According to Answers.com, the definition of Kashrut is the state of being Kosher and/or the body of Jewish dietary law. Of course, there are many more meanings to the word Kashrut or Kosher. It does not simply apply to food. It can be in the way people are treated. However, in this article I will focus on kosher foods in the United States to help make it easier to find a kosher restaurant in Los Angeles or anywhere else.
The Hebrew word Kosher, Kashrut, etc. are all different titles given to the Jewish dietary laws. In the United States and the English language, we use the word Kosher. The word actually means fit or correct, as well as suitable according to the Jewish law. Pigs are (for some reason) most notable when it comes to non-kosher foods. If an animal is not slaughtered appropriately or is killed ferociously by its predator, it is not considered kosher.
Orthodox Judaism has a much stricter way of it 's laws than Conservative Judaism does.
In the United States, there are many laws stating that it is a crime if a company says that a food is Kosher when it really is not. This law is in effect in the following states:
- Arkansas
- California
- Connecticut
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Texas
- Virginia
It is also a law in some parts of Florida and Baltimore.
According to Answers.com, there are many restrictions placed on food for it to be labeled kosher by the Jewish law. Here are some of those restrictions.
1. Mammals that live on the land have to eat food that they chew the cud and have cloven hoofs.
2. Birds of prey are not considered kosher.
3. Fish must have fins and scales.
4. Any dairy and meat products are not to be served at the same meal, cooked using the same dishes or tools, or stored inappropriately. They cannot touch each other.
5. A trained Shochet uses a particular way to slaughter animals known as shechits. A Shochet severs the jugular, carotid artery, esophagus, and trachea in one smooth cut with a sharp knife.
6. The blood is then removed from the animal. This can be done by broiling, soaking and salting.
7. If a kitchen has been used in a non-kosher way (such as a young Jewish couple moving into a new apartment) they must boil everything in that kitchen to prepare it to become kosher.
There are many laws in Judaism that pertain to kosher foods, but it does not end at just food. It is a way of living. It is the lifestyle of the Jewish and of the Jewish law. It has come over to the United States to appropriately welcome Jews into the country. Hopefully, someday all of the states in the United States will have a law on labeling foods kosher, and hopefully there will be more kosher restaurants in the United States.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
The Impact of MNEs
The United States is the home -country for the largest amounts of foreign licensing and direct investment. Therefore, its policies understandably arouse some of the major trade unions of such outward moments. One of these critics is organized labor, which argues that foreign production often displaces what would otherwise be US production. For example, big corporations have been criticized because they decided to shift some or all of their production to less costly countries, such as Mexico, because of the NAFTA agreement. Trade unions also cite many examples of highly advanced technology that has been at least partially developed through governmental contracts and then transferred abroad. An example is Boeing 's transfer of aerospace technology to China to produce aircraft parts. According to trade unions, if Boeing did not transfer the technology, China would purchase the products in United States, thus increasing U.S. employment and output.
Closely related to the question of job loss is the question of whether the outsourcing of production puts downward pressure on wages in the home country. On the other hand, there is anecdotal evidence that it does. For example, computer programmers in the United Kingdom, make three to six times, the monthly salary of programmers in India. So the possibility of moving more work to India has caused a recent drag on the real wages of U.K. programmers. On the other hand, there is evidence that moves by companies to lower-wage countries increase the overall home-country demand and wages for skilled labor. This is because the cost savings from producing abroad increase demand for the products produced abroad, such as Nike shoes, thus increasing the need for Nike to hire more managerial personnel in the United States.
Moreover, due to the size of many multinational enterprises (MNEs), there is much concern by trade unions that they will undermine through political means the sovereignty of nation-states. The foremost concern is that an MNE will be used as a foreign-policy instrument of its home-country government. The fact that companies depend primarily on their home countries is illustrated by the realization that from the 100 largest companies in the Fortune 500 list, only 18 have a majority of their assets outside their home-country and very few have a foreigner on their executive board. These companies are most internationalized in terms of their sales; however, fewer than half generate more than half of their sales outside their home markets. Because the home-countries of most MNEs are industrial ones, it is understandable that this concern is taken most seriously in less-developed countries (LDCs). But it is not restricted to them.
Two other sovereignty issues are raised less frequently. One is that the MNE may become independent of both the home and host countries, making it difficult for either country to take actions considered being in its best interests. The second is that the MNE might become so dependent on foreign operations that the host country can use it as a foreign-policy instrument against its home country or another country. Under this sphere of influence, trade unions exercise trade control, by enforcing trade restrictions, antitrust laws, and key sector control measures or even by forming state-owned enterprises. For example, much have been said about the US government 's attempt to apply its trading with the Enemy Act to foreign subsidiaries of US companies, in order to keep them from selling to certain unfriendly countries. Such measures, that restrict free trade and enhance the threat of reducing gains, drive MNEs either to accept the new roles of the global game or in most cases to oppose it.
Closely related to the question of job loss is the question of whether the outsourcing of production puts downward pressure on wages in the home country. On the other hand, there is anecdotal evidence that it does. For example, computer programmers in the United Kingdom, make three to six times, the monthly salary of programmers in India. So the possibility of moving more work to India has caused a recent drag on the real wages of U.K. programmers. On the other hand, there is evidence that moves by companies to lower-wage countries increase the overall home-country demand and wages for skilled labor. This is because the cost savings from producing abroad increase demand for the products produced abroad, such as Nike shoes, thus increasing the need for Nike to hire more managerial personnel in the United States.
Moreover, due to the size of many multinational enterprises (MNEs), there is much concern by trade unions that they will undermine through political means the sovereignty of nation-states. The foremost concern is that an MNE will be used as a foreign-policy instrument of its home-country government. The fact that companies depend primarily on their home countries is illustrated by the realization that from the 100 largest companies in the Fortune 500 list, only 18 have a majority of their assets outside their home-country and very few have a foreigner on their executive board. These companies are most internationalized in terms of their sales; however, fewer than half generate more than half of their sales outside their home markets. Because the home-countries of most MNEs are industrial ones, it is understandable that this concern is taken most seriously in less-developed countries (LDCs). But it is not restricted to them.
Two other sovereignty issues are raised less frequently. One is that the MNE may become independent of both the home and host countries, making it difficult for either country to take actions considered being in its best interests. The second is that the MNE might become so dependent on foreign operations that the host country can use it as a foreign-policy instrument against its home country or another country. Under this sphere of influence, trade unions exercise trade control, by enforcing trade restrictions, antitrust laws, and key sector control measures or even by forming state-owned enterprises. For example, much have been said about the US government 's attempt to apply its trading with the Enemy Act to foreign subsidiaries of US companies, in order to keep them from selling to certain unfriendly countries. Such measures, that restrict free trade and enhance the threat of reducing gains, drive MNEs either to accept the new roles of the global game or in most cases to oppose it.
Are You Sufficient To The Task?
Let me ask you a question that may not be so simple: Why are you in business?
Of course, there are probably dozens of reasons you could point to....
- serve others
- contribute to the greater good
- meet a need that 's not being met
- grow your financial well-being
- express your purpose
- prove to the world that you can
Wait - whoa - what was that last one? Take another look...
That 's right. Although most people wouldn't admit it (even if they were conscious of it), there is often a hidden motivation that accompanies our most altruistic intentions. The desire to prove that we are enough.
Where does it come from?
Often, it comes from early childhood conclusions. Something happens, and you make your conclusions and assumptions about what it means. Maybe you have an older sibling, and were always trying to measure up (that 's me). Or, you were an older sibling, and were always trying to recapture the attention you felt you lost when the little squirt was born (that 's my older brother).
Of course, it doesn't have to be the result of a sibling relationship, or even anything "negative" at all that kicked off your pattern. Perhaps you were recognized positively for doing well in a school play, or sports event, and somehow you got it wired up that in order to get love and attention, you had to keep performing. And that conclusion has been running you ever since.
Great. Now what?
When you become aware of a previously-hidden intention, chances are pretty high that it casts a shadow over your day, and you'd like to be able to get rid of it. Because trying to serve two masters (your desire to work for both "higher" and "lower" reasons) can really throw you off your groove, toss your productivity in the toilet, and cost you significant amounts of time.
There are, of course, lots of ways to clean your intentions. One of the simplest ways is to take some time to feel the drive you have to do great things with your business. And as you do, let yourself be open to feeling both the altruistic intentions, and the ones that do it to prove something.
Then, once you're feeling that "yeah, then I'll be seen as x" intention, ask yourself, "And what if that didn't happen? What if I didn't get that payoff?"
That will show you the deficiency you're trying to compensate for; the conclusion you came to as a kid that you're trying to avoid, deny, or negate.
And once you see that, what 's going to heal it?
Perspective. No, not your perspective; Divine Perspective. If you could have dealt with this, you would have, long ago.
The only way to truly free yourself of those old conclusions is to go beyond the level of thinking you were at when you thought it (yes, echoes of that famous Einstein quote, "The significant problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.").
Once you can see more than what you saw before, the old conclusions will no longer have such a grip on you.
How?
The best way I've found is to engage your sense of connection, i.e. through awakening your heart 's connection to the Divine. Alone, you can only see what you can see. But together with a Higher Perspective, you can see everything you need to.
This can happen through heart-centered meditation (like the Remembrance), by connecting to your heart and feeling the greater, universal presence your heart is naturally connected to. If you're an "inner wisdom" person, then finding that still center within where you hear that wise, connected voice, is key.
