NETWORKING FUN FOR THE INTROVERTED: The Applause Meter

Networking Fun for the Introverted with Wendy Kovitz

In the few short months that I've been active on Twitter I've seen some momentous Trending Topics like the Iran Election and Michael Jackson's death. Everyone had something to say and the system was often too crowded to get on to say it. Yet we persisted, feeling empowered to see ourselves as part of the bigger picture as history plays out before our eyes 24/7.

Ice Cream and "The 40-Year-Old Virgin"
For at least a day, "Ben & Jerry's" and "Hubby Hubby" made it onto Twitter's Trending Topics as the ice cream formerly known as "Chubby Hubby" was renamed in support of marriage equality. LGBT/Equality rights enthusiasts ate up the positive message. A few short days later,

"a new and not-so-subtle bit of gay bashing came in the form of the hashtag #uknowhowiknowurgay which immediately hit the top Trending Topic spot with commentary that ranged from the bizarre to the truly homophobic."- from "Twitter and Censorship"

Quickly, the LGBT community and its supporters countered with numerous Tweets of #Yaygay. That was until Twitter removed both hashtags from the Trending Topics as a type of censorship to keep the peace. All Tweets are still in cyberspace, but Twitter just isn't broadcasting their popularity.

There are many, many opportunities to be offended while using Twitter. It could just as easily be a Trending Topic on Blacks, Jews, Latinos, Catholics... Recently I caught Whoopie Goldberg on BBC's "Hardtalk" talking about use of the "n" word. Her opinion was "it's a word." Use it if you want, whether you're white or black, but "be prepared to face the consequences." Twitter, of all the forms of social media, is not for the faint of heart, but it begs the question of what, where, when, how and why we censor things.

Political Death to the Czars
Let me begin this by saying that I am not a political pundit, nor do I think most of the political pundits out there are qualified to spin life to suit their agendas. We're all human. We're all bombarded with facts, half-truths, lies and fantastical gibberish and have to make some sort of personal sense out of it. That's why G-d gave us brains and chutzpah. When we can get them to work in tandem, we're unstoppable. Otherwise...

It appears that the Left and Right have been cyber-slugging it out a lot lately about health care reform and President Obama's speech to our country's children. Both sides have been getting down to grass-roots campaigns to flood Washington with their political objectives. What I found most interesting was the allegation that one-by-one the Right wants to scrutinize each and every Czar appointed by President Obama, as in the case of Van Jones, and work towards supplying the muck needed to force them to resign or worse. At first look I was completely flabbergasted. If someone gets through the President's selection process, let the man or woman do their job without the constant backlash of disgruntled opponents who are working to slow down progress.
But there's never just a first look for me.

In Adam's last article "Understanding the Networking Revolution" he enumerates disciplines that are important to the understanding of social networking. Thanks to a recent Google alert, I came across Andrew Lehman's blog: The Evolving Now and I've been following his thoughts on physics and biology and how they apply to social media. Here are two quotes from "Speed"

"a powerful feature of this identity shift is one where the commons becomes highly valued and contribution to the community is revered... The communities of our youth are far more than the few people in a local tribe. Hundreds, if not thousands, of self-selected individuals, folks connected to massive self-selected networks of their own, are coming together."

“As the speed of information increases, the tendency is for politics to move away from representation and delegation of constituents toward immediate involvement of the entire community in the central acts of decision.” (Marshall McLuhan, Understanding Media, 1964, p. 152)

Can McLuhan's Tetrad apply to how we view democracy?

• Enhancement: What the medium amplifies or intensifies.
• Obsolescence: What the medium drives out of prominence.
• Retrieval: What the medium recovers which was previously lost.
  
• Reversal: What the medium does when pushed to its limits.

What if technology is really making it possible for every voice to count? On every decision? Could we as a people be moving that much closer to a true democracy where the sheer numbers define the course of the country at every given juncture? Is that empowering or terrifying? Maybe a little of both? What are your thoughts?

Thanks for stopping by,
Wendy Kovitz
http://www.Twitter.com/wlkovitz
http://BookOfAra.blogspot.com

But wait! There's More...

Homeless and Tech Savvy?
This article is from InsideTech.com and talks about how job loss can affect any of us, and how one woman got around the subsequent loss of address to become a success story.

“Homeless people don’t use the Internet, they don’t write blogs, they’re not webmasters and they don’t use Twitter. They are alcoholics, they are substance abusers, they are illiterate. They don’t work. They sure as hell don’t have the right to fall in love. Do they?” - Matthew Barnes in "Homeless Blogger Scores a Job with Elle Magazine."

