Tuesday, November 5, 2019
An Exercise in Identifying Paragraph Breaks in Essays
An Exercise in Identifying Paragraph Breaks in Essays This exercise will give you practice in paragraphingorganizing sentences into unified paragraphs in a coherent essay. InstructionsWhen originally published in 1913, this humorous essay by Homer Croy was divided into 17 paragraphs. The essay has been reprinted here without any line spaces or indentations.Either on your own or in a group, decide where the paragraph breaks should be, and be prepared to explain why. When youre done, compare your version of the essay with the original version of Bathing in a Borrowed Suit. Keep in mind that many arrangements are possible and that your version of the essay may have more than or fewer than 17 paragraphs.Ã Bathing in a Borrowed Suit by Homer Croy (1883-1965) The desire to be seen on the beach in a borrowed bathing suit is not so strong in me as it once was. An acquaintance, under the guise of friendship, lured me out to his beach one day, saying that he had full rights to the most popular ocean in the world. I had heard his ocean spoken highly of, and I accepted. Unfortunately I forgot to take my bathing suit, but he said that that was nothingthat he had one that would fit me as the paper on the wall. As I recall it those were his exact words. At last he found it in the basement, where it seems that the mice, to get the salt, had helped themselves rather liberally to its none too strong fabric. From the holes in the suit it was easy to see that the party had been a merry one and had not broken up till a late hour. The suit had never been planned for a person of my general architecture. Roughly speaking, I am fashioned along the lines of the Woolworth Building, with a slight balcony effect about the thirty-third floor. The suit had been i ntended for a smallish person given to bathing principally by himself. It was, in its present state, mostly a collection of holes rather insecurely held together with yarn. The waist would have been tight on a doll, while the trunks looked like a pair of pulse-warmers. I tried to find a place to get into the suit, but it stuck together like a wet paper bag. At last I got part way in only to find that my arms were sticking through where a couple of mice had polished off a meal. Finally I felt that I had the suit on and looked in the mirror. I drew back in startled surprise. There were two foreign marks on my body. One I recognized after a moment as being where my collar button had rubbed, but the other was larger. It was a dark splotch as if I had run into the bureau. But, on looking more closely, I saw that it was the bathing suit. Even under the most favorable circumstances, when attired in a bathing suit, I dont live long in the memory of strangers. Rarely ever is my photograph taken by a shore photographer and put up in his exhibition case, and prac tically never does a cluster of people gather around me, talking excitedly with bursts of involuntary applause. My friends were waiting on the lawn for me to join them. Taking a firm grip on my courage I walked out into the yard. The ladies were gaily chatting and smiling until they saw me, when suddenly they closed the conversation and turned to gaze far out over the blue horizon to a dim, distant sail. The ocean looked only a couple of blocks away, but we seemed to walk miles. I was the cynosure of all eyes. I had never been a cynosure before, and in fact didnt know that I had any talent in that line, but now, as a cynosure, I was a great success. When some rude boys came up and began to make personal remarks in the tone that such remarks are usually made in, I abandoned the rest of the party and hurried for the water. I plunged in, but I plunged too hard. My suit had got past the plunging stage. When I came up there was little on me besides the sea foam and a spirit of jollity. The latter was feigned. Something told me to keep to the deep. My friends called me and insisted that I come asho re to play in the sand with them, but I answered that I loved the ocean too well and wanted its sheltering arms around me. I had to have something around me. I must get back to the house and into my clothes. I worked down the beach until I was out of sight, and made a break for the solace of the basement from whence the suit had come. Many people were out walking but I did not join any of them, and as they stared at me, I began to walk faster and faster. Soon I was running. A large dog that I had never seen before rushed at me. I turned around and gave him one lowering look, but he evidently did not catch it, for he came straight on. I looked around for a rock to use for something that I had in mind, but somebody had removed all the desirable ones. So I turned my back to the ill-bred creature and started on. However, this did not cut him the way I had hoped. Instead, he came on with renewed interest. I did not want him to follow me, but this seemed to be his intention, although he had received no encouragement on my part. I sped up and tried to lose him, but my efforts were fruitless, and to make it mor e unpleasant he kept up a loud, discordant barking which jarred on my sensitive ear. I gained the yard and plunged against the door of the house, but some thoughtful person had closed it. I ran around to the rear, but the person had done his work well. So I ran back with some vague hope that the door would be open, although I knew quite well it wouldnt be. My surmises were right. Back the dog and I ran together, while curious passers-by began to stare. I soon found myself almost out of breath, but the dog seemed to be quite fresh. However, I ran back again. At last I came upon a basement door that was open, dived in and shut the door after me. I took particular pains to do that. I continued to remain in the basement. Although the time hung heavily on my hands I did not stroll out to chat with the townspeople. In the course of time my friend returned and looked at me strangely. Arent you feeling well? he asked pityingly. No, I answered sadly. I feel kind of run down. But why did you get in this basement? he asked. It belongs to the man next door. Of late I get all th e bathing I want with a sponge behind closed doors. I would rather have a sponge that has been in the family a long time at my back, than a strange dog similarly located, with whose habits I am not familiar. Bathing in a Borrowed Suit by Homer Croy originally appeared in Life magazine (July 1913) and was reprinted in Our American Humorists by Thomas L. Masson (Moffat, Yard and Company, 1922).
