Think About It Archives - Page 47 of 63

How Are Jobs Created?

Posted on April 21, 2021

You want a job. They help with your income, self-esteem and confidence. However, they can be elusive. How are jobs created? If we know how, why and where jobs are created, we can better position ourselves to be chosen for them.

Jobs tend to appear wherever someone needs a person to do some work. Sometimes a job is to fill an immediate vacancy because somebody died or suddenly left. Other times there is some lead time due to the circumstances of the current job holder. For example, they may have been promoted or fired or even given in their notice of resignation.

A job could also be created in a new company or a growing company looking to expand. Positions are also created during reorganisations due to a new strategy or new leaders looking at building in a different direction.

If you like to be involved in a turnaround situation, look to companies with a recent earnings slump or a new CEO. If you like good efficient cultures, join a firm that is in a growth mode in a growth industry. Joining Netflix in 2007 would have been better than joining Blockbuster. Netflix pivoted into streaming while Blockbuster kept closing stores.

How are jobs created? It is usually by someone assessing a need in a company or division. They believe they need, and can afford, more help.

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The Irony Of Science And Medicine

Posted on April 20, 2021

It is incredible to see all the advances in science and medical interventions. Millions of people are saved every year. The irony of science and medicine is that with 100’s of millions of people saved, the planet has a population and consumption issue.

One hundred years ago, people would die earlier. They would live to 30 or 40 years old and then something would happen. Several people lived into their 70’s and 80’s but it was a lot more unique back then.

Advances have meant that we don’t really need to look after ourselves very well because some smart person will save us. Previously, if you smoked too much you might die of lung cancer. Or if you overate, you may have died from type two diabetes or heart failure.

Things like Polio, Malaria, Infections and many other nasty situations would kill large swathes of the population. Today, many of these deadly circumstances can be avoided by a jab or some antibiotics.

The 1918 flu pandemic, killed roughly 50m people. 500m were infected of the 1.5bn estimated on the planet. With 5 times the people on Earth today, we could have seen 250m Covid deaths globally. That the number has just passed 3m may be a testament to the advances we’ve had.

A great job has been done saving people and prolonging their lives. Although, that seems to have contributed to a climate situation that could kill a lot more.

The irony of science and medicine.

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Creating Your Own Prison

Posted on April 19, 2021

Have you ever felt trapped? It could be because of your circumstances, your choices or your thoughts. Creating your own prison is not what most of us set out to do.

Yet, many of us do it at some point in our lives. We may get into a great relationship but then things turn and we feel trapped. We also dive into things like a job or our own business and then feel we can’t escape. Lastly, we develop a way of thinking, patterns, that are unhelpful. We set up a guard to keep us stuck where we are.

Become aware of such things before you set off down a certain path. Ask yourself what the end of this path might look like in several years. Sometimes we can see clues to our future. We need to consider these signs, clues and intuition moments.

If we don’t see these when we set off, keep an eye out for signposts and side roads. If we are paying attention, we can recognise patterns of behaviour before they negatively impact us. These can be our own or the actions of others.

If you feel trapped in a situation, consider what you are grateful for. Also, consider what the many options are that you have. Think of the easy ones and the hard ones. Don’t just swap a tough situation for another one.

Certainly don’t make creating your own prison a habit.

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Ask These Two Questions

Posted on April 16, 2021

What do you hope the outcome of your actions will be? What might be the outcome of your actions? Ask these two questions of yourself each time you post on any social media. In addition, you can reflect on these questions after any conversation or physical action you undertake.

Assess the outcome of your actions from your supporters perspective and also your critics. Get the actual outcome. Do not only use your biased or ego-driven opinion.

I felt this concept was timely to address today. In part due to yesterday’s blog post and also due to a tweet I saw earlier today. Finally, it fits in with Section 6, Review, of my forthcoming book, Achieve Anything.

The tweet was from a woman who was not pleased that, and how, someone on the set asked what her role was. The question seemed to be a benign set of words but tone and context would have been helpful to more fully understand.

I didn’t question or comment on the tweet as I only like to add positive comments. This one didn’t feel like there was one available. Or it might not have been seen as such, and that is not my intent either.

I did wonder, for far too many minutes, what her intent was. So many potential ideas, yet few of them positive. Apart from what seemed like some self-indulgence and a viral tweet (80k likes on a 2k account).

Before her, or your, next communication to the world, perhaps one could ask these two questions.

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You Don’t Have To Think But It Helps

Posted on April 15, 2021

Reacting is easy. It rarely requires thought. A person says or does something and you weigh in with your comments. You don’t have to think but it helps.

Why does it help if you pause and reflect on things before engaging your mouth? First of all, you probably only know the tip of the iceberg. Secondly, what you do know is likely biased by the provider of the information. Thirdly, your immediate opinion will be biased by your own experience and philosophy. Finally, you may not truly believe what you say. You may instead be giving an emotional response without clear balance.

In our fast paced society, many people have a tendency to see from one angle and comment from one perspective. It has also become more common to side with the purported underdog. We must take the time to improve this. Otherwise, we will find more people shouting and arguing over biased headlines without any substance.

