A Day’s Takeaway

I had a rare misunderstanding with a client on the telephone. It was uncomfortable and we both raised our voices a bit; but, we were able to work through it successfully. Conflict and disagreement between people are constant realities; but, they don’t have to rule our lives, and they can actually be powerfully positive depending on how we view and try to resolve them. I don’t like conflict, and have always tended to view it as a necessary evil  to be minimized.

I am discovering that if I step back and get a little perspective, I can learn things about myself from how I approach difficult conflict that can become trans-formative. Did I become immediately defensive and escalate the situation when confronted to prove my point when a disagreement gets heated, or was I willing to listen to the other person in order to understand their point of view and try to diffuse it? Am I willing to allow someone to express their “beef” with me, whether they are right or wrong, without retaliating? What am I ultimately trying to accomplish?

There are powerful lessons and wisdom born in the heat of disagreement that don’t emerge under peaceful circumstances if we take the time to analyze our own motives and behavior after we have come through a storm of conflict. I have certainly seen my true colors in those instances. Even if we get it wrong and handle it badly, there is opportunity to learn from the mistakes, so that we handle it better the next time. In fact, a relationship can become stronger with healthy conflict resolution. It reminds me of a song by Allen Levi called “Rough Weather Makes Good Timber”. Just a reminder that we can disagree without ruining a relationship.

My takeaway today

When you schedule a meeting (a 4:00 meeting) with a sales rep, it’s a good idea to set a time limit at the start, like, “hey, I have 30 minutes to meet, and look forward to hearing what you have to tell me”. Otherwise, the rep, in his or her enthusiasm may linger in your office for, oh, an hour and a half or so until you kick him out.

I have failed more than succeeded in life endeavors, largely because I didn’t put the necessary effort into understanding the cost and commitment , or really thinking through what’s needed to create the best opportunity for the most desired outcome. It’s easy for me to take a casual interest in something, do some cursory digging to be minimally informed, go do the thing, and then, surprise, surprise!, find that the results are less than hoped for and sometimes an outright bust. I am often blind to the deeper design and preparation considerations, as well as identifying the resources necessary to build a solid foundation and framework to give any worthwhile undertaking an opportunity to truly flourish.

My little vegetable garden is the current, somewhat well used metaphor for what I am talking about. It is pretty easy to clear a little ground, loosen some soil, buy some plants, put them in the ground, give them water and fertilizer, then hope for a good crop. The problem is, if I want the opportunity for a really good harvest, doing more than the minimal work is necessary. It is unrealistic to think that taking a superficial approach to anything is going to bring success. I know that for a vegetable garden to produce an outstanding crop, I have to take the time to plan, understand what the plants need to thrive, and prepare the soil with the best possible ingredients and composition to give the plants the best conditions in which to grow. I did not do that this year and the disappointing results bore that out.

It is important to count the cost of whatever you undertake, because committing to something fully will take time that you cannot devote to something else, but, if it is important, the sacrifice will be worth it.

The flavor of life tasted and experienced today is a culmination of all of the sensory and emotional ingredients from all of our yesterdays. The taste is full of bittersweet.

Embracing Asymmetry

I have found that one of the struggles of life is wanting everything in my little world to be in harmony, balance and symmetry, like a juggler with three balls in the air in perfect control. I am dumbfounded that I continue to live with a shred of expectation for life to ever be that way. I have begun to realize that there is beauty in the asymmetry of our flawed existence and growth from the ashes of chaos that brings transformation. Perfection is impossible this side of heaven, but it is so difficult to accept the breakdowns of daily existence with any measure of gratitude. No one wants hardship and tragedy in their life, and it feels glib and cliché to simply smile and say it will be okay; however, we can find solace and wonder even when things are out of control.

I was gathering vegetables in my garden, and as I picked a funny looking U-shaped cucumber I was reminded that the most delicious ones aren’t necessarily the prettiest or most uniform. Ugly food can taste great! Things of true beauty in this life and the most deeply desirable are not found in what we try to create to look and feel to be perfect or symmetrical in our human eyes. Studies have even shown that human faces with more symmetrical features are viewed as less attractive than those with asymmetrical ones.   I often find beauty in the most ordinary things, or in the unique and unusual. So, embrace the asymmetry and imperfect beauty in life and keep your sanity.

 

Building And Rebuilding

I am working in a venture that is in the fifth year of its first reinvention. It’s a one and a half man operation that has evolved into two with me. I have lost count of what career iteration I am on, and I have not been in this kind of small business environment in over twenty five years. Many of us have climbed out of the personal ash heap to start over and reinvent ourselves. I have always had a heart for small business, and the entrepreneurial spirit of those people who run them. Worthwhile endeavors have their challenges and frustrations, as well as their rewards. We are trying to define our identity. We want to be authentic in our message, truthful in our capabilities and have positive impact on our customers. We want the business to grow and flourish as anyone would. In the world of Big Data, Big Ideas, Big Government, etc. it can be difficult to stay focused on the value of harvesting results from small, thoughtful, strategic ideas. It can also be tempting to simply focus on growth for increased revenues, more profits, more dollars in our pockets, greater reach in our market area, without also considering growth in increased industry knowledge, experience and service that offers greater benefit and value to others.

