Prosperity in 2007 to All on Z-List

The Z-list has expanded, thanks to JT at aialone putting in his choice of great sites. At the dawn of 2007, I wish you prosperity and well-being today and throughout the New Year. I plan to drop by and visit your sites to glean wisdom and exchange ideas in the coming months.

Laugh more and find time to be good to you in 2007!

AENDirect
Africa Unchained
A Girl’s Guide to Managing Projects
aialone
akira media design
amblingsfromaglasshalffull
Being Peter Kim
Bellingham Real Estate blog
Billions With Zero Knowledge
Beyond Madison Avenue
bizandbuzz
bizsolutionsplus
Blog Till You Drop!
Bob Sutton
brainbasedbiz
brainbasedbusiness
brandcurve
Branding & Marketing
Branding Strategy Insider
brandsizzle
Bullshitobserver
Buzz Canuck
Buzzoodle
christine kane
Chuan Zhi
CKs Blog
Cobalt Paladin
Community Guy
Constant Change
Conversation Agent
Converstations
CrapHammer
Creative Think
Critical Fluff
Customers Rock!
Daphne Loo
darrenbarefoot.com
Design Sojourn
Diva Marketing
Dmitry Linkov
Drew’s Marketing Minute
esoup
expresswhatwasonceinexpressible
Flooring the Consumer
Frozen Puck
Funny Business
gDiapers
Get Shouty!
Golden Practices
Gratisvibes
Hee-Haw Marketing
hypocritical
Inside the Marketing Mind
instigator blog
Jeremy Latham’s Blog
John Wagner
Kinetic Ideas
Lih Shin
Linda Chua
Logic + Emotion
MapleLeaf 2.0
Mac’s Money blog
Marketing Hipster
Marketing Nirvana
marketingminute
Masey.com
metaverse
Mindblob
More than a living
moviemarketingmadness
Multi-Cult Classics
New Millenium PR
NewsPaperGrl
Nick Rice
Nofi.orgNote to CMO:
On Influence & Automation
One Reader at a Time
Open The Dialogue
OTOInsights
Own Your Brand!
owrightbetweentheeyes
Pardon My French
Perspective
PigWisdom.com
Popcorn n Roses
Pow! Right Between The Eyes! Andy Nulman’s Blog About Surprise
Presentation Zen
rebang
Roger C. Parker Design to Sell Blog
russell davies
Scott Burkett’s Pothole on the Infobahn
Sek Ling
Servant of Chaos
Shimmer
Shut Up and Drink the Kool-Aid!
Small Surfaces
SMogger Social Media Blog
Social Media on the fly
Soloride
somewhereovertherainbow
steves2cents
strategicdesignmarketing&brandingthoughts
Successful Blog
Success Creeations
Sweska
Tell Ten Friends
That’s Great Marketing!
The Branding Blog
The Copywriting Maven
the curious shopper
The Emerging Brand
The Engaging Brand
The Frager Factor
The Instigator Blog
The Marketing Minute
The New PR
The Qualitative Research Blog
The Sartorialist
think positivethoughtsphilosophies.com
trizoko
Troy Worman’s Blog
Two Hat MarketingU-Fong
Unconventional Thinking
UZYN.com
Viaspire
We’re not wired right
Whippleworld
Women, Art, Life: Weaving It All Together
Woolgathering
Word Sell
Work, in Plain English
Working at Home on the Internet
Writing, Clear and Simple
Xiao Luo
youalreadyknowthisstuff

One Positive Change

After reading Liz Strauss's ideas about making positive change that has meaning and sticks, I decided to take one positve step forward and track my progress. Because the art of blogging is not just in sharing wisdom, but building community and listening to others' ideas, I want to make a move forward in that direction. And I've developed an action plan I think will stick.

Back in June, I started Brain Based Biz to learn how to be a blogger as well as to share MITA with others. One never arrives, but keeps learning. And now, to move ahead, I look forward to gathering more wisdom from amazing folks I've discovered through the "meme," Z-list, which has continued to grow.

So, in taking Liz's idea to make a positive change that sticks, I plan to visit these new sites and others to see what I can learn. And, because this is not a New Year's Resolution, but a daily target, in the words of Ellen Weber, I'm adding many of these sites to my Blog Roll and plan to visit a few each morning to see what's up. And at the end of the day, I'll go back to see what responses I find.

To keep track of this and develop a sense of progress, I'll jot down, in a blank plan book, the sites I visit each morning. As end-of-the-day follow-up, I'll write down one or two words to describe results. I anticipate that I'll uncover lots of surprises and wisdom, too.

As Chris Cree said today, he needs to develop good relationships, and so do I. Keeping on target to visit sites, comment and follow-up is my method to launch. And in the do-ing, I sense I'll develop more art as a blogger. Thoughts?

Magic, Arts and Ads

Today's graphic arts create a virtual reality that builds on magic. I've noticed ads today often create magic in similar ways. And there's a fine line between great magic and deception.

Have you ever watched a magician pull rabbits from an empty hat, and then tried to figure out how you missed seeing something? I'm curious about magic because I like the challenge of figuring it out. Since, the eye is faster than the hand, I start with the sense that I can unravel the magic.

