Presenter Notes

Slide#1Good morning! My name is and I’m happy to be here today for this presentation. We will be discussing ways to maximize the use of our Human Resources department and I will concentrate on the ways our Human Resources department can be used for individual performance appraisals, ways of assessing our teams and succession planning.Slide#2What are performance appraisals? Simply put, they are the evaluation of goals that are pre-determined and set by both the employee and organization (Harvard Business Press, 2009). They are used to measure an employee’s performance and team performance.Why are performance appraisals needed? A performance appraisal can be used to provide documentation for any needed disciplinary or termination issues. It can also be utilized to identify the best employees. This will help management identify employee’s individual strengths and weaknesses. This will help employees reach their highest potential. Management is then able to take the information to identify proper training and feedback for every employee. We would cease to exist without our patients. Patient satisfaction is a major factor within the organization. Thus, patient satisfaction comments provide an important source of documentation when using performance appraisal.The performance appraisal can provide an objective evaluation. The goals should be consistent among all employees within each job description. Evaluation then would be conducted using the equal benchmarking. Utilization of the same goals and expectation within the job description helps management avoid discrimination complaints.The management team must take ownership of the performance appraisal system and emphasize its importance and usefulness to our employees. Our employees must realize the value of our appraisal system and be actively involved with  his or her own appraisal to take ownership of his or her own successes.A performance appraisal can provide clarification of expectations, management communication, increased consistency, and expand accountability. Our company will benefit through boosted productivity, retaining experienced employees, and the fostering of culture that allows employees and management to communicate and share ownership in the evaluation process.Slide#3Plan—A date and time should be decided upon in advance to minimize potential conflicts and allow for proper preparation. The appraisal should take place in a location that will provide privacy and limit interruptions.Document—Positive and negative documentation should be collected from the employee hire date. This allows for an accurate, solid performance appraisal to be delivered. Collection of this documentation can happen in many ways, but most often occurs through e-mails, feedback from team members, disciplinary paperwork, current job description and scope of practice, attendance, patient satisfaction surveys and management’s own notes. This information will allow the necessary information that will be needed to deliver an accurate and well-founded performance appraisal.Review Past Appraisals—Has the employee reached his/her goals from the last performance appraisal? Determine what actions need to take place for this employee to improve current performance, what management can do to help the employee reach these goals and provide praise for actions the employee has done well.There are potential drawbacks when using performance appraisals. It is often a hard task to differentiate between organizational performance and individual performance (Towney & Harris, 2000). A performance appraisal may be ineffective if it does not correspond with the culture within the organization (Schraeder, Becton, & Portis, 2007). Also, if not used correctly, a performance appraisal can be detrimental to a company. Complications arising:impede improvement: Soltani (2005) believes that performance appraisals will  adversely affect quality improvement within an organization due to negative perceptions. Negative perceptions: Performance appraisals can be stressful and uncomfortable for both the employee and management. This often is true if the employee being appraised does not trust management or they believe the appraisal is an exercise to be endured and executed. Erroneous information: Accurate information should be provided within the performance appraisal. It should be used to compare current performance to pre-established criteria and the employee should be rated honestly.Often, this is not the case and the employee will receive inflated ratings to please the employee to avoid conflict. Legal issues: When not conducted appropriately, performance appraisals can cause legal issues for the organization. Thus, the performance appraisal must be free from bias and discrimination. Professional goals: Performance appraisals are used to outline an employee’s performance goals. An overly challenging goal may affect the employeeâ€⠄¢s quality of work, knowledge and skills. This would not be beneficial for the organization or employee. New employees should focus on outcome goals rather than performance goals initially. Affect pay: A deficit in performance-based pay may be linked to the performance appraisal. This leads to tension among employees and management.Slide#4The employee should be informed of any performance pay increases after the appraisal. The rationale for not giving any increase in performance pay should be discussed with the employee and allow the employee any rebuttal if not in agreement with the appraisal.Goals must be communicated with the employee and must be in alignment with organizational culture. They must be specific, measurable, supported, and achievable. These goals will be motivators for the immediate time to come. Unobtainable goals are discouraging and provide no real way to achieve company goals. Documentation of the plan of action for the employee should be completed. This docume ntation will provide a record of what has been tried, lessons learned, and the direction in which the employee should take to meet goals.This will help the employee gain knowledge and experience prior to taking on additional responsibilities. Thus, providing the  employee with his/her strengths and weaknesses. Next the discussion for what the employee goals will be for the upcoming future should take place. New goals should be addressed. The employee should be willing to correct any performance issues.The performance appraisal process should include this step for an overall effective process. This allows management and the employee to be involved with the process.Slide#5The employee should know where he/she stands in obtaining performance goals. Thus, providing feedback is an integral part of the task. The feedback should be delivered to the employee to motivate the employee but also help him/her identify any weakness in his/her performance and to help contribute to growth. The em ployee should leave the appraisal with knowledge of what he/she specifically needs to improve on and the actions needed to improve. However, management may unknowingly make mistakes when delivering feedback. This may impede the employee’s performance. Some instances that may be counter-productive to providing feedback is not honestly providing accurate feedback because of a negative connotation, focusing on the individual rather than actions, generalizing the feedback given, and offering solutions with negative feedback only.Personality Appraisal: The employee’s personality may be appraised instead of his/her performance. This may leave the employee feeling attacked. Demoralizing: The appraisal may only provide feedback on what you are not doing well, instead of what you have done correctly. â€Å"I Talk, You Listen† Approach: The appraisal should allow for conversation to take place. The employee should be allowed to ask questions and not to have to sit quietly and listen to only what management wants to say. Surprises: The employer should not surprise the employee. The employer should provide feedback at times other than the performance appraisal, especially if the actions of the employee are negative.Performance appraisals are not often looked fondly upon. Management delivering the appraisals needs to use the appraisal as a way to provide  both positive and negative feedback. This will make the process more effective and beneficial to both the organization and employee.Slide#6The performance appraisal should be completed using simple language. Do not use jargon when speaking with the employee. The employee expects honesty, so don’t gloss over the appraisal if it is not as positive as the employee hoped. This isn’t the time to renegotiate the goals set at the beginning of the year, but to deliver the information on any deficits the employee had. The manager delivering the appraisal should not be afraid to praise the emplo yee for doing a good job. On the other hand, if the employee has not performed as expected, the manager should not feel the need to hide the bad news.The employee’s performance is not a reflection on that manager, but the employee. It is not ethical to inflate an employee’s performance detail to spare feelings. Doing so, actually will expose the organization to liability. Feedback should be given throughout the year so there is no surprise or likelihood for any confrontations during the appraisal review. The employee will respect the manager more when this takes place then waiting until the performance appraisal for all the information to be divulged.Slide#7Is the company concerned with employee successes? Yes! When the employee is able to succeed in attaining his/her goals, the organization succeeds as well. Increased efficiency and production are achieved when management and employees work together with a common goal. The organization will exist only when our company invests in our employees.Professional investing begins upon the employment of the new employee. The employee was hired for his/her individual set of skills and knowledge. The roles and responsibilities of the employee evolve and grow as the organization evolves. Thus, the organization continues to invest in the employee for both the organization and employee’s benefit.There is a benefit to helping an employee expand in professional development.  The organization invests in that employee and hopes to promote the culture of the company. This allows the employee to adapt to changing demands in the work environment. When the employee is successful, then the organization appears more successful.A successful performance appraisal will benefit the organization by providing professional development of the employee. This will help the organization create a employee that follows the culture of the organization. This leads to increased employee satisfaction and results in decreased e mployee turnover.Slide#8Teams of individuals compose an organization. There are organizational expectations for a team’s performance. Four areas need to be considered when assessing a team’s performance. These areas are financial health, market wins, service quality and personal development (Smith, 2004). Financial viability—Financial viability is important in measuring team performance. This tells management how well the team utilizes employees and keeping the overall costs reduced.Market wins—The assessment of the team in marketing gives the organization a picture of how well the team is doing in comparison to company goals. Service Quality—The team is assessed on how important they make the consumer feel and attention paid to needs of the consumer. Was the care appropriate and did the team provide the consumer an opportunity for communication of his/her needs? Personal Development—The team is assessed on the investment of each team member ’s personal development. Did the team members achieve his/her goals and how does this compare to the overall team efforts? Specific evaluations can be good indicators in overall team satisfaction.Slide#9A multi-source feedback model is one that gathers information on an employee from members within the employee’s immediate peer group. This type of feedback model will include direct feedback from peers, supervisors, and  subordinates. This model also gives the employee a chance to evaluate his/her own performance. Feedback may also come from external sources, such as patients. Multisource feedback may be contrasted by upward feedback, where feedback is given from direct reports and traditional performance appraisals, where his/her direct supervisor only evaluates the employee.This combination of appraisals ensures accurate assessments of employees and teams. Supervisors would be able to utilize feedback from the employee’s peers, patients, and his/her own indiv idual performance review. The employees must separate individual