Slow things down. Assess how everything progressed to where it is now. Acknowledge what you feel is the right answer. But then, take some time to explore alternative viewpoints. Remember, just because you don’t want gravity to exist doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.

If you want a calmer, more enjoyable life, try this out. You don’t have to think but it helps.

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I Want To Know

Posted on April 14, 2021

Why do we get curious? Curiosity can be a great thing. It’s instrumental in how we become aware. Curiosity also killed the cat. I want to know so many things. There isn’t enough time to learn all that there is to know about everything.

What is it that drives us to pick up a newspaper or turn the news on the radio or TV? Is it curiosity? Could it be a simple habit we’ve developed?

Perhaps it is our desire to fix things that seem to have gone wrong. Although, it could also be the desire to be a part of social events. It can be a way of connecting with others through a shared topic. Additionally, we can all have an opinion on the event and therefore feel able to comment on it.

It seems odd that we want to know so much about people and places we are unrelated to. In addition, it is rare we can do anything constructive to help the situation either.

So maybe next time you reach for the remote, paper, or a device to search up the news, just stop. You are trading away your life minutes to find out about other people. And you are unlikely to ever encounter those people.

It feels like a funny trade of time. Any thoughts why? I want to know.

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Too Many Options

Posted on April 13, 2021

Baskin-Robbins ice cream serves 31 flavours. They’ve introduced 1,300 flavours since inception in 1945. Too many options can slow down your thought process and ultimately your success.

It can be helpful for a consumer to have just one option. At best, you could offer them two or three options. A bit like Apple does with its iPhone offering, its laptops and its computers.

Once people have more options than that, they start to be paralysed by indecision. Often, they start to questions their choices and review their short list of options.

One thing I learned growing up in the countryside was that if you had only one option nearby, that was the best one. Moreover, no second guessing was involved. Finally, if people wanted to eat, skate or play tennis, there were only a couple of places to do that.

I love exploring and trying new things. Just ask my kids about the variety of flavours I bring home. Pineapple covered in yogurt and popping candy comes to mind.

There is a lot to say about the simplicity of one or two choices. Restaurants with 75 items on the menu seem a bit crazy. This is not just endlessly challenging for the consumer. In addition, the kitchen has to keep enough of each item in case it is ordered. And it can’t have gone off when it is selected.

Too many options is an unnecessary indulgence.

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The Perfect Answer

Posted on April 10, 2021

Wouldn’t it be nice if someone would just tell you the next step to the ideal destination? If someone could give you the perfect answer, you could just get on with it.

The times I am most lost, or I procrastinate, involve moments where I am uncertain of the next best step. Being uncertain has its positive moments but not usually when involving decisions about life direction or major moments.

Sometimes I would just prefer if an exceptional being could hand me a map to my destination. On that map would include the next 20 steps exactly laid out so I just had to do them. No guess work and success guaranteed. It wouldn’t have to be every time either. But simply once in awhile, when I am most stuck.

Wouldn’t you like to have a helpful situation like that?

Of course there are many books, coaches, courses, classes, programs etc that can help you find your way. Though how many of them provide a bullet pointed map, with 20 precise steps to your ideal destination?

Perhaps someone will create the ultimate map with step by step instructions. They could sell it with a guarantee for success. That would be worth buying.

Getting the perfect answer has a great deal of value.

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The Easy Solution

Posted on April 8, 2021

There is always an easy solution to everything. Just the implementation and effectiveness are issues. The easy solution needs to be considered but should be reviewed for more complex items.

For example, the easy way to lose weight is to eat less and move more. This would bring in fewer calories and burn off more. And although solutions don’t come a lot easier than this, the individual implementation is much more difficult and therefore the effectiveness is often less than ideal.

Similar thoughts could be had for smoking or drinking. Easily, the best way to stop both of those is to stop buying the products. If you don’t have cigarettes at home or any alcohol, you are very unlikely to consume them.

Tidy your house, desk, papers or car. Seems so easy. And then when you are in the location again, do not leave anything there to mess it up. This good habit will leave your car, house, office or bedroom, very tidy indeed. If only people could perform like this daily, their spaces would be amazing.

Of course, many people do live like this. You may not be one of them, but they are out there.

The easy solution exists for many things. Though some people are unwilling to properly implement for effective results. Are you one of them?

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Those Defining Moments

Posted on April 2, 2021

That early win or terrible slip-up can have a long lasting effect on our self-perception and confidence. Those defining moments can haunt us or provide much needed energy for our sails. Which defining moments can you recall?

It’s great to look back on these and unpick them a little. Was it a sporting achievement or scholastic? Were you 8, 13, 18, 27, 33, 48, 57 years old or a different age?

I was fortunate to have great friends, be athletic and be very good with academics. So I can recall mostly good memories at an early age and also as I went through secondary school.

Can you recall the first time you went on a big road trip? Do you remember being on a boat, train or airplane? Who inspired you the most when you were under 10 and who was it when you were a teen?

Most importantly now, is not what has happened, but what will happen. What defining moments would you absolutely love to have in your life? Will it involve an athletic achievement? Perhaps you have an academic goal in your sights? Relationship and financial success are both wonderful things to work towards. Don’t think any of these things just happen. You have to get yourself in the right place both physically and mentally.

Then those defining moments can happen!