying your time in advance hoping to get home.  But I'll still go early.  It's what I do.

- The time bomb - Mild mannered and seems to work, but says interesting things like 'I wonder what kind of emergency plan this building plan has' and 'there really isn't much security here is there'.  Now these kinds of phrases come from all kinds of people at work, but when they come from the guy that is a survivalist and has mentioned his anger management classes on multiple occasions, THAT guy is the time bomb.

- The politician - This person would rather play the system rather than play at doing their job better.  Usually they are not satisfied with the amount of responsibility given to them and usually has lots of open ended statements to used in public when describing the current management.  Things like 'Hmm...That's an interesting choice' and 'I guess the company is made of money'.  These phrases are used most of the time when they know that people that have the ear of upper management are around. A side note, these are the people most likely to use business speak phrases like 'circle the wagons' and 'Reach out' among others.

- Company Man - Similar to the politician, this is the person that has COMPLETELY bought into the company philosophy, company product, and is given to quoting the company leaders.  This person is quick to praise and fast to leave if the mood turns sour.  This person is often mistaken for an optimist, they aren't.  They just don't want to be seen on the wrong side of any controversy.  The company man would welcome a higher position in the company, but honestly is just happy to have a job.

- It's all wrong - Negative Nelly, everyone has one or two.  These are people that always seem to be seeing the dark side.  Always have an exception for your rule.  They make life tougher.  I've been accused of being this guy.  I don't think I am.  Every negative person calls themselves a realist the problem of course is that some of them are.  But the difference, while subtle is all too real.  Negative will proclaim the bad side without knowing anything about the proposal.  They will assume that sometimes the source is enough to make a proposal a steaming pile of poop.  Unwilling to give anyone a chance, the wrong person will also rarely give themselves a chance either.

- The comedian -  Similar to the Negative person.  The comedian always seems to have a pithy phrase on hand for every occasion.  These people often find themselves in the negative persons corner only because opposition is an opportunity for humor.  They may or may not be good at their job, but what they are really good at is getting attention.  Sometimes the wrong kind.  Most managers don't really appreciate the comedian.  They talk too much.

- I really miss high school - This individual really likes the idea of parties and balloons and streamers.  Usually found as the instigators of the birthday cake for any given employee.  What they like most is obvious fun and socializing.  First on hand with a greeting card or a cupcake with a candle in it.  They really miss the kind of cliques that happened naturally in high school.





- The Genius - This is the go to person in the department.  Everyone around this person seemingly loses their brain because they know this individual will have the answers.  Infuriatingly confident, the genius seems to know everything about the systems of the departments of their domain.  Good ones are affable and always willing to share their mental largess with all that are in need of assistance.  Bad ones use their knowledge like a weapon.  They dispense sparingly and often incompletely.

- I won't be here long - They aren't given to talking much.  They don't like to stand out.  This person just wants to sit down and work and wait for the resume he has put out to any number of companies come back with a better offer.  The problem of course is that they don't appear to be a part of any group at the office, they just seem to come do their work and go home.  They don't offer any information about family and friends and they don't care to know anything about yours.  Anything that isn't work building a resume is probably not worth their time.  Their trademark is how much the job they are working at is beneath them.  They really figure they should be doing something else for more money, but this job pays the bills and gets them to the next month and the next bunch of job offerings.

- The Historian - Usually but not always the person with the longest seniority in the department, the Historian seems to have a story about everyone that has ever been there.  Knows most of the skeletons in the closets and has the word on anything happening in sub channels.  Always willing to share but more willing to listen, the Historian doesn't like to be too busy because they are too busy being a busy body.





Well there are a few people you might know I know there are a LOT more.  You may even be one yourself.  Got a different one?  comment and add to the joy.  15 days goes by pretty fast.  see ya then!

10 Indicators of quality

Quality.  We all want it out of whatever good or service we have.  For some reason we think that we deserve the best.  Well, I got news for you.  You don't.  You deserve average at best, maybe a little worse.  Fortunately, that's what we all get usually.  But this is about Quality.  How do we decide what has quality or not?  Often our parents tell us what something of quality is.  We believe that like we believe everything else our parents tell us until we find our parents a less than reliable source.

1.  Made in the U.S.A. - I remember as a kid, this was a mark of quality.  It was how you knew something was built to last.  If it said made in China, it was junk.  Now if you had parents that came from other countries, you also gained an allegiance to that country's quality as well.  Apparently Finland makes good rifles.  But that's not all.  The made in mark also bears quality if it's struck from Japan or Germany.  Back in the 80's and 90's the cars that were built to last were Japanese/German.  Anything American built had better be a Truck.  That stereotype has lasted so long that even though the quality ratings have really evened out among most car manufacturers, it still remains.

