Giving and Service

It is every man's obligation to put back into the world at least the equivalent of what he takes out of it. - Einstein

As I read this quote, I thought of the term Service. If we all followed Mr. Einstein's advice (or admonition), the world would be a much better place. It reminds me of the current struggle in the economy, with all the failures in the market, and the reasons behind those failures. It seems to me that service and giving back have taken a back seat to making more money at any cost. This ties in nicely to many of the gratitude pieces I've read over the years. If we continue to give more than we get, we'll actually increase what we get. It certainly seems we would all be better off if this advice was followed.

21st century skills?

If you've read anything about education the past few years, you will certainly have come across a plethora of writing espousing the importance of 21st century skills. Jay Mathews, an education writer for the Washington Post, feels the hype given this topic is overwhelming the truly important changes that need to be made. In his article, Mathews argues that "This is the all-at-once syndrome . . . (saying) changes must be made all at once, or else." Another point he makes is that kids struggling with reading, writing, and math are going to struggle with 21st century skills. Using 21st century methods to teach may make sense, however, the focus should be on making sure all students have those fundamental skills. 

Education and jobs

Another reason to stay in school and get more education:

A newspaper article I read today told of the growing number of bachelor-degreed persons experiencing unemployment (over 3% now.) However, the overall national rate was 6.7% and for those without a high school diploma, the rate was 10.5%. I always tell students (adults, as well) that education opens doors and provides opportunities. In times of economic distress, I would say this is even more true. 

Achieving goals

I ran across some advice from an e-newsletter I get on achieving New Year's goals, and thought I would summarize it. Of course, New Year's seems to be the time for a lot of people to come up with resolutions for the year, but these steps are helpful any time a person sets a goal. Hopefully, these tips can help you not become one of the estimated 90% who do not keep their New Year's resolutions. 

1. Set the right goals - set goals you are enthusiastic about accomplishing. 

2. Set priorities - don't set a ton of goals, one or two big goals is sufficient. If you have more, put them in order, then work on the higher priorities before moving on to others.

3. Focus - don't allow minor tasks or distractions to get in the way of accomplishing your goals. 

4. Put in the time - many goals can be accomplished if you simply put in the time. Plan time to work on your goals.

5. Chunk it - just like the answer to the question, "how do you eat an elephant?" is "one bite at a time," goals can be more easily accomplished if they are chunked into smaller tasks. 

6. No Excuses - work on the important things - those related to your goals. 

Hopefully these tips will help you toward accomplishing the goals you set this New Year as well as throughout the year. 

Hide & Seek

I got this image in an e-mail - the perils of being a surveyor in Alaska. Not quite the exercise I will be looking to do for a New Year's resolution.