However you get there, get there. And when you're there, ask to be shown what you couldn't see before that you need to see.
Example:
When I feel why I'm in business, I get a list of reasons, such as service to others, service to the earth and the Divine, family and financial well-being, etc. And, I feel a place that says, "People will look at me and think I'm great." (Whoops!)
So I ask myself, "And what if that didn't happen? What if I didn't get that payoff?" And what I feel is a strong sense of aloneness, and lack of love. That there isn't love in this world for me. (Bingo!)
Then, I connect in my heart, and feel the loving presence I've come to recognize as the Divine. And, I ask, "What do I need to see that I haven't seen before?"
And the answer that comes back to me is that this intention is trying to make it so I don't have to be needy of Divine support; that I can be self-sustaining, sufficient, and powerful in myself. But my heart knows (and it gets reinforced pretty quickly, doing this process) that I'm just human, and without Divine support, I'd be toast.
With that realization comes great relief, relaxation, and a lessening of the desire to prove anything about who I am through my work. What I hear is, "You are what you are because you've been made to be that - and no amount of your doing is going to increase, or decrease, that."
Pretty sweet stuff. In one moment, I'm both sufficient (just because I'm me), and utterly not sufficient, because it 's the Divine support that makes it all happen through me... not little ol' me, on my own.
And, what does that do for my business? By clearing up the illusions in my intentions for being in business, it helps me realize that I don't have to do it alone, that I am supported, and I can work from a much greater place of freedom and ease.
Of course, there are probably dozens of reasons you could point to....
- serve others
- contribute to the greater good
- meet a need that 's not being met
- grow your financial well-being
- express your purpose
- prove to the world that you can
Wait - whoa - what was that last one? Take another look...
That 's right. Although most people wouldn't admit it (even if they were conscious of it), there is often a hidden motivation that accompanies our most altruistic intentions. The desire to prove that we are enough.
Where does it come from?
Often, it comes from early childhood conclusions. Something happens, and you make your conclusions and assumptions about what it means. Maybe you have an older sibling, and were always trying to measure up (that 's me). Or, you were an older sibling, and were always trying to recapture the attention you felt you lost when the little squirt was born (that 's my older brother).
Of course, it doesn't have to be the result of a sibling relationship, or even anything "negative" at all that kicked off your pattern. Perhaps you were recognized positively for doing well in a school play, or sports event, and somehow you got it wired up that in order to get love and attention, you had to keep performing. And that conclusion has been running you ever since.
Great. Now what?
When you become aware of a previously-hidden intention, chances are pretty high that it casts a shadow over your day, and you'd like to be able to get rid of it. Because trying to serve two masters (your desire to work for both "higher" and "lower" reasons) can really throw you off your groove, toss your productivity in the toilet, and cost you significant amounts of time.
There are, of course, lots of ways to clean your intentions. One of the simplest ways is to take some time to feel the drive you have to do great things with your business. And as you do, let yourself be open to feeling both the altruistic intentions, and the ones that do it to prove something.
Then, once you're feeling that "yeah, then I'll be seen as x" intention, ask yourself, "And what if that didn't happen? What if I didn't get that payoff?"
That will show you the deficiency you're trying to compensate for; the conclusion you came to as a kid that you're trying to avoid, deny, or negate.
And once you see that, what 's going to heal it?
Perspective. No, not your perspective; Divine Perspective. If you could have dealt with this, you would have, long ago.
The only way to truly free yourself of those old conclusions is to go beyond the level of thinking you were at when you thought it (yes, echoes of that famous Einstein quote, "The significant problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.").
Once you can see more than what you saw before, the old conclusions will no longer have such a grip on you.
How?
The best way I've found is to engage your sense of connection, i.e. through awakening your heart 's connection to the Divine. Alone, you can only see what you can see. But together with a Higher Perspective, you can see everything you need to.
This can happen through heart-centered meditation (like the Remembrance), by connecting to your heart and feeling the greater, universal presence your heart is naturally connected to. If you're an "inner wisdom" person, then finding that still center within where you hear that wise, connected voice, is key.
However you get there, get there. And when you're there, ask to be shown what you couldn't see before that you need to see.
Example:
When I feel why I'm in business, I get a list of reasons, such as service to others, service to the earth and the Divine, family and financial well-being, etc. And, I feel a place that says, "People will look at me and think I'm great." (Whoops!)
So I ask myself, "And what if that didn't happen? What if I didn't get that payoff?" And what I feel is a strong sense of aloneness, and lack of love. That there isn't love in this world for me. (Bingo!)
Then, I connect in my heart, and feel the loving presence I've come to recognize as the Divine. And, I ask, "What do I need to see that I haven't seen before?"
And the answer that comes back to me is that this intention is trying to make it so I don't have to be needy of Divine support; that I can be self-sustaining, sufficient, and powerful in myself. But my heart knows (and it gets reinforced pretty quickly, doing this process) that I'm just human, and without Divine support, I'd be toast.
With that realization comes great relief, relaxation, and a lessening of the desire to prove anything about who I am through my work. What I hear is, "You are what you are because you've been made to be that - and no amount of your doing is going to increase, or decrease, that."
Pretty sweet stuff. In one moment, I'm both sufficient (just because I'm me), and utterly not sufficient, because it 's the Divine support that makes it all happen through me... not little ol' me, on my own.
And, what does that do for my business? By clearing up the illusions in my intentions for being in business, it helps me realize that I don't have to do it alone, that I am supported, and I can work from a much greater place of freedom and ease.
Money Can Corrupt A Good Person
A leprechaun frolicked from under the magnificent rainbow that caressed the once heavily laden rain soaked valley. A pot of gold lay beneath his feet and a smile paraded from his lips as a man tried with all of his might to catch the lively elf. His pursuit was quickly thwarted with the disappearance of the green man and the gold he guarded.
So many people are easy targets to con artists who prey upon good and honest people. Victims are hard working people who toil and slave to build a nest egg for the rainy days of life. People who fight to get ahead, but often times fall prey to scams and opportunities that don't exist.
People are deceived by credit card companies that convince them that they can have a new tool, a new piece of furniture, the new appliance, or something so necessary as the plumbing repaired that is leaking under the kitchen sink. Companies that exploit those who don't understand how interest expands and accumulates making a person pay up to three times the price for an item they may not really need.
Recently I moved a debt on a credit card over to a non-interest card for a year. When I did this I had no knowledge as to how the plan worked so I asked a lot of questions to the person who was helping me with this task. She explained that there was no interest for a year on the transfer, but if I used the credit card again towards any purchases then I would have to pay interest.
Well that sounded right until she made one final statement. When I use the card for another purchase and I make a payment, then my payment goes towards the non-interest transfer. In other words I would not be able to pay off the interest credit until I had paid off the interest-free transfer first.
Suddenly a revelation came to my mind and I stated, if that 's the case, I will put this card up and not use it again until the transfer was paid. The woman on the other end of the phone realized that she had just revealed a secret used by the credit card companies. She was shocked on how quickly I comprehended what she said and she became very quiet.
People who are wise financially know how to trick people who are using credit to get ahead. They set snares to trap those who think that credit is a way to have the things that you want now. People who don't understand, become easily ensnared with too much debt.
Recently I took out a mortgage on my home. When I signed the papers, she explained that it would be best if I paid as much as possible the first few years over and above my payment, because it would solely go towards the principle of the loan. The principle was the original loan amount. The creditor has the right to take their interest first while paying the principle last. In other words very little of my monthly payment would go towards the real amount for my loan unless I paid extra at the beginning of the loan.
I was amazed at how the rich can rob honest, hard working people in the name of a loan. They have all the power and the intellect to pilfer and plunder those who have to use credit in order to have a home to live in.
Luke 16: 8, "As a result the master of this dishonest manager praised him for doing such a shrewd thing; because the people of this world are much more shrewd in handling their affairs than the people who belong to the light."
Every where I turn, I find money hungry people inventing schemes to take money from the poor and give it to the rich. Even our government has gotten into the act through the state funded lottery. People have been fooled into believing they can win money without working for it.
Luke 12: 2-5, "Whatever is covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known. So then, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in broad daylight, and whatever you have whispered in private in a closed room will be shouted from the housetops.
I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot afterward do anything worse. I will show you whom to fear: fear God, who, after killing, has the authority to throw into hell. Believe me, he is the one you must fear!"
Creditors, people in government, friends, loved ones, beware that anything you do that hurts another human being will be seen by God and you will be judged for the pain you inflicted through charging excessive interest on loans. God sees everything and His judgment is final!
I saw a man in ragged clothes who looked like he hadn't eaten for a while. He unfolded a crumbled dollar bill and handed it to the clerk who promptly gave him a lottery ticket. He didn't win anything and he left the store with his head hanging down in defeat.
The poor are the easiest target for the rich! They believe what they are buying can save them from the hardness of life. They believe in the schemes of governments and people who are smart financially and as a result bankruptcy is filling our courts.
Of course the banks and credit card companies are not to blame. People make their own choices. If they can't handle their money then it 's their fault when they accumulate too much debt. They didn't have to buy the lottery tickets!
Still people are fooled and deceived easily sometimes from the very people they love. I loaned over fifty thousand dollars to a friend and she never paid me back. That is where the biggest hurt can happen. When the people who say they love you take advantage of you so they can get ahead. It would be different if she took responsibility, and at least tried to pay a little, but she didn't even try, she just cut me out of her life.
Luke 8:17, "What ever is hidden away will be brought out into the open, and whatever is covered up will be found and brought to light."
