Ted Tuesday: Without Self-Meaning, Money Means Nothing

"This is the battle cry of the millennial generation who is shaping the future of the workplace, here at FSO, and everywhere."

Good Morning Folks,

When I shared a Wharton Americus Reed, II's (the Whitney M. Young Jr., Professor of Marketing at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania) take on today's TED Talk on LinkedIn, a colleague  stood up and took immediate notice.

Her takeaway was that money, in the abstract, is meaningless. Just chits on the digital page, dollars in the trading account.

It's a tool, like a hammer.

A hammer is meaningless until you lift it and build a house, or smash a skull. A hammer can be good, or bad.

Likewise, money.

It means nothing until you do something with it.

Bad, frivolous, or good.

Opined Professor Reed in a Huffington Post review of this Ted talk, "If I had a dime for every business student who entered my office; lamenting the self-described drudgery that is their work-life. They thought that a career on Wall Street or in heavy duty consulting would bring that pristine pot of gold. They were right. And wrong. Yes, those hundred plus hour weeks catapult you into that illusive 5% earner stratosphere. But if I had a dime for every student who would later confide in me: "it just was not fulfilling," ironically, I would be as wealthy as the financial institutions from which they feverishly depart.

"

Enter social psychologist Paul Piff and his provocative TEDx talk "Does money make you mean?" Sixteen and a half minutes of summarized laboratory and field data show an association between wealth, and lack of compassion, empathy and pro-social motivation.

It's amazing what a rigged game of Monopoly can reveal. In this entertaining but sobering talk, social psychologist Paul Piff shares his research into how people behave when they feel wealthy. (Hint: badly.) But while the problem of inequality is a complex and daunting challenge, there's good news too. (Filmed at TEDxMarin.)



Professor Reed, II observes, "This Isn't Your Father's Business Person Identity--therein lies the paradigm shift. There is a new model of business and business student afoot: The student who enters my office with a deep passion to do two things. Make money and do good. Business schools are "rebranding" themselves to welcome this new identity. It's being called "social impact." The identity of the student, who has realized that mindless self-investment into the false idol of material things for their sake, is an empty void--a fast track to an empty soul--is changing. Business students are becoming much more aware, and self-reflective."

This is the battle cry of the millennial generation who is shaping the future of the workplace, here at FSO, and everywhere.

Watch the short 16 minute presentation and see if you don't agree.

Whatever your takeaway is, it takes a brave person to take on the Corporate interests in today's world, because they are global and pernicious - just like they have always been. Bravo Paul for helping us (re)IMAGINE new and different possibilities.

Let’s have some fun.. ITS OUR TIME, together we can do it.

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE. 

An Awesome Autowala: A Story of Service at its Finest

"Annadurai spends more than 5,000 to give his customers an auto ride like no other in the city, yet makes a good living. "What gives me pleasure is that people remember me and are grateful for the service I offer.""

Good Morning Folks,

I am always on alert for that skip in a step, fire in a belly and twinkle in an eye!

So when I read this story on Facebook about how Annadurai (re) IMAGINED the taxi ride, I just had to share it with you to kick the week off on an inspirational note.

Annadurai owns an Auto Rickshaw(similar to Taxi) in Chennai City Tamil Nadu, India. Similar to the other Auto-drivers he also does the same thing but What makes his auto from other Auto's is he provides a lot of things inside the Auto for the passengers/ customers… which include...

1. Free mobile battery charger
2. Watch T.V for Free of cost
3. Free WiFi
4. Free Books to read
5. Bumper prize contest for customers
6. Refer a poor child for Studies
7. And discount in fare for teachers and on special days.
8. Mobile and DTH recharge

Annadurai is now 29 Years old. His main goal is to get his customers feel happy and he needs customer satisfaction. The vehicle is WI-Fi enabled and, if you're not carrying a laptop or smartphone to connect to the internet, Annadurai will slip you a 10-inch tablet. He carries an internet dongle attached to a WI-Fi router and offers free access to the internet. "Most people who take my auto work for IT companies and I know access to the internet is important for them," Annadurai says. "It takes about half an hour to cover the distance between Thiruvanmiyur and Sholinganallur. Why waste that time?" Says Annadurai

The auto also has lots for magazines and newspapers that contain the latest editions. Annadurai spends 4,000 Rupees a month on subscriptions to 35 various news publications. There are dailies for the customers who need to keep up on the news, weekly magazines for passengers who are taking a long ride, and glossy fortnight-lies for those interested in lighter reading.