Sleuthing Time!
Another article from InsideTech.com gives us "non-creepy, legal" ways to "Stalk Your Way to a New Job" by familiarizing yourself with the man or woman you'll face in the interview using all of the social media at your disposal. Trust me, they're doing more than Googling you.

- Until next time!

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NETWORKING FUN FOR THE INTROVERTED: The Applause Meter

ESPECIALLY FOR WOMEN: My Interview with a Luminary

Especially For Women with Ann Barczay Sloan

My Interview with a Luminary

Introducing:

Marilyn Mandala Schlitz, Ph.D.

President / CEO

of the

Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS)

www.noetic.org

Marilyn and I: Our first connection

Back in the bygone era of 1995 - 96, I was part of a group of IONS Community Group coordinators in Southern California invited to meet some of the top leaders especially in town from IONS Headquarters “up North”. It was a dry summery day in a lovely rustic spot (fondly named “Serengeti West”) out in the San Fernando Valley, and if memory serves me correctly, Marilyn Schlitz (already highly placed in the organization) was one of the leaders in attendance. At this date, no doubt she wouldn’t remember me.

Fast forward through a number of tumultuous years where my priorities took me I away from involvement with IONS... and yet now, Wow! Here I’ve arrived at this unexpected spot in time/space, where I’m fortunate enough to interview Marilyn and publish an article about her awe-inspiring accomplishments in (for her) a no doubt new publications niche.

Saved by Facebook!

In obtaining this interview, I had some unexpected assistance via social media: a setting in which I’m rather a novice. Here’s how this happened:

My usual method of asking someone to be my article subject is to send a standardized letter of invitation ─ and in my mind I had selected Marilyn Schlitz to be next. In fairness, I should mention here that Dr. Schlitz and I were already Friends on Facebook, connected via mutual friends involved with IONS groups.

But one fine day I woke up to find a major glitch had taken over my computer overnight: All (I do mean ALL) of my documents and all of my e-mail address book had vanished, totally disappeared. These were both later retrieved, by two different people on two separate days, but that’s another story; the main challenge here was I had no access to the invitation form letter I needed to send Marilyn ASAP! And of course, in approaching such an illustrious personage my invitation had to be “respectful”: perfect in every way!

What to do? Time was of the essence, so I wrapped some chutzpah around myself and sent off a Facebook message to Marilyn, telling her who I am and inviting her to be interviewed. Apparently, this less formal approach works just as well, because in a few days, she very graciously responded. And by that time, all my documents and e-mail addresses were in full operation again…

It must be Fate…

First off, I must admit I‘ve been in deep admiration of the Institute of Noetic Sciences ever since I became aware of it many years ago. Though by force of life circumstance I’d been mostly on the sidelines for years, my heart and several of my friendships remained connected with the ever-expanding work of this magnificent organization.

Curiously enough, now that I live on Bainbridge Island, Washington, there is an IONS Community Group very near me in which I participate with great pleasure. Just how near? Would you believe the meetings are held in the Community Room of the very apartment complex where I live! And they’ve been meeting in this very place a couple of years before I ever moved in… Coincidence, you say?

What exactly is IONS?

The following descriptions are posted on the awesome information-rich web site, www.noetic.org :

We are a nonprofit membership organization located in Northern California that conducts and sponsors leading-edge research into the potentials and powers of consciousness—including perceptions, beliefs, attention, intention, and intuition. The Institute explores phenomena that do not necessarily fit conventional scientific models, while maintaining a commitment to scientific rigor.

Background: The Institute is not a spiritual association, political-action group, or a single-cause institute. Rather, we honor open-minded approaches and multiple ways of knowing, bring discernment to our work, and support diversity of perspectives on social and scientific matters.

Through our publications, events, and educational media, we inform our members and the public about the findings of our frontier research on consciousness and its relationship to the physical world.

Our 200-acre Retreat Center hosts workshops, retreats, and educational activities. We support community-building through local community groups, online discussions, and other networking opportunities

What is “Noetic”?

As this term is so little known, so many ask for a definition. Here we go:

The word "noetic" comes from the ancient Greek nous, for which there is no exact equivalent in English. It refers to "inner knowing," a kind of intuitive consciousness—direct and immediate access to knowledge beyond what is available to our normal senses and the power of reason.

What are “Noetic Sciences”?

Noetic sciences are explorations into the nature and potentials of consciousness using multiple ways of knowing—including intuition, feeling, reason, and the senses. Noetic sciences explore the "inner cosmos" of the mind (consciousness, soul, spirit) and how it relates to the "outer cosmos" of the physical world.

… And what’s Edgar Mitchell got to do with it?

