Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Honesty is Always the Best Policy

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

We’re all familiar with the saying that “honesty is the best policy.” Yet, it seems to be more of a theory to which we aspire rather than a behavior that we practice.

This is evident in the euphemisms we attach to the alternative. To call it lying offends people, even if it’s an apt word. Ministers of the British Parliament can be temporarily expelled from the House of Commons for calling another MP a liar. An apology, whether the accusation is appropriate or not, is required to be readmitted.

So, instead, of referring to lying as such and those who do it as liars, we call it “being economical with the truth,” or “telling a white lie” as if that made any difference, or “misspeaking” as Richard Blumenthal has admitted recently in his false claims about serving in Viet Nam.

What’s so remarkable about the Blumental incident is that it’s only since the dual Gulf commitments that fighting a war has become acceptable to American society. Before that, and especially during the Viet Nam era, participation in a foreign war was considered to be reprehensible, something one avoided at all costs, and if that wasn’t possible, then no one bragged about being involved in it.

Because so many different opinions are held, politicians have to become adept at compromise. But, this should never mean attempting to pass off lies as truth. We have to ask ourselves when, if ever, it is right to put expedience ahead of honesty.

As remarkable as it may seem, lying on everything from CVs to corporate accounts has become so rampant that companies are placing honesty at the top of the list of desirable characteristics of candidates.

For myself, I avoid lying as much as a can to the extent that various colleagues have told me over the years that I’m too honest. I don’t think you can be “too honest.” On the other hand, I don’t think we need to tell people everything we know. If, however, our behavior gives others an incorrect perception of ourselves such that we look better than we are, then I think we’re obligated to correct them. To fail to do so would be to lie implicitly.

I’m interested to hear what you think on this topic. It’s something that needs much more open discussion.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist
Author of Managing Value-Based Organizations (co-author Cary L Cooper)

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: Euphemism, Honesty, Richard Blumenthal, Vietnam War
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

The Right to Strike? A Misnomer

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

You’re probably aware that the High Court in the United Kingdom has overturned Unite’s plans for 20 days of strikes against British Airways in the coming weeks because of a technicality. Naturally, the union has cried, “Foul!” However, between the risk of no cabin crews and the infamous Icelandic volcano, flying in and around Europe has been difficult in recent months.

It’s been awhile since I heard the phrase “the right to strike,” and it got me thinking about just how much the workplace has changed. The fact is that this mantra is out of date. Workers no longer have the right to strike. Instead they the right to work or not work, and there’s a big difference between the two. If they don’t want to work, fair enough. If they’re ladies or gentlemen, then they’ll give the appropriate notice and leave. If they don’t care, they may just quit. There’s nothing to stop them.

But, why should a company continue to “employ” people who don’t want to work? It makes no sense at all. I’d go further. I’d say that those who expect to are suffering from delusions.

There must come a point when managers simply say, “If you want to work, that’s great. But, if you choose not to, that’s also fine. However, because it’s our company, we have the right to contract those who do want to work.” It seems perfectly reasonable to me.

What do you think?

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist
Author (co-author Cary L Cooper) of Managing Value-Based Organizations

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: British Airways, cabin crew, High Court, Strike action
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

My Latest Frustration w/Google

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

We’ve all experienced it. A company starts out with a great idea. We wonder why we didn’t think of it first. We embrace the company. Soon, everyone else does. At first the company seems to have our best interests at heart, but after awhile they start to behave as if they’re untouchable. Then they become the company we love to hate. This has happened with the oil companies, car manufacturers, and browsers, and now it’s happening to Google.

The beta version of Google’s keyword search tool (a.k.a. the Adword Tool) used to be the best free tool of its type on Web. It provided a place for each of us to find words that defined the solutions that people were looking for so that we could optimize our sites for them. It made our content better and enabled us to learn how the Web worked faster. But, a strategy or a tactic is only effective if a relatively small number of people are doing it. When it becomes mainstream, it no longer has much impact.

