tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-94459622024-03-17T22:04:00.701-05:00The White Rhino Report - “A Marketplace Where Many Diverse Ideas Meet for Coffee!”In this blog, I endeavor to share thoughts about issues that I find timely and compelling - leadership, faith, business issues, recruiting trends, Renaissance Men and Women in the world, Service Academies and their graduates, helping military leaders transition to leadership roles in the business world, international travel, literature, theater, films, the arts and the once and future World Champion Boston Red Sox!The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.comBlogger2011125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-87265306979167058962022-08-19T15:36:00.000-05:002022-08-19T15:36:50.565-05:00Review of "Who's Your Mike?" by Kurt Wilkin<p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"> There are numerous reasons why I am excited that Kurt Wilkin has decided to share wisdom that he has gleaned from his own career of growing several successful businesses, as well as offering lessons he has learned in guiding other business owners. Kurt is a gifted storyteller. In "Who's Your Mike?" he uses his natural “down home” style to illustrate principles of how to grow a successful business to the next level of profitability. He lays out the clear and easy to understand principles. And then he is fearless in sharing through successes and mistakes, how he has come to embrace those principle for himself and his clients. I have personally benefitted from Kurt’s generous sharing of lessons learned. I am excited that now a broad readership will have the same opportunity as those of us who know him personally.</p>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-16530482002539870842022-03-28T13:40:00.000-05:002022-03-28T13:40:07.987-05:00Updating the Role of Chief of Staff - A Timely Republication<p> </p><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih-esTW4HlXzT7-52fZLsGbgXgg-KDHIAjhUBHrmzEjIb4-SaWqqWrgZlZpaFrFRzRuTzKDpNvZSOCBr5wPa4xR8zUO2Pxdslndvv2qkArrwrzTvfmexYASP2qLr0QBNJRYKdDQA/s1600/Chief+of+Staff.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih-esTW4HlXzT7-52fZLsGbgXgg-KDHIAjhUBHrmzEjIb4-SaWqqWrgZlZpaFrFRzRuTzKDpNvZSOCBr5wPa4xR8zUO2Pxdslndvv2qkArrwrzTvfmexYASP2qLr0QBNJRYKdDQA/s1600/Chief+of+Staff.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">In light of the fact the I have undertaken to begin a search for the Chief of Staff in support of the CEO of a client company - a growing tech company in San Francisco - it makes sense to republish an article first posted a few years ago. Anyone wishing to be considered as a candidate for this role would be well served to read or re-read this description of the Chief of Staff role. The strategic approach to the COS role described below is precisely the vision that my client's CEO has for the role they are creating.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">One of my earliest Blog postings addressed the role of <b>Chief of Staff </b>in the private sector. At the time that I wrote the <b>White Paper </b>that I shared in that Blog posting, it was rare to find a corporation that was employing a Chief of Staff in support of a CEO or Chairman of the Board. In the intervening few years, I have become aware of a significant increase in the awareness of the effectiveness of a Chief of Staff in optimizing the performance of a C-level executive. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">As a result of the Blog post and the White Paper being available on line, I have received countless inquires regarding the Chief of Staff role. Companies have hired me to help them to define and create such a role, to search for and to hire a Chief of Staff. Women and men working in the role of Chief of Staff have reached out to me to ask for advice and for help in networking with others operating in similar roles. One result of these interactions has been the creation of a LinkedIn Group for Corporate Chiefs of Staff.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=4564956&trk=myg_ugrp_ovr" target="_blank">http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=4564956&trk=myg_ugrp_ovr</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">With the increased awareness of this role and its importance, I have been asked to re-address the issue. So, I have updated and revised the White Paper, and share it with you today.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">It is my desire that in reading this comprehensive treatment of the role of Chief of Staff, you may be motivated to think about creating such a role within your organization or sharing this information with those in your network who may also have a need for someone to serve in this role. I look forward to working with you in creating and filling the role of Chief of Staff to make you an even more effective leader.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">+ + + + + + + + + + + + + +</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><br /></b></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b>Chief of Staff – A Force Multiplier!<o:p></o:p></b></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">by</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Dr. Al Chase</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">Founder</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">White Rhino Partners</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><a href="mailto:Achase47@gmail.com">achase47@gmail.com</a></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">A few years ago, I attended a symposium sponsored by the Boston University School of Management. The two keynote speakers were Lee Iacocca and James Quigley, CEO of Deloitte & Touche. In preparation for hearing Mr. Quigley speak, I read his bio printed in the conference program. What jumped out at me immediately was the fact that early in his career with D&T Quigley has served in the role of Chief of Staff in the Office of the Chairman.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I had already begun to be intrigued with the role of Chief of Staff – a role I am convinced is under-utilized in the business world. Since many of the candidates I place are military veterans, through learning of their careers, I have become familiar with the military functional role of the XO – Executive Officer. The Navy’s <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Command</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">Leadership</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">School</st1:placetype></st1:place> in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Newport</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st="on">RI</st1:state></st1:place> devotes an entire course to training XO’s to function in their role as “Second in Command.” A friend of mine, a <st1:place w:st="on">West Point</st1:place> graduate and Desert Storm combat veteran, recently spent several years as Chief of Staff supporting the Chairman of the Board of a Fortune 100 Company. My friend calls the role of the Chief of Staff a “force multiplier.” Properly deployed, a good Chief of Staff can magnify the effective of the C-level executive he or she is supporting. Yet I find that it is the rare company that employs a Chief of Staff. Even rarer is the corporation that has a Chief of Staff and utilizes that person and that role to full effect.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">During the course of the BU Symposium, I had several opportunities to have one-on-one conversations with Mr. Quigley, and to query him on his background as a former Chief of Staff. In answer to my question about his retrospective look at his early role as Chief of Staff, the gist of his answer could best be summarized as follows:</div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoBodyText">“I am not sure I would be where I am today if I had not been given that extraordinary opportunity early in my career. I was rubbing shoulders on a daily basis with all of the strategic decision makers in the company. I was exposed to ideas, challenges, responsibilities and opportunities that most people at my age and at my stage of career never dreaming about. In addition, I was mentored, coached and stretched by visual leaders who gave me opportunities to prove what I was capable of doing.”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I was interested in testing out whether, in his current role as CEO at Deloitte & Touche, Quigley still held as high a view of the role of Chief of Staff as he had early in his career. In my last meeting with him that day, I asked: <i>“Do you currently have someone serving in the capacity of Chief of Staff in support of you?”<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Quigley answered: <i>“No; I have three different persons in that role, each one providing invaluable support in a specific area of supportive strategic initiatives.”<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">There is the proof of the pudding!</div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b>Chief of Staff - A Force Multiplier<o:p></o:p></b></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: center;"><b>Part II – Functional Roles of a Chief of Staff<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">In this section, I would like to examine some of the specific functional roles a good Chief of Staff should be able to perform on behalf of the C-level being supported. My observations are based upon a composite of several Fortune 500 companies with whom I have discussed Chief of Staff roles over the course of the past few months. These companies include leaders in Consumer Packaged Goods, Electronic Trading, Consulting and Telecommunications. For the purpose of describing these functional roles, we will assume that the Chief of Staff is serving in support of a CEO or Chairman of the Board.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span face=""Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"" style="color: #333333; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> </span><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The Chief of Staff Role does not replace the role of a good Executive Assistant. The COS and the EA work hand-in-hand to ensure that the CEO’s time is planned and expended with maximum efficiency and effectiveness. In short, the EA functions in an administrative capacity – managing calendar, appointments, travel logistics, etc. The COS operates at a tactical, strategic and operational level, often handling the oversight of projects that do not neatly fit within the organizational chart or fall between departments or leaders areas of responsibility.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 39pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS is best used in tracking strategic initiatives by monitoring progress towards meeting goals and achieving benchmarks, analyzing data, ensuring follow-through on the part of key players, and sustaining momentum needed to drive these initiatives.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS reviews action items decided upon at each strategic meeting. He/she prepares a written summary, checks with each attendee to get sign-off on agreed-upon dates of completion and confirms the party responsible for following up on each action item.<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">Between meetings, the COS stays connected with members of the committee, collecting data, alerting the CEO to progress or problems in carrying out the initiatives agreed upon.<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS creates and operates a reporting system that allows for a timely flow of necessary data into the office of the CEO from all relevant departments and direct reports.<o:p></o:p></span></div><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS assists the CEO in developing communication between committee meetings, setting agendas, creating initial drafts of communications to key strategic team members, helping to prioritize plans for addressing issues that are impacting progress towards initiative benchmarks.<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS serves as a first alert system – an extra set of eyes and ears – keeping the CEO aware of unanticipated problems to be addressed or opportunities to be considered.<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: Symbol; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS develops and oversees a process for capturing, cataloging, analyzing and disseminating key lessons to be learned from initiatives, with a view towards helping the CEO propagate best practices throughout the enterprise.<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 57pt; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list 57.0pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">The COS functions in the role of “ambassador” for the CEO, buffering communication with other members of the strategic team in cases where there are sensitive issues to be addressed.<br /><br />Here is an example of this role in practice:<br /><br />COS calls Brand Manager for Brand XYZ:<br /><br /><em>“Tony, this is Sharon. We agreed that next Tuesday you would meet with Bob to report on progress in changing the packaging. You mentioned in your weekly report that your design team is three weeks behind in agreeing upon a new package. I know that Bob is very concerned that if we can’t deliver the next packaging on schedule, we are going to lose more market share. I know your meeting next Tuesday will go well if you come with a specific plan for how to get this project back on track before the next Board meeting. See you Tuesday at 9:00."</em><br /><i><br /></i>It would take a pretty extraordinary individual to be able to juggle all of these balls, satisfy all of the key stake holders, massage sensitive egos and do it all with efficiency and grace. </span>Such an individual would have to have developed a robust set of hard skills and soft skills. In the next section, we will take a look at these specific skills and intangible traits needed to be an outstanding Chief of Staff.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 39pt; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><br /></div><h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">Chief of Staff - A Force Multiplier</h1><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: center;"><b>Part III –Specific Skills Needed to Succeed As Chief of Staff<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">We now turn our attention to examining the professional characteristics, functional skills and personal traits that are required of a stellar Chief of Staff.