The founding of IONS, based on the life-altering experience of astronaut Edgar Mitchell, is an extraordinary story. It’s summarized on the noetic.org site as follows:

Traveling back to Earth, having just walked on the moon, Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell had an experience for which nothing in his life had prepared him. As he approached the planet we know as home, he was filled with an inner conviction as certain as any mathematical equation he'd ever solved. He knew that the beautiful blue world to which he was returning is part of a living system, harmonious and whole—and that we all participate, as he expressed it later, "in a universe of consciousness."

Trained as an engineer and scientist, Captain Mitchell was most comfortable in the world of rationality and physical precision. Yet the understanding that came to him as he journeyed back from space felt just as trustworthy—it represented another way of knowing.

This experience radically altered his worldview: Despite science's superb technological achievements, he realized that we had barely begun to probe the deepest mystery of the universe—the fact of consciousness itself. He became convinced that the uncharted territory of the human mind was the next frontier to explore, and that it contained possibilities we had hardly begun to imagine. Within two years of his expedition, Edgar Mitchell founded the Institute of Noetic Sciences in 1973.

Today, Dr Mitchell serves on the board of Directors of the institute. He continues to be active at institute events, including lectures and conferences.

Who is Marilyn Schlitz?

Marilyn’s bio is summarized on the IONS site as follows:

For three decades, scientist and anthropologist Marilyn Mandala Schlitz, Ph.D. has pioneered clinical and field-based research in the area of human transformation and healing. She is a thought leader on matters of individual and social change whose respected voice offers new insights into the most pressing challenges of our time. A researcher, speaker, change consultant, and writer, Marilyn's books include: Living Deeply: The Art and Science of Transformation in Everyday Life and Consciousness and Healing: Integral Approaches to Mind Body Medicine. She serves as the CEO and President of the Institute of Noetic Sciences, where she has worked for 15 years.

Honestly, there’s no way the above can even begin to begin to describe this all-around amazing woman. Go to the page http://www.shiftinaction.com/discover/luminaries/marilyn_schlitz and look at the list of her voluminous writings, teleseminars, web media projects and such, and you will glimpse just that: a glimpse of a part of a part of what she has created and continues to do.

Please note: Dr. Schlitz is headlined on this page as a Luminary: an impressive title indeed.

What is a Luminary?

Of course this word has to do with Light: (based on the Latin lumen.) Here‘s a more detailed definition from my rather old (1989) dictionary ─ but I figure definitions related to Light may not have changed so much:

Luminary (n.) 1. An object, as a celestial body, that gives light; 2. a source of spiritual or intellectual light; 3. a notable person.

There you have it, ladies and gentlemen. Surely you agree the title of Luminary is a very apt one to describe Dr. Marilyn Mandala Schlitz!

Our Interview

Let’s move now to the actual interview I conducted with a very gracious Dr. Schlitz. I can not begin to imagine the extent of her obligations and activities, administrative as well as scientific / creative. Nonetheless, she has generously taken time to share herself with me and you, esteemed TNNW readers.

Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview, Marilyn! I‘d like to start by asking: How would you briefly describe what you do at IONS?

“We explore the ways in which consciousness matters for the future of our civilization, including our health and well-being--individually and as a global community.”

What makes your organization unique? Maybe I should say: What is the unique value of the service you provide in the world?

“The fact is, Institute of Noetic Sciences brings four decades of research on the nature of consciousness and inner experiences to our contemporary world. We find practical ways of translating the research findings through education, communications, and a global membership in order to serve individual and collective well being and transformation.”

This goes way beyond huge, Marilyn! I laugh in delight. So, my next question: What is your mission, the primary goal at IONS?

·”The Institute of Noetic Sciences is advancing the science of consciousness and human experience to serve individual and collective transformation.

I am committed to bridging consciousness, science and healing to promote health and well-being.”

Could you please describe how you got started in all this, and how you arrived where you are currently?

“It all began in 1973—reading Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions and Edgar Mitchell’s book, Psychic Exploration. This set me on an odyssey to explore and understand consciousness and its potentials to create a more just, compassionate, and sustainable world.”

Was there a time of breakthrough, a turning point when you chose to change your course in life? Any specific quantum leap(s)?

“Many! “

Which of your projects are you currently most excited, most passionate about?

“The big picture, of course: Building IONS. Also, developing ‘Seeding the Change: A Curriculum on Worldview Literacy’.’”

We are also creating a series of E-learning courses ─ the first set is on “After Life Cosmologies: Implications and Applications for Health and Healing Practitioners.”

That’s so exciting, Marilyn ─ amazing that education of this caliber, this dimension is actually being created now… And speaking of education: your large IONS conferences ─ packed with brilliant leading thinkers: more luminaries, really ─ are outstanding!

Now can you tell me ─ how much of your work is focused specifically toward women?

