In conversations with college administrators and faculty, they report that the number one issue impacting the progress of incoming freshmen is their inability to communicate both verbally and in writing.

You Are Here Today

Where do you want to go from here?

Focused on Friends

Hanging

Your life path starts early

It’s controlled by your choice of friends

If you don’t challenge yourself in a positive direction, you will continue to hang

The United States Constitution is the law of our country.  It was adopted by the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and ratified in 1789.  It created a federal union of sovereign states, and a federal government to operate that union.  After the “Founding Fathers” created the government, they devised a Bill of Rights to protect us, the citizens, from our government.  In the generations that have followed we have conducted ourselves according to these founding principles, not without occasional rancor.  As a result, the initial 10 Bill of Rights has been amended to now total 27.  Equal treatment of each citizen is a recurring theme in the Bill of Rights.  Why?

Our ancestors wanted equality.  They negotiated and fought for it.  Leaving the political and societal machinations aside, let’s talk about how we implement equal treatment in business.  Treating everyone equally requires consistency, integrity, and selflessness.  Joan Develin Coley is the President of McDaniel College and also its first woman President.  Joan has perfected the art of interaction.  She understood as a classroom teacher that her students needed to know that she was focusing on them as individuals, that she cared about them as individuals, and that she gave her time equally to each student.

While reading the story of two young women bank robbers being called the “Barbie Bandits,” I was struck by the phrase that one of the relatives used.  He said that it was shocking how quickly a life can turn from being on-track to winding up at a dead-end. 

On February 15, 2007, in a speech on his plans for working with Afghanistan, President Bush spoke about the importance of ideas.  The President said that, “Ideas should be conceived, circulated, and embraced.” 

Lori Nardyz is an executive in the food service industry.  She works for a large organization but her friend Rafael owns a restaurant in a small town.  Rafael opened his restaurant in approximately 2002 and planned to serve lunch and dinner.  In early 2007 Lori convinced him to offer a breakfast menu.  Despite several competing local restaurants who had been serving the community breakfast for many years, Lori identified the need for a quintessential small town dining experience.  She wanted an old school style of service with a modern touch.  Lori says that a small business has to mold itself to its market.  In a small town that means that the business owner or manager has to know every local customer’s name and also know their children.

“Hey, dude, I’m a teenager. Whaddya expect from me? Kids my age tend to be a little raunchy at times. We like to hang with our buds and make fun of people. And video games . . . man, I live for video games! Pops says they make me angry — some of the games are a little violent, you know? But pops doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He says that I should fill my head with positive stuff and that I should start treating people with respect. He says what goes around comes around. He says stuff like you are who you associate with, and you get from the world what you put into the world. What the heck is he talking about, dude?”