Annadurai spends more than 5,000 to give his customers an auto ride like no other in the city, yet makes a good living, taking home a profit of around 1,000 a day. "That is more than enough for a bachelor like me," he says. "I drive from 8am to 1pm and from 5pm to 11pm," he says. He charges Rupees 15 for the 11km route he covers, while other share auto drivers demand 20 for the same distance. "Money really isn't too important to me," he says. "What gives me pleasure is that people remember me and are grateful for the service I offer," Annadurai Says.

Truly powerful people like Annadurai  have great humility. They do not try to impress, they do not try to be influential. They simply are. People are magnetically drawn to them. They are most often very silent and focused, aware of their core selves. They never persuade, nor do they use manipulation or aggressiveness to get their way. They listen. If there is anything they can offer to assist you, they offer it; if not, they are silent.

Annadurai, like the beloved members of our FSO family are the real deal. I love your energy everyday. You make me proud this year and beyond.

Believe in your leaders, follow their instructions, trust your teammates and know that together there is nothing we can't accomplish. 

Have a great day and excited to start an awesome week. 

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

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“Somewhere out there is a bullet with your company 's name on it. Somewhere out there is a competitor, unborn and unknown, that will render your business model obsolete… Competition today is not between products, it's between business models, and the hottest and most dangerous new business models out there are on the Web. Success and failure in the electronic age is binary; you are either one or a zero. Innovation determines who wins and who loses"  ~~ Gary Hamel and Jeff Sampler in the December 7, 1998 issue of Fortune

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Discover what makes FSO GREAT and Different HERE

Ted Tuesday: Without Self-Meaning, Money Means Nothing

"Wow. Very Eye Opening!" 

~~ Pat Mustico PhD, VP National FSO Sales

Good Morning Folks,

When I shared a Wharton Americus Reed, II's (the Whitney M. Young Jr., Professor of Marketing at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania) take on today's Ted Talk on LinkedIn, our new VP of Sales, Pat Mustico, stood up and took immediate notice.

His takeaway was that money, in the abstract, is meaningless. Just chits on the digital page, dollars in the trading account.

It's a tool, like a hammer.

A hammer is meaningless until you lift it and build a house, or smash a skull. A hammer can be good, or bad.

Likewise, money.

It means nothing until you do something with it.

Bad, frivolous, or good.

Opined Professor Reed in a Huffington Post review of this Ted talk, "If I had a dime for every business student who entered my office; lamenting the self-described drudgery that is their work-life. They thought that a career on Wall Street or in heavy duty consulting would bring that pristine pot of gold. They were right. And wrong. Yes, those hundred plus hour weeks catapult you into that illusive 5% earner stratosphere. But if I had a dime for every student who would later confide in me: "it just was not fulfilling," ironically, I would be as wealthy as the financial institutions from which they feverishly depart.

"

Enter social psychologist Paul Piff and his provocative TEDx talk "Does money make you mean?" Sixteen and a half minutes of summarized laboratory and field data show an association between wealth, and lack of compassion, empathy and pro-social motivation.

It's amazing what a rigged game of Monopoly can reveal. In this entertaining but sobering talk, social psychologist Paul Piff shares his research into how people behave when they feel wealthy. (Hint: badly.) But while the problem of inequality is a complex and daunting challenge, there's good news too. (Filmed at TEDxMarin.)



Professor Reed, II observes, "This Isn't Your Father's Business Person Identity--therein lies the paradigm shift. There is a new model of business and business student afoot: The student who enters my office with a deep passion to do two things. Make money and do good. Business schools are "rebranding" themselves to welcome this new identity. It's being called "social impact." The identity of the student, who has realized that mindless self-investment into the false idol of material things for their sake, is an empty void--a fast track to an empty soul--is changing. Business students are becoming much more aware, and self-reflective."

This is the battle cry of the millennial generation who is shaping the future of the workplace, here at FSO, and everywhere.

Watch the short 16 minute presentation and see if you don't agree.

