Post 515 - I’ve been watching episodes of an old British TV series, Coupling, recently. Produced for the BBC from 2000 to 2004, the shows center on the dating and sexual adventures and mishaps of six friends in their thirties, often depicting the three women and the three men each talking among themselves about the same events, but in entirely different terms. The show was based on the author’s experiences meeting his wife, and on the issues that arise in new relationships.
There are so many jokes about the lack of understanding between men and women that I think it makes sense for couples in new relationships to take them seriously and try to find a way to reconcile their differences early on. Sometimes this means learning to compromise; however, most of the time, it just requires lots of work and mutual understanding by both parties in the relationship.
In addition, when couples first get together, they tend to be attracted by their similarities. As they get to know one another better, their differences start to come into focus. Younger couples are attracted to each other’s complementary differences - sometimes, the more different, the better. The logistics of sharing a larger list of coping skills against the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune can seem wise for survival. However, relationships later in life tend to develop between people with greater similarities.
Some people won’t get involved in a serious relationships even with someone they like very much if they don’t have a shared background. They have a deep connection to their culture and its rituals, and they want someone who’ll be able to keep these traditions alive with them. Here, cultural continuity is what’s important. However, when people feel they have a cultural match, many things are taken as a given and people don't feel the need to discuss them. It’s easy to imagine that there’s more compatibility with someone than there actually is just because they both feel they already know each other.
Similarly, using the same language isn’t always speaking the same language. It's quite a common assumption that just because both parties speak the same language, there are no serious cultural differences. Even if they share the same values, there are many assumptions about how values are communicated that are quite different among those who come from different cultures or different backgrounds.
In my experience, the big things, like religion for example, are usually easy enough to deal with because they're more visible and so people tend to talk them through early on. It's the small things, like sarcasm, which go unnoticed at first, or are too small to really "discuss," that can add up over time to cause big problems later on.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Time to create a ‘Department of Louise.’
Post 514 - Here are this week's impressions and statistics:
I'm told that
- 50% of our health is related to our behavior
- 20% is related to our environment
- 20% is related to our genetics
- 10% is related to our access to health-care.
More than 400 million people worldwide are obese, including 72 million here in the U.S. Currently, 112,000 obese Americans die every year. Over the past decade, medical costs related to obesity have more than tripled to the point where they now account for almost 10 percent of U.S. annual health care spending. San Diego County lost $3 billion last year in obesity costs, including lost work productivity. The California Center for Public Health Advocacy reported that statewide, the California total came to $43 billion!
In America, we have a sick-care system, not a health-care system.
According to a study by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, married couples have intercourse about 66 times a year. But that number is skewed by young marrieds, as young as 18, who have sex, on average, 84 times a year.
There were 4.25 million births in the U.S. in 2008 – a two percent decline from 2007. A U.S. woman could expect to have 3.7 children in the late 1950s. A typical American woman expects to have 2.09 children today. A typical woman in Western Europe is expected to have 1.59 children today. Worldwide, a typical woman is expected to have 2.56 children.
The Department of Homeland Security estimates that at least 10.8 million illegal immigrants are currently living in the United States.
Between 2008 and 2010 the share of voters who considered the Democrats too liberal surged from 39 percent to 49 percent, according to Gallup surveys.
Asked why she frequently doesn’t wear pants, Lady Gaga said, “My grandmother is basically blind, but she can make out the lighter parts, like my skin and hair. She says, ‘I can see you, because you have no pants on.’ So I’ll continue to wear no pants so that my grandma can see me.” Who knew?
Maybe checking out Lady Gaga is why men watch 32 minutes of television more than women do. In 2009, men spent three hours, six minutes a day watching TV, compared to two hours, 34 minutes for women.
On a really serious note, in international standing, America’s K-12 students are now 32nd in math, 10th in science and 12th in reading scores. Our weakness in K-12 catches up as applications to graduate school in the technical sciences are largely foreign born. Nearly 70 percent of engineering PhDs awarded in 2006 were to foreign born students, as were more than half the PhDs awarded in the physical sciences.
Many K-12 students don’t have role models with whom they identify because only 24 percent of teachers are men and only 17 percent are from a minority background.
Politicians in California are now trying to craft a balanced budget by cutting funds for education. For example, they're calling for a 20 percent cut in support for the University of California system on top of significant earlier cuts made in the past few years.
Some time ago, Dave Barry suggested that we create a ‘Department of Louise.’ Louise would be a sensible woman of a certain age and experience. Once legislators had passed a bill, she would have final say before implementation. Don’t you think it’s time the voters of California adopted Dave’s excellent recommendation?