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">A Chief of Staff must possess in abundance a well-balanced arsenal of what are often called “hard skills” and “soft skills.”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>HARD SKILLS:<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Project management </b>– Each strategic initiative being tracked on behalf of the CEO whom the Chief of Staff supports is a project to be managed. Inherent in the oversight of these initiatives are the sub-skills of:<b><o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Multi-tasking<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Time management<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Prioritization<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Benchmarking<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Trouble shooting<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Reporting<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Information gathering and analysis – </b>The <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> needs to be able to create and to utilize systems (both formal and informal) for gathering on behalf of his/her boss reliable<b> </b>information on what is happening throughout the enterprise with regard to the strategic initiatives being tracked.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->This aspect of the job can be a challenge, since those charged with providing timely updates are not direct reports to the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place>. This aspect of the job requires a high level of sophistication in communications, interpersonal relations and diplomacy on the part of the COS. (See soft skills below)</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>A keen mind</b> <b>and multi-focal intelligence</b> – The <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> will be juggling many balls in support of the boss. She/he must have a quick but thorough grasp of the salient issues and details of each initiative to be able to make evaluations and recommendations to the CEO. This is tantamount to being a “jack of all trades” and “master of all”!</div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Poise and grace under pressure</b> – The pressure to perform at the highest level will be relentless, since by definition, each strategic initiative is mission-critical and crucial to the well being of the organization. No unimportant matters float up to the CEO to be addressed.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l7 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Finely honed communication skills</b> – The <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> will need to be able to communicate in writing and verbally with great precision and effectiveness:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Upwards to the CEO</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Laterally to others on the executive team</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Downwards throughout the organizational chart</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l7 level2 lfo2; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Externally to other organizations</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>SOFT SKILLS:<o:p></o:p></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Unimpeachable integrity</b> – By reputation and by consistent performance, the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> must be viewed by the C-level executive as utterly trustworthy. Each stakeholder must also be confident that the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> is operating on a solid ethical foundation of personal values that are transparent.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Selflessness</b> – The <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> must gain satisfaction from serving in a support role, and not feel the need to be in the limelight or receive public acclaim for victories and successes.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Emotional stability and resilience</b>– Because of the high stakes attached to each strategic initiative that is being tracked, and by virtue of the high level of accountability that is expected of each player, the atmosphere in which the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> works is one of high pressure and high expectations. Thin-skinned and easily bruised egos need not apply!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>The ability to give and receive constructive criticism – </b>Human nature and the nature of organizational behavior almost guarantee that the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> will often be operating in an environment when one or more initiatives are off-track, over-budget and behind-schedule. Supporting the boss in holding individuals accountable, coaching and correcting their performance is a crucial skill.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Diplomacy skills</b> – The <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> will often be expected to represent the boss in dealing with individuals whose teams may have missed deadlines or benchmarks. Careers, bonuses and promotions may be on the line, so the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> often operates in a volatile environment in which the wrong word or the wrong tone of voice could derail a delicate situation.</div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; tab-stops: list .75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><b>Keen judgment</b> – The <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> must often make instantaneous choices about:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->What to bring to the attention of the boss and what to shield her/him from;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-list: l1 level3 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.75in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->The ability to “triage” information and determine when the boss needs to get it is also important. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->When to speak and when to remain silent;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->When to intervene and when to let things run their course;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->What information is reliable and what needs to be questioned and challenged;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->How to respond to unanticipated developments;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->How to best keep the boss focused on the top priorities;</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->How to help the boss see clearly through the “fog of war.”</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo3; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->When you’re speaking for the boss and when you’re speaking for yourself.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Wow! We just described Superman or Wonder Woman. Do such paragons of virtue exist in the real world? We will address this crucial issue in our next section.</div><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; page-break-before: always;" /></span></b><br /><h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">Chief of Staff - A Force Multiplier</h1><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-align: center;"><b>Part IV –Finding the Right Person to Serve As Chief of Staff<o:p></o:p></b></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">The kind of person who meets all of the requirements described above is rare indeed. <span lang="EN">And such an extraordinarily gifted individual would also have to be content and fulfilled serving in a “support role.” Where would one find such an individual?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">My friend, John Byington, reminded me the other day of a terrific and apt quotation. The line comes from the Korean War era film, “The Bridges of Toko Ri” and has been oft repeated: <i>"Where do we find such men [and women]?"<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">From my experience as an executive recruiter, I can point to three primary sources where I have been able to discover individuals who possess the panoply of skills, traits and characteristics that are the hallmark of a great Chief of Staff:<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=9445962" name="OLE_LINK1"><!--[if !supportLists]-->1)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Military officers who have retired after a full career<o:p></o:p></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->2)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Junior military officers who have 5-10 years of leadership experience leavened with a top-tier MBA to add business sense and analytical tools to their arsenal.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->3)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Mature veterans of the “corporate battlefield” who have amassed knowledge, judgment, diplomacy and project management skills over the course of a broad-based business career.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Before describing in detail these three pools of potential Chiefs of Staff, let me offer the observation that the role of <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> can be structured in two primary ways:<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1in; mso-list: l3 level2 lfo4; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->a)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->As a role that the candidate would fill on a long-term basis – 5-10 years or more. In this scenario, the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> sees himself/herself as a “Career XO” – a person who is content to remain in a strategically important behind the scenes role in support of a C-level executive.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.75in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1in; mso-list: l3 level2 lfo4; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->b)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->As a transitional role that is part of an overall approach to succession planning. In this scenario, the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> serves for 2-3 years in a strategic support role with the understanding that at the end of that term of service, she/he will be given a general management role with P&L responsibility – Division President, Brand Manager, etc. During the final year in the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> role, there would be a period of overlap – selecting, training and transitioning in a new <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> to carry on seamlessly the support functions. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal">Now, back to the three pools of candidates . . .<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo5; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->1)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Military officers who have retired after a full career<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">This type of candidate fits best in the long term COS role. For many men and women who have served our nation for 20 years or more, they still desire to make a contribution and build a fulfilling second career that will leverage the depth of experiences and breadth of skills they have acquired in leading troops and running programs. For the officer who is temperamentally fitted for the <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> role, fancy job titles and an opportunity for climbing up the corporate ladder are not priorities. Having succeeded in being promoted consistently over the course of a distinguished military career, this candidate possess finely honed project management skills, communication skills, sophisticated diplomatic sensibilities and the ability to fully utilize to the company’s advantage both the formal and the informal power structures.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo5; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->2)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Junior military officers who have 5-10 years of leadership experience leavened with a top-tier MBA to add business sense and analytical tools to their arsenal. Let me offer a composite description of a typical candidate in this category. This person is best-suited for the transition role – serving 2-3 years as <st1:place w:st="on">COS</st1:place> before ascending to a GM role:<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo6; tab-stops: list 1.25in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Graduate of United State Naval Academy, US Marine Corps military intelligence officer whose assignments included a stint supporting Gen. Wesley Clark in his role as Commander of NATO and US forces in Europe. MBA from MIT Sloan School of business, summer internship and two-year stint as a strategy consultant in the Boston office of Bain & Co.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">This “young Turk” is just the kind of leader that a visionary company would want to attract, develop and “fast track” into a senior position. This extraordinarily gifted and precocious top-achiever will not be attracted to or sufficiently challenged by most rotational training programs designed to groom future leaders, but would thrive in a properly conceived COS role in support of a mentoring C-level executive.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo5; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->3)<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Mature veterans of the “corporate battlefield” who have amassed knowledge, judgment, diplomacy and project management skills over the course of a broad-based business career.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; page-break-before: always;" /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">Once again, let me offer a description of a composite candidate from this pool:<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">BA from Columbia, MBA or continuing education programs from Stern School of Business at NYU. Over the years, functional roles have includes Director of Sales and Marketing, Director of Business development, Program Manager/Project Manager for mission-critical initiatives, Managing Director Client services.