Whatever your takeaway is, it takes a brave person to take on the Corporate interests in today's world, because they are global and pernicious - just like they have always been. Bravo Paul for helping us (re)IMAGINE new and different possibilities.

Let’s have some fun and lets LIGHT UP THE NATION.. ITS OUR TIME, together we can do it.

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE. 

Ted Tuesday: Easily Learn 100 TED Talks Lessons In 5 Minutes Part 1 of 3

You Can Easily Learn 100 TED Talks Lessons In 5 Minutes 
Which Most People Need 70 Hours to Absorb

Good Morning Folks,

The other week a friend watched 70 hours of TED talks; short, 18-minute talks given by inspirational leaders in the fields of Technology, Entertainment, and Design (TED). He watched 296 talks in total, and he recently went through the list of what he watched, weeded out the crappy and boring talks, and created a list of the 100 best things he learned.

This article isn’t entirely about productivity, but I guarantee you’ll learn a thing or two. Here is the first of a three part post showcasing 100 incredible things my friend learned watching 70 hours of TED talks last week!

Productivity

1. Studies have shown that what motivates a person the most (in non-factory-type work) is how much autonomy, mastery, and purpose they have, not how much money they make.

2. Playing video games can actually make you more productive because video games give you more physical, mental, emotional, and social resilience.

3. A lot of people aspire to be productive so they can become happier, but happiness has been shown to lead to productivity, not the other way around.

4. You don’t have as much attention to give to the world around you as you think. You can’t recall memories while processing new data, you can only process so much information at once, and your attention is easily manipulated (like by magicians).

5. Innovative thinking is often a slow and gradual process, not a moment of instant, lightbulb-like inspiration.

6. If you want people to remember you, sweat the small stuff. Most companies (and people) do the big stuff right, so sweating the small stuff (like getting the user interfaces on your products right) can really set you apart.

7. You have three brain systems for love: lust, romantic love, and attachment. To develop more intimate relationships with your significant other, it’s important to invest in all three.

Controller

8. When you create an environment for your employees that makes them truly happy(instead of just rich), more profits may follow.

9. Your office is actually a pretty crappy environment to get work done. In fact, when Jason Fried asked folks where their favorite place to get work done was, almost no one said “in the office”.

10. Taking time off can make you a lot more productive, because time away from your work lets you explore, reflect, and come up with better ideas.

11. The greatest leaders and companies constantly reflect on why they do what they do, instead of simply doing it.

12. Success isn’t a destination, it’s a continuous journey that’s made up of eight parts: passion, hard work, focus, pushing yourself and others, having great ideas, making constant improvements, serving others, and persistence.

13. The key to becoming more productive and successful may be to fail faster and smarter, especially if you do creative work.

14. We don’t feel fear because of a potential loss of income or status, we feel fear because we’re afraid of being judged and ridiculed. Any vision of success has to admit what the definition doesn’t include, and what you may be missing out on.

15. IQ isn’t the only thing that dictates whether someone will be successful or unsuccessful; grit does too.

16. If you want to make better long-term decisions, imagine how your decisions will affect your future-self.

17. All you have to do to learn practically anything is jump in and ask yourself, “what’s the worst that could happen?”

18. People tend to avoid conflict (it’s in our nature), even though a moderate level of conflict may be the key to better relationships, research, and businesses.

19. Mass media is pretty much dead, so the key to making big changes is through tribes. As time goes on, more and more people are investing their time and attention in their tribes (like TED!)

20. The best way to help someone is often to shut up and listen to them.

21. A great way to kill two birds with one stone: have walking meetings, where you walk and talk to someone at the same time. It’s great exercise, and it speeds up the meeting.

22. Stress by itself doesn’t affect your health. How you think about stress does.

23, 24, 25. Limits are bullshit. Some people choose to not be set back by limits, and at the end of the day, they’re the ones who end up giving TED talks. Like Neil Harbisson, who was born without the ability to see color, so he hacked together a device to hear color. Or Caroline Casey, who didn’t learn until she was 17 that she was legally blind. Or David Blaine, who pushed his body and mind to hold his breath for 17 straight minutes underwater.

Have a GREAT day, be happy and…

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

*TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences -- the TED Conference on the West Coast each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer -- TED includes the award-winning TED Talks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversations, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.  More at Ted.com