I am starting to think the globalization phenomenon has reached "crazed fad" status. We are discussing the "flat world" concept in one of my other classes and, as you can imagine, another brilliant mind has formally challenged Tom Friedman's assertion that our planet is now flat.
Go take a look at Pankaj Ghemawat's website (www.ghemawat.org) and you will find his calculated response to Freidman's ideas. The problem I have with these big global/non-global ideas is that the concept (to me) is difficult to quantify and measure. At what point does semiglobalization (Ghemawat) become a truly flat world (Friedman) and vice versa? Our world flattening out shouldn't surprise anybody...the natural progression (intersection) of technology and innovative humans was going to happen. The fact that the flattening happened as fast as it did may be a surprise to some. But again, are we overreacting to all this? Are we giving too much credit to Friedman for articulating (in a book) what we already knew was taking place?
The bottom line -- nobody can deny that technology has changed the world and the way you and I (as small fish in a very large pond) can impact lives. Like Doug said, we are in an unprecedented period that will continue to expand and progress. Amazing capabilities (in tech) now exist and will continue to evolve. I think the real question for our generation is whether we are truly prepared to harness these capabilities into a worthwhile cause...
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
2nd Class -- Value
The 2nd class...lots of thought-provoking stuff. I have to be honest, I was stoked to see what Doug had in store for his encore (2nd) appearance. He clearly built up some expectations, at least on my end. No textbooks and a spattering of "current" articles was his mantra. Would it work?
At this point, I think it has. The biggest take away (for me) from Thursday's class was the laundry list of foundational and leadership competencies discussed. This class is clearly designed for us to step back and learn more about ourselves instead of facts and figures out of a book. And I like that. As the saying goes...don't let school get in the way of your education. I don't think the class was ready to be called on individually, but stage fright is common for everyone. Doug is very unassuming and low threat for sure -- a definite requirement as the instructor in this course.
Back to the competencies. More than anything, I was surprised how my answers/beliefs did not jive with the "approved" answers Doug revealed in his presentation. Like he said, there isn't necessarily a right or wrong with those characteristics, but it definitely made me think. Everyone is in this MBA to improve themselves in one way or another. Part of that process is being honest with your strengths and weaknesses. Strengths tend to be easier for people to identify, but most people hate to discuss weaknesses in our society. I like to think I'm honest about my downfalls...and Doug's list kind of kick started my motivation to keep working on those traits. He suggested printing off the lists and keeping them visible to stay committed to the effort, and I think I will do that. We'll see what happens.
Again, the organization of the class and the fast/quick pace from subject to subject is working well for me...looking forward to Tues.
At this point, I think it has. The biggest take away (for me) from Thursday's class was the laundry list of foundational and leadership competencies discussed. This class is clearly designed for us to step back and learn more about ourselves instead of facts and figures out of a book. And I like that. As the saying goes...don't let school get in the way of your education. I don't think the class was ready to be called on individually, but stage fright is common for everyone. Doug is very unassuming and low threat for sure -- a definite requirement as the instructor in this course.
Back to the competencies. More than anything, I was surprised how my answers/beliefs did not jive with the "approved" answers Doug revealed in his presentation. Like he said, there isn't necessarily a right or wrong with those characteristics, but it definitely made me think. Everyone is in this MBA to improve themselves in one way or another. Part of that process is being honest with your strengths and weaknesses. Strengths tend to be easier for people to identify, but most people hate to discuss weaknesses in our society. I like to think I'm honest about my downfalls...and Doug's list kind of kick started my motivation to keep working on those traits. He suggested printing off the lists and keeping them visible to stay committed to the effort, and I think I will do that. We'll see what happens.
Again, the organization of the class and the fast/quick pace from subject to subject is working well for me...looking forward to Tues.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
It was inevitable...
Try as I might, the idea of setting up a blog can no longer be avoided.
One of my instructors at the University of Minnesota (http://www.carlsonschool.umn.edu/) has tasked me with posting my thoughts and rants/raves on a blog site. Truth be told, I actually look forward to maintaining a site like this...and always have, but I simply never got around to it.
In my view, there are two big risks in blogging:
1) Taking the time to maintain the site while keeping entries pertinent and up to date. Nobody wants to log onto a site and see the most recent post was written 6 months ago. Let's face it...your blog site's organization and accuracy is ultimately a reflection of the organization and accuracy of your real life. I guess that can be good or bad.
2) I think there's an inherent arrogance in setting up your own blogsite. I'm not sure why (since the internet explosion) millions of people feel the need to spew their thoughts onto a webpage...the fact that most people think the rest of the world cares about their random thoughts really seems comical to me. The additional fact that most of these bloggers have zero credentials/authority to speak about anything beyond the day-to-day weather is also entertaining. But that's the trend in our information-saturated society I guess...idols/heroes change as often as the weather in this country. Who knows, maybe my blog will get its 15 minutes of fame sometime during this semester.
Maybe I'm wrong on all this -- the blogging trend has apparently caught on and so I will try to join the bandwagon for the time being. It was either this or Facebook. Either way I will probably spend a disproportionate amount of time updating this site over the next couple months. It will be interesting to see how many hits I get.
As long as I have the forum, I will try to chronicle my MBA experience as close to real time as I can get. I'm sure I will be borderline paranoid with making sure my postings don't get too dated. Even though I have small expectations on how many people will actually tune in, I look forward to going off on tangents to see where my mind takes me.
One of my instructors at the University of Minnesota (http://www.carlsonschool.umn.edu/) has tasked me with posting my thoughts and rants/raves on a blog site. Truth be told, I actually look forward to maintaining a site like this...and always have, but I simply never got around to it.
In my view, there are two big risks in blogging:
1) Taking the time to maintain the site while keeping entries pertinent and up to date. Nobody wants to log onto a site and see the most recent post was written 6 months ago. Let's face it...your blog site's organization and accuracy is ultimately a reflection of the organization and accuracy of your real life. I guess that can be good or bad.
2) I think there's an inherent arrogance in setting up your own blogsite. I'm not sure why (since the internet explosion) millions of people feel the need to spew their thoughts onto a webpage...the fact that most people think the rest of the world cares about their random thoughts really seems comical to me. The additional fact that most of these bloggers have zero credentials/authority to speak about anything beyond the day-to-day weather is also entertaining. But that's the trend in our information-saturated society I guess...idols/heroes change as often as the weather in this country. Who knows, maybe my blog will get its 15 minutes of fame sometime during this semester.
Maybe I'm wrong on all this -- the blogging trend has apparently caught on and so I will try to join the bandwagon for the time being. It was either this or Facebook. Either way I will probably spend a disproportionate amount of time updating this site over the next couple months. It will be interesting to see how many hits I get.
As long as I have the forum, I will try to chronicle my MBA experience as close to real time as I can get. I'm sure I will be borderline paranoid with making sure my postings don't get too dated. Even though I have small expectations on how many people will actually tune in, I look forward to going off on tangents to see where my mind takes me.
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