Amazingly, magicians divert your attention in ways that surprise. They trick you, no matter how hard you try to see how they elude you. Experts in visual perception and cognition, point out tactics that divert attention. Interested in ways magicians pull off this sleight of hand? Here's four key points that no doubt come into play with their illusion.

When magicians sidetrack you, diversion is key. Magic casts its spell when your eyes focus away from the hat. Think of attention as a flashlight to find your way through woods at midnight -- you see clearly where the light is pointed, yet surroundings stay too dark to dicipher. In similar ways, have you focused on one part of an ad, missing other details?

During a Pied Piper effect, you'll intuitively follow a magician's focus so that you stare where he stares, simply because your eyes automatically follow his lead. Today's Pied Pipers sport many products and entice others to join the ranks.

Using info overload, fast talking performers burden your brain for the sake of magic. They prattle to create smokescreens while you grasp small pieces only. Your brain is not built for their fast flying details and so it misses the key behind the magic. Noticed any used car dealers' ads that employ this one?

And, to fill your expectations, magicians show you an empty hat, just as you'd expect. Understand why you're shocked when you see that rabbit? I think I've noticed this artifice when that other detergent just can't remove dirt and grime like the featured ultra product.

You could say literary arts create magic in a sense. For instance, in the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge described what he termed a willing suspension of disbelief. It works like this, an old seaman, comes to a wedding and casually converses with another wedding guest. An everyday happening, right? What you may not notice is that he transports the guest and you to the high seas. So you move imperceptibly between the real to the unreal. The arts move your mind in similar ways. Have you noticed ads can work similarly both in words and graphics?

Curiosity led me to dig into neuroscience as it relates to magic. Ever tried starting a day with a two-footed question about a dilemma that has puzzled you?

Magic is a great tool in ads but there's a point where it can slip from real art to pure deception. You play along with great virtual reality, but you don't want to be tricked. What ads have you seen lately that work magic as real art?

Tips to Raise Serotonin and Well-Being

At times, negatives flood my brain and paralyze my progress. Today, negativity crept up on me as a shadow. To move out of this zone, I reviewed strategies to build more serotonin at Brain Based Business. And this refresher made a great deal of difference that I'll share.

Amazingly, Dr. Ellen Weber posted a blog today with 5 Self Starter Strategies To Jumpstart the Brain. An earlier post, What Is Serotonin and Why Should I Care? added insight.

To start building more serotonin, I fixed a big mug of Chai Holiday tea and lit a candle. And this had immediate effect.

In addition, I researched to find even more. Interestingly, Bryn Mawr research reveals that "From the brain, serotonin neurons extend to virtually all parts of the central nervous system making the branching of the serotonin network the most expansive neurochemical system in the brain." Just consider that each serotonin neuron "influences over as many as 500,000 target neurons." No wonder I felt a dip in well-being.

Ellen's tip to take a brief walk is right on target, since this research affirms that exercise is the best natural way to raise serotonin levels and that more serotonin is produced for several days following exercise.

Here's a few more insights from UCLA resources. The chart below shows some situations which bring cortisol to your brain along with tactics to raise serotonin levels for well-being.



By seeking tactics and doing them today, and moving forward with additional research, I'm on a positive path and I plan to stay there.

Arts Stir Creativity in Business

Have you ever thought of art as a process that shapes your mind? It could be as simple as doodling at times to capture ideas. Or, it could be as complex as writing a new chapter for a book, with Vivaldi’s inspirational music in the background. Art with the brain in mind, might be as playful as putting your own words to a tune you enjoy. Or, it could be as serious as capturing just the right metaphor for your firm’s next ad campaign.

One of the benefits of participation in arts is that it fine tunes creativity, one of the things most needed in business today according to an American Management Association survey of 500 CEO’s.

To survive in the 21st century, most CEO’s responded, “Practice creativity and innovation.” However, the survey also reveals, “only 6 percent felt their organizations were doing a ‘great job’ of it.” So how might that change?

Most workers tackle tasks at work through routines they’ve developed. By thinking and creating a project as an artist, workers gain advantage by bringing gifts and talents on board and raise possibilities for novel outcomes.

Here’s some suggestions to jumpstart a project by using more multiple intelligences. Start with two or three and for new zest add more.

Musical – Play jazz in the background as you work…Since jazz moves on improvisation, see how its rhythms stir your writing or other tasks Or try a genre that enhances creativity. such as baroque.

Spatial – Outline a project by doodling or design with pictures first.

Verbal – Take a walk and gather some metaphors from nature. Or, debate main points with a colleague and note gaps.

Kinesthetic – Dramatize, or mime main ideas

Intrapersonal – Keep a journal of discoveries you make at work. Write down one new thing you learn in a day at your job. Or show it through pictures.

Interpersonal – Take a survey to find out what fellow employees would change to make the work environment more pleasant and how they would go about it with the arts. Enlist others to help implement best suggestions.

Naturalistic – Get away from your desk and take a brisk walk outside near trees or a park. Go with a question in mind for a problem you want to solve at work.