assessments from team assessments to ensure accuracy. This type of evaluation also allows for praise to be given when it is due.The multi-source feedback model can also be utilized for team performance evaluations. The multi-source feedback model allows supervisors see the performance of a team from all points of view. This model would be able to identify if the team is meeting organizational goals.Slide#10 Managers must be consistent when evaluating team performance and employees. The manager must understand the importance of the assessment strategy. For example, the employee evaluation focuses upon the individual employee while the team evaluation focuses upon the team as a whole. Thus, it is important to have a system in place for evaluations. The nature of the team type of evaluation needs to be focused on discussions rather than endless form filing. This makes sense because the manager will need to gain an underst anding of the whole team and the successes attained in meeting designated objectives.The discussions need to focus on what can strengthen the team and what individual opportunities exist for individual team members. The team members must feel comfortable and be encouraged to be candid during the discussions. Employee evaluations focus on the individual employee and conducted with that employee only. There are many types of evaluations available to assess an individual employee in an ongoing performance assessment. Individual assessments are aimed at providing feedback to the employee and management for administrative decision-making and employee development. The primary purpose of an employee performance  appraisal is to improve the employee to achieve goals.Slide#11Individuals are not happy doing the same job over and over again without the prospect of something more interesting or challenging being offered to them. Employees who anticipate a long-term career path will look at op tions available to them. They will likely be more motivated and productive. They will want to understand what is expected from them and think about what they need to do to remain with the company.Succession planning helps the organization plan what it must do to provide professional development for our employees. A successful strategy provides cross-training and mentoring to employees and prepares them to be ready to step into other jobs and responsibilities should the opportunity present itself. This allows the organization to function effectively. To ensure growth and sustainability, an organization should implement a succession planning strategy. This will guarantee the organization continued successes and allows the organization to develop more leaders within (Beck, 2013).Slide#12The organization can use succession planning through the development of more leaders within the actual organization. This allows the organization to invest in employees, which provides positive reinforc ement and satisfaction. This also allows to place employees in different positions should the necessity arise to fill positions due to unforeseen circumstances. The actual candidates selected must be chosen carefully, since the candidates will be expanding their competencies and skills to ensure they will be able to lead others. The candidates must be familiar with as many departments as possible so they are able to foster a greater understanding of the organization and culture.Successional planning should be a benefit within the organization. This can be used to help recruit valuable employees. This will help aid the  organization attain the mission and goals set forth.Slide#13 Identification of key positions should be completed. Next, key employees should be identified for these positions. The employees should have adequate development and training to attain the organizational mission and goals. This would ensure the employees identified for these positions would be prepared to step-in to these key positions. This assures the organization has created a group of highly competent employees to advance within the organizational framework.The employees selected must be willing to participate in succession training for the program to work. The organization must ensure the employees selected have the desired abilities and talents to follow the career paths set forth by the company. This is where professional development is key. The organization has created the opportunity for the employees and the organization must motivate the employee to grow. This will help the organization develop employee loyalty and reduce turnover.Senior leadership must be involved for succession planning to be effective and successful. This leadership must become integral in the training and development of the selected employees. The senior leaders must buy-in to the concept of succession planning and provide a positive attitude to the development and training.Slide#14The performance appr aisal system provides opportunities for professional development and training, encourages positive company attitudes, and provides the opportunity for a clear understanding of expectations to be seen. The actual appraisal provides the opportunity to reward, encourage, and clarify expectations for employees. Appraisals are meant to be as accurate as possible and be fairly administered.The appraisal system can be utilized in both individual and team evaluation  approaches. The appraisal system should always be given in a non-threatening manner and be a positive experience even when the appraised employee doesn’t meet expectations. The appraisal should provide a platform to help motivate and develop employees.The goals of employees and the organization should be aligned so both entities reap the rewards. Evaluation of both individual and team performance is beneficial in increasing productivity individually and organizationally. This leads to a more accurate evaluation.The mul ti-source feedback model can be utilized to evaluate team and individual performance. Peers, supervisors and the individual teal member is able to evaluate performance. This model can be used to identify strengths and weaknesses that can then be discussed and a plan of action be implemented to promote professional growth.Succession planning is the strategy utilized to fill vacant positions with qualified employees. The key positions are initially identified and then the employees are identified for these positions. Significant training and professional development will then take place for succession within the organization.The goal of this presentation is to foster the understanding of a successful performance appraisal process. Our organizational goal is to provide support to our employees by promoting professional development to attain our organization’s mission and goals.Slide#15 The Human Resources department is ready to help prepare performance appraisal forms, establish protocols, provide managerial training to improve communication skills to help deliver performance appraisals, and ensure the performance appraisal process complies with all laws.The attitude conveyed by the CEO and Board is a positive one that shows a commitment to our employees and has our employee’s best interests in mind.  They want employees to be vested in our organization and provide professional development to all involved.Our organization is taking a positive attitude to performance appraisals and is promoting them as a positive opportunity for constructive change. Performance appraisals are not to be used as a disciplinary measure.Our organization supports all employees and will continue to help our employees become engaged in a process that will retain them. Interventions will be implemented for those who need improvement. Positive reinforcement will be used at all times.

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Essay on the the Secret Book Essay Example for Free

Essay on the the Secret Book Essay According to recent studies, self-help books – non-fiction books that offer advice for behavior modification and make explicit promises for positive change – have doubled as a percentage of all book titles since the 1970s. The increasing popularity of self-help books is an indicator of the modern societys quest to maximize personal happiness through a process of self-discovery. Self-help books are a response to a real and genuine hunger for psychological understanding and self-improvement and are part of the larger market of advice media. Readers buy self-help books seeking self-control – both as a good-faith attempt to increase their self-control and to elicit a temporary sensation that, in fact, the first step toward self-control has already been taken. And of recent years, one of the increasing self-help or spirituality books involve the teachings of New Age-ism. The New Age is a decentralized Western social and spiritual movement that seeks Universal Truth and the attainment of the highest individual human potential. It includes aspects of Occultism, astrology, esotericism, metaphysics, alternative medicine, music, collectivism, sustainability, and nature. New Age spirituality is characterized by an individual approach to spiritual practices and philosophies, and the rejection of religious doctrine and dogma. New Age practices and philosophies sometimes draw inspiration from major world religions: Buddhism, Chinese folk religion, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism; with particularly strong influences from East Asian religions, Gnosticism, Neopaganism, New Thought, Spiritualism, Theosophy, Universalism, and Western esotericism. New Age spirituality has led to a wide array of literature on the subject and an active niche market: books, music, crafts, and services in alternative medicine are available at New Age stores, fairs, and festivals. And one of the most phenomenal publishing successes in the self-help/New Age teachings is a book called The Secret. ABOUT THE SECRET Product Details The English-language 6. 9 x 5. 7 x 0. 9 inches hardcover book is fairly lightweight at 198 pages. It was first published in November 28, 2006 by Atria Books in Australia. In the United States of America, the book is published by Beyond Words and in United Kingdom by Simon Schuster UK. Product Description Fragments of a Great Secret have been found in the oral traditions, in literature, in religions and philosophies throughout the centuries. For the first time, all the pieces of The Secret come together in an incredible revelation that will be life-transforming for all who experience it. In this book, youll learn how to use The Secret in every aspect of your life money, health, relationships, happiness, and in every interaction you have in the world. Youll begin to understand the hidden, untapped power thats within you, and this revelation can bring joy to every aspect of your life. The Secret contains wisdom from modern-day teachers men and women who have used it to achieve health, wealth, and happiness. By applying the knowledge of The Secret, they bring to light compelling stories of eradicating disease, acquiring massive wealth, overcoming obstacles, and achieving what many would regard as impossible. Content of The Secret 1. Foreword 2. Acknowledgements 3. The Secret Revealed 4. The Secret Made Simple 5. How to Use The Secret 6. Powerful Processes 7. The Secret to Money 8. The Secret to Relationships 9. The Secret to Health 10. The Secret to the World 11. The Secret to You 12. The Secret to Life 13. Biographies The Secret Revealed The first thing you need to know is that The Secret isn’t really a secret. The secret is actually â€Å"The Law of Attraction† that asserts what you think creates what you feel, and these feelings flow from your body as magnetic energy waves over vast distances, which then cause the universe around you to vibrate at the same energy level as your feelings. The idea dates back nearly 3,000 years to early Hindu teachings that like attracts like. The law of attraction, which the author Rhonda Byrne says is the most powerful law in the universe, states that people experience the logical manifestations of their predominant thoughts, feelings, and words. This gives people direct control over their lives. A persons thoughts (whether conscious or unconscious) and feelings bring about corresponding positive or negative manifestations. Positive thoughts bring about positive manifestations while negative thoughts bring about negative manifestations. The theory is very simple. Because it is an absolute law, the law of attraction will always respond to your thoughts no matter what they are. Thus your thoughts become things. You are the most powerful power in the universe simply because whatever you think about will come to be. You shape the world that exists around you. You shape your own life and destiny through