Our world is filled with evil and everything people do to each other will be found out. You cannot cheat and deceive people without coming under the judgment of God. Your deeds will be discovered and uncovered for all people to see.
Matthew 10: 26-28, "So do not be afraid of people. What ever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known. What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight, and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid of God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell."
Money is the root of all evil for those who take advantage of people who are good. Money is evil when it is put into the hands of those who don't care about anyone other than themselves. Be ashamed creditors, bankers and even friends who think they can take whatever they want from those who are not as financially wise.
I have learned a lot and I pass on what I learn in hope that good people will not do evil. I pray if you are a person who works in a financial institute that you will explain clearly to all who borrow money. I pray to all friends who barrow without believing that it isn't necessary to pay it back that you listen and take heed that God is watching and He will repay those who think they got their money free and clear!
So many people are easy targets to con artists who prey upon good and honest people. Victims are hard working people who toil and slave to build a nest egg for the rainy days of life. People who fight to get ahead, but often times fall prey to scams and opportunities that don't exist.
People are deceived by credit card companies that convince them that they can have a new tool, a new piece of furniture, the new appliance, or something so necessary as the plumbing repaired that is leaking under the kitchen sink. Companies that exploit those who don't understand how interest expands and accumulates making a person pay up to three times the price for an item they may not really need.
Recently I moved a debt on a credit card over to a non-interest card for a year. When I did this I had no knowledge as to how the plan worked so I asked a lot of questions to the person who was helping me with this task. She explained that there was no interest for a year on the transfer, but if I used the credit card again towards any purchases then I would have to pay interest.
Well that sounded right until she made one final statement. When I use the card for another purchase and I make a payment, then my payment goes towards the non-interest transfer. In other words I would not be able to pay off the interest credit until I had paid off the interest-free transfer first.
Suddenly a revelation came to my mind and I stated, if that 's the case, I will put this card up and not use it again until the transfer was paid. The woman on the other end of the phone realized that she had just revealed a secret used by the credit card companies. She was shocked on how quickly I comprehended what she said and she became very quiet.
People who are wise financially know how to trick people who are using credit to get ahead. They set snares to trap those who think that credit is a way to have the things that you want now. People who don't understand, become easily ensnared with too much debt.
Recently I took out a mortgage on my home. When I signed the papers, she explained that it would be best if I paid as much as possible the first few years over and above my payment, because it would solely go towards the principle of the loan. The principle was the original loan amount. The creditor has the right to take their interest first while paying the principle last. In other words very little of my monthly payment would go towards the real amount for my loan unless I paid extra at the beginning of the loan.
I was amazed at how the rich can rob honest, hard working people in the name of a loan. They have all the power and the intellect to pilfer and plunder those who have to use credit in order to have a home to live in.
Luke 16: 8, "As a result the master of this dishonest manager praised him for doing such a shrewd thing; because the people of this world are much more shrewd in handling their affairs than the people who belong to the light."
Every where I turn, I find money hungry people inventing schemes to take money from the poor and give it to the rich. Even our government has gotten into the act through the state funded lottery. People have been fooled into believing they can win money without working for it.
Luke 12: 2-5, "Whatever is covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known. So then, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in broad daylight, and whatever you have whispered in private in a closed room will be shouted from the housetops.
I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot afterward do anything worse. I will show you whom to fear: fear God, who, after killing, has the authority to throw into hell. Believe me, he is the one you must fear!"
Creditors, people in government, friends, loved ones, beware that anything you do that hurts another human being will be seen by God and you will be judged for the pain you inflicted through charging excessive interest on loans. God sees everything and His judgment is final!
I saw a man in ragged clothes who looked like he hadn't eaten for a while. He unfolded a crumbled dollar bill and handed it to the clerk who promptly gave him a lottery ticket. He didn't win anything and he left the store with his head hanging down in defeat.
The poor are the easiest target for the rich! They believe what they are buying can save them from the hardness of life. They believe in the schemes of governments and people who are smart financially and as a result bankruptcy is filling our courts.
Of course the banks and credit card companies are not to blame. People make their own choices. If they can't handle their money then it 's their fault when they accumulate too much debt. They didn't have to buy the lottery tickets!
Still people are fooled and deceived easily sometimes from the very people they love. I loaned over fifty thousand dollars to a friend and she never paid me back. That is where the biggest hurt can happen. When the people who say they love you take advantage of you so they can get ahead. It would be different if she took responsibility, and at least tried to pay a little, but she didn't even try, she just cut me out of her life.
Luke 8:17, "What ever is hidden away will be brought out into the open, and whatever is covered up will be found and brought to light."
Our world is filled with evil and everything people do to each other will be found out. You cannot cheat and deceive people without coming under the judgment of God. Your deeds will be discovered and uncovered for all people to see.
Matthew 10: 26-28, "So do not be afraid of people. What ever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known. What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight, and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid of God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell."
Money is the root of all evil for those who take advantage of people who are good. Money is evil when it is put into the hands of those who don't care about anyone other than themselves. Be ashamed creditors, bankers and even friends who think they can take whatever they want from those who are not as financially wise.
I have learned a lot and I pass on what I learn in hope that good people will not do evil. I pray if you are a person who works in a financial institute that you will explain clearly to all who borrow money. I pray to all friends who barrow without believing that it isn't necessary to pay it back that you listen and take heed that God is watching and He will repay those who think they got their money free and clear!
Value Creation Creates Wealth
One of the greatest fallacies pervading in the middle and low classes is the assumption that wealthy people have done something illegal or immoral or both to get the wealth that they possess. On the contrary. In general, rich people have found a way to create so much value for other people that other people are willing to give there money to the rich people for what ever service or commodity the rich people provide.
If you truly want to be rich then you need to find a way to create as much value in the world as possible. Rich people go around asking themselves what they can do better for other people. They understand that if they can make life easier and/or better for as many people as possible, they will get rich.
Poor people on the other hand go around thinking about what the rich people should be doing for them. The poor people have an entitlement mentality that makes them think they are entitled to the rich people 's money because, after all, the rich wouldn't be rich if the poor didn't buy product and services from them.
If the poor really wanted to be rich they would begin to think of other people before themselves. One of the greatest ways to get rich is to look at others needs and find something wrong with the world. When a person does this, they will begin to see opportunities to better the lives of those around them. When they turn that opportunity into a business venture, money will follow. It is a universal law that "Wealth follows value creation." As a person grasps onto these opportunities and creates as much value with them, money will follow.
An easy way to get out of entitlement and to start seeing what others need is to start looking at people as assets instead of things as assets. To often in business, people try to sell a product or service with only the desire to get the commission received from selling the product or service.
Though the end desire of the business owner is to sell, he/she will have much more success if he/she would ask "what can I do to create the greatest amount of value for this individual." Ironically by not focusing on the sell but rather the individual, the business owner will make more sells.
To often I see people treating everyone they meet as a potential customer. It seems like they are almost always trying to sell each person they meet something right at the onset of the relationship. If people would treat everyone they meet as an asset and look for every opportunity to create value for them, they will most times automatically become clients. The difference is a person makes friends before they become clients instead of the other way around.
A while back I heard a story of a man going into a car dealership looking for a car. He went up to the car salesman and told him, "I want this deal to be the greatest deal you ever made. I want you to make the biggest commission you ever have." Wow! How many people would tell a car salesman that. As a result the car salesman became one of the man 's clients also. As the man treated the car salesman as an asset rather than the car, he was able to create value in the salesman life and he received wealth in return.
Another great way to create value is for a person to find and discover his/her own unique abilities and talents. Everyone does something that no one else can do. Even if some people can do similar things, no one can do it exactly the same. Everyone is unique and different.
It is these differences that bring great variety to this earth. If a person looks within himself/herself and discovers his/her unique abilities, he/she has just unlocked great opportunities to create value. Thus he/she has created great opportunity for creating wealth.
Everyone has great potential to create value and to receive the wealth they want. They just need to focus on what others need, not what they feel they are entitled to.
If you truly want to be rich then you need to find a way to create as much value in the world as possible. Rich people go around asking themselves what they can do better for other people. They understand that if they can make life easier and/or better for as many people as possible, they will get rich.
Poor people on the other hand go around thinking about what the rich people should be doing for them. The poor people have an entitlement mentality that makes them think they are entitled to the rich people 's money because, after all, the rich wouldn't be rich if the poor didn't buy product and services from them.
If the poor really wanted to be rich they would begin to think of other people before themselves. One of the greatest ways to get rich is to look at others needs and find something wrong with the world. When a person does this, they will begin to see opportunities to better the lives of those around them. When they turn that opportunity into a business venture, money will follow. It is a universal law that "Wealth follows value creation." As a person grasps onto these opportunities and creates as much value with them, money will follow.
An easy way to get out of entitlement and to start seeing what others need is to start looking at people as assets instead of things as assets. To often in business, people try to sell a product or service with only the desire to get the commission received from selling the product or service.
Though the end desire of the business owner is to sell, he/she will have much more success if he/she would ask "what can I do to create the greatest amount of value for this individual." Ironically by not focusing on the sell but rather the individual, the business owner will make more sells.
To often I see people treating everyone they meet as a potential customer. It seems like they are almost always trying to sell each person they meet something right at the onset of the relationship. If people would treat everyone they meet as an asset and look for every opportunity to create value for them, they will most times automatically become clients. The difference is a person makes friends before they become clients instead of the other way around.