“Well, as an example we just completed a clinical trial on expectancy effects and distant healing with women who are undergoing reconstructive surgery—many breast cancer patients.”

What are some of the ways and places you promote your far-flung organization?

“We work on this on an ongoing basis. For example, we are now in midst of redesigning our marketing and membership model to become more unified. This includes a new website and a set of engagement programs that we are very excited about.”

How far does your network extend? In other words, what is the size of your list?

“It’s pretty vast, based on many years and many partnerships.”

Must be quite an amazing list!

“You know, some ways, IONS was a social networking organization before social networking. Right now I am working to strengthen the global network based on shared programs and the internet as a wrap to connect local groups.”

What have you found is the best thing about building a network: Positive experiences? Benefits, expected and unexpected?

“In essence: Great people working toward common goal with collective intention.”

What challenges (if any) have you found in your networking experiences?

“To sum it all up: The more people, the more personalities, the more complexity. Complexity can be catalytic. It can also become a frustrating exercise in will and ill directed power relations and needs.”

Bottom line – What do you feel is really working well for you at the Institute?

“Here are some of the great things we have going for us:

· Vision,

· Staff,

· Change model based in four decades of systematic explorations of consciousness transformation, health and healing, and extended human capacities,

· Dynamic research and educational programs that can be grown,

· 200-acre property and retreat center to serve the transformational community,

· Communications capacities and reputation; and an

· Archive of the field of consciousness, science, spirituality, health and healing.”

Besides networking, how else are you promoting your organization? What do you view as the primary vehicle and what makes it more important than the other(s)?

“So many ways! Partnerships, publications, media relations with both mainstream and alternative press, professional presentations, beautiful 200-acre retreat center in northern California, our membership and community groups. We’re hoping to do a world tour in the next two years.”

I must say IONS publications are outstanding in every way – as I’ve been around them for years, I feel they are a feast for the eyes as well as mind and heart ─ and spirit too!

Now here’s a big question: What’s the achievement, the accomplishment you’re most proud of at this time?

“To sum it up: Holding the complexities of a 40 year old not-for-profit at a time of great social and economic challenge with a sense of joy, hope, playfulness, optimism, clarity, and collaboration.”

Marilyn, at this moment I am more in awe than ever of what you as well as your predecessors at IONS are accomplishing…

Any other point you’d like to emphasize at this time?

“Feels to me like a moment when female leadership is emerging and will shape business/society more and more in the future. It is very exciting to be part of that and to reach out to other women leaders who are dealing with many of the same issues and challenges. I am looking forward to more collaborations that build synergy, creativity, social relevance, and sound business practices.”

In conclusion, anything you’d like to add ─ some words of encouragement, inspiration for our readers??

“In our book (Schlitz, VIeten, and Amorok, 2007), Living Deeply: The Art and Science of Transformation in Everyday Life, we found that the greatest catalyst for positive personal transformations is pain and discomfort. While not always, it is often the portal into a new way of living and being. This is important to remember as each of us deals with the many stresses of our times. Even the most challenging moments hold the potential for deep healing.”

With your permission, Marilyn, I’d like to close with these quotes from your 2008 Year-end Message:

For decades, researchers at IONS have shown that the barriers to deep, evolutionary change are often self-imposed. Too often we live in fear and with limited imagination. Through "inattentional blindness," we overlook opportunities to make positive, life-enhancing transformations, even in moments of deep challenges….

… At the heart of a global shift is the evolution of consciousness. For more than 35 years, IONS has been a respected leader in advancing our understanding of the powers and potentials of consciousness. We have discovered over and over again that our personal transformation and collective evolution are intertwined.

As I take on the new role of President and CEO for the Institute of Noetic Sciences, I am both humbled and invigorated by the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. I am convinced, as never before, that our work is essential to achieving a fundamental course correction.

Beautiful, elevating, inspiring ─ Thank you so much for sharing your personal and collective vision and soul-commitment with us!

“…And thank you too, Ann, for bringing this new paradigm shift into yet another milieu of our everyday world! “

-------------------------------

Contact Information:

Marilyn may be reached at:

Schlitz@noetic.org

707-775-3500

Ann Barczay Sloan, M.A.

Author & Editor / Creative Writing Coach

www.GeniusUnbound.com

www.linkedin.com/in/AnnBarczaySloan

Featured Columnist,

www.TheNationalNetworker.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author of the forthcoming book:

How to Use the Pieces of a Broken Heart:

Recipes for Rebirth

http://AnnBarczaySloan.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information, please visit Ann's TNNW Bio.

