Daily Mood Quote - October 23, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quotes

Day 172 – October 23, 2011

“The best cure for an off day is a day off.”

~Frank Tyger

Yesterday, I took the day off. It was time to disconnect, become unwired, break free of the grid, or what is also known as the daily grind. I logged off for a day. Over the past six years, I have logged many, many hours on the computer. First with school work, research projects, papers, communications with fellow classmates on projects and presentations, work, The Daily Mood Quote, and family and friends... E-mails, Skyping, Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube; where does the madness end? It doesn't unless you say E-N-O-U-G-H!!! Much like Bruce Nolan (played by Jim Carrey) in the movie Bruce Almighty, when he said, “Bruce giveth and Bruce taketh away. Don't like it? Megabyte me” as he unplugged the computer. All right, I wasn't that harsh, and I did not unplug the computer. I just walked away.

I did that yesterday, I said enough and logged off for a day. Here's why, the weather was nice, I remembered I had a family and I was having a menopause day of gargantuan proportions. Every time, I looked at my computer, throwing it out through the sliding glass door crossed my mind. That's never good, so when my husband asked me what I was going to write about, I walked away. Ipods, Ipads, cell phones, apps, laptops, desktops; they all made me twitch yesterday. It was time for a change, even if that change would be short lived. So, I watched a little TV, the movie Die Hard (one of my favorites, I like Bruce Willis - as an actor). I also watched Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase and some of the World Series with the Texas Rangers and St. Louis Cardinals. I took some time to go to Wal-mart to pick up a few items and just enjoyed the day unplugged. Not even a cell phone call. It was nice.

I think Matthew Broderick said it best, when he played Ferris Bueller in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” and if you don't step away from technology for a moment, you're missing a lot. Even the great Andy Rooney took a day off. And so that's done; I can get back to addressing the needs of digital reality. The need for total immersion in real reality has been satiated for now.

The point is, well you know there's always a point... Anyway, We all need to step back away from whatever has our attention the majority of the time; be it the computer, the internet, a group of associates, a job, a religion, or anything that absorbs time like a sponge. Then take a deep breath and appreciate the little things we so often take for granted. No matter where you might be, there is beauty and peace of mind to be found if we disconnect, open our minds and hearts and let the best parts of real reality in.

How will you enjoy your day today?

Tune in tomorrow to read the daily mood quote

Thank you for reading

Daily Mood Quote - June 16, 2011

Daily Mood Quotes

Day 43 – June 16, 2011

Do you know the difference between education and experience? Education is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don't.  

~Pete Seeger

So, I watched the CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley on Tuesday, and the subject was the high unemployment rate among people over the age of 50. One gentleman said, he had an employer tell him, “You have the experience, the education, the knowledge and skills, if only you were 25 years younger.” Therefore the gentleman did not get the job. Can anyone say EEOC law suit? My husband who is over 50, just shook his head and said, “That's it for me.” This has been sticking in my craw ever since.

I wonder if employers understand that saving the nickel in salary can cost them dollars. The difference between youth and experience is a hard lesson that human resources personnel will have to face when inexperience creeps through the door, all shiny and new and kicks them in the backside. There will be more mistakes, less careful planning, more ticked-off customers... the list goes on and on. I'm not saying don't hire young people, but to overlook older, more experienced people can ultimately cost the company, as it pays the price of gaining experience. Those are statistical facts. We as a nation, have a misconception that younger is brighter, bigger is better and for some of us, that may be the case, but eventually there is a high price to pay. Lets face it, even in sports, where youth supposedly is golden, who would you want coming to bat for you in a tight game Derek Jeeter, (Paul Konerko for you White Sox fans), or some rookie that may have batted .350 in AAA ball? Yes, you need to hire youth and develop talent, but experience is what wins championships. Just ask Kurt Warner (then age 37 + ancient by NFL standards) who took a youthful Arizona Cardinals to the Super Bowl in 2009. After a series of rookie mistakes on both offense and defense, they were defeated by a very experienced Pittsburgh Steeler team. But, I digress into sports analogies, I apologize. The point is that experience is an ally, not a foe and many companies are suffering from a brain drain they may not be able to recover from.

In the movie Top Gun, Goose played by Anthony Edwards said to Tom Cruise (Maverick), “The defense department regrets to inform you that your sons are dead because they were stupid.” This is a classic example of the value of experience. So, when we turn away an experienced potential employee, because we think they are too old, we are turning away a valuable resource that could help our companies succeed on the business battlefields.

How will you view “experience” today?

Tune in tomorrow to read the daily mood quote

Thank you for reading