Then came Google Trends, a means to discover if the number of searches for a particular short- or long-tailed keyword was increasing or decreasing. This new capability was important because it lengthened the impact of these words. After all, why would anyone optimize for words that were become less popular?

Google’s latest incarnation of its keyword tool combines these two capabilities. At first, I could use the tool as I did with the original version. Just type in the words of interest and click Search. But, Google is beginning to behave as if no one can compete with them. Now when you type in your words of interest, you have only 30 seconds, if you’re lucky, to analyze the information. Then the page automatically redirects to another page where they hope you will bid on the Adwords.

And this is not an isolated instance. It happened to me every time I typed in a keyword. In fact, when I backspaced to change the text, that, too, triggered the redirection.

This latest change in their attitude to customers is the beginning of the end. At the moment, there seems to be little anyone can do about it, because there are no other search engines that are as big or as comprehensive. But someday soon, someone will appear and steal the march on them. It happened to Internet Explorer, and it will happen to Google, too.

Watch this space.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: AdWords, Google, Google Trends
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

When Timing is Everything

Monday, May 17th, 2010

You probably already know this. In humor, timing is everything. Deliver the punch line too soon, and you get to the end before the audience is ready. Get there too late, and the story loses momentum. The best comedians know how long to wait, and when to deliver the line that connects with the audience. Done correctly, and people burst out laughing, chortle quietly, or snort a bit.

Liam Byrne, the former Chief of the Treasury, of the late Labour government in Britain, could have done with some lessons in timing. Apparently he left David Laws, the newly appointed successor to this post in the Conservative-Liberal coalition, a short note that read, “I’m afraid to tell you that there’s no money left.” If the economy was booming, it might have been funny. But, given the fact that the unemployment in the United Kingdom is at its highest for 14 years and that the country now faces its largest deficit ever, his timing could not have been worse.

Unfortunately, this problem is not limited to government. Similar problems occur in the workplace everyday. What for many passes as ill-timed humor, instead reflects the overall lack of interpersonal communication skills. The problem seems to be, how to get this message across to the offenders.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: Britain, Conservative, David Laws, Labour, Liam Byrne, Liberal Party
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

What Are the Chances?

Saturday, May 15th, 2010

Have you ever noticed that the chances of something occurring are often about the same as those of them not occurring?

Take a show such as Deal, No Deal. Let’s suppose that the contestant is doing really well. The odds are one in four that he or she will win the top money that’s on the board. Guess what? The odds are the same the he or she will win the lowest money on the board. The clue is in the title of the game. What are the odds of a deal? One in two. What are the odds of no deal? One in two. Somehow, we fail to see that the odds of losing are just as high as the odds of winning.

An article in the online Times reminded me of the persistent belief that “our luck will change” when there’s absolutely no reason than it should, ever. Nevertheless, gamblers and journalists alike are fond of pointing the positive that might happen while ignoring the negative that might not.

A recent article is a good example. In the online Times for today, there is an article entitled, “Weather forecasters predict that we may be in for a sizzling summer.” If you don’t happen to live in the United Kingdom, then the significance of this piece will be lost on you.

The English weather is a phenomenon that many people love to hate. It must be said, however, that I’m the exception. In a “previous life,” I was a weatherman in East Anglia. I understand British weather better than most people; even the ones who live there. I even wrote a children’s book about it, alas unpublished.

Anyway, native Brits wait all year for summer to come which, for them, means predominantly sunny days for several weeks in July and August, and only the occasional thunderstorm to keep the dust down. Last year, the Met Office, which I have to say provides exemplary weather charts online, forecast a hot summer. It turned out to be anything but. So, naturally, they’re a little more coy about making such prognostications for this year. But, a canny journalist has wheedled it out of someone.