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">Because of lifestyle choices, family situation, travel restrictions, etc., this gifted administrator and manager is happy to climb off of the treadmill leading to the top of the organizational chart, and spend the next 10+ years of her/his career leveraging a wealth of experience in support of a CEO, COB, CIO, COO, etc.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in;">In the final section dedicated to the role of the Chief of Staff, we will add some final thoughts and nuances, sum up salient points, and make recommendations on ways to implement the creation of this role.<o:p></o:p></div><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br clear="all" style="break-before: page; page-break-before: always;" /></span></b><br /><h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">Chief of Staff - A Force Multiplier</h1><h2>Part V - Final Thoughts</h2><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">USN Captain Mike Abrashoff (Ret.), former skipper of the USS Benfold, a.k.a. “The Best Damn Ship in the Navy,” has written an insightful first book that is relevant to our examination of the role of the Chief of Staff. His book is entitled:<i> “It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy.”</i> Early in his career, Abrashoff served as an Admiral’s aide in Subic Bay, Philippines. One of his statements from page 22 jumped out at me:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoBodyText">“I was twenty-five years old at the time, and most twenty-five-year-olds don’t get the opportunity to see how the organization runs at a senior level. It was good training, which businesses could give their up-and-coming young people by making them executive assistants to the top officers.”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Capt. Abrashoff uses the term <i>“executive assistants,”</i> but in context, it is clear that he is really talking about the Chief of Staff role as we have discussed in this paper. His comments almost exactly echo the words of James Quigley, CEO of Deloitte & Touche – words that I quoted above:</div><div class="MsoFooter"><br /></div><div class="MsoBodyText">“I am not sure I would be where I am today if I had not been given that extraordinary opportunity early in my career. I was rubbing shoulders on a daily basis with all of the strategic decision makers in the company. I was exposed to ideas, challenges, responsibilities and opportunities that most people at my age and at my stage of career never dreaming about. In addition, I was mentored, coached and stretched by visual leaders who gave me opportunities to prove what I was capable of doing.”</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">The message is pretty clear. A number of young leaders with extraordinary leadership potential have been encouraged in the development and deployment of these leadership gifts by being given the opportunity to function in the role of Chief of Staff, XO, or whatever term that organization may choose to put on a role that services as a <i>”force multiplier”</i> in support of a C-level executive. When structured correctly, a Chief of Staff role provides a triple win:</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal">The CEO wins because he is freed up to be able to concentrate his time, effort and priorities of strategic initiatives. He is empowered to “keep the main thing the main thing”!</li><li class="MsoNormal">The organization wins because its leader is leading more effectively and the COS role is adding to succession planning by attracting, grooming and retaining an unusually gifted up-and-coming leader.</li><li class="MsoNormal">The Chief of Staff wins because his/her career trajectory is raised and he/she is able to make a major contribution while being mentored and groomed by a seasoned leader.</li></ul><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Ed Cusati, </b>a corporate consultant specializing in improving the effective of Board of Directors, has been kind enough to share with me a flow diagram that <span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">points out the complex interactions among all of the stakeholders that must be taken into consideration in creating within an organization a Chief of Staff role.</span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">The CEO, potential Chief of Staff, and Direct Reports must all – from their own vantage point - wrestle with the potential objections and benefits of creating a Chief of Staff role.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">Through the amazing network of relationship I have been blessed to develop with some extraordinary men and women, I have access to an unmatched pool of potential Chiefs of Staff. It occurs to me that because of this rare access to a unique talent pool, and because of my awareness of the effectiveness of a properly deployed Chief of Staff, the role of evangelist for the COS role has been thrust upon me.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">So, how can we help each other to move things forward?</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I would welcome an opportunity to enter into conversations with companies that you know could use a Chief of Staff. In the situation in which the role has already been utilized in the company, I would like to be in a position to help that company to identify and to hire the next person to fill the role. In the case of a company that is just beginning to consider creating such a role, I would welcome a chance to come in and consult with the strategic leaders to define then role, and then to help the company to fill that role with their first COS.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I would appreciate your efforts in joining me to evangelize for the expansion of the role of the COS within corporate America.</div><div><br /></div>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-64513163454594605202022-03-28T13:16:00.000-05:002022-03-28T13:16:04.670-05:00Searching for A Unicorn - Chief of Staff to Support the CEO of a Growing Tech Company in San Francisco<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1es271RbNgXkE4lTRl4fiPUzhSGO9vdl9IgGNjFjRCvmvWdQNBfQESq4yS8Pm7MWekmMjMdhUwqbafpOcXoj01gWwj44NsEWUsvq6S5lnKVqEdgXLfZTcmzJaVv5ZSlJ2Rvg9pfRNQtxyWQd8D5wGbKn0S7-L2jzRJMNyPFVRcdeJSKT8sjA/s612/San%20Francisco.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="401" data-original-width="612" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1es271RbNgXkE4lTRl4fiPUzhSGO9vdl9IgGNjFjRCvmvWdQNBfQESq4yS8Pm7MWekmMjMdhUwqbafpOcXoj01gWwj44NsEWUsvq6S5lnKVqEdgXLfZTcmzJaVv5ZSlJ2Rvg9pfRNQtxyWQd8D5wGbKn0S7-L2jzRJMNyPFVRcdeJSKT8sjA/s320/San%20Francisco.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>I recently republished a White Paper on the role of the Chief of Staff in the private sector. What prompted this republication was a search I am conducting to fill a newly created COS role for a rapidly growing San Francisco based company.</p><p>If you have alread served as a COS or aspire to the role, please consider applying. This CEO is a visionary who is willing to mold someone fairly early in their career.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR8WgCmYXQEInjNRN0q-gup8gI4mG0j6z3rD6PKidEnPe5r75N-ENaO8d81AupIgG7s8zYPEgKZiRCRSMOAXXUFyGUZ7py_TMbvqxYag41jjT_j1Adb-iXrTq02Q-fFfdE8dvgLpotdJcNbHl_1K1PnGiEvXOoo7NR0JoOk5YYXaSlgh0BqMA/s2560/CoS-scaled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="785" data-original-width="2560" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR8WgCmYXQEInjNRN0q-gup8gI4mG0j6z3rD6PKidEnPe5r75N-ENaO8d81AupIgG7s8zYPEgKZiRCRSMOAXXUFyGUZ7py_TMbvqxYag41jjT_j1Adb-iXrTq02Q-fFfdE8dvgLpotdJcNbHl_1K1PnGiEvXOoo7NR0JoOk5YYXaSlgh0BqMA/w414-h121/CoS-scaled.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><p><b>Duties of the Chief of Staff:</b></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Serve as a strategic resource in support of the CEO</li><li>Carry out specific projects that will be assigned by the CEO</li><li>Serve as an extra set of eyes and ears in meetings - inside and ouside the company</li><li>Ensure that benchmarks and deadlines are reached</li><li>Serve as a soundingboard for the CEO as decisions are arrived at</li><li>Optimize communication between the CEO and direct reports</li></ul><div><b>Requirements:</b></div><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>A track record of superior achievement and promotion</li><li>Excellent communication skills - verbal and written</li><li>Project management skills and experience</li><li>Strategic thinking</li><li>Creativity</li><li>Emotional intelligence</li><li>Flexibility</li><li>Coachability</li><li>Diplomacy skills</li><li>Leading through influence and consensus</li><li>Integrity</li><li>A sense of adventure</li><li>Basic knowledge of the tech start-up world, through experience or robust reading, for example:</li><ul><li>"The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries</li><li>"Zero to One" by Peter Thiel</li><li>"The Hard Thing about the Hard Things" by Ben Horowitz</li></ul><li>Position is based in San Francisco. The company will pay to move the right candidate who is not currently living in the Bay area.</li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUMg_ppCKJYcjs77I1cpgN2oGIVbJlEytL2Z_feYPtfUxeqwi5jCHLwV16fHA08HAN96ocmlVfEoCK92Zipi1QSEiaOdW1J6pGGNoM2BvA-gh5k4r1yzAIO9TUUXloqCDiBAo41p8nbRexBIe-CbWvdHHlN7jS8Qfzlqv3TVFUF5ANA-KTeJI/s1200/unicorn-1-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUMg_ppCKJYcjs77I1cpgN2oGIVbJlEytL2Z_feYPtfUxeqwi5jCHLwV16fHA08HAN96ocmlVfEoCK92Zipi1QSEiaOdW1J6pGGNoM2BvA-gh5k4r1yzAIO9TUUXloqCDiBAo41p8nbRexBIe-CbWvdHHlN7jS8Qfzlqv3TVFUF5ANA-KTeJI/s320/unicorn-1-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><b>The Unicorn Factor:</b></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Here are some of the things the CEO said in setting the parameters for the COS search:</li><ul><li><i>"In hiring executives, I look for fascinating and interesting people. Please don't send me any boring MBAs!"</i></li><li><i>"Candidates do not necessarily have to come from the tech world, but they should have basic knowledge of the tech startup ecosystem. If a candidate did not know who Ben Horowitz is, that would be a concern."</i></li><li><i>"In building my team, I look for individuals with diverse backgrounds."</i></li></ul></ul><div>So, if in reading about this position you see yourself as a viable candidate, and can tell an interesting life story and career story, send a resume to:</div><div><br /></div><div><b>achase47@gmail.com</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Include a brief cover letter highlighting why you think you may be a good for this COS role.</div><div><br /></div><div>Please pass this job description along to anyone in your network who may be interested and qualified.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks.</div><div><br /></div><div>Al Chase</div></div><p></p>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-71773404464100718152020-10-23T12:17:00.000-05:002020-10-23T12:17:27.072-05:00"Caste" by Isabel Wilkerson - "The Origins of Our Discontents"<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9-d9Y1qGZTUplPSsRHAUYjbnVA5BFrUKgyKG7vJ98tXYC9j9Qi3iloPK6j9VrGw0si9rimMCA067NdAFqSDoesL_0Nngoee79i7ziYoBZS_EbKA-fFzmf2q7AettQ7muTirel-Q/s499/Caste.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="330" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9-d9Y1qGZTUplPSsRHAUYjbnVA5BFrUKgyKG7vJ98tXYC9j9Qi3iloPK6j9VrGw0si9rimMCA067NdAFqSDoesL_0Nngoee79i7ziYoBZS_EbKA-fFzmf2q7AettQ7muTirel-Q/s320/Caste.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><b>Isabel Wilkerson</b> established herself as a writer of significant influence with the publication of her landmark work, <i>"The Warmth of Other Suns."</i> This seminal work chronicles the Great Migration of post-Civil War blacks northward to the industrial centers of Chicago, Detroit, New York, <i>et al. </i>In her most recent book, she examines racism in the light of the concept of caste. The subtitle of <i>"Caste"</i> is <i>"The Origin of Our Discontents."</i></p><p><br /></p><p>Wilkerson examines three caste systems: India, Nazi Germany, and the United States. Linking these three societies together is not something I would have been able to do on my own, with the author leading the way toward new levels of awareness with her insights and anecdotes. I had chills when I read that when the Nazis came to power in Germany, they wondered how to cement their cultural views of racial purity into a well synchronized legal system They turned to the Jim Crow laws of the post-Civil War South as their template:</p><p><br /></p><p><i>"By the time that Hitler rose to power, the United States</i> 'was not just a country with racism,' <i>Whitman, the Yale legal scholar wrote,</i> 'it was the leading racial jurisdiction - so much so that even Nazi Germany looked to America for inspiration.' <i>The Nazis recognized the parallels even if many Americans did not."</i> <b>(p.81)</b></p><p><br /></p><p>The author does an excellent job of making her case for racism being a form of caste by sharing the <b>Eight Pillars of Caste</b> that can be found in the three societies examined in this book.</p><p><b>Pillar Number One: Divine Will and the Laws of Nature</b></p><p><b>Pilar Number Two: Heritability</b></p><p><b>Pillar Number Three: Endogamy and the Control of Marriage and Mating</b></p><p><b>Pillar Number Four: Purity versus Pollution</b></p><p><b>Pillar Number Five: Occupational Hierarchy</b></p><p><b>Pillar Number Six: Dehumanization and Stigma</b></p><p><b>Pillar Number Seven: Terror as Enforcement, Cruelty as a Means of Control</b></p><p><b>Pillar Number Eight: Inherent Superiority versus Inherent Inferiority</b></p><p><br /></p><p>The author spends the remaining 200 plus pages offering specific examples of how these eight pillars have undergirded the particular caste systems in India, Nazi Germany, and the U.S. In a very moving Epilogue, Wilkerson shares how Albert Einstein served as a bridge between the caste systems of Germany and the U.S. After fleeing the antisemitism of Nazi German's caste system, Einstein settled in Princeton, New Jersey. He was shocked to find that he had not completely escaped the depredations of caste:</p><p><i>"In America, Einstein was astonished to discover that he had landed in yet another caste system, one with a different scapegoat caste and different methods, but with embedded hatreds that were not so unlike the one he had fled"</i></p><p>'The worst disease is the treatment of the Negro,'<i> he wrote in 1946. . . . He could</i> 'hardly believe that a reasonable man can cling so tenaciously to such prejudice.'"