Logical Mathematical – Tip your project upside down. If you generally start at the beginning, view it from the end point instead. Or vice-versa. Break it down or build it up with new patterns.

Artists focus and follow through by experimenting and playing with new ideas as they work. They ask questions, reflect and adjust along the way. And in the end they showcase final results for others. Thoughts?

MVNO for success or failure ?

MVNO stands for mobile virtual network operator.
Currently, according to some estimates, there are about 230 MVNOs in the world.
Some of them are success, but some of them are failure.

The main characteristics of such an operator are:
- does not own licences frequency spectrum ,
- resells wireless/mobile phone services ( phones, calls, ''stuff'') ,
- strong brand,
- utilisation of the network of other mobile operator ( owned by big corporate groups and major telecom players in the country )

Speaking about success, Virgin Mobile is considered success and speaking about failures , ESPN Mobile and easyMobile could be mentioned as a flop.

According to some research I read , successful MVNOs do these things:
- Distribution – shelf space and access to audience
- Churn/loyalty programs – new phones every xy months, goodies, minutes
- Technology aligment with ''host'' operator – roadmap to future compatible products


Other things successful MVNOs do:
- management gets ''wireless'' tech,
- target segment is wisely choosed,
- asset-light investment strategy,
- win-win contracts
- understand content and wireless economics
- they are different
- keep things simle

MVNOs are ventures with great focus. They are either ''discount'' or ''lifestyle'' operators.
Virgin Mobile is discount MVNO, and Helio and Amp d' Mobile are lifestyle MVNO.

When I first taught about MVNOs back when they were first grabbing headlines ( in 2005 ) , there was allways question poppping in my mind about motivations of major mobile operators to lease their networks .
They were competitors indeed, but it has logical calculation.

Main motivations for T-Mobile, Vodafone or Verizon Wireless are these three and explain everything:
- Segmentation-Driven Strategies –it can help them attack specific, targeted segments.
- Network Utilisation-Driven Strategies – it can help them create economies of scale for better network utilisation.
- Product-Driven Strategies – specialised service requirements and get to customer niches that mobile operators cannot get to.

MVNOs have operational cost much lower but must invest very wisely into marketing.
It's a myth that MVNOs appeal only to consumer segment. Wireless Maingate is a company that targets enterprise customers.

At the first glance and with little opservation of MVNOs web sites, there could be reached easy conclusion on how they present their offer to potential customers which is their modus operandi and purpose of existence ( better business model in the end ) :

- offer shiny/new/fresh/exciting branded phones ( better cool phones ) ,
- simple plans ( prepaid dominates, post-paid is by minute and tailored to usage ) ,
- cheap talk ( is cool ) ,
- added value that appeals to targeted demographics – music, social network, multimedia ( you, that's cool ) ,
- superior customer service and loyalty ( cool ! )
- granular distribution deals with shopping chains and local stores ( for kits and prepaid minutes)

It's not all that shiny for them, though. Profitability is hard to achive. Management must be smart and explore every opportunity, scale their business, maintain good partnership deals and retain creative marketing people and must make plans for evolution into possible new products and services ( sometimes it is paradox, but what gives ).

As of December 2006, in Croatia are operating two MVNOs: Tele2 which is using Vipnet infrastructure, and the other is Tomato , which is Vipnet's branded MVNO for simple wireless services.

But let's go back to business model. These MVNO sharks are fast to the market, know their customers and are highly focused, but most of them will have to evolve into something convergent and triple-play ( laugh ) – I meant data and messaging ( paradox ).
Yet, I am skeptical for much of this risky business and I will watch this space more closely over the upcoming years.

You know , I heard somewhere on the net Apple will try next year become MVNO ( US only ) which is not so smart move if he does try, IMHO.
Europeans won't give up their Nokias or Motorolas in favour of
Apple phone , I think.

( still to do outside linking later on )

Switch to ''new'' Blogger

I moved my blogger account to ''new'' blogger.com. Finally !
Now, I can login with my Google account .
How shall I call this action ? Unified Google experience ;)

Liz Strauss Celebrates Bloggers' Diverse Talents

A visit to Liz Strauss's blog takes your breath away at times. Surprises there make it hard to predict what Liz will introduce next. I delight in new discoveries with each visit.

One of the best parts -- Liz loves to celebrate so she creates spaces to honor bloggers' diverse gifts. These center stages include S.O.B.'s, Successful and Outstanding Blogs, B.A.D.'s, Blogger A Day and The Mike is On. Liz thinks these can help us all get smarter and I so agree.

Recently Liz named Brain Based Biz as a S.O.B. I am humbled and say thanks for this recognition.

You're a great innovator and community builder, Liz. What would the blogosphere be without you? I anticipate more adventures, both serious and fun as I stop by Successful and Outstanding Blogs to see what's up next.

Dollar Outlook 2007

WestLB, a German bank , gave prediction for the state of global economy in 2007.
Some portions of report are of interest to me.
I consider WestLB as higly reliable source for economic data.
What caught my eye in this report is -->

Falling real estate prices in US...:

In the US, falling real estate prices are restricting the amount of money available for consumption, which is slowing GDP growth. Even if we only see limited risks of a recession on the other side of the Atlantic, this is likely to bring about a turnaround in US monetary policy.