------
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ESPECIALLY FOR WOMEN: My Interview with a Luminary

LASTING IMPRESSIONS: Phoenix Voyage ~ The Art of Passion

Lasting Impressions with Sian Lindemann

It has been several years now since I first met Kerrie Claire Wilson, the Founder of Phoenix Voyage™, to whom I was introduced by none other than our formidable leader, at The National Networker, Adam J. Kovitz.

In her own words, and years in the making Phoenix Voyage breaks ground the launch the first in a series of World Class Events that supports “green” and environmentally sound change.


Phoenix Voyage ~ What is it?

“Phoenix Voyage™ offers a 12-city national tour, an educational, entertaining, and informative experience of unparalleled quality. By bringing hands on information to communities nationwide, we feel Phoenix Voyage will help support as well as inspire the creation of a sustainable future.
The goal of Phoenix Voyage™ is to establish a media and marketplace presence in order to promote local and national dialogues about creating a healthy, sustainable future.
The Phoenix Voyage™ website has been designed as an instant on line access portal to information about sustainability, alternative energies, high entertainment and more. www.phoenixvoyage.com

Phoenix Voyage™ will motivate, inspire and serve the communities of America and the world to greater awareness and applications of solutions by working with the greatest minds of the 21st century. By creating positive relationships with local communities and the larger international community we will achieve our goals of social and environmental enrichment through education, entertainment and the sharing of knowledge and resources.
We welcome like-minded people interested in joining our brilliant team!
Phoenix Voyage is a project of the International Humanities Center, a 501[c](3) non-profit organization.” Kerrie Claire Wilson



I received a call from Kerrie this morning and although we have had many discussions over the years as to how, where and with what funding to begin this process, it is clear, that today we can begin. Funding has been secured and the timing is set for an event slated for October, 2009, in the Founding area of Mt. Shasta, California.

The topic, one of my favorites, Water… and the need for its preservation, conservation and purification, to assure our continued existence here on Earth, for we as humans cannot survive without it.


Phoenix Voyage™ and Clear Solutions For The Blue Planet™

Aligning with my own project “Clear Solutions For The Blue Planet™,” we can now dovetail our projects and find common ground in moving forward together.




Initially, in order to achieve the goals set forth by Phoenix Voyage, a premiere event will occur in October 2009 ~ The value proposition for myself and for artists who would be inclined to join this event is the opportunity to feature works that relate to WATER.

There have been many who have created exhibitions along these lines, for past events, from around the world, and this particular event will allow for the feature of well over 100 artists to share their works with the world…All relevant to the topic of water.

We have discussed in past articles the works of Courtney Milne and his collection, “The Pool of Possibilities”,Available exclusively from Karen Burton and http://www.rendezvousstyle.com, artist Wyland, renowned environmental and Marine Life artist,http://www.wyland.com and his international program, The Clean Water Challenge, and others of “note.”

It will, at this time, be possible for artists from around the world, and local to Northern California to find voice with their collections and be featured at this event.



And on topic with that requested at The National Networker, I now have the chance, and the funding to be able to bring together these formidable resources under one roof. I’ve been speaking about global networking opportunities for artists and have contributed to that end for over 30 years. It has never before been possible to do it on this scale.

I will welcome the interaction of artists from around the world, locally here in the USA, and of course, the local artists in and around the Mt Shasta, and Northern California area, to be able to participate in this upcoming event.

Water is the topic, Water is the genre, Water is the message ~ I welcome your participation.

Contact
Sian Lindemann
Executive Director
Sian Design
http://www.siandesign.com
http://clearsolutionsfortheblueplanet.blogspot.com
sunstar@q.com


For more information, please visit Sian's TNNW Bio.




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LASTING IMPRESSIONS: Phoenix Voyage ~ The Art of Passion

RISK AND REALITY: Information Warfare Risk Management

Risk and Reality
with Dr. Franco Oboni

International Risk Assessment & Mitigation Strategies Consultant
foboni@riskope.com
www.riskope.com
Riskope Risk and Crisis Management Blog: http://foboni.wordpress.com/
www.slideshares.net/foboni
www.youtube.com/foboni

Note: We at TNNW are delighted to welcome Dr. Franco Oboni, a highly-regarded international risk assessment and management consultant, as our newest Featured Columnist. Dr. Oboni's Featured Column is titled RISK AND REALITY. We urge you to read Dr. Oboni every month.
___________________________________________
INFORMATION WARFARE (IW) RISK MANAGEMENT


There are two ways to look at Information Warfare (IW) Risk Management: the good one and the bad one (too see definitions of Risk Management and other risk/hazard/crisis technical glossary refer to Riskope web site)



The good one encompasses good thinking and planning, i.e. proper management of the informational risks, the bad one goes into premature acquisition of technical solutions, hardware and “magic gear”.