<b>(p. 378)</b></p><p>When Einstein and his wife learned that acclaimed opera singer <b>Marian Anderson</b> was denied lodging at the local Nassau Inn, they welcomed her to stay in their home, beginning a friendship that endured until Einstein's death. His awareness of the parallel between the oppression of Jews in Germany and blacks in America awakened in him a strong sense of responsibility to act.</p><p><i>"And so he did. He co-chaired a committee to end lynching. He joined the NAACP. He spoke out on behalf of civil rights activists, lent his fame to their causes."</i> <b>(p. 379)</b></p><p>The parallel to our day is striking. As the Black Lives Matter movement has grown in the wake of countless examples of death and injury from police brutality, like Einstein in post WWII America, leading lights in academia, sports, the arts, and politics are using the bully pulpits afforded them by their fame to speak and act against the invidious aspects of racism that persist to our day.</p><p>Enjoy!</p><p>Al</p>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-64430352460788189822020-10-23T10:32:00.002-05:002020-10-23T10:35:08.949-05:00"Born A Crime" by Trevor Noah - A Moving Memoir of an Early Life under Apartheid<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirpCcGa0QVJXf7lbHXLYWkDKi5KE9a5vzrxJVFvwm7jhkJRB7YBTQtXLrdjXFnV2O26EadEFEYFYc9ua56K2qN3ne5CD9BCjEUwVEHonzEwBL-PSrsUGL12jR3o30KgOo0PUqESw/s499/Born+A+Crime.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="329" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirpCcGa0QVJXf7lbHXLYWkDKi5KE9a5vzrxJVFvwm7jhkJRB7YBTQtXLrdjXFnV2O26EadEFEYFYc9ua56K2qN3ne5CD9BCjEUwVEHonzEwBL-PSrsUGL12jR3o30KgOo0PUqESw/s320/Born+A+Crime.jpg" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p>I have enjoyed Trevor Noah's comedy and commentary for several years. I was aware that he was South African by birth, but knew very little of the story of his early life. "Born A Crime" is a wonderfully realized memoir that offers a vulnerable and self-effacing window into what it was like to survive as a mixed race young man in the harsh days under Apartheid.</p><p><br /></p><p>Noah's mother is black; his father is a white Swedish ex-pat living in South Africa. Under the laws of Apartheid, any kind of miscegenation was against the law, so Noah's parents had to keep their relationship under the radar of government and nosy neighbors. It took great effort for Trevor to have any kind of a relationship with his father, who lived in another community from where he and his mother resided.</p><p><br /></p><p>The author is very transparent about how challenging it was for his mother to raise a rambunctious and rebellious young man. Noah lived on the borders of several worlds - never completely fitting in. He did not neatly fall into any of the legal racial categories, and he had to work hard at creating a place for himself among Blacks, Whites, and Coloreds. He reveals that his mastery of several languages became the skeleton key that opened doors for him to relationships with virtually every segment of South African society. The fact that he became a popular DJ whose services were in demand also opened doors for him.</p><p><br /></p><p>A vivid memory that the author shares reveals how his natural curiosity led to disastrous consequences. He loved to experiment with how a magnifying glass could concentrate the rays of the sun to heat up a variety of objects. One day he was visiting the home of a white friend, and after showing his friend the trick with the magnifying glass, Trevor and his host went off to explore other adventures. They left the magnifying glass where it was, and unbeknownst to Trevor, the magnifying glass heated an object which eventually ignited the garage, and ultimately the entire house. This misadventure of burning down a house owned by Whites was only one of the many reasons that Trevor and his mother needed to keep a low profile.</p><p><br /></p><p>Noah credits his mother's strict discipline with laying a foundation that has led to his subsequent success in life. She was able to do this despite facing many obstacles - financial, legal, and relational. The author leaves an indelible impression of how his mother's second husband became increasing more abusive as his alcoholism and paranoia escalated. The dysfunctional relationship climaxed in the stepfather shooting Noah's mother in a fit of jealous rage. She somehow survived being shot in the face.</p><p><br /></p><p>Prior to reading this moving memoir, my knowledge of Apartheid was on a macro level - being repulsed by the inhumanity of the policy. The book offered me a micro look at how its laws and practices dramatically impacted the life of one young man and those within his orbit. The book is a welcome gift to anyone who seeks to understand how someone who falls between the cracks can learn to navigate the world and achieve fame. Noah uses his fame as a platform to educate and illuminate - a magnifying glass, if you will, that heats up our appreciation of the intricacies of life under Apartheid.</p><p>Enjoy!</p><p>Al</p><p><br /></p>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-17916817276467179462020-09-02T12:46:00.002-05:002020-09-02T12:48:38.874-05:00"Friday Forward" by Robert Glazer - 52 Nuggets of Inspiration<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQwThYdOn2gVionOGKyuBda6yg4tYJ9yXRVn0o0cWH0TmV4gUAd0ba7HrlsBtdey6CyBUAz3caEPYQRjxPTthZao3NSXm832q8fn27-sfOYYhpwqF52Ju2iF1lOCbOsDJp8OHHmg/s499/Friday+Forward.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="333" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQwThYdOn2gVionOGKyuBda6yg4tYJ9yXRVn0o0cWH0TmV4gUAd0ba7HrlsBtdey6CyBUAz3caEPYQRjxPTthZao3NSXm832q8fn27-sfOYYhpwqF52Ju2iF1lOCbOsDJp8OHHmg/s0/Friday+Forward.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p>A year ago, <b>Robert Glazer</b> published a bestselling book that shared wisdom about pushing beyond limits for ultimate success and performance. See White Rhino Report review below:</p><p><a href="https://whiterhinoreport.blogspot.com/2019/08/elevate-by-robert-glazer-push-beyond.html">Review of "Elevate" by Robert Glazer</a> </p><p>Even before writing <i>"Elevate,"</i> Mr. Glazer had an idea to share some of the best examples from a weekly column he has been writing since 2015. His initial motivation in writing the column was to address each of the employees of his company, <b>Acceleration Partners</b>. His idea was to plant a seed of an idea at the end of each week that would help his employees to enjoy a more restful and refreshing weekend. He soon learned that his employees were sharing the columns with friends and family. Before long, a subscription list grew to over 200,00 individuals from 60+ nations. The topics for the weekly Friday Forward columns consisted of issues that the author himself was interested in learning or exploring in greater depth.</p><p>As Glazer began to consider how best to organize and cull from the hundreds of columns he had written over the years, he settled on four Capacities: <b>Spiritual Capacity, Intellectual Capacity, Physical Capacity, </b>and<b> Emotional Capacity</b>. Each of the four sections of the book contains thirteen short columns - nuggets! - illustrating how Glazer or individuals he was aware of had struggled to master an aspect of each of the Capacities. In the Spiritual Capacity section, the author shared thoughts on "A Dad's Influence":</p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><i>"I have found that one of the most powerful aspects of being a father is seeing the world through the eyes of my children. That lens has become a critical filter for decision-making and thinking about the examples I want to set. It also serves to remind us that the</i> 'do as I say, not as I do' <i>method of parenting or leadership will eventually hit a wall. My kids have become quite good at pointing out my own hypocrisies</i> (i.e., 'Dad, put your phone down!') <b>p. 25</b></p><p></p></blockquote><p>One of the reasons that I chose to share the excerpt above, it that it serves as an excellent example of the author's transparency and humility. In sharing how he himself has overcome areas of struggle and deficiency, he explicitly gives each reader permission to acknowledge areas of weakness and vulnerability, and then to move intentionally beyond them.</p><p>In addition to enjoying these 52 selected vignettes, I encourage you to sign up to receive the weekly Friday Forward columns:<b>robertglazer.com/join</b>.</p><p>This is the kind of book that would make an excellent gift to clients, employees, family members, and friends.</p><p>Enjoy!</p><p>Al</p><p><br /></p>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-26152277299605476282020-08-07T14:44:00.000-05:002020-08-07T14:44:42.673-05:00Calling All Passionate Readers - Announcing A New Virtual Book Club: 99 Pages<p>My friend, <b>Rajiv Srinivasan</b>, shares with me a profound love of reading. I was thrilled when I heard from him last week and learned that he would be moderating a new on-line virtual book club called <b>99 Pages</b>, hosted by YouTube. The concept is simple; each Sunday evening at 7:30 ET/4:30 PT, members will sign onto the YouTube live channel for an hour discussion of the current book selection. Each week, the members are expected to have read 99 pages of the book.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7kZsqcVs80jy7MDxCxEJ1Bjk8tc42Bssb8QRrIA-G8KFfaLRwENGlrD0sQj-ALplxcELFX2Wwb-s8CqG23Jpu2eugEfsU5DfgF6n_CxAwf05XRaQYxU01gAC-twbcTNGpmx2Qig/s275/Book+Club.png" imageanchor="1" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7kZsqcVs80jy7MDxCxEJ1Bjk8tc42Bssb8QRrIA-G8KFfaLRwENGlrD0sQj-ALplxcELFX2Wwb-s8CqG23Jpu2eugEfsU5DfgF6n_CxAwf05XRaQYxU01gAC-twbcTNGpmx2Qig/s0/Book+Club.png" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p>The current book is <i>"Five Days - The Fiery Reckoning of an American City"</i> by <b>Wes Moore</b> with<b> Erica L. Green</b>. The first session of the club took place last Sunday evening. Rajiv had carefully picked four panelists to lead the discussion. Other members of the club were able to chime in via chat with questions and comments.The theme of the book is the five days of rioting and unrest that followed the death of Freddie Gray at the hands of the Baltimore Police in 2015. Each panelist had a unique perspective, which led to a well balanced discussion. Rajiv did a fine job of balancing the contributions of the four panelists with the chat comments and questions that the larger group was contributing.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbjgjKgq97ONJeRUceGpr7wBxKCxwXtsZSCXDIBogCFX7mZ81q0yKtbCpyO60YKNiUiY9eAOPFIC_0CeTX_YNdMd9vy6Eo0ql5P6UB9EkN8uFB9vHQIY57VubAGftxh7khovPgKw/s499/Five+Days.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbjgjKgq97ONJeRUceGpr7wBxKCxwXtsZSCXDIBogCFX7mZ81q0yKtbCpyO60YKNiUiY9eAOPFIC_0CeTX_YNdMd9vy6Eo0ql5P6UB9EkN8uFB9vHQIY57VubAGftxh7khovPgKw/s0/Five+Days.jpg" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p>Here is Rajiv's description of his vision for 99 Pages:</p><p><span style="background-color: white; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>"99pages is on a mission to make reading FUN and ACHIEVABLE for everyone. Each week, we read no more than 99 pages of a book, and discuss on a livestream bookclub broadcast with expert panelists and Q&A. <span style="color: red;">Subscribe at 99pagesclub.com"</span></i></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">On behalf of Rajiv, I invite you to sign up and join us this Sunday evening - even if you have not already had a chance to </span></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">procure</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> <i>"Five Days."</i> You will benefit from the discussion, and can catch up with the book next week.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>ex libris!</i></span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Enjoy!</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">Al</span></p>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-6960992864663845602020-06-24T21:29:00.000-05:002020-06-24T21:29:50.525-05:00Dear Baseball - A Plea from Guest Blogger Jesse Skaff<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDVsrssreo9CPvP4hCyE946_YCO5v7NPzYD45K0fDznOCTOSvHUiIrGcD94olo9yFlnbBxWfbfND15cB0esIGTRs-apBsJDakm3b9gefEwbasBGV3M8y6ocUteyp89TdghrXOVwA/s1600/Play+Ball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="121" data-original-width="104" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDVsrssreo9CPvP4hCyE946_YCO5v7NPzYD45K0fDznOCTOSvHUiIrGcD94olo9yFlnbBxWfbfND15cB0esIGTRs-apBsJDakm3b9gefEwbasBGV3M8y6ocUteyp89TdghrXOVwA/s1600/Play+Ball.jpg" /></a></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A few days before baseball fans got the long-awaited news that there would be a MLB season after all - albeit a truncated one - my friend, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Jesse Skaff</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">penned a heartfelt plea to resolve the impasse that had kept players and owners from agreeing to play ball. I was so moved by reading Jesse's letter that I asked his permission to share it with readers of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>The White Rhino Report.</b></span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is appropriate that our friendship got its start at a Red Sox game in the </span><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>"lyric little bandbox of a ballpark"</i> known as <b>Fenway Park.</b> Jesse and his father were seated behind me in Section 21 of the grandstands, directly behind home plate, but a few rows above the box seats. I overheard the father and son mention <i>"The Governors Academy"</i> (formerly Governor Dummer Academy), my alma mater. We quickly discovered that we were fellow alumni separated by a couple of generations. And an enduring friendship was born.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Enjoy Jesse's carefully reasoned and impassioned plea to "PLAY BALL"!