Sunday, November 3, 2019
Supply Chains Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words
Supply Chains - Assignment Example 1. Suppliers. The suppliers deliver the raw materials needed to produce the finished goods. Without the suppliers, the company cannot produce the products needed by the customers. Without the products manufactured, the company cannot make a sale. Without a sale, the company cannot generate cash inflows to defray the operating and marketing expenses needed by the company. Without the profit, the company will have to close shop because of bankruptcy. 2. Manufacturing. The company applies human labor and other factory overhead expenses to convert the raw materials into finished goods. The manufacturing process includes the work in process beginning inventory, raw materials purchased during the month, and raw materials remaining during the end of the accounting period. 3. Warehousing and delivery to clients. The company stores the finished goods in its major warehouses in each city, community, or state. The warehouses are responsible for delivering the goods to the companyââ¬â¢s display centers and stores. The stores are the delivery points where clients can purchase their needs, wants, and caprices. 4. Intermediaries (Agents). Some companies sell their goods and service through intermediaries. Intermediaries include the department stores, grocery outlets, hardware and construction stores, movie theatre stores, office stores, school stores, and community stores. 5. Transport organizations. The airline companies deliver the finished goods to the display centers, warehouses, and delivery the raw materials from the suppliers to companyââ¬â¢s production facilities. The trucking companies deliver the companyââ¬â¢s goods and services to different cities, communities, and suburbs within the United States. 3. Warehousing and delivery to clientsââ¬â¢ display centers. The warehouse may not have enough stocks ready for delivery to the clientsââ¬â¢ display centers. The customers may unexpectedly arrive at a computer shop only to find the store is still waiting for the
Friday, November 1, 2019
International Marketing and Real Estate Research Paper
International Marketing and Real Estate - Research Paper Example Concept of Social businesses The actual concept of a social business entails the establishment of an entity that has a social objective, rather than a financial objective, although it applies a business model to generate the necessary resources that will help it achieve the social objective. Nevertheless, Social businesses are different from the Non-profit businesses and the Not-for profit organizations in that, while the Non-profit business depend on outside funding to be able to accomplish their social missions and objective, the Social businesses operate under a self-financing mechanism, meant to generate moderate profits, which then helps the business to expand its social offerings and reach more of the recipients in the society (Bari, 116). Thus, a social business eliminates the burden of dependency of financiers, donors, charity, and well wishers, to place the responsibility of meeting certain designated social objectives on its shoulders, through generating moderate profits th at enables it to achieve the social mission. Simply put therefore, the fundamental differentiating characteristic for Social businesses is that while other business and organizations with a social objective can be funded by philanthropy and government, Social businesses are self-sufficient and self-sustaining (Alter, 46)2. History of Social businesses Charity, philanthropy and social assistance are concepts that are as old as the history of human being. Man has always engaged in supporting the plight and the needs of the others, starting from the family level up to the highest levels of societal needs. This has been achieved through charity and donations, and mainly through the works of philanthropists. However, in 1974, the actual concept of Social businesses was born and actualized, through the idea and effort of Muhammad Yunus (Yunus, 44). In 1974, Bangladesh experienced a terrible famine, which has come to be referred as the Bangladesh famine of 1974. During this period, the cit izens of this country suffered much, and needed a system that would revive them, and enable them to earn a descent living. Looking at the conditions of predatory lending that existed in this country where the lenders only extended loans to the borrowers under high interest rates making it difficult for the borrowers to prosper in their investments, Yunus developed the concept of lending to a group of poor villagers who could not afford to repay interests on loans, so they could start small businesses (Yunus, 27). The concept was operated with the borrowers repaying the loans granted to them at very low interest rates, which could then be loaned to more others. This was meant to create a system of self-sufficiency, where the lender could not depended on the donors and other funding from the government and organizations, to run the