German economy should be OK:

German companies' improved competitiveness is likely to tone down the negative effects on exports and investments arising from the slowdown in global economic growth.

Fed to cut rates sometime in May 2007 :

we expect the Fed to start cutting its rates in May 2007 due to a less promising growth outlook and an improving inflation prospects. We expect to see three small rate cuts by the summer, which will bring the Federal Funds Rate down to 4.50%.

ECB moves rates up in 2007.:

As far as the ECB is concerned, we are reckoning on a further rate hike to 3.5%, a neutral interest rate level, in December. There are many indications that this will not be the end of the rate hikes.

Which will bring us to:

Differing regional growth patterns are likely to lead to divergent monetary policy trends.

US dollar to be in 2007.:

Indeed, we believe the US dollar will lose further ground in the face of the reducing growth and interest rate differential. However, it should be remembered that slower growth in consumer spending tends to tone down another factor weighing on the Greenback; i.e., the still-high current account deficit. As a result, we do not believe the dollar will veritably tumble in value, but instead feel it will settle down at around 1.35 $/€. However, the possibility of it reaching 1.40 cannot be ruled out.

That's all I wanted to know. The fate of US dollar in 2007.

Firefox chaos list

In a spirit of previouse post, just to bookmark few things about communication agency Denuo Group. Found that via my firefox ''chaos'' list. It's a list where I put all my web links I don't know what to do with them, but I have a feeling I'll be interested to explore sometimes later.
Acctually, I will bookmark only web link. You can't do copy paste action and quote from their site cause it's made with Flash.
Instead, I'll highlight something from an interview with Denuo's Nick Pahade:

Our Ventures component is clearly unique because it allows us to align with the media owners of tomorrow-- those who are shaping the touchpoints of the future. We can help bring those media to life and generate first mover opportunities for our clients in the process.

We are also an incubator of new thinking and skill sets. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of great digital shops out there, but that's not really our remit.

That's what I like. Fresh and ''renewable'' thinking.

Why are you doing it again ?

Why publishing online again ?
To clarify my mind, connect with other people, learn, bookmark ideas, remember places on the Web, test ideas and publish my words.
I have still something to say, and I don't mind if nobody's reading. I get used to this all these years.

Quick reminder

For those of you just introduced to this blog, I am back after 9 months.
I began publishing with Blogger in early 2002.
First, it was written in croatian and now it's in english.

It was personal diary at first, and later on I began writing more about World Wide Web services, apps and products, about media and business, Croatia etc.
Just to remind myself with an old quote why I made a switch to english:

I am starting to write this blog in english. The desicion starts as of today.
Not sure yet whether it'll be pure english -worded blog or coctail regarding blog language. Croatish, somehow :))
Obviously, it depends a lot on my mood and inspiration. Yes, and time !
There are few reason for this sudden change.
First, my english skills aren't as good , and blog writing could be incentive for learning .
Second, it's about challenge ,too.

I'm back !

Testing, testing... ;)
I'm publishing again. Now, that's something.
Weird, I was on hiatus for months. I was busy. So, now back to publishing.
Is there anyone out there ?

What I Learned from Nature in 2006

Though I learn something new almost every day, two surprises came from nature that continue to inspire me. Here's the essence...

• Nature sparks inspiration -- and art grows here. My grandsons joined me for a walk in the woods. Jonathan, 8, stopped me from stepping on a "geiko" which he deftly rescued and carefully cupped in his hands thoughout our trek. And, though he let this much cherished geiko loose at the end of our trip, he later recaptured it in watercolors at his kitchen table. Jonathan rated his experience in the woods as "better than going to Six Flags," a million-dollar amusement park.
  
  
• Even cats take risks. Every time Ginger, an abandoned cat who discovered our barn, gave birth to kittens they disappeared. But, one day when ten little children played on our large front porch, Ginger carried three prized kitties, one-by one, and placed them at the feet of my daughter-in-law. The children picked them up, cuddled and loved them and amazingly convinced their Mom and Dad to adopt all three. I could not imagine a cat bringing treasures in the midst of squealing children, but she did. And it is an image of risk, I will not forget.

Ben Yoskovitz, at Instigator Blog challenged fellow bloggers to look back in time and ask the question "What did you learn this year?" Ben will donate $5.00 to charity for each entry. These two inspirations are my response to that challenge.

I hope you'll take the baton now and write an entry for Ben!

Share Your Holiday Light Display!

...Art exists only where there is an audience...To speak of art without speaking of response, communication, experience, feeling or perception is almost meaningless. fred e h schroeder (1978) Outlaw Aesthetics


Ever think of Christmas light displays as art? All art is not fine art, but hey, how far do you go? What's out in your yard this year?

Is it anything like Tacky Christmas lights? People flock to Richmond, VA just to take the Tacky Lights Christmas Tour! See for yourself on this video.

Frank Hudak, who invested between $8,000-10,000 in lights, doesn't think of his display as tacky. " What I do is an expression of art." Art that includes 55,000 lights and 4 miles of electrical wiring, plus 75 lighted lawn ornaments.

