Catch Me If You Can and BYU’s Common Thread

Tonight Brittany and I watched Catch Me if You Can with Tom Hanks and Leonardo Decaprio. Before watching it we decided to watch the bonus features. One of them interviewed the real Frank Abagnale. It then mentioned all the careers he portrayed…and one that’s not in the movie that really happened was that he was an assistant professor at BYU! Can you believe that? Of all places he went to Provo to be a teacher. I couldn’t believe it, so we Googled it and sure enough…it happened. I just wanted to share.

Check it out…http://nn.byu.edu/story.cfm/54787

Optimism

If you are anything like me you maybe sick of hearing about the healthcare debate, unemployment rates, and the latest political scandal. I get tired of hearing about these topics all the time, and they are all so pessimistic in their ideology.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t support the current healthcare bill, but I believe and have hope that there will be a better option for healthcare needs reforming.  I don’t like when people lose jobs, houses, and put stress on their family, but there is so much emphasis put on the UNEMPLOYMENT rate when the EMPLOYMENT rate is actually quite high…90% if you ask me that is still pretty high, one out of ten people doesn’t have a job, but nine do that is good, I think that it is good for Americans to feel a lower employment rate every once in a while so it reminds us of the blessing it is to work and be a part of this great country. Not to mention that higher unemployment increases competition and innovation making people better, stimulating growth, and forcing people to get higher education.

I am also hopeful of politics…is that an oxymoron? Just kidding…It is sad that over the years Americans are caught up in the “party” mess. Why can’t it be like the old days when the people voted in politicians because of the integrity they had and what they stood for? This is how the first six presidents were chosen. It would save millions of dollars spent in campaigning and political races that could be put to lowering the deficit and we could actually have stalwart political representatives really chosen by the people, rather than running candidates that are voted in. I am optimistic that great leaders will be chosen in the future that will lead the country well.

I could probably go on but I just had to get it out there…even though there is so much strife and adversity in the world there is still much to be grateful for and the be optimistic towards. The future is unknown but that is what makes it great.

Different Phase in Life

We are back in Rexburg after a wonderful time in San Diego. Life seems a little different for me this time, the last 4 years or so I have run my life on semesters, and counted down how many semesters until I graduated. Now I have graduated and today Brittany started school and loves her classes, but what was weird is that I didn’t have to go to classes, it was  little odd.

I am still involved with the University and business capstone students. I will be doing an internship with Epic Ventures/ Entreprenurial Center in Rexburg. I will be managing capstone students and researching different industries and opportunities for local entrepreneurs. I am excited for the experience I am glad I am where I am.

Life is great now, there is no better time to life for me, I have a lot ahead of me and family support. Keep updated. I may be asking for help on my research and on ideas.

Life is amazing and nobody cares…

You know the people I am talking about (Lets hope you’re not one of them!). They are the people that make sure that everyone knows that nothings satisfies them, nothing is good enough, nothing is cool enough. These type of people are very difficult to get along with, but I am always up for a challenge.

I decided to blog about this because I think everyone is familiar with the world’s leaps and bounds in technology and lifestyle improvements in the last couple of centuries or better even decades. Think about it many people before us didn’t have what we have and still enjoyed life and lived fine, they may have even been happier. Now think back to the person who complains about everything. They just don’t get it. Life has improved so much lately they act as if the are entitled to everything and that the world owes them big…for what? I think the best example of what I am talking about is this video. The guys puts it straight, it’s pretty funny too!

“The better life gets the more people complain.” I don’t get it do you? The more improvements made indicate conplaint levels rise. Shouldn’t we just be grateful for all we have in our life that make things better, easier, and more comfortable. My wife gets complaints all day from people that have tantrums that a wireless printer doesn’t do such and such…I thought to myself, “Okay you have no cords and you are printing a document how much do you want? The challenge is learnging ot work with these types of people, and of course we have to be grateful to them for giving incentives for new innovations, but please stop complaining…Everything is amazing…so care and be thankful!!!

You have to watch the video if you haven’t yet it’s worth it!!