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Knowing a foreign language means much more than knowing words and the Essay
Knowing a foreign language means much more than knowing words and the rules to combine them - Essay Example Knowing a foreign language means much more than knowing words and the rules to combine them Since I know that words and grammar alone would not be necessary, I would have to find out the exact meanings behind what I intend saying or communicating. This is because people will look up to me when I make use of the foreign language. Then again, my comprehension is such that the context receives more significance because it is something that shall put words into proper play (Bissell 1989). It will teach me where to use what and how to make things work as far as my communication domains with a foreign language is related. I will master such concerns easily when I exactly know where I am lacking and what efforts I am making to reach the intended destination. My plan is to have as less mistakes as possible so that my concentration is based on solid footing. It will allow me to experience my own nuances and comprehend things that are significant from second language adoption mechanisms. I am confident that my plan shall see the light of the day if I remain headstrong and consistent because learning a foreign language is always seen as a difficult task. Many people have avoided such a realm within their fore and my learning would not be taken as an exception. Then again, I will give my best to make sure that my plan meets success. What is even more pivotal is the fact that I shall learn new things along the way, which on any given day is a positive for me. I am supremely confident of my abilities and skills as this is the reason why I am consistently moving ahead. Even though it is always a good sign to know the rules of the foreign language, the fact of the matter is that learning a new language requires patience, empathy and understanding by all concerned, and not just the learner himself. Some believe that it is an easier task than people think it to be, this is not reality in the sheerest sense. The need is to find out how people adapt towards learning a new language which is foreign more than anything else. I will make sure within my plan to remain as clos e to the context as possible because this is something that will win me favors anytime. If I remain stuck on to the contextual details, my learning of the foreign language will be done easier (Kelm 2003). But if I lose track somehow, there would be a number of problems as far as learning is related. It will make me feel disjointed with the foreign language that I am trying my best to master. I will do everything within my grasp to comprehend the rules and dictum that this new language brings and try to relate the same with what I have learned within other languages in the past. For me, the foreign language will not only be a language but also a way of life, a different cultural manifestation that I shall get to know within the future. I am certain that this will go a long way in detailing what is deemed as my strength and what shall remain as something that I have still to gather in the coming times. As far as my particular emphasis is concerned, I will focus on getting on to the co ntext more than mere grammar and spellings. I will also give secondary importance to sentence structure but what would remain quintessential is how I shall take up the context under which the foreign language is being learnt. I will follow up my plan by being vigilant and focusing more on what I need to learn along the way. This will mean that I shall derive support and encouragement from the people who already know the foreign langu
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Dealing with Attendance Issues
Dealing with Attendance Issues People take days off and are sometimes late for work. That is a given. The most common problem is when people take days off when they are not sick, such as wanting to stretch the weekend into 3 days, but when they really are sick, they come into work because they have run out of sick days. This is not good for the employee or other employees as they can become sick. The real problem, however, happens when they call out sick after they have exceeded the sick days allowed for the year. You cant turn a blind eye to this behavior and it is unfair to those who make it a point to come to work everyday and are on time. It is usually just a couple of employees who are the culprits. It is especially hard to deal with attendance problems with a person who is otherwise a great employee. Nonetheless, you have to deal with it, and with equality to all. Here are eight points to keep in mind on how to control and possibly reduce attendance issues: Make sure your employees understand your view towards attendance. Make it a point to share your passion towards having a low absentee and tardiness department. Your supervisors also really need to fully understand the attendance expectations as they are on the front line and will see the infractions much more easily than you. If HR has not created one, have an attendance policy that clearly lays out the guidelines. Also lead by example by getting to work a bit early, leaving a bit late, and rarely, if ever, call out sick. Have your employees call you direct instead of their immediate supervisor. They might think twice knowing you, the manager, will answer the phone or hear the voice mail. Maintain accurate records. There are easy to use software programs to track attendance. You can even use something like your Outlook calendar to make a note of each infraction. Create easy to use codes to not take up too much space. For example, instead