A while back I heard a story of a man going into a car dealership looking for a car. He went up to the car salesman and told him, "I want this deal to be the greatest deal you ever made. I want you to make the biggest commission you ever have." Wow! How many people would tell a car salesman that. As a result the car salesman became one of the man 's clients also. As the man treated the car salesman as an asset rather than the car, he was able to create value in the salesman life and he received wealth in return.
Another great way to create value is for a person to find and discover his/her own unique abilities and talents. Everyone does something that no one else can do. Even if some people can do similar things, no one can do it exactly the same. Everyone is unique and different.
It is these differences that bring great variety to this earth. If a person looks within himself/herself and discovers his/her unique abilities, he/she has just unlocked great opportunities to create value. Thus he/she has created great opportunity for creating wealth.
Everyone has great potential to create value and to receive the wealth they want. They just need to focus on what others need, not what they feel they are entitled to.
It 's All About The Money, Isn't It
Advertising is a competitive field; there is no question about it. Having been in this industry for over twenty years, I have seen many changes: some good, some bad but the core basics of the business remain constant. What used to take weeks to accomplish fifteen years ago virtually takes days but the flip side of that is that in order to do that, you have to stay up with technology and constantly learn. I often laugh with colleagues that one day my head will truly explode with all the information it is being fed.
The reward, however, is the final product and glory for each client. The bottom line in advertising always was and still is one thing: the client.
Within the industry I am known as a 'relationship' builder -- I like to network and combine talents and see people soar. In my career, I have been extremely fortunate to have been given many chances way before I was ready simply because someone believed in me. The most valuable education I have ever received had been through the jobs I acquired early in my career receiving the guidance of some of the most talented Art Directors in New York.
One disturbing change I see today within my industry is the lack of teamwork that was rampant twenty years ago. Today, it is everyone for themselves, which unfortunately, is short-term thinking. Years ago, people did whatever it took to achieve a deadline and everyone on board was a dedicated pro. Today, the pro 's are few and far between and dedication has a price which, unfortunately, usually is not worth the price.
Although I have a talented and competent staff, I like to give 'new talent' a chance and perhaps create new opportunities for them. Last year, I had put together a very simple website for myself and asked a young man I knew if he would code it for me. The understanding was that if he did a good job within a reasonable amount of time, I would consider hiring him for ongoing work. That seemed fair especially since he had so little on his resume.
Since this is my business, I was fully aware that the website should have taken a few days to do but I was experimenting with new talent so I let it go it 's course.
The results were interesting and something I have experienced often in the recent years. This young man actually took two months to complete a very simple project without ever returning one phone call to me. The final invoice given to me was astronomical -- not worth the work and I was charged for work that he never did. Instead of breaking things down, he literally charged me for two months of nothing -- including his sleep time.... Needless to say, I have no use for this gentleman to ever join my advertising agency and I doubt he will go far.
Technology has created new rules within my industry that has opened up a 'Wild-West' mindset: basically anything goes because the average client has absolutely no idea what is involved to make their project happen nor should they. Although I do not expect my clients to know how to do what my agency does, I do work very closely with each client educating them of the process and what is available for them within their budget. Every job is different and I am a firm believer in building as you go and expand as a business creates revenue. Oftentimes, clients do not think past a design or logo and run out of money during the most vital part of the process: the marketing. Let 's face it; what good is a highly expensive design or a ten thousand dollar book cover if there is no money left within the budget to market that product?
Well, the unfortunate truth is that many players within my industry (who basically are my competition) really don't care and the irony is is that their success rate is not very high.
Another interesting situation followed only a few weeks ago. Recently, I have added videos to my services to market books and products. My thought process was that if the movie industry can create movie trailers to entice the public, why not do the same for an upcoming book? The success has been enormous for the authors I work with and we have a ball putting an authors book 'to the big screen',
A California IT firm wanted to merge with my agency and asked to view my most recent book promo video, Seduced by Fear. What I didn't expect was that he retouched my work and the final result looked similar to the old Japanese movies where the lip sinking did not match -- the spoken words within my video were going much faster that the mouths were moving. Even more disturbing was that I was charged $5,000.00 for tampering with my work. What was that all about? Well, it doesn't matter because there was no merge nor was any check written.
My concern is and always has been with each client. Too many innocent people are getting taken advantage of by 'professionals' who are really amateurs trying to 'play with the big boys' and make a quick buck. When clients comes to me for work, I insist that they do their 'homework' before committing to any contract and check my references as well as 'interview' a few other Agencies. With the onset of the Internet, businesses can seem much more successful or larger than they actually are and it is easy to get fooled and...ripped off.
The benevolence within me will always continue to seek out new talent. Optimistically speaking, once in a while, I am happy to say, I really do get lucky. In order to be successful, integrity must be combined with talent and it saddens me that so little is found today. On my more dramatic days, I sort of like to think of myself as the 'Elliot Ness' of advertising -- weeding out those who do bad business to protect the public. After all, without clients how can Advertising be successful?
The reward, however, is the final product and glory for each client. The bottom line in advertising always was and still is one thing: the client.
Within the industry I am known as a 'relationship' builder -- I like to network and combine talents and see people soar. In my career, I have been extremely fortunate to have been given many chances way before I was ready simply because someone believed in me. The most valuable education I have ever received had been through the jobs I acquired early in my career receiving the guidance of some of the most talented Art Directors in New York.
One disturbing change I see today within my industry is the lack of teamwork that was rampant twenty years ago. Today, it is everyone for themselves, which unfortunately, is short-term thinking. Years ago, people did whatever it took to achieve a deadline and everyone on board was a dedicated pro. Today, the pro 's are few and far between and dedication has a price which, unfortunately, usually is not worth the price.
Although I have a talented and competent staff, I like to give 'new talent' a chance and perhaps create new opportunities for them. Last year, I had put together a very simple website for myself and asked a young man I knew if he would code it for me. The understanding was that if he did a good job within a reasonable amount of time, I would consider hiring him for ongoing work. That seemed fair especially since he had so little on his resume.
Since this is my business, I was fully aware that the website should have taken a few days to do but I was experimenting with new talent so I let it go it 's course.
The results were interesting and something I have experienced often in the recent years. This young man actually took two months to complete a very simple project without ever returning one phone call to me. The final invoice given to me was astronomical -- not worth the work and I was charged for work that he never did. Instead of breaking things down, he literally charged me for two months of nothing -- including his sleep time.... Needless to say, I have no use for this gentleman to ever join my advertising agency and I doubt he will go far.
Technology has created new rules within my industry that has opened up a 'Wild-West' mindset: basically anything goes because the average client has absolutely no idea what is involved to make their project happen nor should they. Although I do not expect my clients to know how to do what my agency does, I do work very closely with each client educating them of the process and what is available for them within their budget. Every job is different and I am a firm believer in building as you go and expand as a business creates revenue. Oftentimes, clients do not think past a design or logo and run out of money during the most vital part of the process: the marketing. Let 's face it; what good is a highly expensive design or a ten thousand dollar book cover if there is no money left within the budget to market that product?
Well, the unfortunate truth is that many players within my industry (who basically are my competition) really don't care and the irony is is that their success rate is not very high.
Another interesting situation followed only a few weeks ago. Recently, I have added videos to my services to market books and products. My thought process was that if the movie industry can create movie trailers to entice the public, why not do the same for an upcoming book? The success has been enormous for the authors I work with and we have a ball putting an authors book 'to the big screen',
A California IT firm wanted to merge with my agency and asked to view my most recent book promo video, Seduced by Fear. What I didn't expect was that he retouched my work and the final result looked similar to the old Japanese movies where the lip sinking did not match -- the spoken words within my video were going much faster that the mouths were moving. Even more disturbing was that I was charged $5,000.00 for tampering with my work. What was that all about? Well, it doesn't matter because there was no merge nor was any check written.
My concern is and always has been with each client. Too many innocent people are getting taken advantage of by 'professionals' who are really amateurs trying to 'play with the big boys' and make a quick buck. When clients comes to me for work, I insist that they do their 'homework' before committing to any contract and check my references as well as 'interview' a few other Agencies. With the onset of the Internet, businesses can seem much more successful or larger than they actually are and it is easy to get fooled and...ripped off.
The benevolence within me will always continue to seek out new talent. Optimistically speaking, once in a while, I am happy to say, I really do get lucky. In order to be successful, integrity must be combined with talent and it saddens me that so little is found today. On my more dramatic days, I sort of like to think of myself as the 'Elliot Ness' of advertising -- weeding out those who do bad business to protect the public. After all, without clients how can Advertising be successful?
Having an Affair at Work? 3 Ways Your Employer can Find Out
It used to be the stolen kisses in the cleaning closet and the joint business trips, but today 's tracking of illicit employee behavior has reached a new level of surveillance. Almost every communication and every message is tracked, recorded and cataloged by a company 's IT department. Here are three things to watch out for if you are personalizing your work communications:
Email - In the US, organizations own the email that their employees use to conduct work. They own all the communication, even email flagged as private. Routinely companies are being required to capture and store all electronic emails in the case of litigation and discovery.
This means that if you are using the company 's email system to send notes and messages to your lover while at work, there is an extremely high likelihood that it is being captured, stored, and indexed for later retrieval. There is third-party software on the market that is able to actively monitor internal email within a corporation.
Two examples are Mimesweeper for Microsoft Exchange from Clearswift and Reveal for Novell GroupWise from GWAVA. And don't think you are being sneaky by deleting those emails right after you send them. Today, most email systems allow the employee to delete the email from their local storage, but retain a copy on the corporate email server that is later backed up.