the power of your mind. To quote some of the teachings in this book are â€Å"Thoughts are sending out that magnetic signal that is drawing the parallel back to you. †Thus there is no such thing as accident or coincidence; it is you, the individual, who brings misery on yourself because of your toxic thinking. But the good news, if you can alter your thoughts, and therefore your feelings, you can actually cause the universe around you to vibrate at a positive energy level and the desires of your heart will come to be realized! All you have to do is Ask — Believe — Receive. You just have to visualize what you want, feel good about it, and then ask the universe — and whatever you can imagine can be yours. It is like having the universe as your catalogue and you flip through it and go, ‘Well I’d like to have this experience and I’d like to have that product and I’d like to have a person like that’ †¦ It is you just placing your order with the universe. The law of attraction was the power, the author argues, behind geniuses such as Plato, Newton, Beethoven and Einstein. In this book too, she has also gotten quotes, experiences and support from the whos who of the self-help industry, including John Gray, author of Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, and Jack Canfield, who wrote Chicken Soup for the Soul. Jack Canfield, provides an excellent example of the ask-believe-receive system where he tells us that he visualized earning $100,000 (even writing the desired amount on a bill worth far less and tacking it to the ceiling above his bed) and focused his mental energy only on the goal of attaining the money. He tells us that he had absolutely no idea how he was going to get the money — he simply focused on believing that he would get the money, somehow. But how? For four weeks he had no breakthrough ideas but then, one day in the shower, he remembered that he had written a book and, if it was published (particularly if he sold 400,000 copies and he made a quarter on each) he just might achieve his financial goals. Of course the book was published, and the results were only a few thousand dollars shy of 100,000 dollars. And this is just one of the many testimonials in this book called The Secret. The Story Behind The Secret It is not a secret now that The Secret is a publishing phenomenon of recent years especially for in the non-fiction self-help category. This small book, with a parchment-brown cover engraved with the image of a red wax seal, debuted in 2006 and since then it has sold over four million copies worldwide and has been translated to 38 different languages. The Secret began as a DVD which came out end of 2004. Rhonda Byrne was a television producer in Australia in 2004 when the death of her father led her to discover ‘the secret’, which is her term for what is commonly known as the law of attraction. Her discovery was mainly caused by the 1910 book The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles. Wattless book struck such a chord with Byrne that she plunged into a crash course in Western, Eastern, ancient and modern thought, devouring hundreds of books and articles in just two and a half weeks. Inspired, she flew to the States in July 2005 and began lining up people to interview; the film was finished six months later and she began trying to find an Australian network to air it. The top-rated Nine Network was intrigued by her proposal, but the finished film struck Len Downs, the program manager, as just a whole range of talking heads giving their basis of the secret of life. It eventually ran in Australia just a few weeks ago, and, says Downs, it didnt do all that well. But armed with the law of attraction, Byrne was confident things would work out. A Web company situated just blocks away from her office in Melbourne had a technology for distributing streaming video over the Internet. In March 2006, her site (http://thesecret. tv) began selling downloads and DVDs, one of which found its way to Cynthia Black, president of the New Age-oriented publishing house Beyond Words saw its potential and by late November the book was in the stores and the rest as they say, is history. PURCHASING THE SECRET The Secret books are available at all major bookstores, online bookstore and through its official website. It is usually placed in the Health, Mind Body - Self Help category or Religion Spirituality - New Age category. At most of these major bookstores, The Secret books are placed most prominently on the shelves. Due to it being constantly on worldwide bestseller lists for non-fiction books thus the title is prominently displayed in the bookstores should the bookstore have a bestsellers display section. Its average retails price for cash carry stores are $23. 95 in the United States; ? 12. 00 in United Kingdom; and MYR79. 90 in Malaysia. While its average retail price for online purchases are $14. 00 and ? 12. 00 in United States and United Kingdom respectively. PROMOTING THE SECRET After the phenomenal success of the The Secret DVD, it made sense for it to be turned into a book and what better way for the marketers to embark on promoting the book than playing up the hype of the movie and using the popular internet marketing tool such as the viral video site YouTube. The book was marketed with an online viral video campaign focusing on wealth enhancement. The short video clips showed testimonials from readers of the book and practitioners of the secret claiming that the technique brought them wealth, cured sickness, and brought about a general life-change. The video clips do not disclose what the secret is, where it originated from or how it can be practiced, but rather pointed viewers to the website for both the book and film. Thus hooking the viewers and made them all the more intrigue by the claims made by the author in the book. As for packaging and promotional material, the book also played into the consumers’ senses by trying to showcase that the secret originates from the cosmos. The cover prominently displayed a parchment-brown cover engraved with the image of a red wax seal (see Appendix 1) to indicate it is somewhat a book from the olden days and in the inside pages, the background design are a field of stars, and various shots of the universe thus adding mystique to the claims and the practice. However, the most savvy and most probably the ultimate gambit of the book is to call it The Secret. To quote Mr Donavin Bennes, a buyer who specializes in metaphysics for Borders Books, We all want to be in on a secret. But to present it as the secret, that was brilliant. † Thus the name evoke a sense of intrigue to readers who are looking for something magical or perhaps easier tool for them to understand and to fully live their lives. Another smart marketing move made by the publisher was to have it endorsed by well-known and highly popular worldwide celebrities. The book got its first break in the US when Ellen DeGeneres featured it on her show. And when Oprah Winfrey decided to run a show on it, although it was already a big success, the sales ballooned up much more. Oprah Winfrey first featured it on Feb. 8 2007 and according to Nielsen BookScan, the book had sold 18,000 copies the week before. During the week of the show, sales rocketed to 101,000 and when the show did a follow-up on Feb. 16 2007, the sales that week reached 190,000. With the success of the book, the publishers decided to create more spin-off titles, which they call The Secret tools. There are now The Secret to Teen Power (see Appendix 2), The Secret Daily Teachings (see Appendix 3) and The Secret Gratitude Book (see Appendix 4). Not only that, at its official website there are also ‘gifts’ for the readers such as visualization tools, The Secret memory game, wallpapers, ebook and blank checks (see Appendix 5) which goes hand-in-hand with the teachings of the book. THE SECRET S. W. O. T ANALYSIS Strengths 1. The intriguing title. As elaborated above, the title play a major role in inciting readers’ interest in the book. 2. The cover design. Alongside its intriguing title, the odd-shaped book with its olden-days personification invoke a sense of mystery that is definitely eye-catching and surely pique a person’s interest while browsing the shelves at a bookstore. 3. The content is an easy read with its simple language and peppered with inspiring testimonials from many men women who has experienced the use of the secret plus personal experience quotations from the the whos who of the self-help industry. 4. The savvy marketing ideas of the publishers that has created the hype that constantly raise awareness of the book. 5. Endorsement by high-profile influential personalities that are recognized world-wide certainly helped boosted its sale internationally. 6. Constant high-placing in best-selling charts, most probably due to the savvy marketing ideas of the publisher and as the  long-term effect of the celebrity associated to the book especially Oprah Winfrey. Weaknesses 1. The selling price in Malaysia of RM79. 90 is definitely a setback to potential buyers as the price is rather steep for many people especially for books in the self-help category. 2. The book is not available in paperback form thus some book buyers are not keen on buying hardback cover books due to its steeper price or its slightly heavy weight. 3. The content is not something that is unique and there are many similar teachings that one can get in many other books thus it does lack a little originality. 4. As typical with many New Age teachings, the content of the book has garnered much criticism which try to debunked the book’s teaching as merely hype, mumbo-jumbo or just plain illogical. 5. The book has to complete with many other form of self-help books available that are cheaper, more accessible and from much more renowned authors (Paulo Coelho, Eckhart Tolle, Anthony Robbins) Opportunities 1. Publishers could promote to younger readers especially The Secret for Teens book first and therefore will garner their interest in the main book The Secret. 2. Use the The Secret movie to lure potential readers as there are those who would like to have to book in hand as a way to look back or do revision which is harder to do with the dvd. 3. Offer a cheaper paperback form, thus the book is able to be sold at a cheaper price and therefore garner many more readers. Threats 1. With the easy access to internet, potential readers might decide to check out what the book is about online and thus stumbling on the many critics that the book has garnered. This in turn can make them believe the critics before actually reading the book, thus will result in loss of sales. 2. Like many other things in life, people are apt to stumble upon a new idea for a book or a belief that could help the world, thus there will be brand new books in the future that will probably come with a much more savvy marketing approach and thus will affect the interest of the people about The Secret! THE SECRET CONCLUSION The Secret is a phenomenon and it is likely to become one of the best-selling self-help books of all time. Venture into your local bookstore or look around you while waiting at an airport, and youre bound to see people reading it and absorbing it. They will not just be people who consult astrologers and who listen to Tony Robbins tapes, but normal, average people like the ones who live next door to you. There are almost 1400 reviews of the book printed at Amazon with an average rating of 3. 5 out of 5. The breakdown of those scores is interesting: fifty-two percent of them are 5-star, thirteen percent are 4-star and twenty-one percent are 1-star. This means that the majority of people, the great majority even, believe in at least some aspects of the books premise and teaching. They believe in the law of attraction. The one problem that The Secret poses is that it simplifies and speculates way too much and there are a quite a significant level of moral defects, the lack of scientific backing, and the various philosophical shortcomings, how is it that a significant number of people still believe there’s something to The Law of Attraction? Part of the reason must certainly be the powerful testimonials coming from celebrity figures such as Oprah Winfrey, a woman who attributes her success to her mighty powers of attraction. Of course, thats a long way from the simple model of Ask-Believe-Receive. In most peoples lives, positive thought leads to success only through the transforming medium of action. But as the author Rhonda said in an interview, she just wants to bring happiness to everybody. Thats the reason it all began. And to her credit, she does bring happiness to many people worldwide and surely there is nothing, in principle, wrong with thinking about what makes you happy.