of John Doe called out sick or John Doe was 15 minutes late, use something like JD-S or JD-15m. Look for trends. If you see an employee call out on a Friday or Monday, chances are they are taken advantage of sick days for pleasure. If you see an employee call out at the end of the month when your department is at its busiest, you most likely have someone who is not a team player. If an employee is always around 5 to 10 minutes late, its not just a one off traffic jam but someone who just is not making the effort getting ready and to work on time. You might even see repetitive signs of sickness or tardiness with the employee looking like they have been partying all night. You want to address these trends as soon as possible. Individual problem have a one on one meeting. Multiple people hold a team meeting. When you have an individual or two who are repeat offenders, you want to deal with them separately. Dont punish all for a few problem employees. However, when you are seeing a trend with multiple members of the team with attendance issues, you need to hold a team meeting and show the statistics. Stress how it can damage the achievement of goals. Reducing absenteeism might even turn into a goal in itself. This will show all that you are serious about attendance, and how their attendance is important to the overall success of the team. Stress that you should not have to hire more people to achieve the goals due to poor attendance. This will put on certain peer pressure that can work to your benefit, especially if you offer a reward to the team if they achieve an attendance record you have set. Allow for personal business. It is better for your employees to be up front and tell you the truth. There might be a few occasions when someone needs to take some time off in the day to handle something that can only be dealt with during business hours. Just make sure they do not take advantage of this gesture. Create an award program for those who do not call out or are tardy for a certain period of time. It can be a paid day off or other ideas that were given in lesson 3. It shows that even though you are a stickler regarding attendance, you want to show your appreciation to those who make it a point to show up to work and being on time. Have them make up time missed to make up for time lost. Depending on state laws and company policy, this may be an option. If not, can they use some of their vacation time, or get no time if they have already used up all of their sick time? The no time means they would not get paid for the time missed. It would affect hourly/non-exempt employees much more. Steps to take when dealing with attendance problems: 1. Counsel and verbal warning: E-mail, or get their attention privately as to not embarrass the individual, to meet in your office. Start off by stating you are concerned over the absences or tardiness. Establish the reasons and determine what needs to be done to improve the attendance issues. If the problem does not appear to be a major health issue of any sort, you should advise the employee that an improvement in attendance is expected, or the next step in the procedure will be taken. There should be no more attendance problems for the following 6 months. Monitor the attendance monthly and proceed to step 2 if the problem continues. Document this meeting and consider it a verbal warning, not a written warning. You should notify HR if there are any medical issues that can possibly keep the employee out of work for any length of time. If the doctor confirms fitness for work, the employee needs to be warned about the consequences of continued absence. 2. First written warning: If the employees absences continue, set up a second meeting. State the purpose and be prepared to discuss the reasons for the absences. Talk about the implications and how it affects the team and department, not to mention the company, and warn that if the problem continues, employment may be suspended and/or terminated. This all depends on how HR has set up the attendance policy. Document this meeting and consider it a written warning. Monitor for improvement, if there are still problems, go to step 3. 3. Second written warning or suspension: If there is still no improvement, consult with HR on what should be done next. If you can, and would like, set up another meeting with the same criteria as described in steps 1 and 2. Listen to what the employee has to say, and let them know you will get back to them to determine the next step. You can either give another written warning stating the next infraction is automatic suspension and/or termination, or go straight to the suspension stage. Again, this is determined on the existing HR policy. 4. Suspension and/or termination: If no improvement in attendance occurs, you should proceed with a temporary suspension without pay. The intention to suspend should be confirmed in writing with details of start and end dates. HR will be involved and your presence may or may not be required. It is imperative that you have documented every meeting with exact detail. This might be needed if it ever goes to court. If it is determined that the employee should be terminated, the employee should be advised that as a result of excessive attendance issues, they will be dismissed. At this point, HR policies regarding pay and benefits will be discussed. Before you take drastic measures with all that has been discussed so far in this lesson, make sure the problem is not morale related or some other underlying issue. The fault might be yours due to departmental cracks, which you will need to find out what is wrong and fix as soon as possible. There might also be a problem with the time clock, parking situation, or scheduling that you should do your best to fix, or come up with an alternative solution.