A rule of thumb with email...life is short, email is forever.
Instant Messaging - Relatively new in the corporate space, IM has been around a long time amongst teens, now referred to as Chat. Instant messaging allows instantaneous communication between two computers. One person writes something which appears instantly on the other person 's computer. The other recipient is able to instantly respond back in real-time.
Instant Messaging used to be considered a fairly safe means of communicating something in secret, but today many companies track the ports through the company 's firewall that allows chat. This monitoring oftentimes includes capturing of all chat messages for storage as part of the electronic communication of the organization.
Chat also allows the sending of live video feed as well as documents. Chat messages oftentimes pass through a third-party server and can be captured and stored; also, most Chat software today has automatic archiving built in. Even if you believe it is being deleted on your side, the other side might be capturing everything.
Dateline 's To Catch a Predator is an excellent example of people who thought they were chatting in private only to have their secret messages read aloud on national television. A company delivering Instant Messaging Monitoring is Pearl Software with their IM Echo product.
Texting - With the advent of mobile devices, texting has gained popularity in the US, especially within companies deploying BlackBerry devices. Texting is the ability to send a text message between devices similar to the manner that Instant Messaging sends messages between computers.
Referred to as SMS, or Texting, these devices can send short or long messages straight to the recipient without using an email client or email server. More and more companies are now using software Retain for BlackBerry Enterprise Server from GWAVA to track the communication of their employees using texting devices.
One company deployed BlackBerry SMS and PIN tracking software with a sampling of their corporate log files. Within the first hour a Senior Executive was identified as having an affair with another employee simply from the content of the text messages.
In the good old days you could avoid getting caught at work having an affair by being discreet and not showing any outward signs, but today, a short email, an errant instant message, or a quick indiscreet text can get you tracked, caught, and exposed almost as fast as you sent the message in the first place. A word of advice, don't leave an e-trail. Stick to love notes passed under the desk. Your career may just thank you.
Email - In the US, organizations own the email that their employees use to conduct work. They own all the communication, even email flagged as private. Routinely companies are being required to capture and store all electronic emails in the case of litigation and discovery.
This means that if you are using the company 's email system to send notes and messages to your lover while at work, there is an extremely high likelihood that it is being captured, stored, and indexed for later retrieval. There is third-party software on the market that is able to actively monitor internal email within a corporation.
Two examples are Mimesweeper for Microsoft Exchange from Clearswift and Reveal for Novell GroupWise from GWAVA. And don't think you are being sneaky by deleting those emails right after you send them. Today, most email systems allow the employee to delete the email from their local storage, but retain a copy on the corporate email server that is later backed up.
A rule of thumb with email...life is short, email is forever.
Instant Messaging - Relatively new in the corporate space, IM has been around a long time amongst teens, now referred to as Chat. Instant messaging allows instantaneous communication between two computers. One person writes something which appears instantly on the other person 's computer. The other recipient is able to instantly respond back in real-time.
Instant Messaging used to be considered a fairly safe means of communicating something in secret, but today many companies track the ports through the company 's firewall that allows chat. This monitoring oftentimes includes capturing of all chat messages for storage as part of the electronic communication of the organization.
Chat also allows the sending of live video feed as well as documents. Chat messages oftentimes pass through a third-party server and can be captured and stored; also, most Chat software today has automatic archiving built in. Even if you believe it is being deleted on your side, the other side might be capturing everything.
Dateline 's To Catch a Predator is an excellent example of people who thought they were chatting in private only to have their secret messages read aloud on national television. A company delivering Instant Messaging Monitoring is Pearl Software with their IM Echo product.
Texting - With the advent of mobile devices, texting has gained popularity in the US, especially within companies deploying BlackBerry devices. Texting is the ability to send a text message between devices similar to the manner that Instant Messaging sends messages between computers.
Referred to as SMS, or Texting, these devices can send short or long messages straight to the recipient without using an email client or email server. More and more companies are now using software Retain for BlackBerry Enterprise Server from GWAVA to track the communication of their employees using texting devices.
One company deployed BlackBerry SMS and PIN tracking software with a sampling of their corporate log files. Within the first hour a Senior Executive was identified as having an affair with another employee simply from the content of the text messages.
In the good old days you could avoid getting caught at work having an affair by being discreet and not showing any outward signs, but today, a short email, an errant instant message, or a quick indiscreet text can get you tracked, caught, and exposed almost as fast as you sent the message in the first place. A word of advice, don't leave an e-trail. Stick to love notes passed under the desk. Your career may just thank you.
An Interview on a Fair Trade Jewelry Model in South Africa
Laurens Mare is CEO of the South African Jewelry Counsel. The interview was conducted by Marc Choyt.
Through the nonprofit organization, Vukani-Ubuntu, you have created a wonderful model that trains economically disadvantaged people from townships into the jewelry trade. Let 's start with what year you were founded and how many people are involved in your program now?
This started in 1999. I joined Demos Takoulas (current CEO) in late 1999. At that stage there was just one project-it was the first project of its kind in the country and the first entity to take gold legally into a township. That was not possible before. We did a lot of ground breaking at that stage. Now, there are 37 structures around including various other projects based on the original Vukani model. Granted there has been some improvements since 1999.
Describe your structure.
We set up a nonprofit organization, funded by government and private companies, that functions to fund as a training facility. This training facility has everything it needs, from machinery to faculty, to bring students into the trade. From this central facility, we have smaller companies that function under it in the hive system. Each of the little factories has access to the equipment from the larger factory, where more technical production elements can be assisted with.
In this environment, the rent of this small start up starts low and then grows as the business increases. He is still linked to the main facility with its expertise, so he can grow his own clientele around himself.
So, if I am understanding correctly, you take people into your training facility, teaching them the trade, while providing them all the support they need?
Yes, and we nurture the businesses until they reach a certain size. Once he has grown to a sustainable level he has to leave the confines of the hive to make space for the next entrepreneur. He still retains the link to the central facility though.
We also have set up a company which sells what is produced in this factory. It is a very cooperative system that has QC in place to make sure that the product creates opportunity to grow business in this method and maintains the supporting infrastructure.
How do you transition them into real life bench experience?
We do an exchange program going into the mass production factory in a mass production environment. They understand the environment and the pressure-this is no ensure that they get first-hand experience of the real manufacturing environment. Training is phase one and phase two is to sub-contract. For example, an order comes in for rings. A jeweler who has completed our program or is working with the program will costs it and send the cleaning and assembly to be done by the developing jewelers as an example.
Who gets to take part in your program?
There is a limited amount of money, but anyone from the townships can apply. They go through test for drawing, hand eye coordination, mathematical skills and language ability. Based on the results, we select our top candidates-ten or twenty out of up to four hundred applicants. But it depends-it can be one out of forty or one out of ten. Unemployment is close to 40% in these townships. One of our trained workers can support 3 to 8 people off his income.
How are the students supported while they are in the program?
Most of the learners receive a stipend as per the SA National regulations through the SETA 's (Sectoral Education & Training Authorities). They provide a list of minimum payments per level reached. In addition, the learners get the opportunity to assist in production and earn an additional income from that.
The more they progress, the more they can produce so their income is finally self-generated.
Can you give me an example of what one of your piece workers makes, compared to the average person in a township?
This very much depends from person to person and which field in the industry they specialize in. As an example a person specializing in cleaning castings can on average earn up to R 4000 per month with someone working for a salary at the same level earning R 1500 - R2 500 per month.
How many small companies have started as a result of your program?
Not that many, I would estimate +- 10 or so that have gone on their own. You must remember that the average period of training for entry level is 3-years. Add to that the additional time spent building up something and we have only really been up and running for 7 years.
What has been your level of success with marketing the product?
That has been the hassle with us, to get sufficient market for the product. But we work with a private company. As mentioned we have set up a hybrid situation, working with established jewelry manufacturers that have viable mass production capacities which utilize us as a resource. Eventually, once a jeweler is solid in his skills, as I said, he breaks away from us and starts his own company. They can still subcontract to the factory. In the process they are learning everything about the business. In the meantime, the money generated goes to development of training and the jeweler.
What have been the challenges?
The problems has been in the operating costs. Keeping the central system functioning, paying the staff running the projects and assisting and training all these guys, to be able to do this, the gas for the car, for example. That is the one place where we are low on funds. Our support network does not want to fund our general administrative expenses.
Please give me a list of what you can produce, and let me know how someone interested in supporting your project might go about working with you.
We will be able to produce just about anything you can find any ware else in the industry. Obviously not the kind of quality you would find in Tiffanies or the like, but reasonable mid range jewelery.
Through the nonprofit organization, Vukani-Ubuntu, you have created a wonderful model that trains economically disadvantaged people from townships into the jewelry trade. Let 's start with what year you were founded and how many people are involved in your program now?
This started in 1999. I joined Demos Takoulas (current CEO) in late 1999. At that stage there was just one project-it was the first project of its kind in the country and the first entity to take gold legally into a township. That was not possible before. We did a lot of ground breaking at that stage. Now, there are 37 structures around including various other projects based on the original Vukani model. Granted there has been some improvements since 1999.
Describe your structure.
We set up a nonprofit organization, funded by government and private companies, that functions to fund as a training facility. This training facility has everything it needs, from machinery to faculty, to bring students into the trade. From this central facility, we have smaller companies that function under it in the hive system. Each of the little factories has access to the equipment from the larger factory, where more technical production elements can be assisted with.