Starbucks Strategy and Planning Analysis

Starbucks Strategy and Planning Analysis Starbucks Corporation is a mulitinational coffee chain store first setup in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the biggest coffeehouse through out the world with more than 17000 restaurants in 55 countries including Australia, U K, New Zealand, Canada, and Brazil. It has more than 128,800 employees. It is the public based industrywhich established by Zev Siegl, Jerry Baldwin and Gordon Bowker in 1971. Other key people which are linked with Starbucks are Howard Schultz (Chairman), Troy Alstead who is President and CEO and Stephen Gillett who is Chief Financial Officer. Starbucks which main products are Whole bean coffee, boxed tea, Bottled beverages, baked good, Merchandise, and Frappuccino beverages. Its incomes for the fiscal year 2010 is US $10.7 Billion. Brief History of Starbucks 1970s: The first Ever Starbucks established with a name came from Herman Melvilles Mob Dick, a classic American novel. 1980s: The industrialist Howard Schultz attached the Starbucks as a Director of Retail operations and marketing. 1990s: In this term the demand for Starbucks coffee improved so they thought to increase it beyond Seattle. 2000s: Starbucks came with 15,000 restaurants through out world wide. What is Strategy and Strategic Planning? Strategy means a plan of action which designed to achieve a particular goals and Strategic planning is an organizations process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this tactic, including its investment and people. Why Strategy is Important? In each field of life there is a road map according to which we work or spend our life to get at the specific targets and goals. Like wise in any business, there needs to be a pre plan for success for a business to b successful. This strategic plan gives the direction for the goal to be achieved. A strategic plan also helps the different work units within the organization to keep themselves with common goals. Past Strategies of Starbucks (1990-2004) Mission Statement In early 1990 the management planed to introduce a mission statement which clearly discribe the company goal and targets so each of the workers could work well and communicate in a better way to customers and investors too, so mission statement is: Provide great work environment and treat each other with respect and dignity Embrace diversity as an essential component in the ay we do business Apply the highest standard of excellence to the purchasing, roasting and fresh delivery of our coffee Develop enthusiastically satisfied customers all the time Contribute to our communities and our environment Recognize the profitability is essential to our future success Innovation Strategy From the very early Starbucks kept the innovation as its constant value. Schultz brought the place-like-home between the office and home so people would get together at the best quality coffees and teas. After that Starbucks launched an effort with its business partners like PepsiCo for the cold Frappuccino drink. In the year of 1995 Starbucks developed a team named Stores of the future to complete a research for the designs of next generation stores and other coffee related concerns. Then this team made four different ideas for the each stage of coffee making. These sorts of innovations made the Starbucks to decrease the enormous cost of store opening. Starbucks also brought the fresh pastries and other food items such as juices, sodas and coffee related machines like Starbucks Barista home espresso machine. Meanwhile they also launched coffee mugs and glasses.C:UsersNew UserDesktopAhmadStrategystar buckse574603984362fed77cb3b8064721dd9.jpg Quality Strategy Schultz always kept a keen eye on the quality of the products and services and what the customer expectation from Starbucks. Quality in Starbucks was launched in a very strict manner. Starbucks also banned the smoking inside the shop and ordered its employees to refrain from having perfumed there selves. Starbucks was broadly known for its better quality of product and services. Howard Schultz Expansion strategy In the period of 1993 company brought an expansion strategy based on targeting areas with demographic profiles which is favourable together with the Starbuckss policy to carry and entertain them. For each area a big city was selected to work as a central unit like hub where a team would complete the target of opening 20 or more shops in the first 2 years. Starbucks hired professionals with immense operating and marketing experience in chain store retailing as new area vice presidents. Another strategy was also set up to increase the goodwill of Starbucks brand, which made its target to some extent. In 1991 Starbucks developed a group of specialists to form a store development process depends upon a six month opening timetable. In which it is asked to build every store in different shape, size and infrastructure. Cost lessening was also got by centralized buying, by fixed fees for some products and by work under contractors with best cost control practices. Starbucks expansion strategy depended on a limited number of agreements for region where there is no ability to open its own shops. Starbucks also opened stores in airports and university campuses by the help of licensed like Marriot Host International and Aramark. Coffee was also started to serve on flights like Horizon Airlines and in United Airlines. Special sales portion of Starbucks made sales 12.20% of total revenue in 1997. In 1995 company made its real development with international exposure which was based on two strategies, are as follow: Enabling local company with retail know how in target region Creating a joint venture with reputable companies In 1995 Starbucks International was setup to coordinate the international development, which originally started operations in Hawaii, Japan, Philippines, Taiwan, Korea and Singapore. IPO and Stock performance Starbucks had build its foundation till 1992 but now it was set to play a part in the race of developing market, as it was predicted by speciality coffee association oa America that from 1992 to 1999 number of coffee cafes would raise 500 to 10,000. To stimulate its expansion strategy Starbucks go heat to most successful publicizing in 1992, in result its stock price moved growing from $5.50 in 1992 to $58 till today. Its stock has been divided four times (1993, 1996 and 2001) to balance its equity among shareholders. These division also prohibited high prices from determining small investors as the share value moved upwards. Financing As there was no leading threat from competitors, company was capable to finance its expansion entirely by avoiding debt till 1996 with equity capital and revenues, minimizing its overall cost. But essential for high degree financing forced Schultz in 1996 to understand the significance of debt and take it as lawful option to meet the need of market extension. Star bucks infrastructure for growth strategy was to increase the profits in same series by growing the no of stores which was clearly shown by its financial statement. Starbucks managed its foremost expansion stages across us in 1992-93 and overseas in 1995 by deviating to debt. High P/E ratio in the early hours of the company public life in1992 1993 shows high degree of confidence by its investors but with the passage of time it diminish till 1995 and today its constant around 60 due to financing. Starbucks historical growth analysis A reliable coffee shop atmosphere linked with the developed sound management; these were the things on which Starbucks past growth based. For this purpose they crafted the strategy to drench quickly key geographic areas, particularly in an industry with low entry barriers. Its competitive advantage was greater people recruitment, training and management. Continuous development has been measured at all levels of Starbucks stores organization and design, coffees and teas. Organized marketing structure is another key success factor to deal its expansion (real estate group, store development group, retail operation group). Four As Strategy Starbucks success enormously depends upon its Four As Strategy: Acceptability Affordability Availability Awareness The Company site published the following Charts: Starbucks at present (2005-2009) Financial highlights of Starbucks as per annual report 2009: Michael Porters 5 Forces Model To understand the current specialty coffee industry I apply Porters five forces model to its instant environment of Starbucks. Rivalry Among Competing Firm High Other coffee chains. Examples include Coffee Bean Tea Leaf, Gloria Jeans Coffee, Peets, and San Francisco Coffee House Due to great competition in coffee industry, local competitors are offering specials packages and opening of new restaurants to attract potential customers. Low Potential of new competitors High Due to low start up cost entry of potential rival is a great risk. To increase the value in Specialty coffee McDonald is trying to add specialty coffee in their current services. Potential revenue will be $125,000 per year by every store if they are effectively enter in specialty coffee market No special knowledge is required Low Capital requirement Low Potential development of Substitute products High Potential alternate of coffee are soda, fruit juice, smoothes, beer and Water. As we be known with water is healthy for human beings and most of all this its free and option cost to buy bottled water in also cheap as compared to coffee. So Water is the final choice of health conscious customer. Other quick grab foods apart from pastries, muffins, doughnuts, etc sold at Starbucks are also substitutes. E.g. burgers, burritos, tacos, sushi snack food. Low Bargaining power of suppliers High As Starbucks is a enormous giant of coffee market, suppliers are forced to adjust their prices according to it so bargaining power of coffee beans supplier is low. As there are not a lot suppliers of technological innovated coffee beans machines such as automated coffee machines, latte and Espresso machines, etc, bargaining power of suppliers is high. But in case of glass, napkin, lids, cups suppliers bargaining power is low because of wide competition in this industry and Starbucks have different contracts with them. Low Bargaining power of consumers High Bargaining power of Customers is very low when they came to best coffee such as Starbucks. So bargaining power of any single group of buyer has been reduces due to complete scale of Starbuck. While new entrant have improved the bargaining power of buyers by offering sensible quality at cheaper price. . Low Pest Analysis Political/Legal: Due to increase in clash between United States and rest of the world like southeast Asia and Middle East, Companies has to face severe scenarios e.g. refuse of American products like Starbuck, burger King, coca cola etc. Change in import laws is a big risk for Starbucks as they are the only importer of coffee beans. If import process becomes difficult it will finally change the price of Starbucks and level of use will be affected. Two class action suits of Starbucks are awaiting since 2001, Carr vs. Starbucks and Sheilds vs. Starbucks. In start Co refuted all the liabilities in these cases but to avoid any further participation in any delayed proceeding it agreed to settle the plaintiffs claims. Economic: Consumer become more aware concerning their flexible spending due to increase in Unemployment and individual debt after economic recession of 2008. In addition due to financial crises worldwide, further recession is projected which may affect companys result approximately. Starbucks also faced criticism from NGOs that persist the company to acquire specialized coffee beans, ensuring that those coffee beans were grown and marketed under certain economic and social conditions. Social/cultural: Environmental Mission Statement Starbucks is very loyal for playing a role of environmental leadership in all facets of its business. These are the principles that shows the companys fulfillment toward environmental issues. More concerned about environmental issues Motivated toward environmental friendly products buying and selling Developing innovation to bring change Information sharing attitude toward associates taking into account environmental responsibility as corporate worth Encouragement of associates to share in companys mission. monitor the progress of each project of company regular people do not only go to coffee shops to drink a coffee but to make themselves calm down so they are ready to spent more and more money on coffee (UK: Tea:  £623m, Coffee:  £738m) Now a days coffee companies are more concerned about their ways of producing coffee beans, designing their supply chain and the ways of organizing and selling their products due to raise in environmental consciousness. Technological: http://reviews.carreview.com/files/2007/11/starbucks_sirena_bmw_med.jpg For providing incessantly better customer services Starbucks launched cards to make customers visit more suitable and faster. Mostly Starbucks location has WI-FI for consumer needs. Technical Coffee machines are now available at Better and cheaper rates for home usage (Senseo). SWOT Analysis A SWOT analysis provides us an imminent on what the company is good at, and in what areas Starbucks could use assistance. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) are described below: Strengths: Global coffee brand built upon a reputation for well products and services Value workers Economies of scale in purchasing Big Chain of stores: 17,000 stores in 49 countries. Strong ethical values, friendly environment, and community activists. Low turnover Very Good relationship with its suppliers Weaknesses: High prices More dependent on coffee and coffee related products. Too much focus on expansion Need of Strong competitive Position for more Expansion to reduce the Business risk Continuous improvement may weaken over time and finally product acceptance will come toward slow growth. Opportunity Investment cost for New market is very low International Expansion to the company has the chance to expand its operation Diversification in product range toward other food and drinks. Potential in franchising with manufacturers of other goods and services Distribution agreement like hotels airlines Threats Saturation in coffee market Economic recession and Financial Crises Competition with new entrants and copycat brands. Rise in cost of coffee and dairy products. Rise in Cost of beans in near future Possessiveness of consumer regarding healthful fare SWOT Analysis Internal Factor Strengths S1 Brand Equity is high S2 Employees are more satisfied S4 Economies of scale in Purchasing. Weaknesses W1 prices are high W2 More dependent on coffee and coffee related products W3 Deficiency of internal focus (too much focus on expansion) External Factor Opportunities O1 Investment cost of New market is low O2 Scope of Coffee Market Is rising Worldwide O3 Diversification of Product range toward food and non food items SO Strategies 1-Vertical growth to other low cost regions using superior brand. 2- To diversify in other related businesses hire the qualified employees WO Strategies 1- To overcome the too much dependency on coffee and coffee related products increase the product range through Diversification in related businesses. 2- Get benefit from growing markets through reducing costs to reduce prices in low investment markets. Threats T2 Economic recession and Financial Crises. T3 Domestic competition is increasing T4 coffee and dairy products are volatile ST strategies 1- Avoid domestic competition by using high brand through differentiation. 2- To avoid volatile coffee and dairy use the economies of scale through backward vertical addition. WT Strategies 1- To face the current financial crises and economic resources cost should be reduced to reduce the prices. 2- To avoid competition in domestic market depend on international alliance in the international stores as it is the main source of revenue. Future Strategies of Starbucks According to Starbucks current state of dealings, extensive competition, economic scenarios (at least in America) a question comes in mind about how Starbucks can turns itself around to show it profitable and most preferable choice for its customers? Following are some key success factors and strategies which should be considered while making Company policies so that Starbucks can attain its original successful position. What should Starbucks do? Starbucks didnt face any competitors which would have given it a sharp competition for a longer time. But after the entry of competitors in to the market Starbucks is no longer a sole player now. This is a huge threat for Starbucks because other companies are also providing premium coffees which can be compared to Starbucks level. Despite of the fact of competitors came into the market Starbucks is offering luxury coffee but at the high price as compare to competitors. If we compare Starbucks coffee with McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts than it would not be something to think about because they are also providing good taste and quality. Below are some potential strategies that Starbucks should adopt to overcome its threats and weaknesses. Advertising and promotion: It is the general perception in the mind of people that the McDonalds coffee is compare able and most probably better than the Starbucks so before renewing the name of brand Starbucks should equip peoples mind with the fact that Starbucks coffee is superior to all other coffee and beverages brands. For this Starbucks need to be more aggressive in there promotion strategy. In 2006 Starbucks allocated only $38Million for its marketing and promotion strategy as compared to its closest competitor McDonalds $782 Million and Dunkin Donuts $116Million. So by this figure it is clear that Starbucks should make a huge effort for its promotion and advertising strategy and should allocate more funds where needed, to reach at peak level and to keep the leadership.http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3039/2926840497_2a8dc5f460.jpg Product Differentiation Strategy: Starbucks should also work on product differentiation strategy. McDonalds is offering premium coffee at lower price although but it would not suit to the Starbucks to start the price war. If Starbucks start a price war than it will minimize the brand goodwill and it would also not be profitable for both the organizations. Starbucks should also research something new which adds more taste and quality to coffee which maximize the customers and capture more market. If Starbucks make something new than it should distribute free sample for a limited time so the people come to know and if the response is good than they should make it available to all its stores. Quality control strategy: Starbucks need to introduce more coffee variety with a maximised quality. Starbucks offering one type of coffee to consumers while its competitors like Peets is offering multiple types. Starbucks needs to ensure that the coffee which is offered to customer having a high quality if it is not than the customer is not going to pay such a premium price for its coffee. Cost Efficient Strategies: Starbucks should also work on reducing its price with a high quality to attract more customers which will add more to its profit and growth. Store Expansion decisions: Starbucks should think now to put a halt on its strategy of opening new branches. In 2007 only Starbucks opened 1650 new stores which came to the total of more than 15000 stores and thought to reach at 40000 in future. It would also be better for Starbucks to stop opening new branches in US now and start thinking to open branches in small regions. Becoming more environmentally friendly: Although Starbucks is renowned for its environment friendly image and they are continuously trying to boost their efforts in this regard, still there is room to develop so they can further discriminate themselves. Starbucks should save their capital by use of porcelain cup rather than disposable cups, if customer wants to take their coffee in the cafe. Renewal of this practice will show them more environments friendly. Starbucks should offer in-house drinkers who prefer porcelain cups at discount to push this strategy. Selling of mugs at reasonable prices, implementation of recycling bins process of food waste, Use the financial inducement encourage the customers to revive the plastic cups rather than to purchase a new one are some ways to enhance its image as more environment friendly. These all things would help the Starbucks to differentiate it from its competitors and improve its image of corporate responsibility. Finally this should be the continual process of company to analyze themselves, encouragement of employees suggestions regarding environmentally beneficial initiatives and should make the continuous improvement in this part so that their green logo seems appropriate for the company. Starbucks Driveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ Through Expansion is the main focus of Starbucks but it has been noticed from various reports, surveys and people opinions that during peak hours of the day specifically in mid morning, there become the lack of tables and seats due to which customers move toward some other place in result Starbucks loses its potential customers. In addition, although Starbucks store are placed at every street corner but people face difficulty in parking especially in peak hours. As they are giving attention toward increasing of store space to hold the crowd in peak hours but not marketed it aggressively, though it would not be cost effective as expanding market campaign requires big investment but to keep customers preference its necessary. Focus on their Neglecting Customer Starbucks is distinguished for its coffee specialty and avoiding a big target market of tea, it should also think about researching into the tea specialty drinks market. As Tea has some perceived value of healthy benefits it will increase brand attractiveness. For this purpose they should continually revived their company policies to enhance their customer relations. Reward Programs Currently Starbucks is offering rewards in form of Starbucks Card programs where customer can refill its credit online and use it as Cash card at any Starbucks outlet. It doesnt differentiate it from its competitors as now they are providing the same reward programs for its customer. To take an edge over its competitor Starbucks should give some distinct reward programs like corporate with the large retail companies and airlines and merge their reward programs at Starbucks to make its first and foremost choice of its targeted customers as it will provide them an opportunity of wealth maximization . Conclusion Although there are some deficiencies in company policies but it doesnt show that Co is diminished much at all, it can get back on its previous original successful track by capitalizing its strengths. The existing economic situations which are contributing to its slouch market share should be keenly observed and noticed so that in future Co can stimulate it and make it brand strong and preferable choice for its customers.