2.  Hand Crafted - If something made in the U.S.A. is good, being hand crafted is even better.  Wow.  Made by the hand of a loving artisan.  Sure, I paid top dollar, but I got QUALITY.  In the old days when everything was made by hand because how else could you make it, there was a different phrase of both quality and effort.  Made from scratch.  Meaning all original ingredients or parts.  A cake made from scratch was of course going to be worlds apart from any pastry made out of a pre-mixed package.  You know, those little Chinese finger traps are hand crafted.  They don't last too much beyond the birthday party you got them at.

3.  Quality materials - This takes more time to decide and it is one of the most learned estimations we make.  Book cover?  Leather = high quality.  Furniture?  Leather and wood, the darker, the better. Toys?  Wood.  You are dealing with all wooden objects?  Teak or Walnut trumps Pine or Balsa.  Above all, avoid cheap plastic.  While I've often had things made of cheap plastic, I've never owned anything made of expensive plastic.

4.  If someone famous said it was good, it must be. -   Celebrity endorsements have been a long standing ingredient in advertising.  Sometimes they start to believe their own press and start endorsing other things that they aren't directly paid to do.  If a celebrity I like says something is good, it's just like a friend telling me their personal experience.  I've never sat on a bench seat that was finer than when it was made of rich Corinthian Leather.  Thanks Ricardo.

5.  Digital - Obviously anything recorded digitally will beat the socks off of anything recorded the other way.  That other way is analog and it's how our ears hear.  Doesn't matter though.  I know that anything worth it's salt in the sound waves, are being recorded digitally.  This came around as a way to sell these CD's all the kids were playing.  Shiny disc's that had the same sound over and over and over.  No more having parties at the first playing of a record because that will be its best play.  No more polishing diamond tips and wiping off turn table areas with special cloths.  Now of course we are slowly letting go of the CD as a medium, but the digital recording still remains.

6.  German Engineering - One of the many stereotypes that nobody seems to be complaining about.  If you are German, it is assumed that you must be a good engineer.  Along the same lines as if you are tall and black, you must be a good basketball player, or if you are Jewish, you make a good investment banker or jeweler.  Yep, stereotypes one and all.  Doesn't stop German car companies from saying 'German Engineering' in nearly every commercial they aired from the 80's to the turn of the Century and beyond.  Even other stereotypes have benefited from their German roots.  The Amish are just the Germans that lead a selfless life devoid of convenience and technology and make good space heaters. Also count on the Swiss to make watches and clocks.  In America the Swiss, Germain and Austrian countries should have been called Germauswiss.  Because we kind of think they are in the same place.

7.  Disney - You know Disney has never made a bomb, ever.  Nope, not one.  Just because you are a household name, doesn't make you a good household name.  You need to have quality associated with you.  Disney has it in spades.  What, you're going to bring up the 80's for Animation?  Sit down.  The black hole?  Shut up you.  Failed attempts at a historical theme park in Virgina?  Messing up the legal system by claiming copyright on characters that should have been in the public domain decades ago?  Hey, you can't control the quality if you can't control who owns the characters.  Bottom line is, when it comes to entertainment, you look to Disney.

8.  All Natural Ingredients - I love this one.  It appeals to the idiot in all of us.  When you hear all natural, you envision some straw hat wearing farmer straight out of The Grapes of Wrath hand picking each ingredient and placing them in his canvas bag, talking to the honey bees along the way and stopping for a moment to wipe the sweat off of his sun drenched brow and drink a swallow of well water from a ladle.  Now THOSE granola bars have quality.  Never eat anything you can't pronounce!  We have whole stores dedicated to this bit of quality assumption.  Brimming with food that looks smaller and spoils faster than it's 'big box' counterparts.  But you know it's got quality!

9.  Swiss Chocolate - Chocolate has a quality marker.  I'm afraid Hershey's isn't it.  Hershey is to Swiss chocolate (notice one has a name brand, the other couldn't be more general) as a Yugo is to an entry level Nissan.  No real comparison.  Of course, there are the Belgians, Germans and Dutch with their own chocolates.  There are those that still prefer Hershey's brand and once Hershey bought Cadbury (English) they got a lot more candy recipes.  I on the other hand tend to prefer Swedish chocolate.  So this whole point is lost on me.  I only know that if you are looking for Cocoa they didn't call it Swiss Miss just because it rhymed.

10. Longevity - Often, when we have no other means of determining a product or service's quality, we will go to the longevity of the company offering it.   Companies know this.  That's why you'll see something on the company front that says EST 1998 or something like that when they are young to tell us in a flurry of mixed phrases, 'Hey, we're not just some wet behind the ears Johnny come lately, we've been around the block and this ain't our first rodeo'.  Companies that have gone on long enough go from being recognized, to being household names.  If you are lucky, your brand name will become THE name.  Kleenex is a good example.  A while back a refrigerator was called a frigidare not a refrigerator.  Now it's just a fridge.

Well, I hope you find this blog of some quality.  If not, then you'll have to put up with quantity.  But not that much.  in another 15 days or so.