In this environment, the rent of this small start up starts low and then grows as the business increases. He is still linked to the main facility with its expertise, so he can grow his own clientele around himself.
So, if I am understanding correctly, you take people into your training facility, teaching them the trade, while providing them all the support they need?
Yes, and we nurture the businesses until they reach a certain size. Once he has grown to a sustainable level he has to leave the confines of the hive to make space for the next entrepreneur. He still retains the link to the central facility though.
We also have set up a company which sells what is produced in this factory. It is a very cooperative system that has QC in place to make sure that the product creates opportunity to grow business in this method and maintains the supporting infrastructure.
How do you transition them into real life bench experience?
We do an exchange program going into the mass production factory in a mass production environment. They understand the environment and the pressure-this is no ensure that they get first-hand experience of the real manufacturing environment. Training is phase one and phase two is to sub-contract. For example, an order comes in for rings. A jeweler who has completed our program or is working with the program will costs it and send the cleaning and assembly to be done by the developing jewelers as an example.
Who gets to take part in your program?
There is a limited amount of money, but anyone from the townships can apply. They go through test for drawing, hand eye coordination, mathematical skills and language ability. Based on the results, we select our top candidates-ten or twenty out of up to four hundred applicants. But it depends-it can be one out of forty or one out of ten. Unemployment is close to 40% in these townships. One of our trained workers can support 3 to 8 people off his income.
How are the students supported while they are in the program?
Most of the learners receive a stipend as per the SA National regulations through the SETA 's (Sectoral Education & Training Authorities). They provide a list of minimum payments per level reached. In addition, the learners get the opportunity to assist in production and earn an additional income from that.
The more they progress, the more they can produce so their income is finally self-generated.
Can you give me an example of what one of your piece workers makes, compared to the average person in a township?
This very much depends from person to person and which field in the industry they specialize in. As an example a person specializing in cleaning castings can on average earn up to R 4000 per month with someone working for a salary at the same level earning R 1500 - R2 500 per month.
How many small companies have started as a result of your program?
Not that many, I would estimate +- 10 or so that have gone on their own. You must remember that the average period of training for entry level is 3-years. Add to that the additional time spent building up something and we have only really been up and running for 7 years.
What has been your level of success with marketing the product?
That has been the hassle with us, to get sufficient market for the product. But we work with a private company. As mentioned we have set up a hybrid situation, working with established jewelry manufacturers that have viable mass production capacities which utilize us as a resource. Eventually, once a jeweler is solid in his skills, as I said, he breaks away from us and starts his own company. They can still subcontract to the factory. In the process they are learning everything about the business. In the meantime, the money generated goes to development of training and the jeweler.
What have been the challenges?
The problems has been in the operating costs. Keeping the central system functioning, paying the staff running the projects and assisting and training all these guys, to be able to do this, the gas for the car, for example. That is the one place where we are low on funds. Our support network does not want to fund our general administrative expenses.
Please give me a list of what you can produce, and let me know how someone interested in supporting your project might go about working with you.
We will be able to produce just about anything you can find any ware else in the industry. Obviously not the kind of quality you would find in Tiffanies or the like, but reasonable mid range jewelery.
Are You Faking It Or Are You Making It?
Have you heard the phrase fake it until you make it? It 's something which is increasingly common among business owners, especially on the internet or in direct mail. The basic idea is someone sells you a program or course teaching you how they made millions- only they haven't yet made the millions, they hope to do so by selling thousands of copies of the course they sold you. They were lying about being rich to begin with, but if all goes to plan they'll get rich in the end. Odd huh? These tactics are on the rise, so we're going to try and explode some of the myths in this area.
What 's The Point?
What is the point of this kind of business? After all would you take flying lessons from someone who couldn't fly a plane? In one word, the point is laziness! The 'fake it until you make it' guys are typically internet or direct marketers who are possibly new to the whole thing, or just the more experienced kind that are plain lazy. They find a web page or direct mail ad that is very convincing, promising millions of dollars just by following these few simple steps, working just a few hours each day from home. Is there anyone that wouldn't want that lifestyle?
So they part with their money, and are sent a course explaining how to set up a very similar website, selling an almost identical product. They will make money if they can make some sales from this site, the end result hopefully being that they make enough money to take care of the 'make it' part. And then the cycle repeats and repeats, until there are thousands of people selling products, making a few hundred dollars, but claiming to make millions from it on their web pages. A truly strange phenomena, but somewhat of a self fulfilling prophecy.
The Legal Standpoint
Is it legal for advertisers to work on a 'fake it until you make it' basis? I don't know what the FTA would make of it, but I would guess it 's some kind of grey area, as it 's very difficult to prove how much anyone is or isn't earning from their website. Most often they will provide screenshots of proof of earnings etc on the sites that they sell their courses from. They can look pretty convincing, but these days it 's pretty easy to swipe such images from another site, or just create them yourself with Photoshop or some similar program.
Do Any Of Them Make it?
Very few if any. You can make millions from the internet and other direct marketing methods, but it takes consistent effort and skills that are built up over time. If the 'fake it until you make it' guys are too lazy to find their own manner of working and too dishonest to be bothered about telling lies, the chances are most of them are not going to apply the consistent efforts required to learn the ropes or make any money at all. Those new to internet marketing are pretty susceptible to these schemes, and many people do start there before getting their own (better) ideas and becoming successful doing something else.
Is It On The Increase?
Yes, unfortunately so. Modern web technology makes it possible for complete amateurs to create or acquire tremendously impressive websites, sites which can really snare and captivate a viewer. The casual web browser has no way of knowing how old the site is or if the proof of incomes are real or fake or even just stolen from another site. The only remedy is to be extra vigilant.
How To Tell?
It 's very tough to tell if any person is being honest about the claims of their product. Thankfully there are a few tricks we can keep up our sleeve.
Visit whois.net - This site will give you details of any website, the name of the owner, when it was first registered etc etc. Very useful, as it 's unlikely that a website registered 6 weeks ago is making millions for its owner!
Visit Alexa.com - This site keeps traffic stats for virtually every page on the web. A profitable webpage will usually have hundreds or thousands of daily visitors, especially if the site is making the owner millions. It 's very easy to see if this is true by using the graphs here.
Google the site owner 's name. You can find out many useful things with a simple Google search, and if there are bad reports or reports of the site being a scam, you can usually find them with some smart searching.
Look for a guarantee - Many online payment processors, Clickbank.com for example, will have a guarantee, so that if you aren't happy with your purchase you can get an instant refund.
Hopefully you've found this useful. Remember, if you avoid 'faking it' you'll have a better chance of 'making it!'
What 's The Point?
What is the point of this kind of business? After all would you take flying lessons from someone who couldn't fly a plane? In one word, the point is laziness! The 'fake it until you make it' guys are typically internet or direct marketers who are possibly new to the whole thing, or just the more experienced kind that are plain lazy. They find a web page or direct mail ad that is very convincing, promising millions of dollars just by following these few simple steps, working just a few hours each day from home. Is there anyone that wouldn't want that lifestyle?
So they part with their money, and are sent a course explaining how to set up a very similar website, selling an almost identical product. They will make money if they can make some sales from this site, the end result hopefully being that they make enough money to take care of the 'make it' part. And then the cycle repeats and repeats, until there are thousands of people selling products, making a few hundred dollars, but claiming to make millions from it on their web pages. A truly strange phenomena, but somewhat of a self fulfilling prophecy.
The Legal Standpoint
Is it legal for advertisers to work on a 'fake it until you make it' basis? I don't know what the FTA would make of it, but I would guess it 's some kind of grey area, as it 's very difficult to prove how much anyone is or isn't earning from their website. Most often they will provide screenshots of proof of earnings etc on the sites that they sell their courses from. They can look pretty convincing, but these days it 's pretty easy to swipe such images from another site, or just create them yourself with Photoshop or some similar program.
Do Any Of Them Make it?
Very few if any. You can make millions from the internet and other direct marketing methods, but it takes consistent effort and skills that are built up over time. If the 'fake it until you make it' guys are too lazy to find their own manner of working and too dishonest to be bothered about telling lies, the chances are most of them are not going to apply the consistent efforts required to learn the ropes or make any money at all. Those new to internet marketing are pretty susceptible to these schemes, and many people do start there before getting their own (better) ideas and becoming successful doing something else.
Is It On The Increase?
Yes, unfortunately so. Modern web technology makes it possible for complete amateurs to create or acquire tremendously impressive websites, sites which can really snare and captivate a viewer. The casual web browser has no way of knowing how old the site is or if the proof of incomes are real or fake or even just stolen from another site. The only remedy is to be extra vigilant.
How To Tell?
It 's very tough to tell if any person is being honest about the claims of their product. Thankfully there are a few tricks we can keep up our sleeve.
Visit whois.net - This site will give you details of any website, the name of the owner, when it was first registered etc etc. Very useful, as it 's unlikely that a website registered 6 weeks ago is making millions for its owner!
Visit Alexa.com - This site keeps traffic stats for virtually every page on the web. A profitable webpage will usually have hundreds or thousands of daily visitors, especially if the site is making the owner millions. It 's very easy to see if this is true by using the graphs here.
Google the site owner 's name. You can find out many useful things with a simple Google search, and if there are bad reports or reports of the site being a scam, you can usually find them with some smart searching.
Look for a guarantee - Many online payment processors, Clickbank.com for example, will have a guarantee, so that if you aren't happy with your purchase you can get an instant refund.