I'm told that
- 50% of our health is related to our behavior
- 20% is related to our environment
- 20% is related to our genetics
- 10% is related to our access to health-care.
More than 400 million people worldwide are obese, including 72 million here in the U.S. Currently, 112,000 obese Americans die every year. Over the past decade, medical costs related to obesity have more than tripled to the point where they now account for almost 10 percent of U.S. annual health care spending. San Diego County lost $3 billion last year in obesity costs, including lost work productivity. The California Center for Public Health Advocacy reported that statewide, the California total came to $43 billion!
In America, we have a sick-care system, not a health-care system.
According to a study by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, married couples have intercourse about 66 times a year. But that number is skewed by young marrieds, as young as 18, who have sex, on average, 84 times a year.
There were 4.25 million births in the U.S. in 2008 – a two percent decline from 2007. A U.S. woman could expect to have 3.7 children in the late 1950s. A typical American woman expects to have 2.09 children today. A typical woman in Western Europe is expected to have 1.59 children today. Worldwide, a typical woman is expected to have 2.56 children.
The Department of Homeland Security estimates that at least 10.8 million illegal immigrants are currently living in the United States.
Between 2008 and 2010 the share of voters who considered the Democrats too liberal surged from 39 percent to 49 percent, according to Gallup surveys.
Asked why she frequently doesn’t wear pants, Lady Gaga said, “My grandmother is basically blind, but she can make out the lighter parts, like my skin and hair. She says, ‘I can see you, because you have no pants on.’ So I’ll continue to wear no pants so that my grandma can see me.” Who knew?
Maybe checking out Lady Gaga is why men watch 32 minutes of television more than women do. In 2009, men spent three hours, six minutes a day watching TV, compared to two hours, 34 minutes for women.
On a really serious note, in international standing, America’s K-12 students are now 32nd in math, 10th in science and 12th in reading scores. Our weakness in K-12 catches up as applications to graduate school in the technical sciences are largely foreign born. Nearly 70 percent of engineering PhDs awarded in 2006 were to foreign born students, as were more than half the PhDs awarded in the physical sciences.
Many K-12 students don’t have role models with whom they identify because only 24 percent of teachers are men and only 17 percent are from a minority background.
Politicians in California are now trying to craft a balanced budget by cutting funds for education. For example, they're calling for a 20 percent cut in support for the University of California system on top of significant earlier cuts made in the past few years.
Some time ago, Dave Barry suggested that we create a ‘Department of Louise.’ Louise would be a sensible woman of a certain age and experience. Once legislators had passed a bill, she would have final say before implementation. Don’t you think it’s time the voters of California adopted Dave’s excellent recommendation?
Friday, June 25, 2010
There Are Men Too Gentle, a poem by James Kavanaugh.
Post 513 - James Kavanaugh was a former Catholic priest who came to fame in 1967 with his controversial bestseller, A Modern Priest Looks at His Outdated Church. He later wrote bestselling books of poetry and other works and died in December, 2009 at the age of 81. In the early 1970's, as an ex-priest, living in a New York walk-up, sustained by peanut butter and cheese whiz, he wrote his first book of poetry, There are Men too Gentle to Live Among Wolves. To date, it has sold over two million copies.
There Are Men Too Gentle To Live Among Wolves by James Kavanaugh
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who prey upon them with IBM eyes
And sell their hearts and guts for martinis at noon.
There are men too gentle for a savage world
Who dream instead of snow and children and Halloween
And wonder if the leaves will change their color soon.
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who anoint them for burial with greedy claws
And murder them for a merchant's profit and gain.
There are men too gentle for a corporate world
Who dream instead of Easter eggs and fragrant grass
And pause to hear the distant whistle of a train.
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who devour them with appetite and search
For other men to prey upon and suck their childhood dry.
There are men too gentle for an accountant's world
Who dream instead of Easter eggs and fragrant grass
And search for beauty in the mystery of the sky.
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who toss them like a lost and wounded dove
Such gentle men are lonely in a merchant's world
Unless they have a gentle one to love.
“If anything has changed over the years, and it has, I only feel more confident now about what I wrote then. I am far more aware of the power that guides each of us along the way, and provides us with the insights and people we need for our journey. There are, indeed, men and women too gentle to live among wolves and only when joined with them will life offer the searcher, step by step, all that is good and beautiful. Life becomes not a confused struggle or pointless pain, but an evolving mosaic masterpiece of the person we were destined to become."