Friday, October 25, 2019
Comparision Between Tabloid and Broadsheet Newspapers -- Media News Ne
A comparison between how broadsheet and tabloid newspapers convey the same story I have chosen to compare a story from The Times as my broadsheet paper and The Sun as the Tabloid. The story is primarily about a man who had raped his two daughters several times. In The Times, the headline said ââ¬ËHow two girls were trapped by shame, fear and the love of their own childrenââ¬â¢. The Broadsheet focuses on sympathizing for the girls, giving all information they have in a straightforward way and getting the story through rather than trying to get attention or exaggerating the story, as they did in the tabloid paper, The Sun. The headline was ââ¬â¢25 life terms for Brit Fritzl who raped his two daughters 1,000 timesââ¬â¢. The numbers stand out and make the story seem more shocking. 1,000 is a very big number and it makes any audience shocked to see such a big number in a headline. As this is a tabloid, you never know, the number might have been altered. But that is not the first thing that comes to mind when you see such a headline. You would want to read more about it. In the Broadsheet, the man who raped his two daughters is referred to as ââ¬ËMr Xââ¬â¢, as his family do not want to be recognized in public, and it is also ag ainst the law to identify names for a story about sexual abuse. But in the Tabloid they avoid needing to use a name as a reference. In the tabloid, the man is compared with a well-known Austrian person named Fritzl who just like ââ¬ËMr xââ¬â¢ had raped his daughter then imprisoned her. This is very typical of a tabloid paper to make comparisons and also use informal language such as ââ¬ËBritââ¬â¢. The language in the tabloid is much more easy to understand, and it is quite informal and simple. It is the sort of language you would use ever... ...ger audience, one who would rather know the general details rather than the whole story in detail. That is why I prefer to read a tabloid paper as it is easier to empathize with for you have a better understanding of what is going on. It keeps it short so that you can move on to the next story. But that is my opinion and I fall into the tabloidââ¬â¢s aiming category, and others may have different ideas. The Broadsheet is aimed at a smaller yet more complex audience, who would want to know all the details in the story. Stories in broadsheets are more about business, tax or politics, the sort of things that these sort of people are interested in, so it helps if they know all the smallest details. Broadsheet uses increasingly formal language, for more mature readers. That is why I find in hard to read a broadsheet newspaper, I would rather just know the general details.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Restoring the Character Ethic
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People Restoring The Character Ethic By Stephen R. Covey While I was reading ââ¬ËThe 7 habits of highly effective peopleââ¬â¢ by Stephen R. Convey, many things were running through my mind. Stephen R. Conveyââ¬â¢s words encourages us to live our life by some specific ââ¬Å"principlesâ⬠which can represent our overall effectiveness as a human in individual or social context. This book helps us to know ââ¬Å" How our habits can affect our characterâ⬠and ââ¬Å" How our character can affect our destinyâ⬠. I am completely agree with Steven R. Conveyââ¬â¢s The 7 habits of highly effective peopleââ¬â¢s principles and will try to evaluate their significance in general life. There are 7 habits mentioned by Steven R. Convey in his book by adopting them in our everyday life we can become highly effective people. He defined Habits as the combination of Knowledge, skills and desire. By adopting all these habits in our everyday life, mentioned in his book, we can move through the maturity continuum day by day. Initially, according to first three habits of Convey, we move from dependence to Independence (private victory) and later by four habits we move from Independence to Interdependence (public victory). In his words, ââ¬Å" How we apply a principle will vary greatly and will be determined by our unique strengths, talents, and creativity, but, ultimately, success in any endeavour is always derived from acting in harmony with the principles to which the success is tied. â⬠I like the Conveyââ¬â¢s style of writing and the way he structured his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The words he used and the forms in which they are used are very simple and different from what we are used to seeing todayââ¬â¢s literature. I think, this is one of the main reason why Stephen R. Convey is on the bestseller lists having sold more than fifteen Millon copies. Every single people