"It's art for the masses," John Ravenal, curator at Virginia Museum of Fine arts, suggests. "It's not really museum art. But we're out on the street. It's seasonal art."

Think about it...

There are two distinct schools of Christmas lights in Richmond, Va. You're a twinkler or a flasher. Al Thompson is a twinkler. Ralph Schuler is a flasher.

"I have 80 strobes on three channels and I can cut them off individually," Schuler explains. "The mirror ball, which I have for a really neat effect, keeps spinning all the time."

Schuler has synched his lights -- about 90,000 of them -- to a low-power radio station he runs out of his basement. Passing cars can tune in to enjoy a light show that includes a massive natural tree, a small forest of artificial trees, inflatable light-up snowmen and a herd of plastic reindeer -- all flashing five different colors.

So, what do you do for Chrismas lights? Dr. Ellen Weber at Brain Based Business loves her Arctic Polar Bear on Skiis.

What do you display at your home? Just so we all can see, send a link to your holiday light display and I will complile your entries here! And then we can all be the judge!

Highlighting Great Bloggers

Dr. Ellen Weber over at Brain Based Business, just included me in a list of bloggers she picked as tops. This is part of a "meme" that is now circulating aroung the blogosphere, started by Mack Collier of The Viral Garden as a means to get deserving bloggers up the Technorati charts . Ben at Instigator Blog summed up Mark's reasoning this way:

"His take is that Technorati doesn’t adequately measure the value/importance of a blog because it focuses primarily on links. Well, it does need something to measure importance by, and links are a reasonable measurement of success in the blogosphere, but there are plenty of blogs out there that deserve attention and don’t get enough of it."

Amen, Ben!Therefore, I gladly continue this string - here are the ground rules:

You create a new post on your blog, then cut and paste the list below (under the rules you should take out the name of your own blog), and then add as many blogs as you prefer that you believe deserve more "link love" (I could add 100 that I like, but I tried to keep it simple and added just a few). The ones that you add to the list would then do the very same thing on their blogs. Thus, one VERY long list will eventually get created.Let's spread the love!

The List:

Management Issues
Brain Based Business
Ramblings From a Glass Half Full
Breakout Performance
Mediator Tech
Own Your Brand
What Would Dad Say?
BrandSizzleNewsPaperGrl
The Copywriting Maven
Hee-Haw Marketing
Scott Burkett’s Pothole on the Infobahn
Multi-Cult Classics
Logic + Emotion
Branding & Marketing
Popcorn n Roses
On Influence & Automation
Bullshitobserver
Servant of Chaos
converstations
eSoup
Presentation Zen
Dmitry Linkov
aialone
John Wagner
Nick Rice
CKs Blog
Design Sojourn
Frozen Puck
The Sartorialist
Small Surfaces
Africa Unchained
Perspective
gDiapers
Marketing Nirvana
Bob Sutton
¡Hola! Oi! Hi!
Shut Up and Drink the Kool-Aid!
Women, Art, Life: Weaving It All Together
Community Guy
Social Media on the fly
Successful Blog
SuccessCREEations
Instigator Blog
The Future of the Web
QAQNA
You Already Know This Stuff
Talking Story
Make It Great!
SimplicityMary's Blog
Carpe Factum
Christine Kane

Celebrate Your Faith for Well-Being

I love parties and celebrations because they make me feel good. And there's a reason. Celebration raises serotonin in your brain and aids in spiritual well-being. You benefit as you celebrate your faith this holiday season.

For instance, one December holiday, Hanukkah, features an eight day Festival of Lights. During yearly Jewish festivities, families light beautiful menorahs filled with brightly colored candles, enjoy excellent food, sing Rise Up, My Light and exchange gifts. Children especially enjoy an old tradition, spinning the driedel.

In light of peoples' spirituality, recently a team of Swedish researchers, found a brain receptor that regulates serotonin activity. In this capacity, humans transcend life in this world to understand spiritual realities that cannot be explained objectively. And now there is proof from brain scans linking the capacity for spirituality with a major biological element. And this shows that religious behavior is not just determined by environmental and cultural factors as many believed in past.

So what does that mean in a practical sense? We gather more spiritual well-being by joining in to celebrate holidays. For instance, the lighting of menorah candles reminds Jewish faithful that God saved and thus they now come to worship and celebrate.

And, as you celebrate, be good to you and do not overdo to gather the most serotonin and avoid stressors.

Art Illumines Advent

When an artist’s mind holds faith as central, that faith finds itself reflected in the heart of art. For Luci Shaw and Fra Angelico, art ferments in the imagination as a sacramental wine.

In keeping with Advent, consider The Annunciation of Christ in Shaw’s poetry and Angelico’s painting.

Angelico, a Dominican friar in Florence, used art in service of his faith. Interestingly, this painter-monk, earned the nickname, “Angelic,” which endured through posterity.

Though Angelico reflects Gothic tradition, he played with Maccaccio’s revolutionary ideas about space and perspective and took new risks as he painted magnificent frescoes. And today, his work is catalogued with early Renaissance art well ahead of most artists of his period.

See Angelico’s The Annunciation (1420) below.

