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The Paradox of Thanks

Sometime between September and November 1621, around the time of the fall harvest, a group of 53 European pilgrims gathered in the New World to celebrate. They were joined by members of the Wampanoag tribe, native Americans that had helped the settlers survive the previous winter. They were there to celebrate the fact that they had plenty of food stores to survive their second winter there. When the settlers left Europe, there were 102 of them. When they celebrated a successful harvest, a little over a year later in the fall of 1621, there were only 53 of them left. Almost half of the settlers had perished along the way. Yet, they gave thanks. It seems a human truth, that we appreciate our blessings more when framed by our adversities. Giving thanks inherently has an either/or component to it, it seems. When we are thankful for what we have, we must take into account the possibility of not having it. We frame our blessings with our adversities. I have very few adversities. My ch
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Recent posts

On Armistice Day, and why what we call a thing matters.

I've had discussions with my co-workers, specific to the marketing power of words. What we call a thing, how we phrase the things we say, and the industry terms we either use or try to introduce as terms to become part of the vernacular...they matter. What we call a thing helps define it. This brings me to Veterans Day, the day set aside to honor all veterans. Memorial Day is to honor the fallen, and I make sure to stress that on Memorial Day, that Veterans Day is for all Veterans...Memorial Day is for the dead. It's important we never mix the two, and the names of the days help guide us towards that understanding. But, what about Armistice Day? The origin of the Nov. 11th tradition, honoring that moment in time that called for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front, World War I. "The 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month." 1918. A time when, as written by my favorite author Kurt Vonnegut, "millions upon millions of human beings stopped
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Meds and Diapers

I was recently in a meeting with the CIO of a healthcare operations company, specifically long-term care and assisted living facilities. We were speaking of different technology trends, with terms like 'Cloud' and '____ as a service/aaS' peppered throughout the discussion. We expressed excitement, seeing several true paradigm shifts that are changing the world of technology, but with both of us still being a bit weary from our years in the industry. We expressed something that I see often in veterans of the tech world, we were looking for something to excite us, to inspire us, to wake us from the day-to-day grind, and show us a brave new world that we can harness to change the way that world works. We expressed that, simply put, we were tired. We wanted a revolutionary change to sweep us up into it, and make our world the sort of fun that only world-altering technology can. It was then that the CIO interrupted...we should, he reminded me, never lose sight of t
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What do you serve?

In conversation with a colleague, the question was asked: "What makes you {your company} different?" This question has been something of a new hobby of mine. I started with "Different than what?" It is my belief that our business model is unique, and have seen little evidence to the contrary. I want to constantly challenge that belief, seeing this as the only way to ensure the belief is true and continues to be so; comparison must be a diligent and never-ending part of our message. Of the several competitors listed by my colleague (technically someone who could compete with me in certain circumstances), I easily differentiated our offering. But, stressing the "Different than what?", I quickly moved from comparative offerings and steered towards a less tangible "what?"Our approach was different; our mindset, our essence. I found myself asking the question "What do we serve?"mm My industry is filled with examples of passionate pe
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On Dreams, and the process of creation.

I've been dreaming lately, not the sort of dream that comes with sleep, but the wide-awake kind. It's a dream related to my business life, and that's all I need to say about the sort of dream it is. I consider this my business blog, and while the below may not seem to have anything to do with business for some, it very much does to me. When I hear or say the word 'dream', generally two things happen. My thoughts go in two completely separate directions; directions that can, if not properly harnessed, become quite debilitating. More on that later... Direction #1: The heavens, sky, to soar, to fly. Ethereal. That place, so precious, but so easily destroyed. Like a balloon untethered, it will float away for no other reason than that no one held the string. Direction #2: Down to earth, grounded. Tangible. That place so solid and necessary, but with a gravity to contend with; every step in life, soil, the path we walk and the foundation of life, but the place th
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On experts, and what it means to try.

I recently read a social media post from a business associate, let's call him Alan. It was an excerpt from a famous quote, from a very famous American business icon, and then a summary of the quote from Alan's point of view. The summary, as Alan saw it, was that the second a person identifies as an expert that they no longer are useful, that they lose the drive that led them to the possibility of even identifying as an expert, and that from there it was nowhere but a downward spiral. The implied message was that by claiming to be an expert, a person would no longer work towards greatness, no longer continues to press forward, that they would find themselves in the stagnant position of resting on their laurels, and no longer "trying to do more." (that last part is a direct quote, and will play in heavily to my point). I couldn't disagree more. I checked the validity of the quote, and it was spot on. I checked to make sure the general intent of the quote was cap
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POTs lines are everywhere!!!

Disclaimer : The topic of this entry (POTs lines) was specifically requested by a business partner. When I discuss POTs lines, I get confused looks, and typically even confused responses in that discussion. "Why are you dealing with POTs lines?" It's the lowest common denominator of the telecommunications industry, but only as a product. The need it solves is the core of this blog entry. My ask is that you disregard the "widget" ( an ask that is often a challenge for many of the "widget" minded folks I know) and focus instead on the business problem associated with the consumption of this particular technology.  Let's start with a quick definition...the below is the first hit when you Google POTs lines: Short for  plain old telephone service , which refers to the standard telephone service that most homes use. In contrast, telephone services based on high-speed, digital communications  lines , such as ISDN and FDDI, are not  POTS . The main dis
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