in the world, who want to be a leader in personal and professional level want to know more about Stephen R. Conveyââ¬â¢s The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. PARADIGM The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People begins with the notion that every people perceive the world differently. They have their own unique ââ¬Å"lensâ⬠to view the world, so; itââ¬â¢s nearly impossible to separate observation from the observer. In Convey view, all of us have our own paradigm. In general sense, paradigm is a way we see the world around us in terms of perceiving, understanding and interpreting, not in terms of visual sense of sight. Convey writes, ââ¬Å" Depend on our way to see things, our behaviour and attitude change. The way we perceive things is the main source of the way we think and act toward that situation. â⬠These paradigms are the main source for defining our behaviour and attitude towards any particular situation. I quite agree with his statement, that we cannot act and think outside of the paradigm in which we find ourself. Itââ¬â¢s true that we cannot talk and walk differently than what we seeing and perceiving in any moment. We can try to change our outward behaviour and attitude for very little time but finally we have to find out actual paradigms from which those behaviour and attitude flows, because in the long run we canââ¬â¢t sustained same attitude and behaviour for paradigm different than the one where these attitude and behaviour actually belong. PARADIGM SHIFT Thomas Kuhn was very highly influential author who introduced ââ¬ËParadigm Shiftââ¬â¢ words first time into his own book: The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Kuhn mentioned in this book that for every breakthrough in any field of human endeavour is start by breaking old and traditional paradigms. Convey tell this paradigm Shift as an ââ¬Å"Ahaâ⬠experience, when someone sees the picture from another view or angle. It has been observed that if a person is more bound to his initial perception, this ââ¬ËAhaââ¬â¢ experience is more intensive in his case. Its true in my case as well, I often felt this Ahaââ¬â¢ experience many times in my life. Whenever my paradigm shifts, I see things differently, and because I see differently, I feel differently, and because I feel differently I behave differently. During this paradigm shift process, I donââ¬â¢t have to worry about controlling my behaviour and attitude; they change by themselves. According to convey, sometime s just a little knowledge is quite enough to examine our paradigm shift and sometimes people need life threatening experiences or complete role change in a their life to realise paradigm shift. As we know, many people want to be successful and effective in their respected lives. They have some desires, goals and dreams to full fill but they are reluctant to honestly examine our own paradigm. They are unwilling to look at the things in the way they supposed to look. This can be easily understood by the story of the manager, who was taking management training classes and seminars. Although, he was very friendly with his employees but he never seen any sign of loyalty and responsibility from his employees toward him. He knew, that if he took a day off from his work, his employees would spend all day by walking and talking around water cooler. Convey suggest the manager to ask some question to himself before asking anything to employees like, ââ¬Å" Despite, having friendly behaviour of my, are they disloyal employees so bold to ask me why I am treating them like a mechanical objects? â⬠Having Knowledge of our own paradigm is good in many ways. By knowing our paradigm can help us to understand how we can interact with others, and that will help us to know how they interact with us. So, Convey suggests, we must examine own paradigm, motives and character. In my opinion, Convey is right. In our life, sometimes we have to examine our own paradigm first, and then put feet on someone else shoes. INSIDE-OUT APPROACH There is one ââ¬ËInside-outââ¬â¢ approach mentioned by Stephen R. Convey. This Inside-out approach says that, ââ¬Å" Every self-help program should begin with the Inside of man. Which mean if you want to have happy marriage relationship; we must start from ourself to cherish our relation. We shouldnââ¬â¢t expect or wait for our partner to do something for our relationship. SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People suggest us to implement all 7 habits into our life for being an effective people. First three habits mentioned by R. Convey are habits of independence. They will help us to achieve private victory or self-mastery. The remaining habits mentioned by Convey are habits of interdependence or public victory. These