It’s not often we get to disarm someone in authority with one sentence. I had that opportunity early in my career and now have more appreciation for that rare moment.
Category: The Work World
How Someone Helped Me Get My First Job at Their Competitor
In the course of a busy work day, it can be hard to stop and think that there is a person at the other end of a request. Taking a few minutes to respond could change someone’s life.
The Non-Linear Career Path
I’ve always liked cars. I remember when I was a kid I used to like looking at the Hot Rod magazines my brothers had stacked in their room. In my teenage years I subscribed to Motor Trend. Every month I read each issue cover to cover. It fueled my interest in being a car designer… Continue reading The Non-Linear Career Path
The Balancing Act of Presenting the News
In the early 1980s I earned a degree in Journalism and went on to graduate school and a teaching assistant position in the Journalism department of my alma mater. I think it’s safe to say that the field of journalism is radically different now than it was nearly 40 years ago. When I graduated from… Continue reading The Balancing Act of Presenting the News
The Never-ending Popularity of Buzzphrases
While cleaning out old files from nearly 40 years of work history, I ran across the gem pictured below from Lang’s Creative Services. Even though it’s from the 1980s, the Buzzphrase Construction Matrix (BCM) creates some phrases that still sound impressive today. How about “Quantitative Marketing Management” or “Diversified Data Parameters” for starters. Both could… Continue reading The Never-ending Popularity of Buzzphrases
Cracking Open New Skills
Sometimes it’s the unexpected skills and experience people have that matter most. This post explores experience that doesn’t always show up on a resume until someone asks the right question...
Watch and Learn from the CEO
In this agency creative was king and the king, the CEO, was a creative at heart. Everything needed his approval before it left the shop to go to the client. He demanded nothing less than our best.
Flushing Corporate Rank in the Air
Not being a frequent flyer on corporate jets, I had no idea what a “jump seat” looked like. I soon learned that seat had another purpose.
Peeling Back the Veneer of Titles
For a second I tried to envision what this emergency entailed. I pictured someone in a big building full of large pipes looking for two knobs as liquid sprayed all over the place.
How a Stupid Typing Class Changed my Life
I knew I could type up to 25 wpm thanks to my high school typing class, but could I do it with five mistakes or less? I remember the stopwatch ticking as I pounded the keys on the manual typewriter, knowing my future was at stake.
The Next Half Century 