First of all let’s look at the reality of things: does IW exist? Could an Information Warfare attack hit you as an individual, or your company? Sure it does and it could hit regardless of the size of your organization: there are even schools that teach it, addressing corporate needs; and it has been abundantly used in recent armed conflicts. Examples exist of law firms that have been attacked to discredit them and the rest is easy to imagine in these days of Facebook and Twitter attacks, global networking.


Remember, though, IW encompasses all sorts of strategies and tactics, including good old propaganda, image attacks, brain washing etc.


Thus the reply to the simple question: is IW at the exclusive reach of highly skilled programmers and hackers? Is as easy and clear: with minimal study and efforts anyone can implement an IW offensive and start a campaign against a corporation or an individual on a private of professional basis, on a network of friends etc.


Riskope International was asked by a European army to perform an IW risk assessment as a first step to the implementation of a national IW Risk Management approach. More specifically we were asked how much should be invested by an hostile party to obtain with a certain likelihood a certain damage level to a country (i.e. exactly to think as the bad guys and define the best options to obtain maximum damage with the least effort). We were asked to stay away from hacking or technical procedures, as the military are well equipped in those areas, but rather to examine other ways to inflict damage from an information risk point of view. Obviously, we found out there is a very fine line between IW and good old propaganda, as defined from WW-I on to nowadays, but as information vectors have evolved, deployment tactics should change, and indeed have changed.

But more importantly our study changed the view on:

1. what objectives can be achieved,


2. what damage can be brought to an organization, and


3. what it takes to get there.


Amazingly, during the study, an attack on Italian Civil Protection, perpetrated by a unidentified group, showed that our conclusions closely matched reality.


Finally, looking at what kind of Risk Management action you can implement, it becomes apparent that filtering and properly fusing information in order to trigger timely (immediate) and pertinent response seems to be the way. Recent documented examples in industry have shown how true this statement is.


IW missions for corporate/private clients should be geared towards helping clients to detect informational vulnerabilities, finding how easy it is to “fake” or distort information, how “colorful and vivid” the distorted information would be…and finally how that information can be brought to self-amplify and infect the informational environment of the corporation/private.


Once clear filtering and fusing criteria have been selected, time comes to start thinking about gearing up…not before that, the penalty being a significant waste of mitigative investments and most likely no protection at all.

####
Labels and Key Terms: : blogs and credibility, crisis, decisionmaking, Dr. Franco Oboni, enterprises, facebook, Franco Oboni, identity theft, information, making hard choices, marketing, risk, twitter, warfare, world affairs, media, communications, risk identification, risk assessment, Riskope, The National Networker, risk mitigation, RISK AND REALITY,


Please click here for more information on Franco.

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RISK AND REALITY: Information Warfare Risk Management

DEALING WITH GIANTS: Selling to the BIG BOYS - Doing the Job, Managing your Reputation, and GETTING PAID

Dealing With Giants
with Claudine Halpern

WOW, you’re business has it’s biggest customer ever, whether your business is a service or product business, there are some really important things to address now.

If you have a product business, you are probably finding yourself in the unenviable position of needing stock that you don’t have. You either need to purchase the stock or manufacture it. If you are well financed then it’s no problem, you go and buy it or make it.

WAIT, how did you set up your contract with your big customer? Let’s talk about some ways to make sure that you can keep your head above water while you’re getting the goods together.

• I very often suggest that a customer give you a percentage of the money that’s owed on contract signing, usually half, that might not cover all you costs but it should get you along the way to fulfilling your deal.

• Or you can get half up front and deliver incrementally, so that you can satisfy your customer and keep your head above water.

I did logistics work for a publicly held major BIG BOY catalogue retailer, it was Mother’s Day and the BIG BOY ordered squeaky bears that were selling for $5 as a bonus with other purchases. In order to save money, the BIG BOY outsourced the bears to China in January, with every expectation that they would show up in plenty of time for Mother’s Day. Each bear cost $2.50, so the profit margin was there. The BIG BOY had orders for over 1 million bears. They were planning on starting sorting and delivery in late March.

A storm hit the South China Sea, and the ship, carrying the squeaky bears, was delayed by three months. Oooooops, 1 million customers were not going to be happy, and the BIG BOY needed to do something fast.

In March, the BIG BOY ordered 1 million squeaky bears, from a local manufacturer, for $5.00 each. So the bears cost $2.50 +$5.00 or $7.50 each, and sold for $5 each. That created a loss of $2.5 million for that quarter, not happy shareholders.

1million bears showed up in July, decorated for Mother’s Day. What to do with 1 million Mother’s Day bears in July? The BIG BOY hired a local firm to redecorate the bears for Thanksgiving at $3.50 each and sold them in the catalogue for, you got it, $5. Total Profit ZERO, Total Loss well you figure it out.