High School Graduate in the Real World :: Personal Narrative Essays

High School Graduate in the Real World With surprisingly minimal reluctance I face my new life. My heart is filled with excitement, while my mind teems with anxiety. Everything has changed. I suppose it really hasn’t, but it seems as if one little difference can make you feel like the whole world is turning inside out. I go about what will soon become routine for me without any second thoughts. Perhaps none of this has sunk in yet. I sit alone in a tiny cubicle only about five feet square and examine my new surroundings. I have been given all the little luxuries that such an entrapment can afford. The outdated computer that noisily hums and groans, looking for sympathy. The adding machine, the pens, the highlighter, piles of papers and documents. It is all that I have right now. I am dressed in a new gray business suit, one of many gifts that I recently received. A new dress code for a new lifestyle. Only two days earlier I was standing on a stage, looking out on nearly one thousand people, summing up thirteen years in five minutes. How do you express what effect thirteen years of schooling have had on you and your classmates in a new and unused way? My valedictorian address was one of the hardest papers-or speeches in this case-that I ever had to compose. The effort put into it also made it the most rewarding as well. â€Å"For a college application I was asked what saying I would publicize if given the opportunity. My answer was ‘Living is doing, not merely being.’† Those two sentences were my favorite part of the speech. I talked about taking charge of our own lives and making a positive difference in the world. I didn’t waste any time following my own advice. Two days later I am starting what will probably become one of the most challenging but personally fulfilling experiences of my life. At six o’clock this morning my alarm clock once again did not fail to wake me from my peaceful state. I can be so resentful of that. Only seconds before I had been driving as quickly as my car would go around hairpin turns on a seemingly endless highway with a strong cool breeze blowing my hair in all directions. The remorseless beeping brought me back to reality. I went about my usual morning routine, except this time my destination would not be the same.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart :: Music Musician

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was probably the greatest genius in the world. He was born in Salzberg, Austria on January 27, 1756. The son of Leopold Mozart and his wife Anna Maria Pertl. Leopold was a successful composer and violinist. At the age of three, Wolfgang showed signs of remarkable musical talent. He learned to play the harpsichord, a keyboard instrument related to the piano, at the age of four. Wolfgang began composing minuets at the age of five. When he was only six years old, he and his older sister, Anna Maria, embarked on a series of concert tours to Europe’s courts and major cities. They played for the Austrian Empress Maria Theresa at her court in Vienna in 1762. Both children played the keyboard, but Wolfgang became a violin virtuoso as well. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has be stated the greatest music composer to ever live. He and his sister were both gifted child prodigies. The gift of music came so natural o Mozart that he could distinguish notes when blindfolded. He also had the gift of â€Å"perfect pitch.† His first opera was performed when he was eleven years old. It would only take him about two weeks to write an entire symphony or concerto. There are not many composers who can do an entire piece in such little time. He wrote twenty seven piano concerti. Mozart gave a series of twenty two piano concerts and conducted a few of them in a five week period. After his father Leopold died he became very depressed and his music turned dark and depressing. I find him to be a genius because he could compose music from his soul Mozart composed for several different genres, writing many different types of music such as concertos, symphonies, and German style operas to name a few.

An Unwinnable War Essay -- American History, The War on Terrorism

As America find herself in today’s â€Å"War on Terrorism,† one can easily find a number of similarities between today’s situation and the war in Vietnam. As the Taliban steadily loses control and power over Afghanistan, it becomes exceedingly important to discuss potential replacement governments. Afghanistan is, like Vietnam in the 50’s and 60’s, a very volatile country full of a variety of people speaking different dialects and practicing different religions. It is very important, then, that the government that is installed is one that is capable of maintaining some type of control or authority over its diverse people. On July 7, 1954, Ngo Dinh Diem came to power as the Prime Minister of South Vietnam (Fishel 107). Diem was backed by the United States as the best man for the job to prevent communism in South Vietnam. The problem is that while â€Å"every foreign power to intervene in Vietnam eventually attempted to install some group of Vietnamese figures to prevent a Communist victory,† many of them failed to consider that by installing a government that continued to exploit and alienate its people, they were driving the population more toward Communism because at least it seemed to be a government for the people (Gettleman 134). Likewise, the U.S. was concerned with its own interest and unfortunately overlooked the interests of the Vietnamese. In the first five or six years of Diem’s reign, the United States was quite pleased with its choice of Diem. Proponents of Diem praised him as an advocate of human rights who worked to uphold a democracy. Others who were not quite as flagrant in their approval simply stated that he was the best man among the limited choices being that he was strongly anti-communist. Many, includin... ...enerals who don’t even command a company. He lives in an ivory tower surrounded by his family† (Behind 150). Diem was also said to have given the Catholic regugees â€Å"preferential treatment in land redistribution, relief and assistance, commercial and export-import licenses, government employment, and other GVN largess† (Buddhist 217). The U.S. constantly pressured Diem to issue land reform in order to win some support from the peasants because, as his American advisors recognized â€Å"an exploited and impoverished peasantry provides fertile soil for communism, as in China; therefore, intelligent land reform, preserving private property and simultaneously creating a new middle class of farmers, is a necessity for ‘free world’ objectives† (Behind 142). This idea plays into the aforementioned assertion that America focused too heavily on their own interests (

Compare How Time Is Presented in Hour and One Other Poem Essay

Both poems ‘Hour’ and ‘To His Coy Mistress’ present the power time has between two people. ‘Hour’ is a poem about two lovers who have one hour together and explores the ideas of material possesions and a modern reinterpretation of love. Where as ‘To His Coy Mistress’ is a poem where the man is trying to convince the woman to sleep with him and exploring the idea of living and enjoying your life whilst your young. Both of the poems use different types of poetic techniques to depict how time can effect the relationship of two lovers. In ‘Hour’ Duffy uses a metaphor at the start of the poem to allude how love has less power than time. When Duffy announces ‘Love’s time’s beggar, but even a single hour,/bright as a dropped coin, makes love rich. ‘ we see a twist of notion, like every second is like an hour creating a paradox. Duffy also uses refereces to two fairytales, Rumpelstiltskin and King Midas. When Duffy declares ‘the Midas light/turning your limbs to gold. ‘ Duffy portrays a slightly sinister tone almost giving the reader a message to becareful what you wish for just like in the fairytale of King Midas. When Duffy announces at the end of the poem ‘love spins gold, gold, gold from straw’ Duffy refers to the story of Rumpelstlitskin and could be trying to warn her partner of the commitments they may make or perhaps could be telling her readers to have a reality check once in a while because sometimes you may feel like your relationship and the love you share will be forever and extrodinary but time will always shorten or take it away. On the other hand ‘To His Coy Mistress’ opens with and idea of if the two lovers had enough time they would do great things. When Marvell announces ‘Had we but world enough, and time/This coyness, Lady, were no crime,’ he gives the reader an idea of spending all the time in the world with his lover, if they had all the time in the world. When Marvell uses the adjective ‘coyness’ to describe his lover he is saying that his lover’s shyness is a crime and she shouldn’t be so shy but maybe a bit more laid back. Marvell also uses personification of an evil force when he uses the alternate rhyming of ‘time’ and ‘crime’ to portray that the evil force is taking them away. Also when Marvell announces ‘Two hundred to adore each breast;/but thirty thousand to the rest’ he shows that he would spend alot of time admiring her so she would be ready to give him her heart which reals back to the idea if they had all the time in the world but they don’t. Both of the poems use different types of imagery to portray what type of love each couple have for one another. In ‘Hour’ Duffy uses alot of light and dark imagery. When Duffy announces ‘so nothing dark will end our shining hour’ this is a reference to light imagery and she uses this metaphor to say that the couple should enjoy the hour they have. Also Duffy uses alot of concrete nouns in the next stanza such as ‘candle’, ‘chandelier’ and ‘spotlight’ to create the image that nothing is as beautiful as where they are and the hour that they have. However in ‘To His Coy Mistress’ Marvell uses very grotesque imagery to show what will happen to the lovers because of time. Marvell announces ‘My echoing song; then worms shall try/That long preserved virginity’ alluding the grotesque imagery and telling his lover that if she does not lose her virginity then she will die a virgin and would not have enjoyed life as much. Also when Marvell announces ‘My echoing song’ he depicts the love that both of the lovers used to have or perhaps could suggest that they used to share a romance and now have came back to find eachother again to consumate their love. Both poets use different structures to depict their love for one another. In ‘Hour’ Duffy uses four stanza’s that describe how precious and luxurious that one hour is to the couple. Throughout the poem Duffy uses enjambment to create a smooth feeling of the hour that the couple is sharing. When Duffy declares ‘no jewel hold a candle to the cuckoo spit/hungfrom the blade of grass at your ear’ this alludes the enjambment but also Duffy is trying to say that even jewels aren’t as beautiful as the place they are in suggesting society’s modern reinterpretation of love. Whereas ‘To His Coy Mistress’ has three longer stanza’s inituating a well developed argument to declare all the reasons why the mistress should give herself to the man. Marvell does not use enjambment like ‘Hour’ however does use conjunctions to develop it’s argument At the start of stanza two Marvell announces ‘But at my back I always hear/Time’s winged chariot hurrying near’ he starts the stanza with the conjuction ‘But’ which shows the conjuction. Also Marvell personifies time as a robber taking time away from the two lovers and starts to present slightly bleack image of the time they have to spend together. In conclusion I think that both poems relate well to eacother and give the readers also something to relate to. For instintance in ‘Hour’ audiences can relate because time has maybe taken away their partner or how much time they spend with eathother and ‘To His Coy Mistress’ howe ver can relate to people only wanting to live in the moment and not being in a relationship. Although they are set out differentley and talk about different things they both both present the idea of how powerful time is and how it can be taken for granted.