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.6667px; white-space: pre-wrap;">@ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dear Baseball,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As a lifelong, diehard baseball fan, please hear me. Please hear us: the fans. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">We want baseball. The players want baseball. America needs baseball.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It is no secret that these past 11½ weeks of stalemate are tainting and tarnishing the reputation of Baseball as an institution and league and it is reaching a point of no return. Do you not see the articles – do you not hear the conversations – about people wondering aloud, “would I really miss baseball?” The fact that this is even a remote consideration breaks my heart. It breaks the hearts of the fans – the civilians who spend hard-earned paychecks at your ballparks and stadiums, on your concessions, on jerseys and memorabilia of their children’s favorite player. You have perpetually raised ticket prices and we continue to show up; you have traded away our favorite players and we continue to show up.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">You had a chance to be the only sport this summer and command the undivided attention of the sports world; you bungled it. Now, your best chance is to share screen time with two other major sports amidst their playoffs, then compete your end of season with the start of the NFL season. Baseball has traditional, niche viewership and is already struggling to attract a younger, broader audience. In a world where immediate satisfaction is king and the average attention span is decreasing with everything at our fingertips, you are gravely hurting your allure by prolonging the fussing and fighting.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">With all the young talent in the game, you are allowing – throwing away even – the excitement brought to us by players like Ronald Acuña, Christian Yelich, and Javy Baez. Without baseball, this is a wasted year of supreme talent.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dear Commissioner Manfred,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The longer this sad saga continues, the greater the mistrust between the MLB and MLBPA, and the more your following will deteriorate. You have likely already alienated and lost the fans that have thought to themselves, “I’ve been fine thus far without baseball, I don’t really care if they resume.” Do you want to risk losing the casual fans that want to watch, but will abandon the sport for others if it does not come back? And worst of all, do you really want to lose the fans who have stood by the game and wish every night that there was baseball on? It’s no secret that fan engagement and declining viewership – not so long ago the primary concern of the league – are still existential issues to the game.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Don’t take us for granted. Please hear us. We love this game and we want it back.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You may say, “well the fans aren’t in on the negotiations. They don’t know about the business of the game,” and to that we say “fair.” But much has been reported on and disclosed about the abomination that has become these </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">negotiations</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> dare I call them. It is very clear this is about billionaires refusing to compromise with millionaires. We understand the sunk costs already and that players are risking their health for smaller paychecks. We understand the CBA of 2021 is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. And we realize, just like you do, that the crux of this issue is principal. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Principal!</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> It is easy for both sides to hardline in this instance, to set themselves up for next year’s negotiations, call the other side’s bluffs, or simply not play. But then what are you negotiating for next year? A damaged game with unrest and mistrust.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You had the stage to yourselves and a monumental opportunity to show unity. For a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">game</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that the players insist they would play for free; for a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">game</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that they love because they get to compete like they are kids again; for a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">game</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that provides them the chance to win that so-called “piece of metal” that grown men cry for and play through pain for and spend 81 days on the road away from their families for. Everyone in 2020 is losing, and the biggest problem here is that Baseball wants to win. Yet the biggest loser here is the game itself: baseball.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dear Owners,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">You are the problem, not the solution. You are not the reason we fans tune in to watch on tv (with whose networks you sign billion dollar contracts); you are not the reason we buy tickets to buy expensive concessions with pay money that we subconsciously know is going back into your pockets. Please put your rigid frugality aside; you are billionaires controlling a $10 billion industry of a kid’s game.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The façade you’ve put up about cost saving, furloughing employees, and cutting minor leaguers is condemnable and ugly. We are loyal but we are not stupid. These opaque moves are a bad look for you, your franchises, and for Baseball. Billionaires taking morally questionable action to save a few bucks is unattractive from every optical angle. And yet the players – your employees – bailed you out because they knew it was the right thing to do.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Just this once, lead with your morals not your wallets. Because if you do, baseball will return and we will return. The money will be back inevitably, and because we are forgiving and we root for the names on the front AND the back, we will continue to be your consumers. Please find solace in that.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dear Players,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">From an outsider’s perspective we understand your grievance. We blame the owners too. But please try to channel your 12 year old selves. We understand the business behind the 2021 CBA and creating solid footing for next year’s negotiations. We understand you have principles with which you base your negotiations. But please try to find it in yourselves as the MLBPA to find space to negotiate where you can. You are the reason we watch. You are the childhood heroes. And you are the lucky ones. Please just keep us in mind and remember your Little League days. Remember that baseball is more far reaching and life changing than Baseball.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dear fellow fans and baseball community,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The previous paragraphs may not directly represent your feelings or opinions, but I think it is safe to say we all want baseball back. I share your disappointment and I empathize in feeling the daily absence of our game. But I ask you to stick it out. Don’t give up on America’s Pastime. Don’t turn your back on the foundational pillar of American sports that has already withstood and survived two World Wars, a pandemic, and has only struck out once. As fans, let’s appreciate that succeeding 3/10 times in baseball is being great, so even if Baseball is slumping right now, let’s cheer it on and back it until it breaks out with a ringing single up the middle.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dear baseball,</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Please come back. Soon.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Loyally,</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Fans</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-8e16d78c-7fff-10bb-f550-657e941814db" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><br /></span></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Written by Jesse Skaff 6/16/2020</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">jskaff516@gmail.com</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Thanks, Jesse.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Go Sox!</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Al</span></span></div>
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The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-78406964728473376502020-06-14T15:48:00.001-05:002020-06-14T15:48:55.037-05:00Netflix "Lenox Hill" - A MUST SEE Documentary of NYC's Lenox Hill Hospital - A Shining Beacon of Hope and Humanity<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzRtyhTokU2qFLMZlmPY0AaSolNXyi2MmQ0c72Df9yzxJW0rWoK4ZWifOz0WQkDJGlWECTBZ5uq0Hw2S4SzalJd_gbMvcRSm4V0m5UNgmDsfH4mhRIuLlR7TnY9j2-P9llb9OIg/s1600/Lenox-Hill-Amanda-Little-Richardson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzRtyhTokU2qFLMZlmPY0AaSolNXyi2MmQ0c72Df9yzxJW0rWoK4ZWifOz0WQkDJGlWECTBZ5uq0Hw2S4SzalJd_gbMvcRSm4V0m5UNgmDsfH4mhRIuLlR7TnY9j2-P9llb9OIg/s320/Lenox-Hill-Amanda-Little-Richardson.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by Netflix</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I learned that Netflix had released a documentary on NYC's <b>Lenox Hill Hospital</b>, I was eager to watch it. So I binge watched it last night. My initial interest was very personal; the people at Lenox Hill had saved my life. Two years ago while I was visiting New York, I suffered a heart attack. I was taken by ambulance to the Lenox Hill emergency facility in the West Village on 7th Avenue. I was in severe pain. The staff there were kind and efficient in diagnosing that I was in the midst of a myocardial infarction. They were also alert to the need to quickly reduce my level of pain. Once they had stabilized me, they transferred me to the Lenox Hill main facility on the Upper East Side. There the cardiac catheterization lab diagnosed a 90% blockage in my anterior coronary artery, and inserted a stent to bypass the occlusion. For the next several days - in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and a Step-down Unit - I was treated with consummate professionalism and kindness. I felt like I was among family.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As I watched the </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">"Lenox Hill"</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> documentary, my focus quickly expanded beyond my personal history with the place to a fascination with the excellent story telling by </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">directors </span><b style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">Adi Barash</b><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;"> and </span><b style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">Ruthie Shatz. </b><span style="color: #373737;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Using four main protagonists, the storytellers give us insights into the lives of a fascinating cast of </span>doctors<span style="font-family: inherit;">, nurses, technicians, </span></span><span style="color: #373737;">patients</span><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;"> and their supportive families. The four main characters are </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: inherit;"><b>Dr. David Langer</b>, head of neurosurgery service. He shares clinical and administrative duties with <b>Dr. John Boockvar</b>, the department’s vice chair. In the maternity service, <b>Dr. Amanda Little-Richardson</b> is a chief obstetrics resident, while <b>Dr. Mirtha Macri</b> specializes in emergency medicine in the Greenwich Village facility.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">The action of the series rotates among the neurology service, maternity unity, and emergency department. By looking at the Lenox Hill institution through these lenses, we get a clear three-dimensional view of the culture of the place and the personal commitment of each of the medical professionals. It soon became clear to me why I had felt so well cared for as a patient at Lenox Hill. The assiduous attention to very personalized patient care runs as a thread through the fabric of the hospital and is a nectar that infuses each employee.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">The arc of the story paints a complex picture of the multiple roles that Dr. Langer plays - surgeon, department head and administrator, middle aged man committed to personal fitness, and loving husband and father. He is transparent and vulnerable in sharing just how difficult it is to keep all of these balls in the air simultaneously. There are short scenes that show him at the gym, at home, on retreat with his team of fellow neurosurgeons. These snippets tie the world of the hospital to the larger outside world of NYC and family.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNfWzqUfZ9q3v6OTRnGrtmp0vuAZd7O-68NuI-NXTqbjX7A2b_5mwzJgf9PS4WO5yU_rX7Je2juimLe6DF6w6ieXGPj1d_dUZvbv-8R9CTP8nyEEZ2Yh540rTxXPbDnzgykdet-g/s1600/Lenox-Hill-David-Langer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="800" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNfWzqUfZ9q3v6OTRnGrtmp0vuAZd7O-68NuI-NXTqbjX7A2b_5mwzJgf9PS4WO5yU_rX7Je2juimLe6DF6w6ieXGPj1d_dUZvbv-8R9CTP8nyEEZ2Yh540rTxXPbDnzgykdet-g/s320/Lenox-Hill-David-Langer.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by Stephanie Keith/Netflix</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">Three of the physicians also become patients. Dr. Little-Richardson and Dr. Macri each gave birth to their first children during the filming of the series, so we get to see them juggling prenatal fatigue with a full work schedule, as well as seeing how ambivalent Dr. Macro was about returning to work after maternity leave. She could not wait to get back to the hustle and bustle of the ER, but hated to leave her son. One of the team of neurosurgeons was himself diagnosed with a dreaded glioblastoma. Watching the Lennox team rally around him through his diagnosis and eventual return to operating status shows the true character of the members of the team.