Risky Trash (And You Don’t Own It)

Even with increasing occurrences of corporate data breaches, both electronically and via the theft of paper files, many businesses continue to throw out confidential information with the rest of the trash, and forgo including on site document destruction as part of their security policy. A recent Security Tracker survey conducted by Ipsos Reid found that 10% of C-level executives throw confidential information into the garbage, up from 1% in previous years. The survey also found that almost half of surveyed small business owners have no policies and procedures in place for storing and disposing of confidential information.*

From Rebecca Watson at McDemott Will & Emery:

In an opinion that should remind us all of the importance of properly disposing of documents, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of Greenpeace’s claims of trespass, invasion of privacy, and conversion stemming, in part, from appellees’ alleged participation in rummaging through Greenpeace’s trash in order to obtain Greenpeace’s confidential information. Greenpeace, Inc. v. The Dow Chemical Co., Case No. 13-CV-685 (D.C. C.A., Aug. 21, 2014) (Blackburne-Rigsby, J.).

Greenpeace alleged that two companies, Dow Chemical and Sasol North America and their PR firms, engaged in corporate espionage in order to undermine Greenpeace’s efforts.  To this end, Greenpeace asserted that the companies hired Beckett Brown International (BBI), a company staffed with former Secret Service and CIA agents, to root through Greenpeace’s trash.  They further alleged that BBI broke into Greenpeace’s offices and conducted physical surveillance of Greenpeace employees. These actions only came to light when a disgruntled BBI employee alerted a reporter.

This case should serve as a reminder that companies should properly discard of documents containing confidential information.**

*http://www.sdbmagazine.com/digital/20141112/index.html

**http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/dont-throw-it-away-a-company-may-not-12121/

The Road To Document Destruction

Perhaps, your company or practice has considered engaging a shredding service to destroy confidential paper documents; or, maybe it is already doing so. Do you know how secure your provider’s document destruction method is? The process begins with the shred bins that house the information to be destroyed. These collection points in your office should always be properly locked to prevent unauthorized eyes from viewing what’s inside. Once the information is emptied from the bins and leaves your office, there are several ways it may be destroyed, with varying levels of security in what’s called “the chain of destruction”.

1. The most secure method of destruction is via a mobile shredding truck on-site at your business location, where the information goes directly from the locked bins in your office to a shredder with no intermediate step, and minimal opportunity for the data to be compromised. The shredded material is typically taken to a recycling center, then sold to a paper mill where it is liquefied beyond recognition and used for new paper products.
2. The second method of destruction is off-site “plant-based” shredding. In this process, the paper is hauled away in a conventional truck, unloaded at the provider’s shred site, loaded by conveyor into a large shredder and destroyed. The material is handled, as well as viewed several times in the process, and often is hand sorted by paper grade while on the conveyor prior to shredding for recycling purposes. There is no confirmation of the timeline of destruction under this method and there are several points in the process where data can be compromised.
3. The third method some providers employ is simply disposing of the collected material at a recycling center and leaving it to them to destroy it. The center employees sort the paper by grade for recycling, and depending upon whether the recycling location has a shredder on-site, the material is destroyed. Otherwise, it remains intact until it goes to a paper mill. This process is the least secure because the chain of destruction is unclear, unconfirmed and provides numerous points along the way and an extended time period for the confidentiality of the data to be breached.

Privacy laws concerning consumer confidentiality have grown increasingly stringent as identity theft continues to increase, so it is important for your business to be aware of the destruction process your shredding company uses. If you don’t know ask them.

The Personal Documents You Should Be Shredding

The following  information is a good summary of what personal documents to destroy and when, courtesy of Big Dog Shred Bins USA, Inc., from their website:

It doesn’t take long to build up a collection of paper and receipts chock full of your personal info, while you may get the urge to throw all of the documents out (or cleanse with fire), the more secure (and safer) option is to shred. The next question you might ask is “what do I shred?” Keep reading and you’ll see how you can cut down on all that paper clutter:

What to Shred:

• Anything that has personal info (your name, phone number, address, social security number, or bank account info)
• ATM receipts
• Bills
• Credit card receipts
• Used airline tickets
• Expired credit cards, visas, passports, and IDs

 The documents you should be shredding after a certain amount of time:

• Tax records and receipts – 7 years
• Pay stubs and bank statements – 1 year
• Home purchase, sale, or improvement documents – 6 Years after you sell
• Medical records and bills – 1 Year after payment (in case of disputes)
• Warranty docs – Until it expires

While you can’t control what businesses do with your personal info, you can by shredding your own personal documents. As long as you shred what was just covered, you won’t be the cause of your own identity theft.

http://www.bigdogshredbins.com/news/2014/05/shredding-articles/documents-shred/

Precious Time

Time is impartial. Each of us has the same number of hours each day to invest ourselves in what we value as important. According to historian Daniel Boorstin in his book The Discoverers, the first mechanical clocks invented over 700 years ago were “designed not to show time but to sound it. The first true clocks were alarms.”  They were originally created to put monks on a schedule. I share this historical nugget because it leads me to some questions. Are your time commitments an alarming adversary that keep you frazzled, frustrated and spent, or do you make room for life enriching pursuits? Is your time mainly spent reacting, managing the alarms of constant schedules and deadlines, or is it also invested in creative thinking, possibilities for innovation and developing relationships? Most of us spend a great deal of life fighting the pressures of time, but we don’t have to be slaves to schedules. Understanding the value of time is about identifying purposeful priorities, what the obstacles or pressure points are that stand in the way, and investing the effort to engage life where it’s important. A daily calendar filled with scheduled activities doesn’t necessarily mean we are living well, but it keeps us busy. How often in your tightly wound day have you stopped and asked yourself “why am I doing this (fill in the blank )”?!  Is it really necessary or worth it?

Time is more than money, it’s a stewardship. It’s a resource and asset that can’t be reclaimed once it’s gone. The tyranny of the urgent shouldn’t prevent pursuing activities and interactions that can have life affirming impact on those around us.  The challenge for each of us is managing our time well and investing it in the right places.