September 16, 2024

The sky is probably not falling

From Volume 14, Issue 8:The sky is probably not falling.
(I’ll probably rock some boats with this month’s missive!) Back in the 1950s, New Jersey school children practiced air-raid drills in case of an atomic attack—Huddle beneath the window on the east side of the building!—because New York City was in that direction and that’s where the bomb would probably be dropped. Today’s media scare tactics have nothing on what boomers went through.

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When care turns to worry

From Volume 14, Issue 1:In my work over the past 20 years or so, I’ve paid a lot of attention to “employee engagement.” Not side-stepping the profession of companies and software tools that quantify that, I’ve looked more at whether or not an employee cares about his environment (the company and its goals, the people around him, those who supervise him, and who he supervises, etc.).

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Would Worry Help?

From Volume 10, Issue 2:In the movie, Bridge of Spies, lawyer James Donavan (played by Tom Hanks) is astonished when his client, Rudolf Abel, an accused Soviet spy (played by Mark Rylance) remains calm while facing the death penalty in the United States.

Abel repeats: “Would it help?” three times during the movie, all while facing incredible psychological pressure. In addition to the death penalty scene, Donavon asks: “Do you never worry?” when Abel admits that he’s not an American citizen, and might not be a Soviet citizen either. Again, the same response: “Would it help?” The third time it happens is when the prisoner exchange is about to occur and Donavan asks: “Are you not worried that your own people might shoot you?” Again, he responds: “Would it help?”

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