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #373737; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">What comes across more strongly than any other factor is the genuine love that each of the clinicians exhibits for patients and patients' families. Love is in the air as surely as the vivifying oxygen that flows through the masks and ventilators. The series does not flinch in the face of death. Several of the neurology patients succumb to their disease, despite the </span><span style="color: #373737;">best</span><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;"> efforts of Dr. Langer, Boockvar, <i>et al. </i>Tears are not only allowed, but encouraged among members of the staff - sometimes privately, and at times collectively. I imagine that in a Coronavirus environment, there are now fewer hugs and kisses that I saw demonstrated by the women and men of Lenox Hill. But I am certain that the love that permeates the place and emanates from the persons who work there has no trouble penetrating whatever PPE is part of the current protocols.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">If you are not moved to tears of empathy and pathos in watching these heroes at work, then you should check your Pulse Ox reading.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">God bless Lenox Hill and its stellar staff.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #373737; font-family: inherit;">Al</span></span>The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-43092985877317306762020-06-04T12:07:00.001-05:002020-06-04T12:07:31.356-05:00"Notes from a Small Island" by Bill Bryson - An Enlightening and Entertaining Tour Around Great Britain<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Bill Bryson</b> looks at his adopted homeland of Great Britain through two lenses. As a native American, he looks at British places and practices as a tourist might perceive them. But as someone who called England home for two decades, he had steeped himself in the culture of crumpets and <i>"a cuppa"</i>! So, he was also able to look at things British with a familiar sense of avuncular pride. Just prior to his planned return to America, the author scheduled a grand tour of the sceptred isle, revisiting some familiar places, and exploring roads less travelled. The resulting <i>"Notes from a Small Island" </i>is a delightful "memoir and Cook's tour that ranged from the chalky white cliffs of Dover to the splendid desolation of John O'Groats at the northernmost tip of Scotland.<br />
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The upshot of my reading this delightful Baedeker was the resurrection of fond memories of places I have visited in England, Scotland, and Wales. And reading about places I have not yet seen with my own eyes made me want to book a flight to Heathrow and schedule a series of walking tours. Even when Bryson looks at things British with a jaundiced eyes, it is clear that he does so as a loving critic. He is laughing with the Brits, rather than laughing at them. Several examples of his sense of irony focus on the inanities of scheduling of the British rail system. In some situations in which a desired destination was only a few miles from where Bryson found himself, the train schedule forced him to backtrack many miles and to make several transfers, or simply to throw up his hands and admit to himself: <i>"You can't get there from here!"</i><br />
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Here is a sample of his grappling with British rail: <i>"Hooton offered the world not only a mildly ridiculous name, but the dampest British Rail station I ever hope to sneeze in. The shack-like platform waiting-rooms were dripping wet, which didn't matter a great deal as I was soaked already. With six others, I waited a small eternity for a train to Chester, where I changed for another for Llandudno."</i> (<b>p. 243</b>)<br />
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If you are Anglophile, or one who simply enjoys great writing undergirded with a sharp sense of humor, you would be well served to take a stroll through the pagesof this guidebook and memoir.<br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-2868219091406996232020-05-21T21:32:00.003-05:002020-05-21T21:34:25.300-05:00"The Body" by Bill Bryson - A Guide for Occupants - Timely and Prescient<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have known <b>Bill Bryson</b>'s work primarily through his thoroughly entertaining travel books like <i>"Notes from a Small Island," "A Walk in the Woods,"</i> and <i>"In a Sunburned Country." </i>In writing <i>"The Body,"</i> for the most part Bryson sets aside his signature wry humor, and tells a straight forward account of how the human body is put together, how it functions, how it succumbs to disease and ultimately to death. He has penned a significant and helpful addition to his already impressive literary corpus.<br />
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Although I am not an M.D., I have more medical knowledge than your average lay person; I have worked in the past as a Medical Technologist at leading hospitals, and have delivered three babies (a story for another time!) Yet, even with my extensive medical knowledge, I found myself learning many new things in each chapter of this remarkably readable book.<br />
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The author organizes the material in a logical fashion, focusing each chapter on one of the body's systems:The Brain, The Head, The Heart and Blood, Digestion, the Nervous System. Along the way, he shares anecdotes and historical tidbits that make this work a living and breathing document. He places Leonardo Da Vinci's early work in anatomy and post mortem dissection in its proper historical perspective, and tells the stories of many of the unsung heroes whose discoveries and innovations have led to significantly longer lifespans and the eradication of countless diseases.<br />
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Bryson was prescient in Chapter 20 - When Things Go Wrong: Diseases. He discusses flu outbreaks of the past and future.<br />
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<i>"In the event of a really catastrophic epidemic - one that killed children and young adults in large numbers, say - Kinch believes we wouldn't be able to produce vaccine fast enough to treat everyone, even if the vaccine was effective.</i><br />
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'The fact is', <i>he says,</i> 'we are really no better prepared for a bad outbreak today than we were when Spanish flu killed tens of millions of people a hundred years ago. The reason we haven't had another experience like that isn't because we have been especially vigilant, it's because we have been lucky.'" <b>(p. 334)</b><br />
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Perhaps this is a good reason to order and read this book as you continue to shelter in place and maintain social distancing!<br />
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This book is a must read for anyone who wants a better understanding of how we, as occupants of the miraculous organism that is the human body, grow from embryo to the end of life.<br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-41666009433314333152019-12-11T10:22:00.001-05:002019-12-11T10:22:37.199-05:00Fear& Courage - Part of The Timeless Wisdom Series - True stories that reveal the depth of human experience<br />
<b>The Timeless Wisdom</b> series published by <b>Emotional Inheritance</b> in the Australia is an inspiring collection of <i>"true stories that reveal the depth of human experience."</i> One of the volumes in this series is <i>"Fear & Courage."</i> This book consists of two dozen pithy stories of real world experiences of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and circumstances overcoming fear to demonstrate courage. This compilation is edited by Renee Hollis.<br />
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Among the stories I found most interesting and inspiring are the following:<br />
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"A Promise Kept" tells the story of a trip to Antarctica and the author's struggle to overcome her hesitation to jump into a Zodiak boat amid choppy seas and a temperature of minus degrees 25 Celsius. I was impressed with the author's courage to try new and challenging adventures at the age of 65.<br />
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Outliving the Cat" tells the story of the author's father who seemed to have as many lives as a cat. He survived being hit by a driver who had fallen asleep at the wheel, being a passenger in a plane that was bombed on the tarmac, surviving angry Tamil mobs in Colombo, Sri Lanka, surviving polio, multiple heart operations and two strokes. Despite all of these myriad challenges, he managed to maintain the courage to keep going and to convey a positive attitude, even when his advanced age landed him an a nursing home.<br />
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A Day at the Beach" is a fascinating description of how a women overcome fear and shame to follow her husband's lead in joining a group of nudist friends for a day at the beach. Her journey from outright refusal to willingness to explore and finally to relax and enjoy the new experience is inspiring.<br />
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I look forward to reading the next book in this series:"Human Kindness."<br />
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Enjoy!The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-89972480970359537202019-12-11T09:21:00.000-05:002019-12-11T09:21:21.721-05:00"The Water Dancer" by Ta-Nehisi Coates - A Mystical Look at the Underground Railroad<br />
Having already conquered the world of non-fiction, <b>Ta-Nehisi Coates </b>bodly steps into the realm of fiction in this powerful first novel. Young Hiram Walker - known as Hi to his friends - was born into slavery as the bastard son of the plantation owner and his mother, Rose, who was sold shortly after Hi was born. This extraordinary man gradually discovers that he has been blessed with a rare gift of being able to transport himself and those traveling with him. The mystical gift is labelled Conduction, and it makes him a perfect candidate to lead himself and others on journeys to the North as part of the Underground Railroad.<br />
<br />
The author seldom uses the term "Slavery," opting instead for <i>"Tasking,"</i> and calls those caught up in the nightmare of The Peculiar Institution <i>"The Tasked,"</i> Through the eyes and voice of Hi, the author gives the reader a gut wrenching feel for life on the Walker plantation - the field, the quarters of the Taskers, and the main house. He first becomes aware of his mystical superpower when he nearly drowns when the carriage carrying him and his half brother, Maynard, careens off of a bridge into the cold waters of the Goose River. Nearly drowned, he sees an eerie blue light and finds himself awash on the river bank, not knowing what just happened to him. Maynard's body is never found. Mr. Walker has lost the heir to his cotton plantation.<br />
<br />
Hi and his friend, Sophia, attempt to flee the Walker plantation, but are apprehended by slave catchers. They both endure dire punishments, but eventually Hi is surprised to find himself sent to live at the home of Maynard's former fiancee, Corrine Quinn. Masquerading as a typical Southern belle, Corrine is an important part of the Underground Railroad. She and her team train Hi to be a conductor, and he eventually makes his way to join the Underground station in Philadelphia. He experiences the dramatic contrast between life as the Tasked and life as a Freeman in the North. He longs to return south to Virginia to rescue Sophia and others for whom he has a special place in his heart. Harriet Tubman - Moses - is a strong guide and influence in Hi's development as a Conductor and as a man.<br />
<br />
In addition to being a vivid and mystical examination of slavery, <i>"The Water Dancer"</i> is very much a coming of age journey - for Hi and for Sophia. They struggle mightily to find their place in several worlds, and to find their purpose. They refuse to be defined by their status as The Tasked, but long to establish their own identity as a free man and free woman. Coates' writing here has a cinematic quality that allows the reader to fully engage with the action and feelings of the characters,<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
Al<br />
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The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-71162709984367691312019-11-06T12:40:00.000-05:002019-11-06T12:40:27.527-05:00"The Underground Railroad" by Colson Whitehead - Winner of the Pulitzer Prize<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<b>Colson Whitehead'</b>s monumental work, <i>"The Underground Railroad,"</i> is richly deserving of its <b>Pulitzer Prize </b>and <b>National Book Award.</b> What stood out for me as I followed the harrowing journey of Cora from a cotton plantation in Georgia to freedom in the North was the lack of homogeneity among the slaveholding states. These insights are among Whitehead's unique contributions. As Cora travelled a tortuous route from Georgia to South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Indiana, and beyond, we see that racial attitudes varied dramatically from state to state. Georgia and its laws were ruthless when it came to enforcing punishment of runaway slaves. South Carolina on the surface seemed more humane, allowing slaves and Freemen to be educated. North Carolina was more brutal in its laws and treatment of slaves and runaways.<br />
<br />
Cora had been an outcast from the beginning. Her mother, Mabel, abandoned her when she fled to the north without warning. Cora claimed the small garden between cabins in the slave quarters as a statement of her individuality and desire for independence. Initially planted by Cora's grandmother, Ajarry, that plot serves as a metaphor for her desire to claim a place for her to stand on her own in the world. She is eventually persuaded by Caesar to join him in fleeing the hellish Randall plantation. One of the many things that make this saga so memorable is that Whitehead literalizes the Underground Railroad metaphor, envisioning actual tunnels and stations carved out beneath remote barns and farmhouses along the routes heading North.<br />