“It has been said that faith is ‘a certain widening of the imagination,’” Shaw mused in her Introduction of, Polishing the Petoskey Stone, a book of poetry. She added, “When Mary asked the Angel, ‘How shall these things be?’ she was asking God to widen her imagination.” Interestingly this is what Shaw does in her carefully selected words.

And, the quiet, calm of Shaw’s words leads us to consider the unexpected visit of the angel to Mary in “Announcement.”

Announcement

Yes, we have seen the studies, sepia strokes
across yellowed parchment, the fine detail
of hand and breast and the fall of cloth –
Michelangelo, Caravaggio, Titian, El Greco,
Roualt — each complex madonna positioned,
sketched, enlarged, each likeness plotted at last
on canvas, layered with pigment, like the final
draft of a poem ofter thirty-nine roughs.

But Mary, virgin, had no sittings, no chance
to pose her piety, no novitiate for body or
for heart. The moment was on her unaware:
The Angel in the room, the impossible demand,
the response without reflection. Only one
word of curiosity, echoing Zechariah’s How?
yet innocently voiced, without request for proof.
The teen head tilted in light, the hand
trembling a little at the throat, the candid
eyes, wide with acquiescence to shame and glory –
“Be it unto me as you have said.”

Luci Shaw, Polishing the Petoskey Stone, 1990.

For Shaw and Angelico, celebration of faith finds expression in well-crafted icons which illumine the Holy.

Joseph and Child

Artists choose position, lighting and elements to compose a portrait. They shift and shape these traits to change perception of a subject.

In this light, Tanya DeRoo's 2006 Christmas painting caught my eye because Tanya surprised me with an uncommon view -- Joseph and his Christ child. We're used to cards that feature Mary and child. To see the Christ child without Mary piqued my curiosity and led me to wonder how she chose to depict the age old story.

Joseph in Tanya's painting focuses on the face of Jesus, and so do we. Look, for instance, how the artist depicts a new baby's vulnerability. Then see beyond even that how the ancient text sings out that the "babe was wrapped in swaddling clothes." Swaddling clothes?

Tanya's picture reveals nakedness of father and son. How then do lights and elements shift perceptions here?

Do you see an almost faint stream of light between their eyes? We revisit this story inspired with a new reflection because of the artist's perception.

In much the same way, poet, Madeleine L'Engle, reframes the story from yet another angle. In, O Sapientia, L'Engle described how the child felt in Joseph's hands.

O Sapientia

It was from Joseph first I learned
of Love. Like me he was dismayed.
How easily he could have turned
me from his house; but, unafraid
he put me not away from him
(O God-sent angel pray for him).
Thus through his love was Love obeyed.

The Child's first cry came like a bell:
God's word aloud. God's word in deed.
The angel spoke so it befell,
and Joseph with me in my need.
O child whose Father came from heaven,
to you another gift was given,
your earthly father chosen well.

With Joseph I was always warmed
and cherished. Even in the stable
I knew that I would not be harmed.
And, though above the angels swarmed,
man's love it was that made me able
to bear God's love, wild, formidible,
to hear God's will, through me performed.

from A Cry Like a Bell (1987) Harold Shaw Publishers

What if you perceived an important event in your life as artists DeRoo and L'Engle did?

What one element would be your focus and how would you bring that out as you choose to compose the deeper icons and images? What I'm really saying here, is that when we begin to peceive our worlds as these artists did, we grow in wisdom that sees and creates beyond the surface.

Black Nativity Turns from Bitter Roots

During the Christmas season, when the arts enhance our lives, they might also bring insights for business. For instance in Black Nativity, Langston Hughes develops an amazing flip side to experiences of inequality and oppression he saw in so-called "Christianity" as a young man. Listening to the celebratory gospel-drenched Black Nativity which celebrates "Joy to the World" and "Peace on earth to men of good will," you would not realize that Hughes had struggled thirty years earlier. His forgiving spirt shines forth yearly in Boston's National Center of Afro American Artist's production.

Langston Hughes, a wonderfully gifted poet of the Harlem Renaissance, developed a mistrust of religion, especially directed at people who used Christianity as a cloak behind which to hide their oppressive actions. "Goodbye Christ" most explicity conveys Hughes's attitude in the late 1930's. He pours forth gut feelings...

Listen, Christ,
You did alright in your day, I reckon--
But that day's gone now.
They ghosted you up a swell story, too,
Called it Bible--
But it's dead now.
The popes and the preachers've
Made too much money from it.
They've sold you to too many.

Langston questioned the oppression he felt in a so-called Christian society. Yet he somehow turned that around. And again this Chrismas season, the age old story of Christ's birth dons the rich milieu of African-American culture to stir hearts and minds of people. Black Nativity's message and renoun draws people from around the world.

Amazingly, Langston Hughes, clothed the gospel with Afro-American richness to turn around an earlier bitter root. I am very humbled and inspired by Hughes's Black Nativity. Thoughts?

Keep Up with Today’s Tactics to Organize!

Yesterday, Xerox Corporation announced that it has developed self-erasing paper. If your file cabinet’s inundated by papers to discard, you’ll quickly capture the beauty of self-erasing paper, which tested to print over 50 different documents on the same page. What a great way to cut down on filing chores and consumption of paper! And, there’s more when you cosinder how much paper that saves!