So if you are producing goods for one of the BIG BOYS, Be smart, be careful, price intelligently and have a contingency plan, to keep your reputation intact you need to deliver quality merchandise on time and in budget.

If you have a service business, you may have a little more flexibility in pricing. I always recommend incremental pricing based on milestones. What does that mean? That means that you get paid for getting to the milestone, not for finishing the job. Here’s how you create the incremental milestones plan:

· clearly establish and document the BIG BOYS goals

· break down the deliverable into obvious, smaller pieces

· clearly establish and document what tasks belong to you and what belong to the BIG BOY

· clearly establish and document what the BIG BOY must provide (information, support, office space, technology, coffee, raw materials etc,) and when

· clearly establish and document change control procedures, that means that there are no changes unless all agree and the scope and dates are renegotiated

· clearly establish what you will get paid when you hit each milestones

I had a small software client who got a multi million dollar contract with one of the BIG BOYS. We wrote the contract following the rules above. We always got paid on time, even though we did not always hit the milestones, we could always prove that we didn’t hit the milestone because of something the BIG BOY promised and didn’t deliver.

When working with the BIG BOYS, Be Smart, Be Effective, Be Thrifty, Have Contingency Plans, Be Realistic, Be True to Yourself and Your Company, good ideas for business and good ideas for life.

Next Time; Building on current BIG BOY business to get more BIG BOY business.

About Claudine Halpern

Claudine Halpern is a chameleon; she has worked in many different situations during her more than twenty-five years in business; as a management consultant, Claudine advised many of the major brokerage, insurance, and financial houses, completing more than fifteen major corporate initiatives during the past ten years. As a crisis manager for major corporations, Claudine successfully brought in projects and products that other firms would not touch. As a specialist in business and management consultancy, Claudine consults to emerging businesses across the spectrum.

EMAIL chalpern@theychgroup.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/claudinehalpern

For more information, please visit Claudine's TNNW Bio.

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DEALING WITH GIANTS: Selling to the BIG BOYS - Doing the Job, Managing your Reputation, and GETTING PAID

IT ALL STARTS WITH US! "The Silent Screams of Consultants"

It All Starts With Us! with John A. Lee

All of us are consultants in a sense. We offer and apply our expertise to others in hopes of making a connection and receiving some form of compensation. This is the fundamental principal of networking. We have something to sell that someone else needs. Whether we call ourselves consultants, independent contractors, suppliers, vendors, or partners, we contract our services to another entity as a “non-employee” expert.

This is an important distinction as it tangibly defines the working relationship. A consultant is not an employee of his client even though the work may be vital and approach full-time levels. An employee has certain structures and rights that a consultant does not – steady paycheck at regular intervals, access to an HR department (or due process), protective labor laws, work environment and tools, and a platform for regular and steady open dialogue with the employer.

Further, the IRS applies a test that measures three areas – behavioral control, financial control, and the relationships of the parties - to define a contractor from an employee to ensure the engagement is not an attempt of the client to avoid payroll taxes.One key IRS point focuses on how the contractor is supervised. In general, the client has limited say in how, when, and where the contractor delivers the service. This creates a greater formality and distance between consultant and client. The consultant is never quite a full member of the family.

Breaching the formality (to close the distance) is a line in the sand that most consultants do not cross. On our side of the line, we offer and promise, and, repeat the mantra “no problem,” as our client asks for more. Yet, we are afraid to speak up for ourselves, our needs and expectations. We fear we are totally at the whim of our client.

The frustration of not openly communicating can grow to an unbearable point, yet the consultant will remain silent, fearful of damaging the relationship if he speaks up.

Over the years, I have talked to and listened to the frustrations of hundreds of consultants in my network - consultants that work in many industries and deliver many different services to their customers. Keep in mind most contractors love their work. There are not really complaining. They understand much of drama goes with the territory.

Also, keep in mind that no client engages a consultant with the intent to abuse, confuse, and flummox. Clients, at worst, recognize their need for specialized help but don’t know how to skillfully engage and manage the resource.

Having spent many years as an executive who hired consultants, I can see how my behavior may have caused some frustration. I didn’t always look out for my contractors and their needs the way I should have. I'd stick the invoice in the A/P "pay in 30 days" basket without a thought as to urgency. But I've seen the light! Consultants are special. With a little more thought, I could have easily made their engagement less frantic.

So, pressure builds and consultants vent to themselves with imaginary dialogues with their clients. Ever wonder what consultants wish they could say to their clients but don’t? Here are a few silent screams:

• Measure my fee by the value I provide. Don’t tell me my rates are too high or you’d love to use me but you think I’m too expensive. I’m running a business and I have to manage it like you manage yours. I have overhead, rent, equipment to purchase and maintain, expenses like healthcare premiums, and self-employment taxes. Plus, I use my profit to live on.