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There is a quotation that is repeated several times during the narrative that reveals the author's point of view that if you want to know this country, view it through the windows of the train as it makes its journey northward. The writing is painfully graphic. The strange fruit of the bodies of lynched runaways and their accomplices hanging from trees along a main road haunt the imagination. Cora's claustrophobia in being caged in a small garret while awaiting the next stage of her journey is palpable. Cora's journey to freedom runs in parallel with her journey of growth as a woman standing on her own, surviving savage beatings, mourning the death of loved ones and fellow travellers. and pursuing freedom in a still imperfect world.<br />
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This novel is a rich and evocative addition to the already robust collection of novels and histories that seek to give us a glimmer of understanding into the peculiar institution of slavery and the heroes who risked their lives to build a system that delivered many to freedom.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-34911039387796835842019-11-06T11:33:00.002-05:002019-11-06T11:33:51.269-05:00"Building Blocks" by Gary Shamis - Case Studies of a Serial Entrepreneur<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Author <b>Gary Shamis</b> has written a memoir of his experiences as an entrepreneur over the course of several decades. The resulting book is both instructive and inspiring. The book is offered in two parts. The first section deals with the stories of his role in building eight different businesses and organizations. One of the things I most appreciate about this writer's voice and style is the generous and effusive praise he offers to those who have helped him and encouraged him in is entrepreneurial journey. The enterprises he has led over the years include accounting firms, trade organizations, consultancies, non-profits, and civic organizations.<br />
<br />
The second half of the book chronicles specific lessons the author has learned during his career. Among those chapters, these stand out:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Passion, Patience, and Commitment</li>
<li>Continuous Improvement</li>
<li>Accountability</li>
<li>People, People, People</li>
<li>Transparency</li>
</ul>
<br />
Shamis demonstrates that transparency as he takes responsibility for mistakes he made along the way, and then details how he applied the lessons learned from those mistakes in subsequent endeavors. It is clear that the author has made a lasting contribution to scores of businesses, organizations, foundations, the state of Ohio, Hillel at Kent State, the profession of accounting, and realms beyond. With those building blocks, he has erected a lasting legacy.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-23146929354966205352019-10-21T09:45:00.001-05:002019-10-21T09:45:55.582-05:00"The View From Apartment Four" by Skip Rozin - On Loving and Leaving New York<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Skip Rozin</b> has captured the story of his life in NYC - and beyond - that satisfies like a freshly toasted bagel with a generous schmear of cream cheese. He occupied Apartment Four at 336 West 77th Street for almost fifty years - from the tumultuous 1960s through 2011. This book - subtitled <i>"On Loving and Leaving New York,"</i> paints a vivid picture of all of the reasons why Rozin developed such a complex love/hate relationship with the unique metropolis that is NYC.<br />
<br />
This moving book offers a look at the tension between stability and change. Over half a century, the cramped Apartment Four offered Rozin a haven, first as a home to a single young professional, then to a newly married couple. When Rozin and his wife brought triplets home from the hospital, they had to find a larger place to live, but he held onto the rent controlled Apartment Four as his office and writing retreat. Even when the family moved to Cape Cod, and he and his wife eventually divorced, he kept the apartment as his haven whenever business and nostalgia called him back to the city.<br />
<br />
The author is a gifted writer, carving out a career in non-fiction that spanned the decades covered in this book. As seen through the lens of Rozin, his career, his growing family, we see a New York that changes rapidly while still holding on to its essence. We see through Rozin's eyes the iconic Dakota of John Lennon, Lincoln Center, the bagel shops and Zabar's deli on W. 79th, Needle Park, Central Park West, West End Avenue, Westside Highway. NYC is a city of distinct neighborhoods, and Rozin offers up a tantalizing potpourri of the sights, sounds, smells, and denizens of his beloved Upper West Side.<br />
<br />
Through the microcosm of Rozin's life, family, and career, we see New York as a complex web of roots, transitions, and transformations . As a result of seeing the city through Rozin's clear eyes, on my next visit to NYC, I will walk the streets of the Upper West Side with a fresh perspective and appreciation of what was, what is, and what is still to come.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-33126467431807514702019-10-21T09:14:00.000-05:002019-10-21T09:14:35.479-05:00"Running With My Head Down" by Frank V. Fiume III - An Entrepreneur's Story of Passion, Perseverance, and Purpose<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I am usually not a fan of the typical self-help book. I find the majority of them shallow and formulaic. <b>Frank V. Fiume III </b>has penned a memoir and self-help book that breaks the mold. I was captivated and inspired by his story. I think part of what made me like his style of writing is his transparency and self-deprecating sense of sharing the mistakes he has made along the road to success in the business world.<br />
<br />
Fiume defied the odds by starting a new softball league in a part of Long Island that appeared to already be saturated with similar leagues. Most people told him he was crazy to try to compete - there were no fields available, the competition was already well established. But taking inspiration from the teachings of <b>Tony Robbins</b>, he took the plunge. While paying the bills by working as a medical device salesman, he launched a league that eventually grew into i9 Sports - <i>"the nation's first and leading franchisor of youth leagues and camps."</i><br />
<br />
Frank provides just enough detail to give a clear picture of the risks that he had to take, the bumps along the road, the moments of terror and discouragement, and the lessons learned through trail and error. The primary lesson for any discerning reader is that it is worth whatever price you have to pay to pursue your dream as long as you have the right support - from your spouse and from one or more mentors, and have a clear sense of your purpose.<br />
<br />
This entrepreneur's story of <i>"passion, perseverance, and purpose"</i> is in a league of its own.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-73615841177190576702019-10-21T08:54:00.003-05:002019-10-21T08:54:39.069-05:00"Live Wire" by Harlan Coben - Another Myron Bolitar Thriller<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I am a huge fan of the writing of <b>Harlan Coben</b>, and I especially enjoy his series that features former basketball star turned agent <b>Myron Bolitar</b>. As is the case with most of the Bolitar series of books, <i>"Live Wire" </i>features many of the usual suspects I have come to appreciate - Big Cindy, Esperanza a.k.a. Pocahontas, Win - and several interesting new ones.<br />
<br />
The action in this book centers of Myron being asked to locate Lex, husband of former tennis star Suzze T. She is pregnant, and anonymous social media has cast doubt on the paternity of the child she is carrying. In the course of tracking down Lex, Myron stumbles on the trail of his missing brother and sister-in-law, and his teenage nephew Mickey. The arc of the narrative features Myron and Win wading into and out of trouble in NYC nightclubs, a private island retreat off the coast of Cape Cod, and various familiar spots in New Jersey, including the Bolitar family home.<br />
<br />
The resulting book is a delightful page turner thriller, as I have come to expect from one of my favorite contemporary authors.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-91529996140929842492019-10-21T08:36:00.000-05:002019-10-21T08:36:07.313-05:00"The Relentless Rise" by R.T. Stokes - Break Through The Surface To Reach Your Greatest Self<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Author and thought leader <b>R.T. Stokes </b>has written a very personal book that offers lessons from his own experience of almost losing his life and having to resurface as a new man. A U.S. Navy veteran , he draws deeply on his experience as a submariner to offer analogies of how running a submarine is akin to running a life under immense pressures.<br />
<br />
After Stokes' car was blindsided by a suspect fleeing the police, he almost died and lost much of his memory, Determined to rise from the depths of despair, he returned to a world that he had known - the Navy and submarines. Even before his was fully healed, he returned to active duty and reported for his assignment aboard the ship that was about to depart for its mission beneath the waves. As he began to relearn "principles of operations" that allow a submarine to function under extreme conditions, he began to construct a mental model that the same principles apply in operating a life under extreme pressure. This book is the result of his fine tuning this model and these principles in the form of advice to readers.<br />
<br />
The book is organized in two parts - first Stokes shares his own story of sinking and resurfacing, followed by seven chapters that outline <b>Principles of Submerged Operations</b>:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b>Position</b></li>
<li><b>Patrol</b></li>
<li><b>Power</b></li>
<li><b>Propulsion</b></li>
<li><b>Periscope</b></li>
<li><b>Ping and Pulse</b></li>
<li><b>Positive Buoyancy</b></li>
</ul>
<br />
For the most part, the model and the analogies work well. The author does an excellent job of helping the reader to make the connection between arcane aspects of submarine operation and the pressures of daily life. My only criticism is that he seems to work a bit too hard to force everything into an alliterative model, always opting to describe aspects of life in nautical terms. There are times when the attempt seemed forced. Overall, it is an inspiring memoir and self-help book that provides useful lessons for readers who struggle to rise to the surface of life after encountering rough seas and debilitating pressures at the depths.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-26249975439193774302019-10-21T08:09:00.000-05:002019-10-21T08:09:14.988-05:00"Talking To Strangers" by Malcolm Gladwell - How Do We Evaluate Those We Meet?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
I always look forward to reading <b>Malcolm Gladwell's </b>books, because I never fail to learn new things. When I saw that his latest book was entitled <i>"Talking To Strangers," </i>I assumed that it might include research into the most effective ways to reach out to strangers in social settings. I quickly learned that the scope of his work here is much broader than that. He addresses the many ways in which we fail to read signals from strangers about who they are and what they are thinking and feeling.<br />
<br />
As he always does, the author draws from a broad spectrum of real world settings to discuss the principles of communication and miscommunication that are the norm in today's world. A through thread in this book is the case of Sandra Bland. This African American woman from Chicago was in Prairie View, Texas interviewing for a job at the local university. As she was driving away from the campus, she was pulled over by officer Brian Encinia, ostensibly for changing lanes without using her turn signal. The encounter, which should have been innocuous, escalated to the point where she was arrested for failure to comply with the officer's orders. Three days later, she hanged herself in her jail cell. Throughout the book, Gladwell returns to this incident to point out the many levels at which Officer Encinia failed to read correctly the signals that Ms. Bland was sending as she sat in her car, boiling with rage at having been stopped for <i>"Driving While Black"</i>!<br />
<br />
Gladwell makes the point, in the the case of Sandra Bland and many others, that we often fail to perceive others correctly because of a mismatch between the signals that the suspect was sending and the interpretation that the officer attributed to those signals. The author eloquently summarizes the dilemma we face in meeting and understanding strangers:<br />
<br />
"This has been a book about a conundrum. We have no choice but to talk to strangers, especially in our modern, borderless world. We aren't living in villages any more. Police officers have to stop people they do not know. Intelligence officers have to deal with deception and uncertainty. Young people want to go to parties explicitly to meet strangers: that's part of the thrill of romantic discovery. Yet at this most necessary of tasks we are inept. We think we can transform the stranger, without cost or sacrifice, into the familiar and the known, And we can't. What should we do? (p. 342)<br />
<br />
Along the way, Gladwell uses a wide variety of case studies: CIA failures to discover a highly placed double agent, enhanced interrogation techniques, police training, date rape at a frat party, Neville Chamberlain's naivete in dealing with Hitler, Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme, Sylvia Plath's suicide, and a murder in Italy - each case highlights the many ways in which we think we know people, but really do not. As he often does, he draws from research in multiple fields: cognitive psychology, sociology, criminology, diplomacy, and economics. The resulting book causes us to rethink how we evaluate the strangers that we meet.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-60327306176112451112019-10-14T14:05:00.000-05:002019-10-14T14:05:43.378-05:00"The Middle Sister" by Jesse Miles - An entertaining Jack Salvo Hollywood Detective Novel - Where is Lille Manning?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Author <b>Jesse Miles</b> has penned a classic cinematic <i>film noir</i> tale of detective Jack Salvo's misadventures with three wealthy sisters living among Hollywood's glitterati and demi-monde worlds. Rich widow Greta Manning hires Salvo to track down her missing middle daughter, Lillie. Older daughter, Zara, and younger daughter, Arden, separately provide the gumshoe with clues into Lillie's life that lead him into a fascinating set of encounters with the highest and lowest orders of Hollywood parasites.<br />