Social Psychology and the Sustainable Future Essay

What has Global warming, Ozone Layer Depletion, Soil Erosion, Air Pollution, Carbon Emissions, and other environmental issues have to do with Social Psychology? One of the reasons for writing this paper, is to answer that question by showing the relationship between the environment in which we live and social psychology. I will endeavor to do this by looking at a root cause behind our ecological dilemma, as well as offering possible solutions and suggestions for social behavioral changes that each one of us could employ, as not only caring human beings, but as Christians fulfilling our God-given mandate to rule over the earth He created in the capacity of caretakers and stewards. As explained by Dr.  David G Myers in his excellent book entitled â€Å"Exploring Social Psychology†, the study of social psychology is a study in which â€Å"social psychologists scientifically explore how we as humans think about, influence, and relate to one another† [ Myers 2009 p. 1]. He goes on to quote novelist Herman Melville’s poignant observation, which states, â€Å"we cannot live for ourselves alone, for our lives are connected by 1000 invisible threads† [Myers 2009 p. 1]. And therein lies the root cause of our ecological problems. Because of our social orientation [being our personality psychology or â€Å"psychodynamics† which forms our â€Å"worldview† by the way we’ve been taught to think and act within the society in which we grew up], most people and societies, if not all, are inherently self-centered. A perfect example of this societal â€Å"self-centeredness† is clearly seen here in the United States of America, more so than in any other place in the world. The unrestrained, unbridled, and unprecedented consumerism and waste has sadly become this countries â€Å"social norm†. Generally speaking, we as humans, tend to give little thought, either intentionally or unintentionally, about how our attitude, actions, and behaviors might affect others in the society in which we live: or for that matter, the rest of the world. Because our lives are connected by 1000 invisible threads, our attitude, behavior, and actions cannot help but effect others. We are connected in many different ways, but primarily we are connected by being members of one and the same human race, sharing an earth which we all call home. Therefore, social psychology and the sustainable future of our environment are connected in the sense that as human beings, sharing the same earth, social psychologist can positively influence societies to bring about change through implementing strategies within a society through educational and other means, that would address the need for â€Å"other-centeredness†, as opposed to â€Å"self-centeredness† within our societies. This hopefully, through educational campaigns, would over time alter social norms throughout global societies, and help to positively shape our attitudes, behaviors and actions toward the environment in which we live, and encourage a more sustainable environmental future. The purpose of environmental education, is to bring â€Å"social awareness†of how each individual’s attitude actions and behavior, can and does have an environmental affect [whether positive or negative], not only themselves and their own environment, but on the environment of others also. So, environmentally speaking, this means that each individual person, group, society and nation’s environmental habits and lifestyle [which is mainly guided by the â€Å"social norms†of the country and the culture in which they are living], can have a global environmental impact. Social Psychology in the Sustainable Future 4 Social, psychologically formed thought processes, cause individuals and groups within a society or culture, to behave in ways that are considered normal to them, even though they’re ttitude, behavior and actions are environmentally devastating. One of the ways I can illustrate the fact of how our attitudes, behaviors, and actions [another words what we do and how we live], can and does affect others environment [even though they may be living on the other side of the world], is by looking at the worldwide issues of air pollution and its causes. Air is something that every living thing needs, as the famous 70s hit song sung by the British group†The Hollies† states, â€Å"all I need is the air that I breathe. Another translation of that song humorously states â€Å"I need to be able to breathe. † That we need air to breathe is an axiom, a self evident truth, for without it we die. In actual fact, air is one of the reasons why Earth is the only planet within our solar system that can sustain life, and in which life can be found. Air supports life, but the air has to be clean for life to be sustained. We don’t really need to be told that the air is polluted these days because we can see it. This is especially true if you happen to live in the city of Los Angeles, which for many years has been the butt of â€Å"smog† jokes, and recently topped the American lung Association’s bad air list of â€Å"most polluted cities in America† [GMA news 2012]. Why is the air polluted so badly? How did it get that way? The city of Los Angeles, like many other places in the world today are to a great degree responsible for producing much of the â€Å"bad air† in their cities. However, â€Å"bad air† is now being found in cities and other places where there is no air polluting factories or industry to blame. This is because air pollution does not recognize international boundaries, and like the proverbial trapeze artists, pollution in the form of toxic emissions can and do â€Å"fly through the air with the greatest of ease. † Because of this, â€Å"bad air† has † turned up† in places where it did not originate; such as National Parks and wilderness areas in remote parts of the United States. This is due to the fact that one countries air polluting practices can have a dramatic effect on another countries air quality located on the other side of the world. Toxic pollutants and emissions rise from factory smokestacks, power plants, and exhaust emissions , from countries who have no â€Å"clean air act† and therefore are under no threat of penalty or prosecution for noncompliance. These toxic emissions, are the result of unrestrained air polluting practices by countries who show little or no interest in environmental conservation. This toxic pollution rises into the wind currents and jet-streams, which carry the poisonous air hundreds, or even thousands of miles away to another part of the world, where it then affects the air quality of the place where it settles, creating health hazards and pollution within that cities population and location. So, the irresponsible polluting behavior and actions of one group/country, can have a drastic negative effect on another person/s, group/s, country/or countries, causing them to suffer debilitating health hazard consequences for which they were not responsible in creating. So you see in this one small illustration, how another person/s, group/s, or even other countries irresponsible attitude, actions, and behavior toward environmental conservation issues, can inadvertently and negatively affect another person/s, group/s, or even a whole country’s population’s health and well being. Many first world countries have environmental laws that heavily penalize companies for noncompliance, and therefore helps to limits air pollution to varying degrees. Yet there are more countries who don’t have any environmental laws, restrictions, or boundaries in place, and who Social Psychology in the Sustainable Future 6 do not recognize or practice environmental conservation. And so these developing countries by their â€Å"who cares, it’s business as usual† attitude and behavior, become one of the major contributors of â€Å"bad air† on a global scale, through their uncontrolled, unrestrained, release of toxic emissions into the atmosphere where it becomes an international traveler. However, air pollution caused by toxic emissions is only one of the environmental concerns facing humanity today. Another environmental concern, which we are being constantly reminded of through the news reports, newspapers, Internet, etc. is the issue of â€Å"global warming†. This is also known as â€Å"climate change†. Scientists use the name, or term global warming, so as to identify what types of climate change is actually happening i. e. , the planet is not getting cooler but warmer, ergo, global warming. One of the reasons they state this is happening is due to the excessive amount of a gas known as CO2. This is carbon dioxide, which is something that we, after taking in oxygen through the air, actually exhale. While CO2 is an odorless, tasteless, inert gas, it is also a byproduct of combustion, which is generally contributed to automobile emissions. However, while CO2 is a byproduct of automotive engine gasoline/diesel/natural gas combustion, it is also a byproduct of combustion associated with the burning of coal and oil to generate electricity and heat buildings. In fact, anything that burns will have CO2 as one of its emission byproducts. Because of the increase of automobiles, trucks, factories, etc. here is an excessive amount of carbon dioxide constantly being released into the atmosphere. Along with the deforestation of whole rainforests [note: trees absorb CO2 gases and convert CO2 into oxygen by the process of â€Å"photosynthesis†. This is one of God’s brilliant ideas for replenishing the oxygen we use. However, by cutting down all the trees in the forest, we re destroying the earth’s Co2 converter], Social Psychology in the Sustainable Future 7 and the combination of other greenhouse gases , which come from agricultural and industrial sources, global warming is the result. However, there is also another detrimental effect of having too much CO2 in the air that has to do with one’s respiratory health, and is known by a condition called hypoxia, or hypoxiation. [West, 1995 p. 22] This is a pathological condition in which the body as a whole, or region of the body is deprived of adequate oxygen supply. This is due to the fact that the body is deprived of oxygen because CO2 in the lungs is inhibited from being released, and so accumulates causing too much CO2 to be where oxygen needs to be, and therefore death ensues as a result. West, 1995 pp. 22]. The use of CO2 displacing oxygen is great for firefighting is actually a preferred fire extinguisher in place of chemical powder for distinguishing fires, but it’s no good for breathing. The world climate is changing because CO2 is in excess, and humans are the reason why it is so. So far we’ve looked at some causes of air pollution and how it can originate from one part of the the world an d through air currents effect everybody globally. But in discussing social psychology in the sustainable