Hot Peppers

I had to link to this new artist site ... I hope you will all visit.

4000 Miles of Hope

Hope is a wonderful thing. In actual practice, it can range from a joyous certainty to a mere figment barely visible from the depths of despair. How do the 4000 miles fit in? I'm glad you asked ...

My son is riding in the PUSH America 2009 Journey of Hope this summer. I hope you will follow that link and read all about it. The bottom line is that he and 80 or so of his Pi Kappa Phi fraternity brothers are riding their bikes across the country this summer after they graduate. They are raising awareness (and money) for programs to help special-needs children experience hope in a new and more positive way.

My hope is that you will join him in this effort ... perhaps through prayer, perhaps through financial support, or maybe even by sponsoring the bike he will need to make the ride.

I have long been a supporter of cancer research programs such as the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure ... a race I have run each of the past five years. I am pleased to see my son take a similar path to helping others.

Folly Revealed

I have not posted much here lately, but I had to comment on this historical insight from The Wittenberg Door. As a teaser:

"[He] recommend[s] setting this to memory for use next time you encounter someone denying the law of non-contradiction—or for use next time you want to recite flowery, Islamic prose."

No News is Bad News

I've been too busy to post recently, but I ran across this article on Leadership Under Fire that I had to comment on. I've also added the blog, From Where I Sit, to my Frequent Flyer list. Mike Hyatt (CEO of Thomas Nelson) shares wisdom from the trenches and the corner office well worth pondering.

The specific point that caught my attention was his quote from General Moore that "When there's nothing wrong, there's nothing wrong ... except there's nothing wrong!". His point is that there is always something wrong, and if you don't know what it is, you had better find out. Quickly. This leads to my philosophy about status reporting:

Good news is no news (it's what we all expect of each other).

Bad news is good news (it gives us a chance to address a problem while it is still "new").

No news is bad news (when nobody is worried, everyone should worry).

Henry VIII as Project Sponsor?

Timothy at Carpe Factum has a great piece on project sponsorship. I've also added a link to his site which consistently brings high-brow humor to bear on difficult down-to-earth situations. Perhaps the latin for "Git 'er done" is the tip off.

Anyway, he cites five qualifications for a project sponsor, including the ability to clearly articulate the point of the project and the likelihood that he will be around as long as the project. But you really should read the whole post ... including a brief architectural history of Hampton Court.

Measurement

The whole idea that you can't manage what you don't measure is absurd. Among the faulty assumptions is the notion that anything important is precisely quantifiable. Furthermore, managing people as if they were mere multidimensional vectors of quantifiably measurable attributes is not likely to build trust and loyalty ... key components of long-term success. As Meg Ryan points out in You've Got Mail, "Whatever else anything is, it ought to start by being personal.

I stumbled across this article at Slow Leadership which expands upon these ideas. It also makes the point, very consistent with theory of constraints, that measuring everything is not the most effective way to improve anything. This looks like an interesting site.

"Heaven save us from the audit mentality that measures everything and knows the value of nothing. And from those who no longer believe in the power of rational argument and proof to convince others to do what is in the best interests of all."

Diversions

Even the liberals seem to mourn the dumbing down of American education. Who is this guy Aristophanes, anyway?

Enemy Theology?

In a previous post I discussed the habit of some to form camps of opposition that can barely bear the repetition of an "enemy's" name. One who has been the target of such, Douglas Wilson, has recently posted one of his typically cogent responses, reminding us of the dangers of blindly accepting charges, whether general or specific. With respect to specific charges, he reminds us to adhere carefully to the Biblical rules of evidence. With respect to the more general (he says 'paradigm'), we really should be like the Bereans ... willing to "search the Scriptures daily to see whether these things be true" rather than simply charging into battle against the enemy accused of having an "enemy" theology.

Inconvenient Reality

One of these things is not like the other ...