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The action often feels like the reader has been taken backstage in a Kardashian reality TV series. The cast of characters are memorable, including the likes of Cinnamon Strauss, former minor TV celebrity for her exercise show. Lillie's ne'er-do-well Ken Doll boyfriend, Rod Damian, is a likely suspect in her disappearance who must be tracked down and ruled out. The author gives us the requisite drug rehab connections, along with private and exclusive drug orgy parties high in the Hollywood hills. What Hollywood tawdry tale would be complete without a suspicious cosmetic surgeon to the stars as a key player? The story has more twist and turns than Mulholland Drive, and is a satisfying page turner read.<br />
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Enjoy.<br />
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AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-74508751611034811182019-10-03T15:35:00.000-05:002019-10-03T15:35:23.646-05:00"Inheritance" by Evelyn Toynton - An American Anglophile Learns Painful Truths about the British Upper Class<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Author <b>Evelyn Toynton</b> has penned a novel that chronicles the difficult journey of an American Anglophile who learns that all is not formal gardens and primroses among the British upper class. After the death of her husband, protagonist Annie Devereaux moves to London without a plan except to come to know the England she has always fantasized about. She meets and moves in with Julian, whose mother is a renowned geneticist. Annie is soon drawn into the spider's web that is this spectacularly dysfunctional English family. As she visit the family estate in the West Country of England, she becomes involved with Julian's sisters, Sasha and Isabel.<br />
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As Annie ends her relationship with the abusive Julian, she draws closer to Isabel, who guides her through progressively deeper and darker layers of family history and tragedy. The irony is that Helena Denby, the <i>mater familias</i> of the clan, has dabbled in fascist eugenics theories, yet has produced a spectacularly troubled brood of her own offspring.<br />
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The author explores the question of what happens when fantasies and ideals are shattered by harsh realities? The book is well researched and well written, and captivates the reader.<br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-7695767496525831982019-09-25T23:06:00.002-05:002019-09-25T23:06:59.209-05:00"Bucky F*cking Dent" by David Duchovny - A Brilliant Use of Baseball as a Metaphor for Life and Overcoming Disappointment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The novel, <i>"Bucky F*cking Dent," </i> is not what I expected it to be; it is much more. Author <b>David Duchovny</b> - yes, that David Dochovny - is a gifted writer and an erudite student of history, philosophy, and culture. The name <i>"Bucky Dent"</i> sends a frisson up and down the spine of any Red Sox fan who has been paying attention since the watershed 1978 season.<br />
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You may recall that after a volatile regular season that saw the Red Sox sprint to a huge early lead in the American League East Division, they fell on hard times in July and the dog days of August and fell behind the Yankees. It took winning the last eight games of the season to draw even with the Bronx Bombers, setting the stage for a one game playoff. A coin flip determined that the pivotal game would be hosted by the Red Sox at Fenway Park, their<i> "lyric little bandbox."</i><br />
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Bucky Dent was a light hitting shortstop penciled into the ninth position in the batting order. The Red Sox led the game 2-0 going into the seventh inning behind the shutout pitching of former Yankee hurler<b> Mike Torrez</b>. Early in the at bat, Dent broke his bat, and borrowed one from the on deck batter, center fielder <b>Mickey Rivers</b>. Dent had fouled off the first two pitches, and then took a cut at Torrez's next offering. The ball gently sailed toward the iconic Green Monster. Leftfielder, future Hall of Famer <b>Yaz</b>, camped under the high fly ball, ready to record the out. But a breeze blowing out toward the Wall turned what would have been an easy out in any other major league ballpark into a 3-run homerun. At that was it. The Red Sox tried desperately to claw their way back into the lead, but the final score was Yankees 5 - Red Sox 4. The cancer that had been eating away at the soul of Red Sox Nation since 1918 - the <b>Curse of the Bambino</b> - rolled on like a juggernaut from the gates of Hell.<br />
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It is this historic baseball nugget that Duchovny uses as the seed around which he concocts a moving mythology about an estranged father and son duo - Marty and Ted. As the action of the novel begins, the two had not spoken in several years - Marty living n Brooklyn and Ted subsisting in a fourth floor walk-up apartment in Queens. Ted learns that Marty is dying of lung cancer, and decides to pay him a visit. He also learns from the old neighborhood gang that Marty's physical condition from day to day tends to wax and wane in sympathy with the results of the most recent win or loss by his beloved Boston Red Sox. Ted , despite his Columbia University degree, works as a peanut vendor at Yankee Stadium. He comes up with a plan to fool Marty into thinking that the Red Sox were continuing their winning ways, enlisting the support of the denizens of the neighborhood news stand, characters who had known Marty and Ted for decades. His goal was to maximize the number of good days that Marty would experience as the cancer ate away at what was left of Marty's body. Two significant women play important roles in the saga. Mariana is a "mortality coach," basically functioning as a hospice counselor who visits Marty on a regular basis. She and Ted develop a complex and tortuous relationship. Maria is a former lover of Marty who comes back into his life during his final days.<br />
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Ted manages to score two tickets to the playoff game in Boston, and he and Marty embark on a road trip from Brooklyn to Boston. The description of the trip provides author Duchovny with an opportunity to use the trip as a metaphor for Marty and Ted and their lives:<br />
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<i>"They drove farther north like that.In perfect loving antagonism. It occurred to Ted that maybe Marty was like all the red and gold leaves he saw burning on the trees. In nature, it seems, things reached their most vibrant and beautiful right at the point of death, flaming out with all they had - why not natural man? His father was red, green, yellow, and gold, like a beautiful bird falling from the sky." </i>(<b>p, 253</b>)<br />
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The novel is deeply moving, and a fitting read for Red Sox fans, Yankees fans, and fans of great writing.<br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-61670907070435765902019-09-23T11:22:00.002-05:002019-09-23T11:22:57.201-05:00"Leading Change from the Middle" by Jackson Nickerson - A Practical Guide To Building Extraordinary Capabilities - Leading at The Crossroads of Change<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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There is a large body of works that address the challenges of leading organizational transformation and change. Most of these fine works address themselves to the person leading the organization in need of change. Author <b>Jackson Nickerson</b> has filled an important gap by examining the unique challenges faced by those in the middle of an organization - one or more levels down from the CEO - who face a mandate to lead change. <i>"Leading Change From The Middle"</i> is a very practical handbook for the would be change agent working from the middle of an organizational chart.<br />
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The gist of Nickerson's argument is that the change agent must identify potential stake holders involved in any planned change in each of four sectors. The sectors are:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Superordinates</li>
<li>Subordinates</li>
<li>Customers</li>
<li>Complementors/Blockers</li>
</ul>
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For each of the categories, the author prescribes specific actions that must be taken to ensure maximum cooperation from stakeholders in the changes about to be made. The author suggests the acronym <i>"ABBA"</i> to help the reader to remember: <b>Agree-In, Bee-In, Buy-In, and Allow-In. </b><br />
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<i>"Each approach provides communication, strategies, tactics, and sequencing of actions for leading change among stakeholders - activities collectively referred to as CoSTS."</i> (<b>p. 44</b>) Throughout the book, Nickerson offers two contrasting case studies drawn from real world experience to highlight how the CoSTS principles can be applied in two very different situations.. Kurt is charged with reducing the time it takes within the Department of Defense to implement a new software program for soldier recruitment. Stephen is hired by a major metropolitan mayor to lead an initiative to create an urban agriculture program so the city will be regarded as the "Greenest" in America.<br />
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One strength of this model is that it takes into consideration the human element in leading change - the emotions that often get in the way of rational decision making. Nickerson offers the acronym <i>"DEAF'</i> to identify four key negative emotions that might cause stakeholders to block progress and change: <b>Disrespect, Envy, Anger, and Fear.</b><br />
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Among the components of the model I found most helpful were suggested questions that a change agent might ask a stakeholder who is their boss to ensure that Agree-In has been reached.<br />
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<ul>
<li>Which stakeholders, if any, will your supervisor want to personally engage and help manage</li>
<li>Will your boss manage and communicate with superordinates up the chain of command, or should you have similar conversations with them?</li>
<li>At what point will your boss intervene to help you overcome the resistance of a blocker, or to encourage a customer to participate?</li>
</ul>
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These questions are emblematic of the practical nature of the information that the author provides in this book. Nickerson serves as <b>Frahm Family Professor of Organization and Strategy at Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis</b>. He teaches a course in <i>"Leading from the Middle"</i> for the <b>Brookings Institution</b>.<br />
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The book is a welcome addition to evolving field of Change Leadership.<br />
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Enjoy!The White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9445962.post-5021357659609332152019-09-19T17:38:00.000-05:002019-09-19T17:38:28.010-05:00"To The Elephant Graveyard" by Tarquin Hall - A Compelling Look At The Mind of A Rogue Elephant and Those Who Hunt Him<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I had several reasons for wanting to read <i>"To The Elephant Graveyard."</i> I love elephants, and drink in anything I can learn about them - especially how they live in their natural habitats. Second, the action of this book - a true story that reads like an adventure novel - takes place in the Northeast India state of Assam. My father spent part of WWII serving the U.S. Army Air Corps in Assam, so that part of the world has always held a certain level of intrigue for me.<br />
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I was initially concerned when I learned that journalist <b>Tarquin Hall</b> had written a book telling the story of a legendary elephant hunter. I have a particular disdain for those who hunt endangered species, especially elephants, so I was not sure how I would feel about the hunter who is on center stage of this narrative. I quickly learned that <b>Dinesh Choudhury</b>, the most acclaimed of all of India's elephant hunters, loves and reveres elephants. He only agrees to hunt those who have proven to be a significant danger to villagers. Such was the case of a rogue elephant who had murdered several villagers in remote locations. Author Hall persuaded Mr. Choudhury to take him along on the perilous trek to find and kill the rampaging rogue bull elephant.<br />
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The resulting account of their travels and adventures is told in cinematic prose, offering clear descriptions of actions and the motivations that undergirded them. It is a tale of government officials, hunters, mahouts, terrified villagers, and journalists who pit themselves against an elephant who had been driven mad by abuse at the hands of a prior owner. The story includes incidents of near misses, treks through lush forests and jungles, encounters with villagers and farmers, and an introduction into the small world of mahouts - those who train and handle elephants as a life's calling.<br />
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The result is a very readable book that has all the earmarks of a classic. Reading it has deepened my appreciation for elephants and those who strive to provide a balance between protecting their shrinking habitats while also protecting those they sometime endanger.<br />
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Enjoy.<br />
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AlThe White Rhinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08510080328755228237noreply@blogger.com0