• Please pay me at the times we agreed upon. When you pay late, it can cause personal problems for me. I really can't wait 30 days or more after a project concludes for my payment.

• You are an absolute priority for me but sometimes I cannot be available as I attempt to be all things, to all people, at all times. Remember this when I agree with a smile in my voice to schedule our weekly call on Sunday evenings at 10:00 pm after you’ve put your kids to bed.

• Let’s define the scope of work you want me to do. I understand the need to be flexible, agile, and roll with the punches, but a direct relationship exists among scope, time, and fees. When you add to my workload I have to invest more time. Understand, I do want all of your business that I can manage, but I may have to charge more if I take on additional work.

• Let’s agree what success looks like for me . . . and for you. If we agree to expectations and goals, I will have a clear target to exceed.

• Know how to use me before you hire me. Be available to me. We’re in this together. Don’t engage me and fade away leaving me to wonder if I’ve disappointed you.

• Don’t be offended if I put our agreement in writing. While I believe in the strength and the integrity of the handshake, as time goes by, the detail of what each of us agreed to may fade.

• You’re asking me to reduce my profit? When you read my proposal you asked for a reduction in price but weren’t willing to reduce the scope of the project. Same work for less money. The profit margin is what I use to make my house payments, buy groceries for my family, gasoline, clothing, and pay college tuition.

• I’m in the service business, but I’m not a servant. I am as expert in my fields as you are in yours. Engage me for my expertise because you are convinced I have something you need.

• Have the courage say “No.” When I’m pitching your business and I get “buy” signs, I will show my eagerness to get started. I’ll float new ideas to you. Generate work product to show value. When you suddenly stop answering the phone, I feel used.

• Let me do the work you hired me to do. Empower me with your team. Don’t put me in a position where I have to defend my services to your team and fight for implementation or to be heard.

• Don’t hire me for my expertise and tell me why everything I propose won’t work. You wanted “fresh eyes” and my advantage is I’m not bogged down in the weeds of inertia. I’m not politically paralyzed. I can see the forest and the trees! At the same time!

• Don’t withhold information from me during an RFP. I’m a newcomer to your business and to really develop a strong proposal that will benefit you, I need your help. Don’t get so hung up on supposed “fair bidding practices” that you forget we are all bidding for the chance to make your business better. I can’t offer you the full impact of my expertise without specific and complete information. Information makes me strong. You want me strong. This isn’t a game. RFPs should never be about “I want to see what you come with.” Two weeks after you award me your business and I’m into the project, I’ll be a lot smarter. You’ll see me work my magic and be glad you hired me. Until that point, bury me with information to make my proposal stronger.

• Give me a shot at something small but tangible to start a relationship. If you have an incumbent supplier you like – good for you and good for them! I fully understand you’ve invested intellectual capital in that relationship and are hesitant to start over. And they must be doing something right. But, someday, you’ll want a fresh approach or your supplier may not have capacity or availability for something you need done. Invest in me for tomorrow and I’ll be waiting in the wings without need of a ramp-up.

• Understand my value as well as my price. Someone who will always say they can do it cheaper. Look beyond price to my reputation, to my satisfied clients, to my position in the industry. Factor your risk. Cheap is cheaper but seldom better.

• I’m in this business because I want to be. I believe in you and your business or I wouldn’t be pitching you. I’m defined, in part, by the status of the clients I serve. I’m proud to be working with you. I genuinely feel I can make a difference in your business and I will do anything to become indispensable to you. So, run to me. Open up to me. Embarrass me with your praise when I astound you. Because, together we can do amazing things.

Great business is based on relationships characterized by moments of inspiration and moments of despair. Relationship implies a personal as well as professional connection, emphasis on connection. It is important for both Contractor and Client to hear what’s spoken as well as to sense what’s not being said.

To thrive in a business juncture, we must develop a connection of trust, openness, and respect, understanding that as humans we often don’t say what we feel. Yet, it is this trait of feeling that differentiates us and makes us vibrant in the business world.

Feeling makes us care. Caring makes us passionate. Harness that energy and you can accomplish anything. Think of the power we could generate if each of us was open and truthful to each other as we leveraged our combined passions, because, need I remind you . . . it all starts with us!

Continued success,

John A. Lee, MA MBA
Laguna Beach, California

For more information, please visit John's TNNW Bio.


Published by THE NATIONAL NETWORKER Newsletter. All rights reserved. Subscribe Free - Click HERE.
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IT ALL STARTS WITH US! "The Silent Screams of Consultants"