In a similar way, why not reconsider routines and try on Today’s Tactics for fit? Compare these with Traditions as they're paired below:

Tradition: Keep a To-Do list

Today’s Tactic: Rather than use a post-it or envelope to keep track of daily targets, register with a trusted web site such as Google, which now offers Google Desktop. New Google gadgets available to keep track of your must-do’s are Todo List or Scratch Pad. Check off completed items and drag and drop others. And, try Orkut Birthdays to provide plenty of time to send a card or plan a party right from your desktop or now, even your cell phone!

Tradition: Store files in Computer Hard Drive for safety.

Today’s Tactic: Use a web site that offers free Web 2 access. Web 2 access allows storage of all your computer’s documents and files. Best part is they're now available other computers as you travel. For instance, Google offers Search Across Computers. Google describes how it works…

Search Across Computers

Search Across Computers enables you to search your documents and viewed web pages across all your computers. For example, you can find files you edited on your desktop from your laptop. To activate this reature, you will need a Google Account (the same login you use for Gmail, Orkut, or other Google services). Files accessed on your computer after you enable Search Across Computers will be searchable from your other computers. To search your other computers you must also install Google Desktop on them as well as enable the Search Across Computers preference using the same Google Account on each one.

In order to share your indexed files between your computers, we securely transmit this content to Google Desktop servers located at Google. This is necessary, for example, if one of your computers is turned off or otherwise offline when new or updated items are indexed on another of your machines. We store this data temporarily on Google Desktop servers and automatically delete older files, and your data is never accessible by anyone doing a Google search. You can learn more by reading the Google Desktop privacy policy.

Search Across Computers makes the following files searchable from your other computers:

· Web history (from Internet Explorer, Firefox, Netscape and Mozilla)
· Microsoft Word documents
· Microsoft Excel spreadsheets
· Microsoft PowerPoint presentations
· PDF files and Text files in My Documents

Note: Your HTTPS web history will never be shared with your other computers, whether or not you allow indexing HTTPS items on one of your computers.

Tradition: Process mail daily.

Today’s Tactic: If you’re up-to-date with bills, save time by managing mail weekly. Try this… Scan the mail for anything critical every day. Then, recycle or throw away junk, then put the rest in a tray of your tiered desktop basket. Simply designate a day to sort through the contents weekly.

Tradition: Buy gifts throughout the year and store till needed.

Today’s Tactic: Avoid storing generic gifts such as candles or after-shaves that take up room in your closet…and do not work well. If you’re in a pinch, buy gift cards for restaurants, games, movies, theatre, magazine subscriptions… Best part, gift card easily fit into your greeting.

Changes seem scary at first and perhaps major battles with technology left you skeptical. Do I hear you saying, “If it works, don’t fix it”? Why not give your noodle a new challenge... Thoughts?

Feel an Afternoon Slump at Work?

Do you look forward to lunches with clients? I'm talking bistros with ambiance and fantastic menu selections. Client or not, business lunches undoubtedly highlight many of your work days. But, when you return to the office, do you find yourself slumping in your chair?

Afternoon slump begins with your menu choices. Do you fall into one or more of these categories?

Too many carbs or sugars – cause an immediate spike of energy and a resounding crash since insulin, a hormone which clears sugar out of the blood floods to your body’s cells to be used for fuel.

Too much to eat – “Nutrient composition and size of the meal have slight effects, but eating a larger meal than usual can increase the magnitude of the lunch effects. Álertness is usually reduced after a hefty lunch and performance of sustained attention tasks is impaired, according to Andrew P. Smith in the British Food Journal.

Too little to eat -- skimpy salads for lunch, leave you with a loss of nutrients required for optimum energy.

Too little water - Mild dehydration is a common and often overlooked cause of fatigue. Dehydration can reduce blood volume and diminish blood flow to the organs, slowing down your brain -- and you along with it.

If so, here are tips to bolster your afternoon acuity:

Opt for a combination of carbs and proteins at lunch: Dr. Judith Wurtman, MIT nutrition researcher says that protein contains precursors of serotonin, the neurotransmitter which promotes a calm, relaxed feeling and helps to fight emotional fatigue. Protein rich foods also contain tyrosine, a precursor to neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine that elevate alertness, attention, and motivation. Wurtman suggests adding just a few carbs boosts the brain's intake of tryptophan.

Select protein rich foods from lunch menus: Seafood, poultry and lean meat supply the richest sources, as well as dairy products, legumes, nuts and seeds. Veggies and grains have protein too, though in lesser amounts, without the fat.

Drink plenty of water at lunch since it helps you eat less. And, take a few extra trips to the water cooler at your office – you’ll not only relieve stiffness from too much sitting, but movement helps raise the oxygen level in your brain.

Take a brisk ten minute walk during your break – a fast pace boosts blood flow and raises oxygen levels in your brain.

Select fast paced music on your Ipod to move your brain waves. Your body then quickens pace as well.

Drink coffee or Diet Cola for a quick fix, but don’t make it a habit.