So You’re Taking the Gmat?

Standardized tests. Some do well. Some don’t. Some hate them. Some don’t mind them. You probably fit or have fit in the past in one of these categories. For me I don’t mind them, and I do okay. The time is what gets me most. When I am in a decision making process in general I take my time to think it out, this is hard to do on the GMAT. So I have some tips that I have learned that will help me for sure and I hope they help you.

First of all MBA.com has great tips and they definitely want you to succeed so they give you free software to download. But these are tips that can help even the least prepared to at least confront the test with some confidence.

MATH Section

Strategies:

Question types- there are only so many question types, figure out what they are asking first.

Be creative- use diagrams, boxes, simple things to make it easy on you.

Don’t do math- even though it is math. The GMAT tests problem solving skills not math skills. Its all simple algebra, geometry and basic math. If it seems too hard you’re doing it wrong, if it seems to simple, you’re doing it wrong.

Plug fake numbers- keep them simple and plug them in try using at least one even and one odd. try 2 and 5.

Plug answers- they give you a head start by giving you 5 choices of the correct answer use it

GRAMMAR Section

Here are some of the issues they test you one, the main skills you need are Recognition and Application:

1. Completeness

2. Subject/verb agreement

3. parallelism

4. Modifiers

5. Pronouns

6. Verb tense

7. Comparisons

For sentence correction:

1. Read and notice

2. Scan for differences

3. Start with the easiest Issue and Eliminate

4. Keep doing the above steps

5. If you have to guess…majority of the time it is the shortest and most condensed version. Also remember not every sentence needs corrected.

Stay tuned for more to come.

Accountability and Holding Others Accountable…

Leadership and Self-deception, Arbringer Institute, and The Bonds That Set You Free all have something in common…C. Terry Warner the author and founder. A couple of months ago I had the opportunity to attend a conference with The BYU Management Society, and C. Terry Warner was the keynote speaker. It was an awesome experience. I had read his book Leadership and Self-deception and my wife had barely finished reading it so we were really excited to listen to what Mr. Warner had to say. He spoke on accountability, and this is some of what I got out of it.

If you are familiar with Warner’s books, they give a perspective that so many time we are wanting to blame others for our shortcomings when really  we are the ones creating the problem. Have you ever thought that we may be responsible for others’ irresponsibility? Because we don’t treat them as real people. Mr. Warner said, “To the immature, people aren’t real.

Responsibility, accountability, and holding others accountable are different. Responsiblity is proactively doing what needs to be done by the time it needs to be done. Accountability is answering for what you have done. “Hold others accountable” doesn’t exist. It doesn’t exist because that counteracts the very thing that accountability is trying to represent. You can try, but the more it happens the more resistance you will get. You can only help others be accountable.

This all came about because I read in the news that someone is going to “hold those accountable.” You can’t make someone answer for what they have or haven’t done, only help them realize it. By doing this your efforts will be 10 times more effective. The same concept applies to changing people, you can’t, you can only help that person change themselves.

Alcohol and caffeine…

So I read this article about the FDA targeting alcohol and caffeine drinks. Not individual alcohol and caffeine drinks, but together…alcohol/caffeine drinks. It doesn’t make sense. They want to take them off the market because they are mixed together and “unsafe” and well…I am confused, why are they so unsafe together but fine separately? I don’ get it. They both are dangerous to the body. Sometimes articles like this make me laugh. Well maybe I read them out of context, maybe I don’t…what’s your opinion? Check it out.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125816088527947933.html?mod=rss_Today%27s_Most_Popular

Hello WordPress

So a few months back I created a blog and started blogging…well…bloggED(past tense) twice, I just didn’t like bloggers set up so much. Anyway I have created another blog through WORDPRESS. I like it a lot. It is very user friendly and I like the professionalism of it. I had a rough time figuring it out but hey I got it.

I plan to post about business, self-improvement, leadership, healthcare, ethical issues, political topics, family topics…and whatever I feel like I guess. Stay posted…(no pun indended).