future air pollution is only one component of many. There are many environmental concerns for a sustainable future, which also include water pollution. Just as we need clean air to survive, so also we need clean water for both drinking and food. In actual fact, it is quite possible for a person to go many days and even weeks without food, but only a few days without water. Clean water is essential for drinking as well as sustaining aquatic and marine life in our rivers and oceans. However, with the high human demand for oil, environmental catastrophes and disasters such as the â€Å"Exxon-Valdez oil spill†off the coast of Alaska in 1989, and most recently the BP oil Social Psychology in the Sustainable Future 8 spill of 2010, have polluted the life-sustaining ocean waters and left a path of ecological destruction, which much like the fallout from an nuclear bomb, may take forever, if ever, to recover. Even now as I write this, we’re told by BP officials and their advertising campaigns, that the waters in the Gulf are back to pre-oil spill status. However, a recent study reported by Brian Williams on NBC national news states that marine life such as dolphins are seriously ill and due to â€Å"health problems consistent with exposure to oil. Illness ranging from lung disease, kidney malfunctions and liver disease has been found throughout dolphin population which cause has been attributed to the ingesting of oil† [NBC nightly news March 23 2012]. Basically what we’re being told through the million-dollar advertising campaign by BP, is not true. We are still reaping the consequences caused by the massive oil spill where oil spewed out from the ground unrestrained for months. On top of water pollution, the sea is being devastated daily by the huge nets and â€Å"Longlines† of commercial fishing vessels. Longline fishing is a commercial fishing technique. It uses a long line called the main line which can be up to 50 miles long, with thousands of baited hooks attached at intervals of approximately every 20 yards. Hundreds or even thousands of baited hooks can hang from a single line. Although â€Å"Longliners† commonly target tuna, cod, halibut, unfortunately a baited hook is not very selective and many other species are caught and killed inadvertently. This is very troublesome, especially for those animals, mammals, and fish species that are on the endangered list, i. e. The Leatherback Sea Turtle. [Seaturtles. org 2003] Can you imagine a 50 mile long fishing line with corks set at every 20 yards, or huge Social Psychology in the Sustainable Future 8 dragnets, scraping the bottom of the sea for its fish, crap, shrimp and other marine life. This is all done to fulfill the growing populations appetite for seafood. Yet he growing need for bigger harvest is only one part of this very important ecological problem. Another part is the damage that is caused by the implements used in harvesting. I have personally seen the damage to the bottom of the sea caused by the nets being used to harvest fish from along the bottom of the sea beds. These nets are called â€Å"drag-nets† for good reason, as they scrape the bottom of the ocean’s floor so that nothing escapes. As they scrape along the bottom of the sea, they â€Å"drag† every kind of a marine life you can imagine into the net. The ocean floor then looks like it’s just been â€Å"plowed†. Thus, these â€Å"drag-nets† leave behind a path of destruction in their wake, by destroying all aquatic plants, and marine life forms and the environment in which they live. Another issue that is caused by fishing trawlers using dragnets, is waste. Nets are by no means † selective† as anything and everything gets caught in the net. Once these nets are hauled in, much of what is caught in the nets is not used, but thrown out for reasons of either being under size, wrong variety, or in some way illegal etc. Some of the seafood is kept, and the other is thrown out to die. The fish and marine species that are caught in the nets or on the long lines as a â€Å"byproduct†, sea turtles, including the extremely endangered â€Å"Leatherback sea turtle†, various sharks, including some species which are also endangered, and also others. Seeing there is no international laws to reduce â€Å"bycatch†, we can expect that many more species will be added to the endangered list as part of the long-term decline, caused by these devastating fishing practices. So apart from destroying the environment which sustains our fish and marine life in our oceans, rivers and waters through pollution, waste and harvesting practices, we continued the Psychology and Sustainable Future 9 devastation by â€Å"overfishing† the waters to to the extent that fish that were once found in abundance 50 years ago, are now at the point of extinction and have been placed on the endangered list. Two of the fish species I would like to talk about here were, up till recently, very common. One is the Atlantic cod, and the other the Giant Bluefin Tuna. These two fish species once abundantly populated the Atlantic Ocean until the implementation of gill nets, drag nets, and now the dreaded long-lines of commercial fishing vessels. In a relatively short amount of time, the use nets and long lines have devastated the cod and tuna populations worldwide through â€Å"overfishing†. Even though size limits and harvesting amounts have been supposedly set by international bodies, Atlantic Cod, Bluefin Tuna, and many other fish species are â€Å"under the gun†, and may never recover, especially the majestic bluefin tuna, which is much coveted by â€Å"sushi chefs† and is considered a delicacy in Japan. Maybe it is for this reason that Japan, under the guise of supposedly abiding by the international fishing laws, have reportedly and consistently ignored the international laws for size limits and harvesting amounts. Through their longline fishing vessel fleet have continued at a ever increasing rate to catch bluefin tuna, to the point that they, could be considered to be the major contributing factor, as to why this fish species is numerically declining to a point of having to be put on the endangered fish species list. [Glover, Charles. The End of the Line. 2008]. It is a well-known fact that the Mitsubishi Corporation. Not only owns several long line ships which go out to sea for months at a time and don’t come back until their freezes are all full of bluefin tuna, but is the major purchaser of bluefin tuna. As well as fishing for bluefin tuna with their own fishing vessels. They have also been known to purchase as much bluefin tuna as they Social Psychology in the Sustainable Future 10 can, from other fishing vessels. These vessels are known as â€Å"Pirate Fishing Vessels†, ignore international fishing laws and catch all they can in what you might call an â€Å"undercover operation†. These pirate fishing vessels have, within the past 10 years, come under a lot of scrutiny by the Greenpeace organization: who sail the seas searching for these pirate fishing vessels so as to â€Å"catch them in the act. † Of illegal fishing, netting, long lining etc. [Greenpeace. org 2011]. Although many nations, including the United States, supposedly participate as international management bodies to maintain global tuna populations, the species continues to decline at an alarming rate and are now on top of the endangered species list because it’s numbers have depleted to such a point that it may never be able to recover. As you can tell air and water pollution combined with overfishing is a concern of mine, mainly because I see it is preventable, but for the selfish, self-centered, all-consuming greed of people from all walks of life I could continue on for quite some time, however I must bring this article assignment to a conclusion by talking about causes of environmental damage. As much as we like to blame tornadoes and hurricanes for most of the environmental damage, the biggest cause of environmental damage is man himself. Mankind is now the number one cause of all the destruction happening on Earth. We are the major cause of environmental disasters, beginning with the industrial exploitation of the resources of the Earth, which has become especially bad since the population of the Earth has trippled in the last fifty years to a point which, even with more efficient means of distribution, there is simply not enough food to go around. Obviously the reasons for the possible future scarcity of food, water, among other things, is the wasteful lifestyles that we have become accustomed to, especially here in the United States. All you need to do is look around in any restaurant here in the United States and see the huge Social Psychology and a Sustainable Future 11 amounts of food being thrown out in the trashcan while people on the other side of the world starve. It’s been noted in the book, exploring social psychology by David G Myers, that the human demand for things such as land, timber, fish, and fuels is increasingly exceeding the Earth’s regenerating capacity. [Myers, 2009 p. 378-379]. My point is this, with the present consumption of resources by our, wasteful habits and devastating harvesting techniques, coupled with the destined growth of population, further pollution, global warming, and environmental destruction, seem inevitable unless there is change. For the average American who lives with luxuries unknown by even royalty just a century ago, our lifestyle of unrestrained, unbridled, ever wanting more consumerism will be brought to a screeching halt unless there is change. Let’s face it our wasteful lifestyles cannot continue forever. For beyond the sunny skies of comfort and convenience. Dark clouds of environmental disaster at gathering. Sciences have accredited this coming ecological, environmental disaster to increasing population and increasing consumption. [Myers, 2009 p377]. I come to this conclusion; due to my observations of the wasteful practices I see around me every day of my life here in the United States I offer this small yet effective illustration of the environmental conservation. In Australia where I was raised, we grew up with â€Å"tank water. † Where you rely on the rain to fill a tank that is used for your drinking water, bathing, and bathroom uses etc. Under these conditions you learn to conserve and not waste water in every way possible. One of the ways I taught my children to conserve water was not to leave the tap running when they were brushing their teeth. They were instructed to turn the tap on to wet the brush, then turn the tap off while they apply the toothpaste to the brush and brush their teeth. After they had brush their teeth, they could then turn the tap on to rinse out their mouth and clean their toothbrush. Idiosyncratic? Not really. Just letting my children learn not to waste water and to appreciate the God-given resources we have available to us.