Hopefully you've found this useful. Remember, if you avoid 'faking it' you'll have a better chance of 'making it!'
Interview with Steve D'Esposito on Fair Trade Jewelry
I conducted this interview with Steve D'Esposito:
MC: Given EARTHWORKS' highly charged "Dirty Gold" campaign which many perceived as hostile to the jewelry industry, how it is now that you have now coalesced support to sponsor this jewelry summit? Can you outline, briefly, what led you to this position and the role of the Madison Dialogue?
SD: That 's a misperception. The campaign calls for "No Dirty Gold." It 's not a campaign against gold. It 's a campaign that says we need to add new values to those that society already assigns to the act of buying, giving or owning jewelry.
Let 's take a wedding ring, it 's about adding the values of protecting people, water, mountains, and creatures to those of love, commitment and romance. Therefore, the idea is to make jewelry even more valuable. That 's a winning proposition for everyone and I think that 's why there is interest from all sectors in finding ways to work on some of these issues in a collaborative fashion. This doesn't mean everyone who will participate is in agreement on every issues, it simply means that we agree that it is important to work together, where we can, to help promote ethical, responsible sourcing of jewelry in the small-scale mining sector. Actually, if you look closely at these issues, what 's highly charged isn't the campaign; it 's what happens in communities and to the environment when mining happens without care for people or the environment.
After all, the campaign simply holds up a spotlight and points it at what 's wrong-to create pressure to do things better. The "Madison Dialogue" was set up last year to help foster collaboration across sectors on issues of responsible sourcing in the jewelry sector. Since there were so many emerging projects and initiatives a number of us felt that it would be good create a vehicle that allows us to talk to each other, collaborate and share information. If you go to the website you will also see that the "Madison Dialogue" has also helped publish a number of Issue Papers on key developments in this sector like the work of the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) on the emerging gold standard and the Development Diamond Initiative (DDI).
MC: I would think that such a conference would have TransFair USA (the certification agent for Fair Trade) as a central player. Are they going to be involved at all? Are there going to be any other sponsors besides your organization?
SD: Yes, FLO Internationial/TransFair USA is on the steering committee that has been formed to plan and carry-out the meeting. Other steering committee members include EARTHWORKS, Jewelers of America, the Assocation for Responsible Mining, CASM, Rapaport Group, Ethical Metalsmith, DeBeers, and Partnership Africa Canada. We will also be seeking sponsors to help cover the meeting costs.
MC: What are the objectives of the conference?
SD: This Summit aims to bring together the civil society, community, government and commercial organizations (from mine to retail) that currently are working to address social, human rights and environmental issues in the small-scale mining sectors that supply raw materials (including diamonds, colored gems, gold and other precious metals) to the jewelry industry. It will also include processors and fabricators of recycled materials.
The Summit 's goals are:
* To agree on credible definitions for the descriptive terms that currently are being used to market so-called "ethical" jewelry. These terms include: "fair trade," "green," and other adjectives.
* To recognize credible efforts to develop robust standards and third-party verification systems for ethically sourced minerals.
* To build and/or strengthen partnerships between sometimes-diverse stakeholders interested in ethically sourced minerals, so that responsibly produced jewelry can begin to reach the consumer market in a timely manner.
* To establish next steps both in terms of the development of standards and processes and concrete projects, trials and other activities.
MC: One of the concerns I've had is that up until now, many of the "ethical" initiative in the jewelry industry have been dominated by large players. Yet I have learned from my research that in many cases, with the exception perhaps of the Rapaport Group and Hoover and Strong, the smaller companies are doing the authentic, ground breaking innovative work around ethically sourced jewelry. How are you going to assure, through the organizational structure of the conference, that all people involved, not just the large players, get an equal voice at the table?
SD: You put your finger on a very important issue. My assessment of the sector is that there is, and should be, space for all types of participants looking to advance these issues. I suspect that certain types of activities and projects are a better fit for smaller companies and other types of projects are more suitable at a larger scale. It seems to me that given the small scale of many of the early efforts, the inherently small nature of many ASM projects, and the time it will take to actually bring supply on line, most of these ethical projects are likely to start relatively small and then build. At the meeting we will try to ensure that there is a diversity of participants and an agenda that gives voice and space to all.
MC: Who is invited to come and are there any costs involved for the participants?
SD: Given space constraints there will be a limit on participants-but we will seek participants from all sectors. The steering committee will soon circulate a meeting concept paper that outlines all of this-and there will be a point person for each sector-so that those we are interested and approach the steering committee and request an invitation.
MC: Anything else that you would like to add?
SD: Three things:
1) Your website on Fair Jewelry, is great.
2) It 's important to emphasize that while EARTHWORKS has been a catalyst for this meeting, it 's not our meeting-we are one of the organizers but the meeting will only succeed only if its is owned by all of the participants.
3) We still have one threshold to cross to make sure that the meeting occurs-we need to raise enough money from sponsors to cover the projected expenses and we plan to begin outreach to potential sponsors ASAP.
MC: Given EARTHWORKS' highly charged "Dirty Gold" campaign which many perceived as hostile to the jewelry industry, how it is now that you have now coalesced support to sponsor this jewelry summit? Can you outline, briefly, what led you to this position and the role of the Madison Dialogue?
SD: That 's a misperception. The campaign calls for "No Dirty Gold." It 's not a campaign against gold. It 's a campaign that says we need to add new values to those that society already assigns to the act of buying, giving or owning jewelry.
Let 's take a wedding ring, it 's about adding the values of protecting people, water, mountains, and creatures to those of love, commitment and romance. Therefore, the idea is to make jewelry even more valuable. That 's a winning proposition for everyone and I think that 's why there is interest from all sectors in finding ways to work on some of these issues in a collaborative fashion. This doesn't mean everyone who will participate is in agreement on every issues, it simply means that we agree that it is important to work together, where we can, to help promote ethical, responsible sourcing of jewelry in the small-scale mining sector. Actually, if you look closely at these issues, what 's highly charged isn't the campaign; it 's what happens in communities and to the environment when mining happens without care for people or the environment.
After all, the campaign simply holds up a spotlight and points it at what 's wrong-to create pressure to do things better. The "Madison Dialogue" was set up last year to help foster collaboration across sectors on issues of responsible sourcing in the jewelry sector. Since there were so many emerging projects and initiatives a number of us felt that it would be good create a vehicle that allows us to talk to each other, collaborate and share information. If you go to the website you will also see that the "Madison Dialogue" has also helped publish a number of Issue Papers on key developments in this sector like the work of the Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM) on the emerging gold standard and the Development Diamond Initiative (DDI).
MC: I would think that such a conference would have TransFair USA (the certification agent for Fair Trade) as a central player. Are they going to be involved at all? Are there going to be any other sponsors besides your organization?
SD: Yes, FLO Internationial/TransFair USA is on the steering committee that has been formed to plan and carry-out the meeting. Other steering committee members include EARTHWORKS, Jewelers of America, the Assocation for Responsible Mining, CASM, Rapaport Group, Ethical Metalsmith, DeBeers, and Partnership Africa Canada. We will also be seeking sponsors to help cover the meeting costs.
MC: What are the objectives of the conference?
SD: This Summit aims to bring together the civil society, community, government and commercial organizations (from mine to retail) that currently are working to address social, human rights and environmental issues in the small-scale mining sectors that supply raw materials (including diamonds, colored gems, gold and other precious metals) to the jewelry industry. It will also include processors and fabricators of recycled materials.
The Summit 's goals are:
* To agree on credible definitions for the descriptive terms that currently are being used to market so-called "ethical" jewelry. These terms include: "fair trade," "green," and other adjectives.
* To recognize credible efforts to develop robust standards and third-party verification systems for ethically sourced minerals.
* To build and/or strengthen partnerships between sometimes-diverse stakeholders interested in ethically sourced minerals, so that responsibly produced jewelry can begin to reach the consumer market in a timely manner.
* To establish next steps both in terms of the development of standards and processes and concrete projects, trials and other activities.
MC: One of the concerns I've had is that up until now, many of the "ethical" initiative in the jewelry industry have been dominated by large players. Yet I have learned from my research that in many cases, with the exception perhaps of the Rapaport Group and Hoover and Strong, the smaller companies are doing the authentic, ground breaking innovative work around ethically sourced jewelry. How are you going to assure, through the organizational structure of the conference, that all people involved, not just the large players, get an equal voice at the table?
SD: You put your finger on a very important issue. My assessment of the sector is that there is, and should be, space for all types of participants looking to advance these issues. I suspect that certain types of activities and projects are a better fit for smaller companies and other types of projects are more suitable at a larger scale. It seems to me that given the small scale of many of the early efforts, the inherently small nature of many ASM projects, and the time it will take to actually bring supply on line, most of these ethical projects are likely to start relatively small and then build. At the meeting we will try to ensure that there is a diversity of participants and an agenda that gives voice and space to all.
MC: Who is invited to come and are there any costs involved for the participants?
SD: Given space constraints there will be a limit on participants-but we will seek participants from all sectors. The steering committee will soon circulate a meeting concept paper that outlines all of this-and there will be a point person for each sector-so that those we are interested and approach the steering committee and request an invitation.
MC: Anything else that you would like to add?
SD: Three things:
1) Your website on Fair Jewelry, is great.
2) It 's important to emphasize that while EARTHWORKS has been a catalyst for this meeting, it 's not our meeting-we are one of the organizers but the meeting will only succeed only if its is owned by all of the participants.