remaining four habits help us to effectively work with others. And I think its quite true, an any individual person who might be very good independently, but he is not good enough to think and act interdependently could be good individual producer but he canââ¬â¢t be good team member or team leader. HABITS OF INDEPENDENCE Habit 1: Be Proactive Convey says, each person has two circles around him, first circle is circle of influence and second circle is circle of concern. He says, if you worry endlessly about outside of your circle of influence then you never be proactive. If we work within our circle of influence than we will be very proactive. Moreover, the more effective we become, the more our circle of influence will expand. He tells us to be proactive in every situation. We should take the full responsibility of our actions. We are fully responsible for whatever happens to us in our life. We should believe in ourself to shape up our future. We are the only one who knows our strengths and weakness. We can understand our abilities only in difficult problems because this problem makes us solve it by different-different approaches. And during this time we know more about our own physical and mental abilities and skills. I can elaborate this proactive-ness by giving my latest life experience. I enrolled in Leadership and Responsibility subject, for which I am writing this response paper. Our teacher Tom Anderson have told us before that, we have to one write 3000 words response paper after reading Stephen R. Conveyââ¬â¢s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Although, I bought this book at the beginning of my semester but I never read it. I was thinking that I have plenty of time to read it. I started reading this book just before 3 week from my final date. And I knew, that my actual job was not to prepare this response paper of 3000 words. But, I had to read Conveyââ¬â¢s 7 habits and applied them in my daily behaviour (Which I will do later on my summer vacations). Anyway, I was telling you about proactive-ness by my example. As you can see if I start reading this novel after few more days I wonââ¬â¢t be able to submit my assignment on time. And, I might fail this subject. No one going to be responsible for failing this subject because I had my books on time and I had plenty of time. Just because I didnââ¬â¢t take my action on right time I could failed that subject. Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind ââ¬Å"Begin with the end in mindâ⬠habits mean that whatever we do in our life, we should have clear picture about our goal. Convey says that some people start climbing the ladder of success and finally when they reach at the top they find that ladder was leaning against the wrong wall. As we all want to be very efficient and effective in our task. We can be very efficient but we can truly effective when we begin with the end in mind. And for setting ââ¬Ëend in mindââ¬â¢ Convey suggests a process ââ¬ËVisualizationââ¬â¢. Visualization is a process in which we visualize achieving our final goal like any athletic, performer and sales representative. Doing this process of visualization we create an internal ââ¬Å"comfort zoneâ⬠and when we find our self in final situation, we not find it completely foreign. It doesnââ¬â¢t scare us. In our daily life, mostly we all apply this habit of visualization in some extend. This visualization helps us to plan and schedule in advance before start our journey. As you can see in my previous example, I started reading this The7 Habits of Highly Effective People, just 3 weeks ago my paper submission due date. Otherwise, I have to request my lecturer to extend my submission date. I have visualised my plan and schedule in my mind before start reading my Stephen R. Conveyââ¬â¢s book. Habit 3: Put First Things First After Habits 2 ââ¬ËBegin with the end in mindââ¬â¢ comes habit 3 ââ¬ËPut First Things firstââ¬â¢. Perhaps after applying habit 2 or visualisation process we can have many things to do at same time. They all can be significant and can have positive impact on our life. But, probably we donââ¬â¢t do them because they arenââ¬â¢t urgent for us. We should know how & when we have to organise our priorities according to our needs. Sometimes we arenââ¬â¢t good in prioritising things and we realised the importance of it unless we end up in trouble paying for them. Itââ¬â¢s really important for us to practice this habit as much as we can in our life. For example, my friends were calling me for going to night club with them on this coming Saturday, but going to night club is not so much important for me as much as I have to finish this response paper before its due date. So, finishing my Assignment on time is at the top of my priorities list. HABITS OF