Hybrid Flow Control Method for Simple Hinged Flap High-Lift System
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

 

 

 Hybrid Flow Control Method for Simple Hinged Flap High-Lift System

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What's In It For Me?
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

Everest Base Camp April 2017

 

Many organizations boast that they have solid partnerships in place, but all too often they don’t achieve the potential everyone had hoped for. Why?  Typically it is because companies/employees approach their business relationships with a self-interested What’s-In-It-For-Me (WIIFMe) philosophy.

This is understandable because winning is ingrained in us from early childhood; in fact, many organizations formally train their procurement and sales professional teams in the art of negotiations to help them “win.

The hyper successful relationships we studied changed their perspective. They shifted from an us versus them to a we business philosophy.

This a What’s-In-It-For-We (WIIFWe) philosophy. This philosophy helps create mutual symbiotic relationships whereby, working together, the parties achieve game changing results unattainable by working as  “me.” Adopting a WIIFWe philosophy was the foundation.

Along the way, research leads us to theories about blondes, ponies,  and playing games—theories that, when applied, created the foundational framework for the businesses we studied to achieve transformational results.

Perhaps there is no better place to start than with the blonde who  changed economic thinking.

What game you play depends a great deal on how you see the world. Much like the optimist and the pessimist who view a glass differently, economists have shown that people view the world by the type of games they play. Some economists and mathematicians study the games people play and put them into two categories: zero-sum games and  non-zero-sum games.

Think about a French fry.  Do you remember those childhood feuds over the French fries or the scoop of ice cream that was far too little to share? If you are like us, our parents intervened and made us play nice. My sister always stole my French fries. I always perceived my Mom gave her more French fries. We always fought over French fries.

Yet, in a way, didn’t you and your sibling both feel as if you had lost? After all, you had to share the French fries or ice cream; you didn’t get it all. Sharing has come to mean you get less than what is optimal; you lost something you could have, or should have, had.

In a zero-sum game, there is always a winner and a loser. In order for winners to gain, they have to take something from the losers. Mom always gave me more when I complained. My sister never gave them up.

Many people view the world through this lens of scarcity. There is only so much ______ (fill in the blank: money, opportunity, innovations, etc.). If someone has a lot, it must be because they took it from someone else. There’s only so much pie in the world.

           

 When faced with that last French fry, why not simply look at the world through a lens of abundance. Instead of walking away thinking you have to sneak the last french fry or face Mom cutting portioning, why not respond with “Let’s go make more.”

Seeing the world through a lens where opportunities are not limited and everyone can win opens up an entirely new world to explore.

Economists call this approach a non-zero-sum game. In this case, parties work together to expand the pie, and the pie keeps expanding. Losers can be winners, as there is enough for everyone.

In this game, you might say that 1 plus 1 equals 5. No, this this isn’t fuzzy math; rather, it’s a different way of viewing the world. Yet, is it possible? Absolutely. And it’s the smart approach.

Parties working together bring their unique skills and resources to the relationship. Together, they can achieve more than by going alone—or against each other in a conventional transaction-based approach. They can figure out how to dominate market share, radically reduce cost structures, dazzle customers, or achieve astonishingly consistent quality levels that are more than 10 times what others are providing.

In business, some people you meet see the fries as small and restrictive, meaning that there really are winners and losers. They hunker down to fight over a share of the never-expanding food supply. They want to win at all costs, or at least win more than their fair share.

Yet others believe in an ever-expanding food supply and recruit others to help them cook more.

Unfortunately, far too many businesses and individuals are lulled into something in the middle. We think of this situation as a virtual table tennis match. These organizations say they want to create a win-win situation but think only of themselves. They say you are their strategic partner but keep asking for a lower price. And the minute there is a crisis, people revert back to their old ways.

A classic example is “gainsharing.” Gainsharing is when a supplier agrees to work to reduce costs—often involving investments or significant process or product improvements—for customers. In return, the supplier can “share” in the gains or savings—often as much as half the savings. Unfortunately, things fall apart when it comes time actually to write the check. You get the picture. These companies don’t “get” WIIFWe.

Using a WIIFWe mind-set will create a culture where your business partners can help you find your Pony.

Today’s business environment demands real collaboration. Working together means you must understanding winning…together.

By 1953, he was on his seventh expedition, this one led by Colonel John Hunt, as a Sherpa to conquer Mount Everest. When two members of the expedition, Tom Bourdillon and Charles Evans, failed to make it to the top, Hunt directed the next pair of climbers to conquer the summit. Edmund Hillary and the Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, who had changed his name from Namgyal Wangdi years before, started the climb. On May 29, 1953, both men stood atop Mount Everest.

Journalists clamored to know whose spiked boot was the first to reach a height never before obtained by any man. Both men maintained that they had ascended together. Colonel Hunt, the expedition leader, declared, “They reached it together, as a team.”

But was there really a winner? Did one man spike that first boot before another?

Only as the years passed did Norgay write that Hillary had stepped on top first and that he stepped up after him. Norgay later wrote, “If it is a shame to be the second man on Mount Everest, then I will have to live with this shame.”

The focus of Norgay, Hillary, and Colonel Hunt was on the team and the team’s accomplishments. In fact, Hillary never publicly admitted that they did not reach the summit in unison.

The simple fact is it did not matter who got there first. They both achieved something that had never been done. And both men knew they could not have done it without the other. Mutual success. Mutual reward.

Winning together.

How many times do we see the manure but fail to see the Pony? It all boils down to perspective: A perspective to see problems as opportunities.  A perspective to see the art of the possible when others cannot.

Of course, some problems are relatively small and can be dealt with without too much inconvenience. They are tolerable issues with easy fixes.

And then there are those big problems.

Most of us have names for our big problems: Impossible. Impractical. Let’s call them “wicked problems.” If you solve a wicked problem, you’ll make a lot of people very happy.

Microsoft and Accenture call the concept of the Pony “transformation initiatives.” McDonald’s recruits suppliers to help it achieve its “Plan to Win.” No matter what you call it, the Pony represents the potential to unlock value-creating opportunities when others cannot.

The most successful companies have learned to look at their customers and suppliers with a new perspective, a perspective that actively seeks business partners to turn tough problems into opportunities to create a powerful competitive advantage. If you are just looking for cheaper suppliers and not suppliers who drive your quality, you fail.

Find the Pony, create value; create value when other cannot, and you  have a real competitive advantage. Solve a wicked problem, and you may even be able to create a competitive advantage that has the power to  change the world.

           

 The road to hell is paved with good intentions: Intentions to cooperate;  to give-and-take in the relationship. Intentions to play nice.

Usually that works until business happens. Then temptation becomes too great, and one party takes advantage of the other. This temptation eventually gives way to conflict and mutual gains are sacrificed unless countervailing measures have been put into place. These temptations are referred to as transaction costs and are present in every decision, whether it is finding a photographer for your daughter’s wedding or a supplier for your company.

Do it wrong, and your costs go up. Do it wrong for a long time,  and no one will want to work for you.  You will lose quality talent and have sloths for employees. Companies can burn through so many suppliers that it had to work with some of the lowest quality suppliers in the business.

Given these transaction costs, we have a bigger question: How do  you approach and work with business partners and suppliers? Does  your approach impact their response and perhaps increase risk? Some may think it doesn’t matter.

It’s easy to write that everyone should play nice. But playing a game requires some basic knowledge of the rules. Not knowing the rules results in chaos. Ignoring the rules leads to frustration. Flouting the rules makes everyone want to quit the game and go home.

Vested is a great game to play. It shifts the focus from WIIFMe to WIIFWe. It has winners and some more winners. It looks for a Pony that  everyone can share.

It even has rules.

Following some of the rules will lead to some success. But it isn’t  total success.

Playing by all the rules is necessary to minimize the transaction costs associated with any agreement.

Want to play?

Just learn the rules.

           

Every game has a set of rules. Vested is no different.

Take, for instance, an old game, one universally played. Some historians suggest variants were played by the Egyptians and the Romans as early as 1 B.C. The first printed mention of the game came in 1864, when the game was referred to as nought and crosses. A game for two players working on a 3X3 grid, the goals is to get three Xs or Os in a row.

Tic-tac-toe.

The rules are easy. Players do not reinterpret the rules as the game progresses. And players have to follow all of the rules to play successfully. Partially following the rules won’t work.

Some people like to modify game rules. That may be socially acceptable if everyone playing knows the variations. However, many people don’t appreciate bending the rules, especially if the variations aren’t explained in advance. Does the word cheating come to mind?

Simply put, rules matter.

Vested follows five simple rules. They are simple to write and simple  to understand but at times hard to follow. Vested requires trust  and transparency.

Rule #1: Focus on Outcomes, Not Activities

“I studied for the test. I’ve never worked so hard for any class. Is there a curve?“ As academics, this is a question we have heard hundreds of times. Effort matters in kindergarten, especially when it comes to coloring within the lines, but after time, business boils down to getting results.

Unfortunately, we have come to link value to effort, not necessarily results. We brag about the time we spent on a project, regardless  of the results.

Focusing on outcomes shifts  or changes the conversation. It moves to measuring results, not effort.  In fact, our everyday conversations are all about outcomes. How did you  do on the test? How did the project turn out? Did the customer buy?  Did you conquer Mount Everest?

Rule #2: Focus on the What, Not the How

It was easy to tell there was a problem. An unexpected fall resulted in an arm bending where it normally doesn’t bend. It was painful. Although it is easy enough to know that you have a problem, most of us don’t have the expertise actually to fix it. For that you need a specialist—a doctor who will fix you up.

What most of us don’t do is tell the specialist how to do the job.

One of the greatest paradoxes in business is that we hire experts (suppliers and employees) to help us and then fall into the trap of telling them exactly how to do their job. Did you hire an expert, or a clone to do the job the same way it’s been done for years? Do you focus on hiring those with no experience and then not train them to do the job?

Hire the experts and challenge the status quo, expecting the experts to significantly improve processes and get better results.

Rule #3: Clearly Defined and Measurable Desired Outcomes

A Rolls-Royce in the driveway. A paid-off mortgage. A college degree.  A comfortable retirement. Never working on weekends.

What does success mean? How is it defined? For each person, it might be slightly different.

How do you define success? How do you know you are doing a good job?

Knowing how success is defined is a critical rule. It removes ambiguity; everyone knows what we are trying to accomplish (the desired outcomes) and how success will be measured. Everyone should spend time establishing explicit definitions for how the success of the relationship will be measured. Investing time up front in the process is critical to ensure that everyone focuses on achieving the right things.

Just like success, you don’t have to measure everything. There needs to be a means of having clearly defined and measurable desired outcomes, pointing the parties to the success.

Rule #4: Pricing Model and Incentives

A Case for Enlightened Self-Interest

What do a cup of coffee, a computer, and college tuition all have in common? They have a price that is relatively easy to find. Unfortunately, not all business is as simple as buying a cup of coffee; it’s not a transaction. Instead, business happens. Situations change over time. Needs change. Customer  expectations change. You have to show up. You have to be on time. You have to be with your customers.  If you are not there, your competition is.

For these and other reasons, companies should shift from a price to a pricing model — especially for more complex, strategic relationships.

You need to have a philosophy encourages business partners to work together to innovate. It has to be about winning. But the focus should be on winning together — not winning at the expense of your business partner.

Businesses need to have economics that reward the provider (teacher, physician, supplier, even employee) for delivering solutions, not just activities. When properly constructed, a a winning mind-set will incentivize everyone to work together to solve problems proactively. The more successful the relationship and the outcomes it produces, the more incentives (or profits) the companies (and employees!) can make. 

Second, a pricing model should balance risk and reward for all parties. After all, if your partner invests in solving your problem successfully — expanding the proverbial pie for you — shouldn’t they be entitled to a piece  of that pie? 

The bottom line is: the bottom line matters. And that means watching out for your partner’s bottom line as well as yours. Call it enlightened self-interest.

Rule #5: Insight versus Oversight Governance

Remember the day the baby came home? Numb with excitement  and fatigue, you carefully placed the child in the bassinet. You provide nourishment and clean diapers. Then clothes, cars, and prom dresses.  Add in concerts, plays, summer camps and allowances, and that baby grows into a beautiful young adult, ready to tackle life’s problems.

Babies takes nurturing, provided over time.

Relationships, like children, need tending. In many cases, contracts aren’t just signed, sealed, and delivered; they are signed, sealed, and then delivered, delivered, delivered, delivered, delivered. Because they are delivered over time, they have to be managed, or governed by the participants. Because of the time component, what you do today has a good chance of being different over time. Business is dynamic. Business happens. Relationships need mechanisms to deal with these changes.

Governance allows for open and honest feedback from all parties in the relationship. It provides the forum to make sure that everyone is winning. It is where we look to make sure that everyone is playing by the rules. It changes as the business (or life) change. Keeping teams from speaking to each other is a recipe for the blinder effect and loss business.

Trust, Transparency, and Transformation

In business relationships, people work together on a foundation of trust and transparency where there is mutual accountability for achieving the sought after desired outcomes. Through the careful alignment of desired outcomes and incentives, business partners give their best to each other. Together they bring the needed skills and resources to not just perform activities but to achieve transformational success.

To say that this represents a departure from traditional business practice seriously understates the case.

Microsoft and Accenture transformed back-office finance operations. The U.S. Department of Energy and KaiserHill transformed one of the world’s most polluted weapon sites to a wildlife preserve—65 years early and over $30 billion under budget. The State of Minnesota and Flatiron-Manson invented new ways to pour concrete in the winter—a Minnesota winter. The I35 bridge was rebuilt in record time and under budget. McDonalds has this figured out. Ask any male counterpart in business and they will say why they go to McDonalds to eat. “The food is always the same, I never have to worry that I get a bad meal.” It’s consistent in a good way.

“Do you see beauty in this bun?” was the question Ray Kroc posed to Mike Ward. Mike did. And as a result, Mike the Baker lived the American dream. And his love for hamburger buns helped him travel the world.

Perhaps one of the more notable McDonald’s store openings was in Moscow, Russia, on January 31, 1990. The line to get into the store was four miles long. People waited nearly 10 hours in subzero weather to get their first Big Mac. And Mike played a part in it. It was an experience that brought Mike to tears as he remembers the long line of customers.

Mike was called in because there was a problem with the buns. They  weren’t meeting McDonald’s high standard. Arriving at the store at three  in the morning, he realized that the bitter cold was impacting the yeast,  and the dough was not rising. The solution: warm up the pans used to hold  the dough. The buns rose, and the store opened on time. He forgot to plan for the cold weather and its effect on the yeast. Great leaders always think ahead and of all the downfalls that can happen. Being prepared saves money and your credibility.

They say a rising tide lifts all boats. The same could be said of rising hamburger buns. Mike and his company—Fresh Start Bakeries—have a vested interest in the success of McDonald’s. The more McDonald’s succeeds, the more Fresh Start Bakeries succeeds. And Mike has had fun along the way, helping McDonald’s perfect buns across the globe, including Brazil, Germany, Hong Kong, Sweden, Spain and New Zealand, just to  name a few. Mike’s 11-year-old math whiz grandson knows it even better,  at least at the time of our interview.

“Grandpa—you have been to 14 percent of countries in the world  making buns!”

And it is not the one you are thinking of. It is all about how McDonald’s treats its suppliers—suppliers who sometimes invest years and millions of their own dollars to improve McDonald’s products and processes, giving McDonald’s a huge competitive advantage in terms of a supply chain unparalleled in quality, safety, assured supply—and costs.

In the beginning, there were suppliers like J. R. Simplot, who perfected the frozen french fry and enabled McDonald’s to begin to serve fries made from the highest-quality russet potatoes year round. Or Golden State Foods, which developed the famous “special sauce” for the Big Mac. Or Jack Catt at Keystone Foods, who sunk millions of dollars in cryogenic freezing technologies to do what former McDonald’s CEO Fred Turner thought was impossible—create a frozen beef patty that “was quicker and easier to prepare and was as juicy and more tender than a fresh patty.  Cryogenically frozen beef made it possible for McDonald’s to simplify its beef supply chain radically from hundreds of local suppliers to five core strategic beef suppliers—enabling McDonald’s to reduce costs and increase its already unequivocal demand for quality and safety.

Today, the legendary stories continue

Together, McDonald’s, the franchise owner/operators, and their suppliers have created a System to be reckoned with.

It all starts with a three-legged stool. One leg represents the McDonald’s Corporation, another the owner/operators running the restaurants, and the third the suppliers. No leg is greater than the other, as that would make the stool unstable. Each leg in the stool needs to do well for everyone to prosper. The three-legged stool has come to be known as the System, and “System First” thinking is the common behavior demonstrated by those within the System. Leave your ego at the door and you will be “Lovin’it.”

This System leads to some behaviors that are hard to imagine in the “real world,” such as competing suppliers meeting and sharing ideas on how to improve the products they sell to McDonald’s. Or a company creating a new product and then teaching competitors how to make it—because it’s good for the System. Or suppliers meeting with McDonald’s to hear about its “Plan to Win” and then being asked for suggestions on how, together, the supplier and McDonald’s could accomplish these goals. Or doing business on a handshake, not a contract.

 

 

Focused. Obsessed. Maniacal. Fanatical. Possessed.

No matter what adjective you use, it probably doesn’t come close to the laser focus McDonald’s puts on quality. And one area this became evident was in delivering a safe—a very safe—hamburger.

McDonald’s knows that its suppliers are just as maniacal on quality and safety as it is. Suppliers such as Keystone Foods and Lopez Foods are proud—even boastful—of their ability to enable McDonald’s to have the world’s safest food supply chain. Ed Sanchez, CEO of Lopez Foods, openly shares a video highlighting the company’s hourly 100-point quality inspection process on McDonald’s website. Keystone opened its doors in 2009 for a USA Today tour to show how its beef is “safer than a school kid’s lunch.” The USA Today article found that McDonald’s tests its beef up to  10 times more than companies selling beef to school programs. When companies are not maniacal about quality, they lose.

And beef sold to schools exceeds normal USDA requirements for meat sold commercially through retail stores and restaurants.

The results? Over 60 million visitors eat under the Golden Arches  every day—uneventfully.

Although the Big Mac is not likely to change, much as changed behind the Golden Arches since Ray Kroc founded McDonald’s in 1955.

McDonald’s greatest impact on American business is in areas that consumers do not see. In their search for improvements, McDonald’s operations specialists moved back down the food and equipment supply chain. They invented the most efficient cooking equipment in the food service industry had seen. They pioneered new methods of food packaging and distribution. Indeed, no one has had more impact than McDonald’s in modernizing food processing and distribution in the past three decades.

But ask McDonald’s, and the company will tell you it didn’t do it alone. Success came with the entrepreneurship and leadership of McDonald’s suppliers and restaurant owner/operators. Suppliers and owner/ operators are key legs in the three-legged stool.

This is a radical approach for working with business partners— especially suppliers. Suppliers know they don’t just have a seat at the table; they are critical part of making the System work.

And this is a System to be reckoned with.

It starts with We.

It starts with being humble enough to recognize that “We” is more powerful than “Me.” It is a recognition that together you can achieve more than by going it alone. Sometimes you need a Sherpa to reach your highest potential.

It continues by seeking out like-minded individuals and organizations that can help you. Those individuals with the skills and insights to help you find a Pony, where others simply see a problem or pile of manure.

But most important, it requires a true commitment to play by the rules—to play in a credible and fair manner. Playing nice is hard.

Cheat once and you lose trust; cheat more than one and you are likely to lose altogether. In the 21st century business world, no one will want to play with you if you play like that.

Solving today’s wicked problems requires a different approach. Doing it alone leaves you alone. Today’s best suppliers are firing their bad customers and aligning with their best customers. The best customers are valuing their best suppliers, rewarding them with the opportunity for more business and greater profits.

Get the WE back into the your business, build strong relationships with your suppliers, get the sloths off the tree and replace them with caring, energized rabbits; and watch your business transform.

Mountain Leadership
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

Leading organizational change is like climbing a mountain. Transformational leaders must prepare to lead change, understand the process and nature of change, and provide the essential gear so that those involved can be successful. I will share a personal experience as a hiker and change leader to provide a guide for leading organizational change.

 

I recently took a holiday to climb Mt Everest to Base Camp. This was the most challenging hike I have ever done in my life. Last August, I did Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa and Mt Everest EBC is 30,000% harder.  I had to prepare myself for the hike of a lifetime prior to my Everest journey. This preparation was not just physical in nature, but mental in nature as well. How to keep yourself going when you no longer can?  Overcome this obstacle allows you to see the peak of a lifetime.

 

Mountain climbers are like transformational leaders, who must prepare to lead change, understand the process and nature of change, and provide the essential gear so that those involved can be successful.

 

With this thrill of climbing of the toughest mountains in the world, we studied a map of the trail to base camp. This map provided me and my team insights to being a change leader. This trail map certainly addresses the preparation, process, nature, and safety components of hiking Everest. This map can also be viewed as a guide for leading organizational change. Preparation is key. A smart and safe hiker is a prepared hiker. You must prepare for the worse when climbing Mt Everest.

 

Training is very important in preparing yourself for both hiking and organizational change. Hiking is a highly aerobic sport; it is not an activity for couch potatoes. To get in shape for a strenuous hike, I cross-trained—ran, bicycle, and work out on a stair-stepper, and ran the Princeton University stadium on weekends for hours.  We carried weights our backpacks while mowing our lawn, walking to get milk, go out for pizza, just to get in shape.

 

A leader also must get in shape to lead change in an organization.  Surviving and thriving in the face of constant change has much in common with sports. There are rules, training regimens, mental conditioning, and goal setting.  A leader prepares to lead change by understanding the change process, both personally and as it relates to members of the organization. Carry a good map and know how to use it. Having the right equipment and gear not only helps keep hikers safe, but also makes the hike more enjoyable. We have discovered through our experiences (some pleasant; some not so pleasant) that the following gear is essential: hiking boots, rain gear, multiple layers of clothing, backpack with hydration system, emergency gear and hat. To reach one’s destination safely and in a timely fashion, it also is necessary for the hiker to bring a compass and know how to use it. An organization’s compass includes its values and beliefs. The change leader knows how these two components impact the culture of an organization.

 

Most importantly, both hikers and change leaders must carry a map. Without better maps, it is extremely unlikely that organizational change efforts will ever sustain themselves.  An essential criterion for establishing and providing psychologically safe organizational environments is that the leader provides a map as to what needs to be done and how it is to be done. Let someone know beforehand your schedule and your route. Our team has embarked on many hikes where the park and/or forest service requires hikers to file their names before departing. Hikers should know and agree on their destination, the routes/trails they plan to take to reach it, and the estimated amount of time that they will be on the trail. This information is important for organizations, as well. Organizational leaders should not be deceived by thinking that small changes will be easy to implement.  In reality, the leader may have to work harder to gain less altitude. Helping others in developing a shared vision and in communicating that vision to others. Having a vision, and goals for reaching that vision, give meaning, challenge, motivation to your team.

 

Your team is critical to your success on the mountain and in business. The wrong team can be devastating results to your organization and on the mountain. A strong leader will honestly see the flaws in their team and course correct. The weak players on the team also must acknowledge their weakness. Without course correction, again devastating results in business and on the mountain.

 

It is critical to know your physical and mental limitations. How do you know what those are if you never push yourself to do more and train your brain to be self-aware.  Many hikers get themselves into trouble because of overestimating their physical/ mental preparedness or underestimating the demands of the hike. Though it is exhilarating to challenge oneself to climb a mountain that may have seemed impossible before, a balance of good common sense, a positive attitude, and some willingness to take acceptable risks seems to be the best approach. Organizations can abide by these lessons as well.  At work we can choose our attitude and have fun while we’re working. For employees who may fear their own potential, the change leader should challenge them to set higher expectations for themselves. If there is no goal setting and the status quo is acceptable, you have no growth. Your business fails, you do not get to summit.

 

 Leaders also must help others create new mental models to address new contexts in the organization. While collaboration can help everyone in reaching goals, peer pressure coupled with peer support is most effective.  The best transformational leader demonstrates competencies, including knowing his/her personal skills, believing in people, and remaining focused. Stay on the trail. Staying on track during the hike can become very discouraging at times. In steep or more treacherous stretches, the hiker may average only one mile per hour. Keeping a steady pace is better than wearing oneself out. Sometimes, we had to use our hands to pull us up from rock to rock or to help one another over a steep spot. This is true in a collaborative organization in which everyone supports the work of colleagues. Surprisingly, it is often easier to climb up a mountain than to go back down. Hiking down is a strain on the knees, and some places are so steep that it is safer to simply sit down and slide. Organizations, likewise, experience both ups and downs.  

 

A spiritual pilgrimage always brings peaks and valleys. . . . If you wall off the valleys, you close off the peaks as well. To divide our hikes into manageable chunks, we would take rest stops at key points along the trail. As organizational leaders, we should plan for these small “rest stops” along our change journey as well. Celebrating short-term wins confirms that our sacrifices in transforming an organization have been worth it.  As hikers we always follow the blazed trail to avoid becoming lost. There were two people in our group who constantly went off trail as we climbed EBC. This creates a danger for the entire team.  When a leader allows this behavior to flourish without course correction, the entire team suffers.  There may be personal short term reward for the person who went off track, but the team suffers in the end.  Leaders must take ownership of these behaviors and course correct immediately, when they don’t they need to be removed as leaders. 

 

We depend on the cairns to stay on the trail, and to measure the progress of our hike. It is the leader’s responsibility, in collaboration with others, to establish the goals that represent the cairns for organizations. Goals and the commitment that they generate  hold teams together. When teams are in sync they summit easily.

 

Today’s leaders must be systems thinkers who recognize the interdependence of everyone within the organization. By simply considering the elevation of a mountain in determining the difficulty of climbing it, a hiker can be deceived into thinking that a smaller mountain will be easier to scale. Climbing Mt. Washington (6,288 feet) was much more difficult than climbing Mt. Mitchell (6,684 feet), because of its 4,000-foot altitude gain within a little more than four miles. Knowing the vertical rise of the mountain gives the hiker a better idea of how difficult the ascent will be. Approaching resistance to change is similar to encountering the vertical rise of mountains. Organizational leaders should not be deceived by thinking that small changes will be easy to implement.  Mt Kilimanjaro is 19,5000 feet at its summit. Mt Everest at EBC is 18,700 feet. Yet, Mt Everest was significantly more difficult. In reality,  the leader may have to work harder to gain less altitude. Trail builders construct switchbacks along the trail due to the actual vertical rise of a mountain. A hiker may be tempted to take shortcuts to avoid yet another switchback. This digression, however, can get the hiker into trouble, because of the shortcut’s steepness and uneven footing. When organizations take shortcuts during transformation, they also can get into trouble. Leaders may be tempted to implement the latest innovation or “flavor of the month” without taking the time to gather and analyze the organization’s data. Not using data to monitor results can be calamitous. By using data to “stay on the trail,” organizations can document incremental improvement, no matter how small.

 

The cumulative impact of many small improvements is thus dramatic.  A leader is someone you choose to follow to a place that you wouldn’t go by yourself. We followed our guide to EBC even though we knew the road would be difficult to travel.

 

Organizational leaders also may have participants that are reluctant. The participants come at all skill levels to EBC (Everest Base Camp)  It is the responsibility of the transformational leader to provide the motivation and support for everyone along the journey. Leaders must “keep the level of distress within a tolerable range for doing adaptive work.  Nature (Climate and the View) is just one thing that keeps you motivated during a difficult trek. I especially appreciate the beautiful natural settings and shoot many photos while hiking.

 

Success depends upon how effectively we select, define, and measure progress and how well we adjust effort toward goals. If a hiker misses a trail marker (blaze or cairn), he or she undoubtedly will have to retrace steps. This costs both time and energy. Likewise, organizations must establish manageable goals, keep their eyes fixed on the goals, and measure progress toward them to avoid wasting time and becoming sidetracked.

 

Trailblazers often have constructed bridges to help hikers cross swiftly moving parts of a stream. Using bridge building as a metaphor in organizations purported that leaders build bridges . . . bridges built of hope and ideas and opportunities . . . bridges that help us move from where we are to where we need to be. Sometimes hikers must use moss-covered rocks as stepping-stones to reach the other side of fast-moving mountain streams. This risk-taking can be both exhilarating and dangerous. There are several dozen cable bridges on the EBC trail that with the addition of a 40mph become quite treacherous.  As a team, you must always help the entire team across the challenge.  Similarly, do we as leaders support risk-taking in our organizations?  

Creating an environment supportive of teacher Taking time to study the little things—a wildflower, a fern, or a mushroom—affords us an opportunity to rest. The multitude of vegetation demonstrates the interdependent nature of a forest: “one form of plant life, regardless of what it is, helps set the stage for another and then another. In likening this interdependence in nature to that in organizations, the key to this who-cares-where it-starts approach is the realization that once true self-direction begins, it usually becomes pervasive within the operation. Today’s leaders must be systems thinkers who recognize the interdependence of everyone within the organization. Self-reference is what facilitates orderly change in turbulent environments. In human organizations, a clear sense of identity of the values, traditions, aspirations, competencies, and culture that guide the operation provide] a reference point for change. If a culture that sets broad parameters for everyone’s work is created, these guidelines will ensure that the organization’s values are found at every level.

 

Just as ferns are fractal, replicating a dominant pattern at several smaller levels of scale, the best organizations also have a fractal quality. An observer of such an organization can tell what the organization’s values . . . are by watching anyone . . . The power of guiding principles or values . . . are strong enough influencers of behavior to shape every employee into a desired representative of the organization.

 

Though we appreciate the aesthetic beauty of mushrooms, we do eat them. Therefore, we are not tempted to determine whether or not the mushrooms we find on our hikes are poisonous. Mushrooms are constructed out of the interpretations and the resultant behaviors that each person gives to the actions and events in a change process. People look for ways to make sense of and to explain what is happening to them and around them. Successful change facilitators are adept at anticipating the growth of mushrooms, detecting the difference between the positive and negative (poisonous) ones, and taking the necessary actions to nurture or eradicate them. Do not cross a stream unless you are sure you can make it.

 

Risk-taking and innovation will often require a large change in the culture of a company. Encouraging the growth of trust is an important leadership function as organizations encounter treacherous streams and other obstacles to improvement. Trust helps enormously in creating a shared objective. This sense that crossing streams can be considered either an opportunity or a danger also can be compared to how we face challenges in our organizations. By correctly anticipating what is going to happen, a person is able to ready himself or herself in the best way possible. This sense of preparedness is fundamental to securing dynamic balance.  Can we create missions strong enough for our organizations to adapt to change?

 

Streams can teach us about organizations. Streams have an impressive ability to adapt, to shift the configurations to let the power balance move, to create new structures.  The forms change, but the mission remains clear. On a particularly hot day of hiking, I can’t resist the urge to shed my hiking boots to cool off in one of these beautiful mountain streams. Change leaders, therefore, must make accountability less threatening. Rather than stepping back fearfully from data collection and analysis, organizations should welcome this as evidence of improvement. Wrongly used, data have a chilling effect. However, data used to help rather than punish, can energize everyone in an organization to be more accountable.

 

The summit is the vision . . . keep it in mind as you prepare for and make the ascent. Leaders have to . . . keep their eyes focused on the summit and their minds concentrated on getting there.  Keeping our eyes on the top has been difficult when we have climbed mountains that were thickly forested all the way to the summit. There have been other mountain summits that have greeted us with rain and fog. Imagine, hiking for hours, knowing that you were at the summit because of finding an Army Corps of Engineers marker, but not getting a well-earned view of the valley below. Both mountain climbers and transformational leaders also are obliged to prepare to lead change, understand the process and nature of change, and provide the essential gear and support for those involved to be successful.

 

Mountain climbers and change leaders ought to remain hopeful when faced with disappointment. Remaining hopeful and taking action in the face of important lost causes . . . may be less emotionally draining than being in a permanent state of despair.  When we finally reach a mountain summit, my look forward to a special ritual. We perch at the top, enjoy the view, take numerous photographs, and eat jelly beans. Since we generally do not have many sweets at home, the candy bar ritual is not only a special treat, but also a well-deserved one. Members of organizations also deserve “jelly beans” when they achieve improvement goals. More than ever, we need to revive ritual and ceremony as the spiritual fuel we need to energize and put more life back into our companies.  Storms can arise quickly. During one of the first hikes that I had convinced my friends to try, we got caught in a tremendous thunderstorm. The trail that we had used to ascend turned into a raging stream as we descended. Stories are powerful ways of communicating values, reinforcing norms, and celebrating cultural accomplishments.

 

Weather predictions, of course, are not always accurate. Beautiful, wispy cirrus clouds can give way to thunder clouds very quickly.  Clouds themselves are self-organizing.  We are capable of similar transformations when we trust. When team do not communicate, or blocked from communicating, they cannot win.  Trust is critical in getting to the summit in business and the mountain. New thoughts and ideas are spectacular examples of strange and unpredictable systems, structured in ways we never imagined possible.  Similar to meteorologists’ errors, we cannot always predict the outcome of our organizational change efforts. Leaders should remember that change resistors, like thunder clouds, may make us uncomfortable, but they are not always bad. By empathizing with all organizational members, leaders find a way to reconcile positive and negative emotion in order to release energy for change.  The seasoned hiker must be ready for any type of weather, from warm breezes to beating sun to thunder clouds. Likewise, leaders must demonstrate their own climate preparedness. Effective administrators are sources of both light and heat.  Safety, If you get lost, stay calm and do not leave the trail.. Fear of the unknown is common in both mountain hiking and organizational change. Unreasonable fear, however, can become a barrier to a successful hike and to an effective organizational change effort.

 

It is as likely for organizations to lose their way as it is for hikers to lose theirs. Remaining calm is an important skill under these circumstances. All successful organizations experience ‘implementation dips’ as they move forward. The implementation dip is literally a dip in performance and confidence as one encounters an innovation that requires new skills and new understandings. Leaders who understand the implementation dip know that people are experiencing two kinds of problems when they are in the dip—the social-psychological fear of change, and the lack of technical know-how or skills to make the change work. But, technical know how will not get you to the summit. If you lack the basic skills to climb or the basic skills to perform your job in an organization, no amount of training will ever get your team to the summit.  Sometimes leaders must acknowledge that their team lacks basic skills and start from square one. If they do not, organizations will waste money training people that lack basic skills to navigate to the summit.

 

Effective leaders don’t panic when things go wrong in the early stages of a major change initiative. It is not so much that they take their time, but rather that they know it takes time for things to gel.  There are moments when both hikers and organizational leaders, however, confront barriers that legitimately cause them anxiety.  The best way to avoid bears is not to attract them. Although we have occasionally spotted bears at a distance, we luckily have not encountered one on the trail. It is especially prudent not to startle a bear. Therefore, we try to make warning noises (loud talking; “bear” bells) as we near a curve in the trail or approach a stream. Even with all of our precautions, we undoubtedly will come face to face with a bear at some time. Experts seem to disagree about the best way to safely manage a situation with a bear. It appears that different species of bears, brown or black, are best handled in different ways. Some would say that the best approach for a brown bear is to appear nonthreatening and to avoid eye contact. Others claim that one should try to look large and imposing for black bears. The dilemma for hikers is to make a split second decision about which of the bear types they are facing and how to react properly. Organizational leaders, too, often are faced with “bears” or other dangers. At these times, they should be prepared to confront these problems as if they were black bears. When the danger signal is triggered, leaders should be ready to diagnose what needs to be done to protect or regain the nimble status, and build plans to focus on the precise elements that need attention.  Consciously competent leaders guide their organizations to be successful in competitive environments and “highly unstable conditions”.

 

Transformational leaders also are obliged to prepare to lead change, understand the process and nature of change, and provide the essential gear and support for those who want to make the summit.

 

Mountaineering is like business leadership because:

 

1. It’s a highly personal experience.

 

Leading a business or leading a rope team are pretty similar in that they are very personal experiences. Although there are countless training and development programs devoted to both business and mountaineering, there’s no cookbook way to develop a ‘nose’ for leading successfully in either realm.

In general, you need two things: 1) the desire, and 2) the experience. Having the desire ensures you can sustain yourself long enough to acquire the experience. This makes them interdependent and equally valuable leadership characteristics dependent largely upon integrating experiential learning strategies into your daily activities. I mean, really, did you learn how to tie your own shoes because someone walked you through a 50 slide PowerPoint presentation? I don’t think so. If it’s a power point bonanza you have planned, no need to invite the mountain climber to that.

 

 

 

2. Success can depend on superior planning, or just pure luck.

 

Like successful business leaders, successful mountaineers are usually good planners. For mountaineers, planning efforts largely concentrate on reducing the variables in the few aspects of their endeavors over which they have the most control such as physical fitness, equipment, and knowledge of the terrain, routes, weather, and a host of other details.

Superior planning ensures that when objective dangers such as weather or unexpectedly difficult terrain interfere with your Plan A, you have a good Plan B in your back pocket just in case. In business, it’s easy to become a ‘one trick pony’ so your Plan B should be a diversification strategy to make sure that you can meet the needs of a variety of clients, with a variety of products, to weather the inevitable economic storms that also strike unexpectedly.  

Luck can also play a deciding role in the success or failure of a business pursuit or mountain expedition, although many successful mountaineers and business leaders probably would agree with Henry Ford who said, “the harder I work, the luckier I get”.

 

3. You have to park your ego at the door.

 

Like business, most mountaineering endeavors rely for safety and success on the strength of a team of like-minded people. It is possible to succeed in both business and mountaineering on your own but typically you must rely on others to help you get to where you want to go while minimizing the risk.

In risk mitigation, confronting the naked truth is important in both disciplines for two main reasons: 1) It helps you be clear about your strengths and weaknesses so you can move forward with that knowledge, and 2) it helps build a strong culture of trust within the team. The only way to successfully confront the truth is to park your ego at the door, embrace reality and engage with the challenges you will no doubt face using a continuous improvement orientation. 

For example, I once tried to climb Mt. Robson, but failed. At almost 14,000 feet Mt. Robson is the highest mountain in the Canadian Rockies and because of that, and the degree of technical challenge and weather variables involved, it is summited less frequently than Mt. Everest. Approximately 90% of those who try to climb it are unsuccessful. Nevertheless, on this occasion my partner and I made it to within sight of the summit, ascending to almost 13,000 feet, before being turned back by a storm that forced us to retreat to our tent and stay there for more than a day.

What did I learn from this failure?

I will have to climb faster to beat the storms that inevitably strike the mountain later in the afternoon. To do that I need to increase my fitness levels and improve my technical skills, which calls for more work with various climbing partners on increasingly tougher mountains. Resting on past accomplishments or more easily won laurels will clearly not suffice. I have no doubt that, one day, I will return and when I do I will be stronger, more competent, and therefore more likely to succeed safely.

 

 So then, how is mountaineering not like business leadership? 

 

1. There are a lot of highly accomplished, dirt poor climbers.

 

A wise professional guide once said to me, “Do you know how to make a small fortune in the mountain guiding business? Start with a large one.” Although some mountaineering is conducted with a profit margin in mind, like most sports, most people don’t pursue this sport for the money. 

As a result, most mountaineers (like me) go into the mountains for purely recreational purposes. Consequently, most mountaineering activity has no customers, no suppliers, no balance sheet and few imperatives other than seeking to achieve various personal and small group goals related to either summiting this mountain or shredding that couloir (translation: a gun barrel-like vertical ice gully perched on the side of a mountain). 

There are those who would argue that the planning and delivery of a big expedition is a ‘business like’ activity, and I would agree to a certain extent. However, the core business of business is profit, and the sport of mountaineering – usually – is not.

 

2.  Most people think you’re nuts.

 

Virtually 100% of the population come into contact with various types of businesses on a daily basis. This makes many people familiar with the business world, and some status and respect is automatically extended to those who lead successful businesses. However, 99% of the population never has, and never will, be mountaineers. In fact, most people will spend much of their lives going out of their way to make their lives as safe and predictable as possible, a pursuit which can lead some of them to the brink of various phobias. Consequently, their impressions of mountaineering tend to be shaped by the latest scary movie that comes out about climbing, which is usually about a disaster on Mt. Everest, or some other remote and inaccessible peak that most mountaineers will never attempt. There is a level of respect that other climbers have for you once you make the summit to Mt Everest EBC.  It’s life changing.

When you tell people that you like to climb mountains, they usually assume that you are going to die a horrible death. Sadly, your enthusiastic descriptions of beautiful natural surroundings and honest, hard, physical effort rewarded with enriching comradeship and inspiring moments tend to fall upon deafened ears. Simply put, although they don’t say it out loud, most people just think you’re nuts.

 

3. Sometimes, acrophobes are good to have around.

 

Are you afraid of heights but know how to make a spreadsheet ‘sing’? You’re hired! 

Despite the sport branching out in recent years to include a much more diverse range of participants (like myself!), the classic paradigm of the mountaineer still largely rings true: Caucasian, male, under 40 years old, perched on the edge of a precipice, and ridiculously fit. This stereotype, while attractive in many ways, hardly typifies the wide range of skills and competencies of those required to run any modern business which, suitably enough, tends to transcend physical fitness, race, gender, ethnicity, educational and experiential boundaries. 

And in this there is something I particularly enjoy about both mountaineering and business: it’s counterintuitive.

 

The most successful people get to summit because of their mindset. Supreme athletes possess a state of mind that is above-and-beyond that of the normal person who talk about success and yet never chase it with any kind of conviction.

The way they battle through setbacks. How they approach challenges. How willing they are to go the extra mile. Their ability to set goals, make a plan, and stick to it. These are the things that merge to form the mindset of an elite athlete.

Here are 10 ways that the mindset of an elite mountain climbing athlete differs from that of an average person/employee:

1.   Elites athletes look to improve at practice, while average people/employees do the bare minimum to get it over with.

Does this mean that elite athletes don’t rue early mornings? That they love it when coach writes up 10x400m IM best average on the whiteboard?

No.

But they use those early mornings and those tough sets as opportunities to get better, to become better individuals. For others, it’s punishment, a chore, simply something to be endured.

2. You have to risk it to win it, average employees stay in their comfort zone.

There is no guarantee of success. Ever.

Even for Michael Phelps, arguably the most gifted swimmer of our lifetime, he still had to work hard to get to where he was, and even then, there were times where he still wasn’t the fastest swimmer in the pool.

Knowing this isn’t a deterrent for an elite athlete. But it is for the other guy/gal.

 

3. Elite athletes will do extra, average employees will do simply what is required.

For those who aren’t as talented, or aren’t as physically gifted as the top athlete your talent must become hard work and tenacity. And this means doing extra.

Going beyond what is asked. They understand that exceptional results only happen with exceptional effort.

For your average employee, they will do the bare minimum and still expect out-sized results. Sometimes they will get lucky and be successful despite their laziness, but organizations lose with these types of players on their teams.

4. Elites have goals, average employees have wishes.

They have the big, shiny goals. Just like everybody else. But more importantly, they have benchmarks and mini-goals that they set for themselves along the way in order to keep themselves focused over the course of a long season of training.

Other average employees make wishes, and think to themselves how nice it would be to accomplish them, if only they had the time or energy to do so. Hope is not a strategy.

5. Elites are accountable to themselves, average employees make excuses.

The elites in the sport know that at the end of the day they only have themselves to blame if they come up short. And because they are willing to accept responsibility for their actions, both the good and the bad, they own their performances.

Average employees look everywhere else but the mirror when things don’t go well. It’s the competition’s fault. It’s their bosses fault. It’s the management’s fault. It’s never their fault.

6. Elites work through setbacks, average employees give up the moment things aren’t going their way and dump their work on elites.

An elites season can be long. The grind is vicious, and it is unforgiving. Through it you will experience setbacks and failures. Some large, some small, some under your control, some not.

Elites accept this as part of the process, simply things to be overcome.  Average employees view them as proof that they aren’t going to succeed, that difficult means impossible. They do not even try.

8. Elites prioritize their training and preparation, average employees hope it comes together for them.

Yes, for most training is hard. Really hard.

But it’s where those best times, records and gold medals are carefully sculpted and developed. Elites understand the importance of their training, and rank it accordingly within the priorities of their life.

The average employee, on the other hand, cruises through training, loves the inconsistent way of life they have adapted, doing half the work, and then expecting to be able to perform at a high level when it comes to crunch time.

9. Elites focus on steadily improving, average employees expect big success to happen overnight with no effort.

There is a special type of patience and faith that elites have with the process of becoming great.

They know that the result they want is built slowly. They understand it takes time, it takes patience, and to believe and know that their efforts will pay off down the line.

The average employee to see a violent and rash improvement after a couple solid efforts, and is irreparably disheartened when it doesn’t happen. Their ability to make an effort is not a quality they can sustain.

10. Elites contribute to a culture of winning, average employees expect the culture to only work for them.

Being successful on the mountain is a lot of fun. Seeing your hard work pay off is rewarding. And when you have a group of hikers who are all interested in seeing the group succeed, support each other in practice and keep each other accountable to the goals of the team, you are going to end up getting to the summit.

The average employee, on the other hand, solely expects the team to support him or her. They show up to work, complain about the company, grumble about the tasks they need to do, and create a type of cancer within the team that diminishes the team’s chances for success.

So, advice for people in leadership positions, hire the mountain climber.  They won’t give up and know how to navigate the worse terrain.  They have planned for the worse and won’t whine when things do bad. They actually get laser focused in an atmosphere of complete chaos. They are planners and will always come to you with an idea to correct a bad situation vs whining about an issue.

Hiring the average employee will get you average results or worse, horrific results. Hiring the couch potato to guide you up Mt Everest is a recipe for failure.

Would you ever have a team of couch potatoes to get you up Mt Everest?

Would you knowingly hire someone to get you Mt Everest who never lead a team?

Would you purposely allow your fellow trekkers to go rouge and ignore the rest of the team?

As a leader do you believe it’s your responsibility to ensure the safety of the entire team, even the weak trekkers?

No one is going to hold your hand to get to the summit of Mt Everest EBC. It takes pure guts, high mental acuity, physical strength and pure determination to get there. The grind is vicious, and it is unforgiving. Through it you will experience setbacks and failures. Some large, some small, some under your control, some not. Mountain climbers accept this as part of the process, simply things to be overcome.  They have a passion to win, to get to the summit every day. 

 

 

Poverty in China
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

 

POVERTY IN CHINA

 

 

 

 

 

 

While there’s no doubt that China’s economic rise has improved the lives of a billion people, who aren’t going to jump up and down and shake the world for it (it’s a myth anyway – they wouldn’t have the slightest effect on the passage of the earth). There are still an awful lot of people with very little money available to them here in China.

 

In fact according to estimates from the United Nations there are around 300 million people living below the internationally defined line of absolute poverty. That’s $1.25 a day to you and me and works out at just over $450 a year.

 

The Chinese government disagrees and it uses a different measure to calculate absolute poverty in China. It says that people need a minimum salary of 1,200 RMB a year to live on, and that’s only $190 a year. And they say there are “only” 200 million people surviving on this amount in the country.

 

Either way you look at it; there are a lot of people in China surviving on very little money. It’s roughly equivalent to every single person in the United States living on less than $500 a year. So if you think money’s tight for you, you might give a moment of thanks that you aren’t living in rural China.

 

 

 

 

But which measure is fairest for calculating real poverty? There’s no simple answer to this question, mainly because it comes down to speculation about the costs of living that people face and what other resources they can access instead of (or as well as) actual money.

 

There’s no doubt that if you have no occupation then the Chinese government number would be hopelessly optimistic, someone in Niger (which is experiencing famine and drought at the moment) with less than $1.25 a day would be facing very bleak prospects in the short-term and quite possibly would die of starvation if an aid agency wasn’t able to intervene.

 

But the situation in China is different in most parts of the country, from Niger, in that these very poor people are farmers. And farmers can eat the food they grow. The UN figure allows that the $1.25 includes the necessary income to buy food, as the Chinese farmer can eat the food he or she grows – they may well not need as much money to meet their essential needs.

 

It’s fair to say that the quality of life of someone who makes 100 RMB a month (roughly $16/17) isn’t going to be the greatest. And for these people it ensures a cycle of poverty that is almost impossible to escape – there’s no free education in China, if you want your child to go to school – you have to pay for it. (This is changing and at least one province has now offered free basic schooling to its hukou holding citizens).

 

Without education the chances of you breaking away from your farming lifestyle are almost zero, particularly as China already has a surplus of bright young things with degrees and no jobs to go to. It’s even difficult to secure a basic factory working position because illiteracy will block you from most employers hiring criteria.

 

Now there are people out there that believe if you just “work hard enough” (they never actually specify how hard this should be) you can make a better life and even become rich. These people really don’t know what they’re talking about. Social mobility comes at a price and if you can’t even pay the most basic of entry fees – that of education, you simply cannot advance.

 

It should be noted that the United States and the United Kingdom are among the nations with the lowest levels of social mobility in the world too – if you’re born poor in these countries, the odds are nearly certain that that’s the way you will  finish life. There’s a reason that occasionally a major success story is reported in all the major media outlets – it’s because it’s an exception to a rule, a freak set of circumstances that enables someone to escape poverty and embrace success. And it’s no accident that this usually comes through musical talent or sporting success – because the corporate world is closed to people from poor backgrounds even in the West.

 

So how much lower are your chances of success if all you have to invest each month is $16? One of the biggest challenges facing China’s economy over the coming years is how to raise the living standards of 300 million people.

 

Low-cost paper-based skin patch monitors dehydration by changing color from sweat
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

 

 

Low-cost paper-based skin patch monitors dehydration by changing color from sweat

 

 

 

 

 

Researchers have developed a low-cost skin patch that changes color to indicate different levels of hydration, representing a potential new medical technology.

 

Such an innovation might be used by marathon runners, military personnel and others to help prevent dehydration.

 

“Hydration in humans is a delicate parameter,” said Babak Ziaie, a professor of biomedical engineering and electrical and computer engineering at Purdue University. “Even small deviations such as 2 percent from normal levels can affect a person’s cognitive and physical performance by more than 30 percent.”

 

The palm-size patch consists of filter paper that is laser-machined to create a radial array of strips, which are laminated with a water-impermeable film to form microchannels. The channels are loaded with a water-activated dye at one end. As sweat secretion increases, the strips are activated sequentially, changing from blue to red and providing easily identifiable levels of moisture loss.

 

 

“We have talked to many experts including marathon directors, the Ironman World Championship, Olympic triathlon athletes and many collegiate and professional coaches, athletes, race directors and EMTs to validate the need for this kind of product,” said graduate student Vaibhav Jain. “Also, two industrial companies have shown interest in our technology, and we are in talks with them.”

 

Conventional methods for monitoring hydration are either invasive, require non-portable equipment or do not yield results immediately. 

 

“In comparison, our approach is a fast, user-friendly dermal patch for collecting and measuring sweat secretion," Ziaie said. “And our fabrication process could be scaled up to large-volume manufacturing.”

 

The patch was tested at a sweating rate of 90 microliters per hour over a square centimeter of skin, which corresponds to normal human sweat rates.

 

The researchers have filed a patent application for the concept through the Office of Technology Commercialization of the Purdue Research Foundation.

 

Funding for this work was provided in part by the National Science Foundation. The research is based at the Birck Nanotechnology Center in Purdue’s Discovery Park.

 

During the MicroTAS conference, Jain was awarded a Ninth Annual Art in Science Award, sponsored by National Institute of Standards and Technology and Lab on a Chip magazine. The paper was co-authored by Jain; postdoctoral research associate Manuel Ochoa; and Ziaie.

Visit a World of Tall Tales in ‘Big Fish, The Musical’ at MCCC’s Kelsey Theatre March 31 to April 9
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

 

 Visit a World of Tall Tales in ‘Big Fish, The Musical’ at MCCC’s Kelsey Theatre March 31 to April 9

 

 

 

Join the circus, catch a giant fish, meet a witch, and fall in love! Adventure awaits as Playful Theatre Productions presents “Big Fish, The Musical” at Mercer County Community College’s (MCCC’s) Kelsey Theatre. Dates and show times are: Fridays, March 31 and Apr. 7 at 8 p.m.; Saturdays, April 1 and 8 at 8 p.m.; and Sundays, April 2 and 9 at 2 p.m.

Kelsey Theatre is located on MCCC’s West Windsor Campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road. A reception with the cast and crew follows the opening night performance on March 31.

“Big Fish” is based on the 2003 Tim Burton movie and the novel by Daniel Wallace, with music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa. The plot focuses on the relationship between traveling salesman Edward Bloom and his son, Will. Edward’s larger-than-life stories have always thrilled everyone around him – except his skeptical son. Now that Will is getting married and expecting a child of his own, he would like to know the real story behind his father’s adventures. And, there is much for Will to learn – including the possibility that seeing life through his father’s eyes makes the world a more wondrous place. (This show replaces the previously scheduled “Wonderland.”)

The cast features Jill Bradshaw of Mt. Laurel as Jenny Hill; Teddy Brendel of Cranbury as younger Will Bloom; Vianna Fagel of Lambertville as Josephine Bloom; Jennifer Fischer of Hamilton as the Witch; Carter Fregia of Langhorne, Pa., as Will’s son; Michael Gearty of Langhorne, Pa., as Amos Calloway; Laurie Gougher of Newtown, Pa., as older Sandra Bloom; William Kamps of Burlington as Will Bloom; Christina Kosyla of Lawrenceville as Sandra Bloom; Sally Page-Sohor of Manalapan as older Jenny Hill; Jeffrey Scharf of Yardley, Pa., as Dr. Bennett; Michael Scibilia of Levittown, Pa., as Edward Bloom; Avelyn Simons of Princeton as Zacky Price; Christopher Singh of Hightstown as Don Price; Aidan Stallworth-Glitz of Hamilton as Karl, The Giant; and William Walters of Columbus as older Edward Bloom.

Ensemble members include Kaitlyn Anthony of Bordentown, Rachel Benoit of Yardville, John Boccanfuso of Yardville, Sarah Cohn of Yardley, Pa., Justin Derry of Langhorne, Pa., Elizabeth Ferrara of West Windsor, Lucy Fisher of Fleming, Tara Genco of Langhorne, Pa., Anna Mikoski of Princeton, Emily O’Sullivan of Hamilton, Kelsey Rivera of Perth Amboy, Liam Smith of Yardley, Pa., and Laura Young of Levittown, Pa.

The production team is led by Director Frank Ferrara and Musical Directors Shannon Ferrara and Mike Gilch, along with Stage Managers Ruth Kresge and Nancy Scharf, Producer Hilary Leboff, Choreographer Dominick Sannelli, and Producer Suzanne Smith. Lighting design is by Starr McCloud and set design is by Bryan Schendlinger.
Tickets for “Big Fish, The Musical” are $20 for adults, $18for seniors, and $16 for students.  Tickets are available at www.kelseytheatre.net or by calling the Kelsey Theatre Box Office at 609-570-3333. Kelsey Theatre is wheelchair accessible, with free parking available next to the theater.  

Sensor in Patch Monitors Baby Temperature
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

 Sensor in Patch Monitors Baby Temperature

 

 

 

Trenton Campus Gallery to Present ‘Schools for the Colored’ by Award-Winning Photographer Wendel White April 6-May 4 Opening Reception and Artist’s Talk April 12, 5 to 8 p.m.

 

 

 

MCCC’s Trenton Campus Gallery to Present ‘Schools for the Colored’

by Award-Winning Photographer Wendel White

April 6-May 4
Opening Reception

Artist’s Talk April 12, 5 to 8 p.m.

 

 

 

Trenton, N.J. – Mercer County Community College (MCCC) announces the opening of “Schools for the Colored,” a photography exhibit by Wendel White, at the college’s James Kerney Campus (JKC) Gallery in Trenton. The show runs from Thursday, April 6 through Thursday, May 4. The Gallery at the James Kerney Campus is located in the Trenton Hall Annex at 137 North Broad Street across from the James Kerney Building.

Under the direction of Michael Chovan-Dalton, who coordinates the Photography and Digital Arts programs at MCCC, the Gallery will host an Artist’s Talk and Opening Reception Wednesday, April 12, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., which coincides with the ribbon cutting for the new building earlier in the day. White's talk is expected to begin at 5:45 pm.

Gallery hours for this show are Mondays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Tuesdays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to noon, and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturdays, noon to 5 p.m.

The exhibit by White, a highly acclaimed, award-winning photographer, originated with his “Small Towns, Black Lives” project. According to White, the project began as a modest attempt to depict daily events and activities in a small, historically African American community near the southernmost tip of New Jersey.

Now, 15 years after the first project, “Schools for the Colored” integrates black and white images with digital media to depict the racially segregated school buildings and landscapes that existed in the northern “free” states. White’s method of obscuring the landscapes in the images adds a photographic “veil” that correlates to historian and activist W.E.B. DuBois’ explanation of an early schooling experience. “I was different from the others; of like, mayhap, in heart and life and longing, but shut out from their world by a vast veil,” DuBois observed on his writings.

Wendel White was born in Newark and grew up in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. His work can be found in museum and corporate collections such as the New Jersey State Museum; The Museum of Fine Art in Houston, Texas; Johnson and Johnson in New Brunswick, and the Paul R. Jones Collection of African American Art at both the University of Delaware and The University of Alabama. White has served on the board of directors for the Society for Photographic Education and as board chair for the New Jersey Council for the Humanities. He is currently Distinguished Professor of Art at The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey.

More information about The Gallery at the James Kerney Campus is available at www.mccc.edu/jkcgallery.

America’s improbable pillow king
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

 

America’s improbable pillow king

 

 

 

 Mike Lindell was an insomniac with a crack cocaine addiction when the idea for “the world’s best pillow” came to him in a dream, said writer Josh Dean. Last year, his sales hit $280 million.

 

 

As so many great entrepreneurial success stories do, the tale of Mike Lindell begins in a crack house. It was the fall of 2008, and the then-47-year-old divorced father of four from the Minneapolis suburbs had run out of crack, again. He had been up for either 14 or 19 days, trying to save his struggling startup and making regular trips into the city to visit his dealer, Ty. This time, Lindell arrived at Ty’s apartment and received a shock instead: The dealer refused his business. Ty wasn’t going to sell him any more crack until he ended his binge. He’d also called the two other dealers Lindell used and ordered them to do the same.

 

Many people would be ashamed by this story. Lindell tells it all the time. “I was like, ‘Wow, drug dealers care!’” he says. The moment wasn’t the end of his drug abuse, which started in his 20s when he owned bars and stretched through the early years of MyPillow, the Chaska, Minn., company he founded in 2005 to fulfill his dream of making “the world’s best pillow.” It was, however, his low point. It was when he vowed to get better.

 

The story is impossible to confirm; Ty isn’t reachable for comment. But it’s become part of Lindell’s legend.

 

Eight-plus years later, Lindell is sober and phenomenally successful. He quit everything—alcohol, powdered cocaine, and crack—after one final party on Jan. 16, 2009, and presides over an empire that’s still growing precipitously. Last year he opened a second factory, saw sales rise from $115 million to $280 million, and almost tripled his workforce, to 1,500. To date he’s sold more than 26 million pillows at $45 and up, a huge number of them directly to consumers who call and order by phone after seeing or hearing one of his inescapable TV and radio ads.

 

On this day in early November, he’s just back from a week in New York, spent celebrating the election of Donald Trump. He’s spent the morning catching up on business with various employees who cycle in and out.

 

“This is my head of IT, Jennifer Pauly,” Lindell says, as a young woman pops in. “She’s a good example of me taking my employees and knowing their skills. I have a housepainter in charge of all my maintenance at the factory. Jennifer is self-taught. Did you ever go to school for IT?”

 

“I took some Microsoft classes, but that’s basically it,” she says. “I knew how to run a spreadsheet, and that’s why he trusted me with data.”

 

Lindell laughs loudly. He wears two discreet hearing aids, but everyone says he’s been boisterous forever. “God’s given me a gift to be able to put people in the right position, where their strengths are!” he says.

 

Next, Heather Lueth, Lindell’s oldest daughter, the company’s graphic designer, comes in to talk about the latest email campaigns. MyPillow is, someone at the company told me, more a family forest than a family tree. Lindell’s brother Corey, who invested at one of MyPillow’s lowest points, is now the second-largest shareholder. His job: doing essentially whatever. Today he’s fixing a grandfather clock.

 

Larry Kating, director of manufacturing, calls from the new factory in nearby Shakopee to discuss whether or not to make 30,000 pillows for Costco that the store hasn’t asked for yet. Lindell’s vote: Go for it! “You’re always juggling stuff like that,” he says. He’s an unusual manager, governing largely on instinct and by making seemingly wild gambles that he swears are divinely inspired. “We don’t use PowerPoints,” he says. “I end up getting stuff in prayer.”

 

The pillow came to him in a dream. This was 2003. Lindell owned a pair of successful bars outside Minneapolis and enjoyed the lifestyle a bit too much. He was, he says, a “very functional drug user” with four kids and a nice house. He helped with homework, took the family on vacation, and was a decent father and husband, other than the fact that he used cocaine.

 

Throughout his life he’d sought the perfect pillow. He never slept well, and things kept happening to worsen the problem. He got sciatica. He was in a bad car accident. He nearly died while skydiving, after nearly dying while motorcycling on his way to skydiving. He got addicted to cocaine.

 

When he did sleep, it was fitful. “That’s one of the problems with cocaine,” he says, seemingly without irony. One morning, after he woke—or maybe he was still up, he can’t recall—he sat at the kitchen table and wrote “MyPillow” over and over until he’d sketched the rough logo for a product that didn’t exist. When his daughter Lizzie came through and saw him maniacally scribbling the same words over and over like Jack Nicholson in The Shining, she asked what he was doing.

 

“I’m going to invent the best pillow the world has ever seen!” he exclaimed. “It’s going to be called MyPillow!”

 

The only way Lindell was ever happy with a pillow was when he found a way to, in his words, “micro-adjust” an existing one. It would typically be foam; he’d yank and pull the filling apart to break up the inside, then arrange and pile up the torn foam like a mouse building a nest, until it was the right height for his neck. Then he’d sleep. By morning, it would be all messed up again.

 

When Lindell imagined his perfect pillow, it was micro-adjustable but would keep its shape all night. He bought every variety of foam and then asked his two sons to sit on the deck of the house with him and tear the foam into different-size pieces that they’d stuff into prototypes for testing. Day after day they did this, until Lindell settled on a mix of three sizes of foam—a pebble, a dime, and a quarter, roughly. When he stuffed just the right amount of that mixture into a case and shmushed it around to the shape he wanted, it held that shape. It was perfect.

 

Lindell believed this pillow “would change lives.” He made 300 and went in search of buyers, stopping at every big-box retailer in the area. “I said, ‘I have the best pillow ever made. How many would you like?’” You can imagine how that went.

 

When someone suggested he try a mall kiosk, Lindell borrowed $12,000 to rent one for six weeks, starting in the middle of November 2004. He sold his first pillow the first day and it was, he says, “the most amazing feeling.” But he’d priced the product too low. His cost was more than the retail price. Plus, his pillow was too big for standard pillowcases.

 

The kiosk failed. He borrowed more money against the house, and also from friends who weren’t sick of him yet. When desperate, he counted cards at the blackjack table to pay for materials. Eventually, all the casinos within a day’s drive banned him.

 

The day after he closed the kiosk, he got a call from one of the few customers, who declared, “This pillow changed my life!” This enthusiastic buyer ran the Minneapolis Home + Garden Show, one of the largest for home products in the country. He wanted Lindell to have a booth.

 

Lindell took 300 pillows (this time they were a standard size) and sold them all. He also got himself invited to take a spot at the Minnesota State Fair and sold well. This was a revelation. There were dozens of home-and-garden shows around the country and countless more fairs. “Those are your testing grounds,” he says. A product that works at the fair works, period.

 

For the next few years, this is basically how the company operated. Lindell and a few key salespeople drove around in trucks stuffed full of pillows to sell at fairs. They were all effective, but no one’s pitch—sermon was more like it—moved the merch like Lindell’s.

 

He didn’t give up the drugs. His habit continued, his 20-year marriage broke up, and he lost his house, because he was constantly borrowing money to pay his suppliers. He was barreling toward that moment with Ty, the dealer. Finally, he had one last blowout and quit cold turkey. “I knew if I waited one more day, it would be over,” he says.

 

Lindell knew the best way to sell his pillow was to present his story live, as he’d been doing at shows since 2005. He decided to make an infomercial. His friends thought he was nuts.

 

The spot opened with Lindell, in a satiny blue button-down that’s now his trademark garment, saying, “Don’t change that channel, because the next half hour is going to change your life.” He just ad-libbed, saying, for instance, that down pillows were “the worst thing that ever happened to America” and that MyPillow was so malleable that “you can fold it up into little balloon animals.”

 

The half-hour infomercial aired for the first time on Oct. 7, 2011, at 3 a.m. on the East Coast. The business “went straight up,” Lindell says. He hired everyone he could find—literally off barstools sometimes—and put them to work answering phones or sewing on machines that he stuffed into every corner of a local bus garage lent to him by a friend. In six months, he grew from 50 to 500 employees and sold almost $100 million in pillows.

 

But Lindell never bothered to figure out his indirect costs. He didn’t really even know what those were. Checks were flying off his desk, more and more of them to pay for the infomercial spots, with no way to know which ones were working and which were just wasted money. He was losing $250,000 a week.

 

What saved the entrepreneur was FedEx. It hadn’t occurred to him to negotiate shipping rates; he just paid retail with a bunch of different shippers. A company rep came in, asked about his costs, and offered him a rate so low he couldn’t believe it. “Wow,” Lindell said. “You can do this?” Overnight, a red number turned black.

 

Walking through the factory, Lindell shows off his newest products: a dog bed and a mattress topper. Then he points out a section of the building where returns are handled. Fewer than 3 percent of MyPillow buyers return products, he says, and “less than 1/20th of 1 percent of those return a product twice.” Lindell obsesses over customer satisfaction. If a customer is on hold for more than a few minutes, he gets an alert on his phone. He expects customer emails to be answered within minutes, and if a queue builds up, he gets an alert about that, too. He often handles hundreds of minutes of calls per month himself.

 

For years, MyPillow was advertised as the cure for almost every sleep problem as well as many health ailments. Ads boasted that using one could alleviate fibromyalgia, joint pain, and restless leg syndrome, as well as promote delta sleep, the most restorative phase of the sleep cycle. Early last fall, Lindell settled with 10 California district attorneys who sued MyPillow for false advertising, arguing that these claims had no scientific backing. The company denied any wrongdoing but agreed to pay $1 million to settle and to remove those claims from any advertising in California.

 

The California suit was briefly embarrassing but seems to have had no lingering effects. It certainly hasn’t hurt sales or Lindell’s enthusiasm. The new factory could run faster and soon will, he says. MyPillow could push production up to more than 85,000 pillows a day. To get there, he says, all he needs to do is buy more media. He says that what he calls the “tsunami”—the next boom in sales, the one that will lead to $1 billion—started last fall. The election was just another harbinger.

 

Two women who did merchandising for the Trump campaign have stopped by for a tour and have been tailing our group. They seem in awe of the scale and efficiency here, from an essentially flat and somewhat chaotic-seeming organization ruled by a single outlandish man.

 

What’s the largest sales month you’ve ever had? one asks.

 

“MyPillow is always the biggest we’ve ever been on the day you’re standing here,” Lindell replies.

 

 

Smart Shoes
Topic: COMMUNITY INTEREST

 

 

SMART SHOES