Enjoy your business lunch and tackle afternoon tasks with more gusto!

Super Nutrients for Memory Power

Leaders often ask us what supplements help maintain a healthy brain into old age – especially the nutrients that can help keep the brain’s memory system in tact. You may want to try Acetyl-L-Carnitine [ALC], Alpha Lipoic Acid [ALA], Ginkgo Biloba and Phosphatidylserine [PS] described below. But you need an underpinning for these super-nutrients to do their thing!

Look at the checklist below to see how firm a foundation you have. Do you currently

____ Maintain a high bran diet along with plenty of fresh fruits and veggies?
____ Select virgin olive oil over butter?
____ Participate in invigorating weekly exercise that forces deep breathing?
____ Drink 6-8 glasses of water daily?
____ Embrace spiritual well-being?
____ Add plenty of daily laughter?
____ Participate in life-long learning activities?

At the same time, check off the killer foes -- do you avoid

____ Heavy-metal toxins?
____ Homocysteine?
____ Excessive animal fat consumption?
____ Free Radicals?
____ Passive activities with no challenge to your mind?
____ High stress overload?
____ Negative people?

Perhaps you found gaps and see areas to strengthen. Where will you start? With a great foundation in place, memory nutrients generally work well.

Specific vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other nutrients that work to help sharpen your memory are detailed in Part One of this series, Nutrients to Turbo-Charge Your Brain!

Memory Nutrients Known to Boost the Brain

Acetyl-L-Carnitine [ALC] - nutrient that prevents premature brain aging

• Boosts production of dopamine and acetylcholine which enhances learning, memory, and emotional stability


• Inhibits accumulation of lipofuscin in the hippocampus by its antioxidant activity. [Lipofuscin accumulation opens the door to erosion of mental faculties.]

Alpha Lipoic Acid [ALA] – powerful antioxidant that protects cell membranes

• Binds to heavy metals rendering them harmless


• Protects the mitochondra [present in living cells, takes charge of respiration and energy production] from the effects of free radicals

Ginkgo Biloba – an herb – has the ability to enhance mental functions and behavior and is frequently prescribed for memory loss. Here’s how it works.

• Boosts the brain’s capacity to use glucose for energy


• Enhances blood flow to the brain


• Helps cut down stress and anxiety


• Insures safe flow of oxygen to brain cells


• Protects red blood cells from free radical damage because of its antioxidant capability

Phosphatidylserine [PS] a derivative of soy lecithin and one of the brain super-nutrients. Reserach shows phosphatidylserine is effective for some folks, but more research is needed. For some people, PS

• Accelerates short-term memory and focus, as well as long term recall


• Controls nerve-growth regulation, and reverses decline of nerve growth in the hippocampus, our memory center


• Enhances acetylocholine and dopamine, which boosts memory and sense of well being


• Prevents premature brain aging by protecting cell membranes


• Protects cells against free radicals with its antioxidant properties


• Suppresses the hormone Cortisol, which helps reduce effects of stress

The ball is in your court. Building an overall healthy lifestyle is key. Here’s to a full functioning brain throughout your life!

Note: take any supplements with the consent of your physician or medical practitioner.

A Modest Proposal for Business to Subsidize Arts in Schools

Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way. Edward de Bono

Businesses are increasingly searching for new hires who appoach problems differently than most. But how are talented new hires developed? It makes sense that developing student creativity, problem solving, and ability to transfer skills from class to real life is the responsibility of schools. But are enough brilliantly skilled graduates out there to meet the needs of 21st Century business?

For many years Bloom’s Taxonomy, in which levels of cognition are assigned to a variety of tasks, was and frequently is the standard to assess levels of skills and learning. Here's how Bloom's works -- lower level cognitive skills include memorization of facts to gain knowledge. In contrast, high level abilities require interpretation, organization and evaluation of information and principles. And now, Bloom’s New Taxonomy places creativity at the top of the scale. But how exactly does one “acquire” creativity?

Not surprisingly, creativity is cultivated over time. And, creativity can be nurtured in our schools through the arts. You might be surprised that the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities indicates in their Executive Committee report,

As a result of their varied inquiries, the Champions of Change researchers found that learners can attain higher levels of achievement through their engagement with the arts. Moreover, one of the critical research findings is that the learning in and through the arts can help ‘level the playing field’ for youngsters from disadvantaged circumstances.

Specific research studies in Champions of Change show students in schools with arts programs score higher on standardized tests than students who do not have these programs.

More than ever, U.S. businesses seek bright hires with brilliant creative minds to keep pace in the global market place. Business depends on schools to nurture minds of future employees. However, the means to nurture creativity is squelched too often. For example, in New York State, most schools are fighting for funds to meet budget demands. Some districts cut programs drastically so budgets are aligned with less money available. Have you noted many programs axed are music and art? Do you see the irony here? In the Rochester area and rural New York State area more than a few schools have cut back on music and art teachers.

Business leaders, what about subsidizing the arts in your local school? What if you were to pay an instrumental teacher's salary or support an artist-in-residence? Businesses can surely find tax breaks for subsidizing arts in schools. Leaders, what possibilities do you see? And, how would you begin?