INTERDEPENDENCE Habit 4: Think Win/Win Convey points out that there are two kinds of people some are those who think Win/Win and other are those who think Win/Loss. The people who think Win/Win are those who are not selfish, they seeking mutually benefits for all. And people who think Win/Loss are those who are selfish. They always think about their own benefits, they donââ¬â¢t care about others. They believe that, ââ¬Ëif I win, you loseââ¬â¢. People who think Win/Lose can be extremely effective, but they have trouble making good relationship. They people mainly focus on power and credentials, and sometimes these things drive other people away from them. To be successful, we should know, how to utilize strengths of others and how you can be benefits for them. We must find the Win/Win situation every time. Lets take an example of any organisation, in which business owner donââ¬â¢t share his profit with his employees. He enjoys all the profits generated by his employeesââ¬â¢ hard work and dedication. He is thinking Win/Lose. So, what do you think, after sometime will his employees feel dedicative and cooperative towards him? I am sure he will not succeed in his business in long run, if he continuously being selfish. He should realised soon that overall performance will always good than individual performance. Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood In this habit ââ¬ËSeek First to Understand, Then to Be Understoodââ¬â¢ convey suggests that, if we really want to think in Win/Win way than we should be very good listener. If we will not listen to anyone then how we will discover Win/Win deals. Most of the time we just pretend to be listening, actually we are busy in preparing our next sentence. In any communication we shouldnââ¬â¢t pretend to be active listener. In experts view, only 10% communication based on verbal, 30% by tones of our sound and rest 60% by our body language. In empathic listening, we usually use our ears with our eyes and heart. We can take an example of a Doctor, in his profession he should be very good listener. If any patient comes to meet him, he should have to listen him very carefully to know his problem and pain. If he wonââ¬â¢t listen him carefully than this doctor canââ¬â¢t diagnose his patient properly. Habit 6: Synergize In Collins Dictionary, Synergy means the potential ability for individuals or groups to be more successful working together than on their own. This habit enclosed all the above habits mentioned above. After listening carefully to others we can combine and can work together for common goals. Convey says that we human have our own mental, emotional and psychological difference. And, for working together we should understand each other values completely so that no conflict will generate. When we work as a team member during any group assignment, we must ignore someoneââ¬â¢s weakness and should strengthen his strength. Every group member has his or her different habit, values, behaviour and culture. So itââ¬â¢s common to have conflicts. By applying all the above habits (specially Synergize) we can resolve all the conflicts and work toward achieving our final assignment. Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw This is the last and most important Habit mentioned by Stephen R. Coney in his book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. As we have seen in Habit 3: Put First Things First, we must maintain Productivity (P) with future Product Capability (PC). ââ¬Å"Sharpen the Saw,â⬠means self ââ¬ârenewal. We must take out some time to harness our skills. Just like a machine, we will wear out very soon if we continuously work, so, we must take out some time to relax and learn new skills. It will improve us to be more productive in later stages. Convey defined four dimensions for personal renewal: Physical Renewal (do exercise, good food and control stress) Mental Renewal (Read, Visualize and Plan) Social or Emotional Renewal (Communicate with others) Spiritual Renewal (Religion, kindness, altruistic) CONCLUSION The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is a magnum opus written by Stephen R. Convey. The language of this book is very simple and easy to understand. I would recommend this book to everyone whether he is a man or woman, boy or girl and young or old. Convey has provided numerous life-based examples, which make this book easier to understand. In my view, he has done an outstanding job in trying to improve individualââ¬â¢s life. This book: The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is a real source for empowering individuals, families, society and business. REFERENCES (1) Stephen R. Convey (2004), The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.
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