There Are Men Too Gentle To Live Among Wolves by James Kavanaugh
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who prey upon them with IBM eyes
And sell their hearts and guts for martinis at noon.
There are men too gentle for a savage world
Who dream instead of snow and children and Halloween
And wonder if the leaves will change their color soon.
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who anoint them for burial with greedy claws
And murder them for a merchant's profit and gain.
There are men too gentle for a corporate world
Who dream instead of Easter eggs and fragrant grass
And pause to hear the distant whistle of a train.
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who devour them with appetite and search
For other men to prey upon and suck their childhood dry.
There are men too gentle for an accountant's world
Who dream instead of Easter eggs and fragrant grass
And search for beauty in the mystery of the sky.
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
There are men too gentle to live among wolves
Who toss them like a lost and wounded dove
Such gentle men are lonely in a merchant's world
Unless they have a gentle one to love.
“If anything has changed over the years, and it has, I only feel more confident now about what I wrote then. I am far more aware of the power that guides each of us along the way, and provides us with the insights and people we need for our journey. There are, indeed, men and women too gentle to live among wolves and only when joined with them will life offer the searcher, step by step, all that is good and beautiful. Life becomes not a confused struggle or pointless pain, but an evolving mosaic masterpiece of the person we were destined to become."
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Are you qualified to be a "professional."
Post 512 - The following short quiz consists of four questions and tells whether you're qualified to be considered a "professional."
Scroll down for each answer. The questions aren’t that difficult.
1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
The correct answer is: Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe and close the door. This question tests whether you tend to do simple things in an overly complicated way.
2. How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
Wrong answer: Open the refrigerator, put in the elephant and close the refrigerator. Correct Answer: Open the refrigerator, take out the giraffe, put in the elephant and close the door. This tests your ability to think through the repercussions of your actions.
3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals attend except one. Which animal does not attend?
Correct Answer: The elephant. The elephant is in the refrigerator. This tests your memory.
OK, even if you didn’t answer the first three questions correctly, you still have one more chance to show your abilities.
4. There’s a river you must cross, but it’s inhabited by crocodiles. How do you manage it?
Correct Answer: You swim across. All the crocodiles are attending the animal conference. This tests whether you learn quickly from your mistakes.
According to Andersen Consulting Worldwide, around 90% of the professionals they tested got all the questions wrong. But many preschoolers got several correct answers.
This seems to confirm what I've often suspected - that some professionals lack the brains of a four-year-old.
Scroll down for each answer. The questions aren’t that difficult.
1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
The correct answer is: Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe and close the door. This question tests whether you tend to do simple things in an overly complicated way.
2. How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?
Wrong answer: Open the refrigerator, put in the elephant and close the refrigerator. Correct Answer: Open the refrigerator, take out the giraffe, put in the elephant and close the door. This tests your ability to think through the repercussions of your actions.
3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals attend except one. Which animal does not attend?
Correct Answer: The elephant. The elephant is in the refrigerator. This tests your memory.
OK, even if you didn’t answer the first three questions correctly, you still have one more chance to show your abilities.
4. There’s a river you must cross, but it’s inhabited by crocodiles. How do you manage it?
Correct Answer: You swim across. All the crocodiles are attending the animal conference. This tests whether you learn quickly from your mistakes.
According to Andersen Consulting Worldwide, around 90% of the professionals they tested got all the questions wrong. But many preschoolers got several correct answers.
This seems to confirm what I've often suspected - that some professionals lack the brains of a four-year-old.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
How to survive in the modern office.
Post 511 - Sitting at the computer with bad posture for extended periods of time can cause health problems, especially backaches and carpal tunnel syndrome. If you work in an office and use a computer, you can avoid injury by following these tips:
- Support your back.
A correctly adjusted chair will reduce the strain on your back. Get one that’s easily adjustable so that you can change the height, back position and tilt. Sit back in your seat, so your back touches the back of the chair. Have your knees level with your hips. Your feet should be flat on the floor. If they’re not, get a foot-rest which lets you rest your feet at a level that’s comfortable to you. Avoid crossing your legs, as this can cut off circulation and cause hip problems.
- Place your screen at eye level.
A good guide is to place the monitor about an arm's length away, with the top of the screen roughly at eye level. If necessary, get a stand for your monitor so you can do this.
- Avoid screen reflection.
Your screen should be as glare-free as possible. Position the monitor to avoid reflection from overhead lighting and sunlight. Adjusting the screen's brightness or contrast can also make it much easier to use.
- Look away from your computer screen often.
Focusing on a computer screen for too long can lead to dry eyes and eye fatigue. Be sure to change your focus often, looking at a point in the distance, and blink regularly to keep your eyes moist. Looking away from the monitor often will reduce eye fatigue. Covering your eyes for 10-15 seconds will also help.
- Sit close to your keyboard.
Place it right in front of you, with the part you use most often centered on your body. Adjust the tilt of the keyboard so it feels comfortable. If you sit in a forward or upright position, tilt the keyboard away from you at a negative angle. If you’re reclined, a slight positive tilt will help maintain a straight wrist position.
- Avoid wrist pain.
Your wrists should be straight when using the keyboard. Position and use the mouse as close to you as possible. Your upper arms should be relaxed at your sides. Keep your elbows vertical under your shoulder and right by your side. A mouse mat with a wrist pad may help to keep your wrist straight and avoid awkward bending.
- Use a document holder.
Choose one that’s at the same height and distance as your computer monitor. Holders that can be mounted to the monitor are ideal.
- Reduce repetitive movements.
Movements that you repeat over and over, such as answering the phone or reaching for a stapler, can lead to strains and stress. Reduce unnecessary movements as much as possible by keeping items you use often within arm's reach and using tools, such as a phone headset, to reduce repetitive movements. Repeatedly cradling the phone between your ear and shoulder can strain the muscles in your neck. Also, alternate the hand you use to operate your mouse.
- Move around often.
Your body can only tolerate being in one position for about 20 minutes before it starts to feel uncomfortable, according to the Mayo Clinic. About every 15 minutes, stand, stretch, walk around or change your position for at least 30 seconds.
- Keep your desk tidy.
Take a few minutes each day to go through your papers. Throw away those you don't need and file those you do. While keeping away from too much clutter is good, adding a few items that mean something to you will personalize your desk and make it more enjoyable to work at.
- Support your back.
A correctly adjusted chair will reduce the strain on your back. Get one that’s easily adjustable so that you can change the height, back position and tilt. Sit back in your seat, so your back touches the back of the chair. Have your knees level with your hips. Your feet should be flat on the floor. If they’re not, get a foot-rest which lets you rest your feet at a level that’s comfortable to you. Avoid crossing your legs, as this can cut off circulation and cause hip problems.
- Place your screen at eye level.
A good guide is to place the monitor about an arm's length away, with the top of the screen roughly at eye level. If necessary, get a stand for your monitor so you can do this.
- Avoid screen reflection.
Your screen should be as glare-free as possible. Position the monitor to avoid reflection from overhead lighting and sunlight. Adjusting the screen's brightness or contrast can also make it much easier to use.
- Look away from your computer screen often.
Focusing on a computer screen for too long can lead to dry eyes and eye fatigue. Be sure to change your focus often, looking at a point in the distance, and blink regularly to keep your eyes moist. Looking away from the monitor often will reduce eye fatigue. Covering your eyes for 10-15 seconds will also help.
- Sit close to your keyboard.
Place it right in front of you, with the part you use most often centered on your body. Adjust the tilt of the keyboard so it feels comfortable. If you sit in a forward or upright position, tilt the keyboard away from you at a negative angle. If you’re reclined, a slight positive tilt will help maintain a straight wrist position.
- Avoid wrist pain.
Your wrists should be straight when using the keyboard. Position and use the mouse as close to you as possible. Your upper arms should be relaxed at your sides. Keep your elbows vertical under your shoulder and right by your side. A mouse mat with a wrist pad may help to keep your wrist straight and avoid awkward bending.
- Use a document holder.
Choose one that’s at the same height and distance as your computer monitor. Holders that can be mounted to the monitor are ideal.
- Reduce repetitive movements.
Movements that you repeat over and over, such as answering the phone or reaching for a stapler, can lead to strains and stress. Reduce unnecessary movements as much as possible by keeping items you use often within arm's reach and using tools, such as a phone headset, to reduce repetitive movements. Repeatedly cradling the phone between your ear and shoulder can strain the muscles in your neck. Also, alternate the hand you use to operate your mouse.
- Move around often.
Your body can only tolerate being in one position for about 20 minutes before it starts to feel uncomfortable, according to the Mayo Clinic. About every 15 minutes, stand, stretch, walk around or change your position for at least 30 seconds.
- Keep your desk tidy.
Take a few minutes each day to go through your papers. Throw away those you don't need and file those you do. While keeping away from too much clutter is good, adding a few items that mean something to you will personalize your desk and make it more enjoyable to work at.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
How to think about the stock market.
Post 510 - Here are some words of wisdom from the master of the business universe, Warren Buffett:
- "In a bull market, one must avoid the error of the preening duck that quacks boastfully after a torrential rainstorm, thinking that its paddling skills have caused it to rise in the world. A right-thinking duck would instead compare its position after the downpour to that of the other ducks on the pond."
- "The fact that people will be full of greed, fear or folly is predictable. The sequence is not predictable."
- "It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price."
- "When a management with a reputation for brilliance tackles a business with a reputation for bad economics, it's usually the reputation of the business that remains intact."
- "Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing."
- "Whether we’re talking about socks or stocks, I like buying quality merchandise when it is marked down."
- "I don’t look to jump over 7-foot bars: I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over."
- "If a business does well, the stock eventually follows."
- "Look at market fluctuations as your friend rather than your enemy; profit from folly rather than participate in it."
- "Most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can’t buy what's popular and do well."
- "The line separating investment and speculation, which is never bright and clear, becomes blurred still further when most market participants have recently enjoyed triumphs. Nothing sedates rationality like large doses of effortless money. After a heady experience of that kind, normally sensible people drift into behavior akin to that of Cinderella at the ball. They know that overstaying the festivities — that is, continuing to speculate in companies that have gigantic valuations relative to the cash they are likely to generate in the future — will eventually bring on pumpkins and mice. But they nevertheless hate to miss a single minute of what is one helluva party. Therefore, the giddy participants all plan to leave just seconds before midnight. There’s a problem, though: They are dancing in a room in which the clocks have no hands."
- "Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks."
- "Never count on making a good sale. Have the purchase price be so attractive that even a mediocre sale gives good results."
- "Investors making purchases in an overheated market need to recognize that it may often take an extended period for the value of even an outstanding company to catch up with the price they paid."
- "The investor of today doesn't profit from yesterday's growth."
- "I try to buy stock in businesses that are so wonderful that an idiot can run them. Because sooner or later, one will."
- "In a bull market, one must avoid the error of the preening duck that quacks boastfully after a torrential rainstorm, thinking that its paddling skills have caused it to rise in the world. A right-thinking duck would instead compare its position after the downpour to that of the other ducks on the pond."
- "The fact that people will be full of greed, fear or folly is predictable. The sequence is not predictable."
- "It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price."
- "When a management with a reputation for brilliance tackles a business with a reputation for bad economics, it's usually the reputation of the business that remains intact."
- "Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing."
- "Whether we’re talking about socks or stocks, I like buying quality merchandise when it is marked down."
- "I don’t look to jump over 7-foot bars: I look around for 1-foot bars that I can step over."
- "If a business does well, the stock eventually follows."
- "Look at market fluctuations as your friend rather than your enemy; profit from folly rather than participate in it."
- "Most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can’t buy what's popular and do well."
- "The line separating investment and speculation, which is never bright and clear, becomes blurred still further when most market participants have recently enjoyed triumphs. Nothing sedates rationality like large doses of effortless money. After a heady experience of that kind, normally sensible people drift into behavior akin to that of Cinderella at the ball. They know that overstaying the festivities — that is, continuing to speculate in companies that have gigantic valuations relative to the cash they are likely to generate in the future — will eventually bring on pumpkins and mice. But they nevertheless hate to miss a single minute of what is one helluva party. Therefore, the giddy participants all plan to leave just seconds before midnight. There’s a problem, though: They are dancing in a room in which the clocks have no hands."
- "Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks."
- "Never count on making a good sale. Have the purchase price be so attractive that even a mediocre sale gives good results."
- "Investors making purchases in an overheated market need to recognize that it may often take an extended period for the value of even an outstanding company to catch up with the price they paid."
- "The investor of today doesn't profit from yesterday's growth."
- "I try to buy stock in businesses that are so wonderful that an idiot can run them. Because sooner or later, one will."
Monday, June 21, 2010
A post about statistical indicators.
Post 509 - Some interesting statistics I noted during this the past week. I believe most of these indicators speak for themselves.
- In 1994, nearly two-thirds of American-born teens ages 16 through 19 were working or looking for work. Last summer, the number had dropped to less than half. Over that same period, the number of teens not in the labor force rose from 4.7 million to 8.1 million.
- Enrollment in U.S. colleges rose from 5.9 million in 1965 to 17.5 million in 2005. In the fall of 2009, 70 percent of high school graduates were headed to a university campus, an all-time high. In 1970, one million Americans continued their education beyond college compared to 2.3 million in 2007.
- Most people think a full-time college student is someone who enrolled in a four-year full-time program, straight from high school. In reality, this description only fits 27 percent of college students in America today. Instead, more than 73 percent study part-time, have families to support, and work in challenging full-time jobs for at least 35 hours a week.
- In 1960, 77 percent of women and 65 percent of men had acquired all the traditional trappings of maturity by age 30: that is they’d left home, completed school, had full-time employment, and were married with a family. In 2005, that figure was 27 percent for women and 30 percent for men, respectively.
- The first 10 years of employment is when workers see 70 percent of their overall wage growth, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
- More than 82 million people in the U.S. created content online during 2008. This number is expected to grow to nearly 115 million by 2013.
Only 11% of teens email each day, according to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. People are increasingly spending more time on social networks rather than on email.
Barely a third of the soccer players who started games in the English Premier League in 2009 were actually English. Maybe that's why the English team has done so badly in the World Cup.
In the U.K., productivity losses tied to the World Cup could total $1.5 billion. Just over half or working men and a fifth of working women intend to watch the matches scheduled to take place during office hours as they happen.
More than 2,800 mail carriers were bitten by dogs in 2009 and most of these were attacked in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas.
The number of people giving up on cable hasn’t grown in the last two years, despite the growth of online web video over the same period. Since 2008, according to data from Nielsen, the percentage of the U.S. population that only has broadband Internet access and no cable television has hovered around 4%. Meanwhile, the percentage of people who subscribe to both cable and broadband has grown to 66% of the population from 55%.
Last time I checked, Southern California Edison had 18,000 employees. Of these, 30 % were older than 50. 41% of the top executives are currently retirement eligible. It’s estimated that 75% of the management team will turn over in the next seven years. Leadership development at Edison consists of 70% on-the-job experience, 20% coaching and 10% training. Do you know the numbers for your company? How do you compare to So. Cal. Edison?
- In 1994, nearly two-thirds of American-born teens ages 16 through 19 were working or looking for work. Last summer, the number had dropped to less than half. Over that same period, the number of teens not in the labor force rose from 4.7 million to 8.1 million.
- Enrollment in U.S. colleges rose from 5.9 million in 1965 to 17.5 million in 2005. In the fall of 2009, 70 percent of high school graduates were headed to a university campus, an all-time high. In 1970, one million Americans continued their education beyond college compared to 2.3 million in 2007.
- Most people think a full-time college student is someone who enrolled in a four-year full-time program, straight from high school. In reality, this description only fits 27 percent of college students in America today. Instead, more than 73 percent study part-time, have families to support, and work in challenging full-time jobs for at least 35 hours a week.
- In 1960, 77 percent of women and 65 percent of men had acquired all the traditional trappings of maturity by age 30: that is they’d left home, completed school, had full-time employment, and were married with a family. In 2005, that figure was 27 percent for women and 30 percent for men, respectively.
- The first 10 years of employment is when workers see 70 percent of their overall wage growth, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
- More than 82 million people in the U.S. created content online during 2008. This number is expected to grow to nearly 115 million by 2013.
Only 11% of teens email each day, according to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. People are increasingly spending more time on social networks rather than on email.
Barely a third of the soccer players who started games in the English Premier League in 2009 were actually English. Maybe that's why the English team has done so badly in the World Cup.
In the U.K., productivity losses tied to the World Cup could total $1.5 billion. Just over half or working men and a fifth of working women intend to watch the matches scheduled to take place during office hours as they happen.
More than 2,800 mail carriers were bitten by dogs in 2009 and most of these were attacked in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas.
The number of people giving up on cable hasn’t grown in the last two years, despite the growth of online web video over the same period. Since 2008, according to data from Nielsen, the percentage of the U.S. population that only has broadband Internet access and no cable television has hovered around 4%. Meanwhile, the percentage of people who subscribe to both cable and broadband has grown to 66% of the population from 55%.
Last time I checked, Southern California Edison had 18,000 employees. Of these, 30 % were older than 50. 41% of the top executives are currently retirement eligible. It’s estimated that 75% of the management team will turn over in the next seven years. Leadership development at Edison consists of 70% on-the-job experience, 20% coaching and 10% training. Do you know the numbers for your company? How do you compare to So. Cal. Edison?
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