Despite the protestations that such long range forecasts are made solely for research and not for the general public, I can just about hear the sounds of people preparing to put their brollies away.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: East Anglia, Met Office, Thunderstorm, Weather, Weather forecasting
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

The Politics of Debt

Friday, May 14th, 2010

Americans are a curious lot. I can say that because I was born in the US, and lived there until I was in my 20s.

The nation seems to have a highly developed ability to get into debt, but very little skill in getting out of it.

Take the case of politicians. Those who are appointed by the president to serve in the cabinet are prohibited from raising funds to pay off their obligations, even if they were incurred as a result of their own failed attempt to reach high office.

Hillary Clinton is a case in point. She ran against Barack Obama and lost, but then she was appointed as Secretary of State. Her campaign for the Democratic nomination was expensive; so much so, that she still owes nearly $800K to Mark Penn, her former pollster and strategist. That’s a lot of money to you and me, but perhaps not quite so much as it seems when you realize that she has already paid his firm $24 million.

Enter Bill Clinton. For the second time since this year, he’s offering himself as the lottery prize in the ultimate raffle. A successful bidder could spend the day with him, and the “lucky” punters are all small-fries, the least well-off contributors on Hillary’s mailing list.

I suppose that I shouldn’t be too surprised that it’s the “little people” who are being asked to cough up. But, what really galls me is that Bill (or Weak Willy, as I think of him), who earned $31 million between 2001 and 2005 by giving speeches, doesn’t appear to be interested in working for it. Instead, he’s attempting to trade on his celebrity status.

I guess that’s politics for you.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Mark Penn, United States Secretary of State
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Airlines: Is History Repeating Itself?

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

I’m a frequent flier with Delta. Actually let me rephrase that. I have a lot of unredeemed miles.

Anyway, I just received one of their promotional emails asking me to sign up for one of their credit cards. Guess what I’m being offered as an incentive. From June 1st, I can check my first bag free!

Maybe I’m revealing my age, but I can remember when they were all free; well, two giant suitcases plus a carry-on. So what’s this stuff about getting a free bag? Someone up there either has selective amnesia or is under the age of 30.

For a minute there, I thought I was meeting myself coming the other way.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: Credit card, Delta, Frequent-flyer program
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Who Will Pay to Clean Up the Oil?

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

The Times reported this morning that Barack Obama intends to put a tax of 1% on oil companies for every barrel of oil, presumably that they take from the ground, though the article doesn’t actually say so specifically. It seems to me that it’s been sometime since Obama pumped anything into his own car, because he’s lost sight of who actually pays in the end.

Next thing you know, inflation will go up, because of the higher prices on gasoline/petrol, and we’ll be handed the bill not only for the tax but also for the higher interest interest rates that come with it.

Why not just fine the company for screwing up, and leave the rest of us out of it? It seems that the faces change on Capitol Hill, but the old lessons are never learned.

This is another fine mess you’ve gotten us into!

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: Barack Obama, Barrel, Times
Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

How Spammers Capture Your Email Address

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

Would you be surprised if I told you that spammers are getting sneakier? No? Well, why am I not surprised?

One company, calling itself Eyes on Nature Expeditions got my address from anyone of a thousand different places and is now sending me “opportunities” to spend my holidays in Africa. Their advert assures me that wherever I think I want to go, I’ll return there. Given the fact that I have no desire to go there in the first place, I doubt it.

But – getting off their mailing list is another story. To do that, they tell me, I have to go to their site and complete the Contact Us form. In your dreams, matey! I was born recently, but not yesterday. I guess the fact that they’re based in Kenya means that they aren’t too worried about the ICANN Act.

I hope that this post will remind you not to fall for the same line yourself. If Africa appeals to you, see your travel agent instead.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist

http://www.p-advantage.com

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Tags: ICANN, Kenya, Travel and Tourism
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

If the Lib Dems are stupid eno…

Tuesday, May 11th, 2010

If the Lib Dems are stupid enough to form a coalition with Labour, there will be another General Election before the end of the year.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »