Ordinary People: Extraordinary Outcomes!

As the excitement of the Obama inauguration wanes, it causes me to reflect on the miraculous series of events that led to his presidency and how extraordinary an accomplishment this is for all of us. I am amazed at his humility but understand that it’s that humility that will force us to a reckoning of our own greatness. It is easy for us to elevate him to “super human or messianic “ status because it forgives us and frees us up to go back to the hum drum of our lives without the tremendous responsibility that we have undertaken.

If we proclaim that Obama is an extraordinary man, it means that he is different from any one of us and is blessed with a special set of talents and traits that would allow him to rise above us all. We in effect are saying that, we, are not as worthy of having such responsibilities because we are “not as blessed” or “not the chosen” as he is. I beg to differ with this line if thinking.
I think that Obama is able to maintain his humility because he understands that he is an ordinary man that has accomplished extraordinary things. He truly has a special set of talents but so do each and every one of us and every day we are given the opportunity to use those skill sets to accomplish extraordinary things. We got him into this mess and now is our opportunity to share the responsibility and do our part to make this nation great.

In his inauguration speech he remoinded us that it is the people that ultimately make the change. he has provided the leadership that has enabled us to garner the hope that allows us to see his VISION. Now that we se the vision we have to start moving toward it. We cannot abandon him and go back to the monotony of everyday life. We have to fuel the revolution and move toward what we have seen.

The poem, Our Greatest Fear, comes to mid because the beginning line is …”Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, but that we are powerful beyond measure.” For if we are truly powerful beyond measure we have a responsibility and an obligation to live up to that potential. What a tremendous burden to carry, to feel responsible for fulfilling your maximum potential. This means that every day of your life must be lived to the fullest and that you have a responsibility to things that are greater than you.

Imagine waking everyday knowing that you are the symbol of HOPE for the entire world, you are the epitome and role model for African American males and that you must lead the way to the new America. What a tremendous burden this must be that in your every waking moment you stand as a tribute to a many other things leaving yourself last.

I think it’s only fair that having helped him to saddle that burden, we carry some of that burden ourselves. Let’s pick up the burden of being an emissary of the principles that Obama holds dear. Let us carry ourselves as world citizens, responsible not only to our country but to our fellow man. Lets live the ideal that we will do what we need to, to make a new America, a reality. Together we can do this..Yes we can, “ with our eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us!

Motivating a ME Generation

With the emergence of the internet generation into the workplace, employers are being bombarded with individuals that are accustomed to rapid results. If you are still in doubt, just think of any pondering question and then time how long it takes you to get the answer on Google. This will be the average time span and unfortunately attention span of your internet generation employee. They will want to their day to flow at that speed and yes, their paycheck increments as well. How do we keep them engaged in the workplace?

Employers have to look at different management styles and strategies to get these workers to "be all they can be". Some employers will say that they are lazy or unmotivated but the truth is that they have spent a lifetime getting quick results and the hum drum of the typical workplace will be excruciatingly painful! They will not be willing to wait years for retirements and promotions to find their way in life and the short term plan will rule the day.

One thing that is evident of these workers is that they value their free time and will be less willing to put in those long days and overtime hours at the office. I think that in this facet lies our opportunity. Just like the internet we have to start looking at the office as a replication of the internet. The net is virtual and so our offices will follow suit. This means that the workplace will be guided by timelines and not time clocks.

The office will be project driven and everyone will therefore be assigned tasks and set about completing them. Teams will communicate by webcam and Voice over technology. This way, you can be at the beach and your 10 am meeting at the same time. You can hit the gym at 8 am and complete that report at 12 midnight when you work best. This is the reality of the 21st Century workforce and employers had better start adjusting or they will fail.

We as employers have to figure out ways to constantly capitalize on the new workforce’s creativity and their passion for new and changing technology. This of course will be a monumental challenge but if we can incorporate the technological skills of the young with the managerial and implementation skills that years of experience bring we will have a workforce second to none. Just my two cents. Where’s yours?