3) We still have one threshold to cross to make sure that the meeting occurs-we need to raise enough money from sponsors to cover the projected expenses and we plan to begin outreach to potential sponsors ASAP.
Interview with Carmen Iezzi
In 2006, Carmen Iezzi, was named executive director of the Fair Trade Federation, which represents more than 250 fair trade businesses in North America.
An Alumni of American University, she knew she had an important and significant job to do. She envisioned her role as the youngest person there; to lead the group with fresh eyes and new energy, working towards an important cause during a key time of growth.
I conducted this interview with her over the telephone and through email:
FJ: Please give me a brief explanation of what your organization does and your position.
Carmen: The Fair Trade Federation (FTF) is an international association of businesses and organizations that are fully committed to fair trade. Since 1994, FTF has been working to educate consumers and vendors and to support our members. I have been the executive director since October 2006.
FJ: Many products designated as fair trade on your FAQ page are not covered by the labeling organization (Transfair USA and the European Fair Labeling Organization). Isn't that kind of confusing? Please explain because, at least on the surface, it seems as if you are at cross purposes.
Carmen: FLO may certify a kilo of coffee beans, sugar cane, or other commodity product, which could then be sold to a conventional or a fair trade company. FTF examines a company 's practices for their full commitment to fair trade. The items listed on our website come from members of FTF.
FJ: There is no agreed upon definition of Fair Trade Jewelry (FTJ), and yet it is listed as a product in your FAQs. There are companies in your organization, such as Global Exchange, that list the Transfair USA logo on their site, suggesting that all their products are third party certified yet they are not. When questioned about their FTJ, they point to your website to give themselves credibility selling FTJ. How am I to make sense of this as a consumer interested in supporting FTJ?
Carmen: Global Exchange sells some certified commodities and is therefore entitled to use the Transfair logo, as I understand Transfair 's policies. Global Exchange is also a member of FTF and entitled to use our logo in relation to their organization.
FJ: What are the criteria for fair trade designation and how these principals might they apply to jewelry?
Carmen: FTF members are fully committed to
- Paying fair wages in local context;
- Supporting participatory workplaces;
- Ensuring environmental sustainability;
- Supplying financial and technical support;
- Respecting cultural identity;
- Offering public accountability;
- Building direct and long-term relationships and,
- Educating consumers.
Carmen in action at the NATO summit in Riga, Latvia
FJ: If it is the businesses that you certify as a member of your federation that if a product is "fair trade" how do you monitor their practices of that business to assure it really is-since Transfair and FLO are not involved?
Carmen: As a reminder, FTF does not certify businesses. We screen an applicant 's business practices and their commitment to fair trade using qualitative and quantitative information and external references. The processes that FLO employs are complementary, but distinct, from our work.
FJ: When I met with a representative of Transfair USA at the FTJ Conference sponsored by the Rapaport Group in Las Vegas last June, there was some concern about any jewelry company using the "fair trade" designation as a means of "green washing." Do you have any opinion about this?
Carmen: Consumers should discourage companies who seek to have a small part of their work offset other, less sustainable practices.
FJ: Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Carmen: Fair trade has a long history in North America and a bright future and items have been available in the United States since 1946 from Ten Thousand Villages and the first fair trade coffee company, Equal Exchange, opened in 1986. FLO was created in 1988; and, TransFairs USA and Canada opened their doors in 1999. The movement seeks to create positive change in the lives of producers by growing fair trade in all product categories.
An Alumni of American University, she knew she had an important and significant job to do. She envisioned her role as the youngest person there; to lead the group with fresh eyes and new energy, working towards an important cause during a key time of growth.
I conducted this interview with her over the telephone and through email:
FJ: Please give me a brief explanation of what your organization does and your position.
Carmen: The Fair Trade Federation (FTF) is an international association of businesses and organizations that are fully committed to fair trade. Since 1994, FTF has been working to educate consumers and vendors and to support our members. I have been the executive director since October 2006.
FJ: Many products designated as fair trade on your FAQ page are not covered by the labeling organization (Transfair USA and the European Fair Labeling Organization). Isn't that kind of confusing? Please explain because, at least on the surface, it seems as if you are at cross purposes.
Carmen: FLO may certify a kilo of coffee beans, sugar cane, or other commodity product, which could then be sold to a conventional or a fair trade company. FTF examines a company 's practices for their full commitment to fair trade. The items listed on our website come from members of FTF.
FJ: There is no agreed upon definition of Fair Trade Jewelry (FTJ), and yet it is listed as a product in your FAQs. There are companies in your organization, such as Global Exchange, that list the Transfair USA logo on their site, suggesting that all their products are third party certified yet they are not. When questioned about their FTJ, they point to your website to give themselves credibility selling FTJ. How am I to make sense of this as a consumer interested in supporting FTJ?
Carmen: Global Exchange sells some certified commodities and is therefore entitled to use the Transfair logo, as I understand Transfair 's policies. Global Exchange is also a member of FTF and entitled to use our logo in relation to their organization.
FJ: What are the criteria for fair trade designation and how these principals might they apply to jewelry?
Carmen: FTF members are fully committed to
- Paying fair wages in local context;
- Supporting participatory workplaces;
- Ensuring environmental sustainability;
- Supplying financial and technical support;
- Respecting cultural identity;
- Offering public accountability;
- Building direct and long-term relationships and,
- Educating consumers.
Carmen in action at the NATO summit in Riga, Latvia
FJ: If it is the businesses that you certify as a member of your federation that if a product is "fair trade" how do you monitor their practices of that business to assure it really is-since Transfair and FLO are not involved?
Carmen: As a reminder, FTF does not certify businesses. We screen an applicant 's business practices and their commitment to fair trade using qualitative and quantitative information and external references. The processes that FLO employs are complementary, but distinct, from our work.
FJ: When I met with a representative of Transfair USA at the FTJ Conference sponsored by the Rapaport Group in Las Vegas last June, there was some concern about any jewelry company using the "fair trade" designation as a means of "green washing." Do you have any opinion about this?
Carmen: Consumers should discourage companies who seek to have a small part of their work offset other, less sustainable practices.
FJ: Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Carmen: Fair trade has a long history in North America and a bright future and items have been available in the United States since 1946 from Ten Thousand Villages and the first fair trade coffee company, Equal Exchange, opened in 1986. FLO was created in 1988; and, TransFairs USA and Canada opened their doors in 1999. The movement seeks to create positive change in the lives of producers by growing fair trade in all product categories.
Is There Such A Thing As Fair Trade Jewelry?
A Google search for "fair trade jewelry" will bring up numerous companies, many of which sell ethnic jewelry produced in small villages in the developing world. The concept draws the socially responsible shopper, yet the third party labeling organization, Fair Labeling Organization (FLO) - of which Transfair USA is a member - does not currently list jewelry. Apart from that, some large players in the mainstream jewelry industry are beginning to tout concepts such as "fair trade diamonds" and "fair trade gold." So how does one make sense of these jewelry claims, especially as they relate to the $150 Billion mainstream jewelry industry?
Investigating the Self-Proclaimed Fair Trade Jewelers
Global Exchange comes up number one on Google in the organic, unpaid listings for the "fair trade" jewelry search. The Transfair logo at the bottom of their website would lead a shopper to believe that their jewelry, like the coffee they sell, is third party certified.
In the context of their claim, I emailed them, asking about the source of their precious metal and the environmental safeguard for their manufacturers - proper ventilation and disposal or toxic chemicals used in the manufacturing of the jewelry they sell. Finally, sterling silver is supposed to be .925% silver. Imports out of small villages in developing countries are notorious for labeling as sterling silver jewelry which has less silver content than real sterling silver.
Global Exchange wrote back explaining that their jewelry is made in a village by small scale artisans and fair working conditions, which they monitor. They could not answer questions about the environmental practices of these small manufacturers and did not monitor sterling content.
This application of the term "fair trade" to jewelry by Global Exchange is backed by a fair trade concept that exists outside of FLO. Global Exchange also referred me to the Fair Trade Federation (FTF), of which they are a member. FTF 's website FAQ pages lists jewelry as a product. I interviewed Carmen Iezzi, the executive director of FTF, which helped me understand that FTF has nothing to do with products: only businesses that sell them-a subtle distinction probably lost on the average person.
Global Exchange, at least, has some history behind their ethical stance; there are many companies and stores using the concepts of "fair" and "eco" around their products with more questionable accountability.
Though "fair trade" jewelry is helping some villagers in the developing world, it is a negligible niche market in the mainstream jewelry industry as a whole, which does over hundred and fifty billion dollars annually.
The Difficulty of Fair Trade in the Main Stream Jewelry Industry
Taking the concept of "fair trade" jewelry out of the village and into the mainstream global jewelry market (think gold, diamonds, bling bling) is like banging that old square peg in a round hole. At present, the industry is totally commodity based and price driven, somewhat like lumber or oil. Fair trade concepts are just not part of the paradigm.
Consider the general conditions required for a fair trade item which is fairly straight forward: coffee. The beans are organically grown often in farms that work collectively, fostering entrepreneurship which translates into broader community prosperity. Third party certification assures a level of integrity that the ethical consumer buying at Whole Foods feels good about.
To translate the same concept into a jewelry product, one would have to factor in labor and environmental practices in the sourcing of precious metal and gemstones. Mining and development of the raw material - metal refining and gemstone cutting - are additional steps. Manufacturing a finished product presents another process with its own labor and environmental issues. Plus, there is a wide range of jewelry products, from toy rings to the high end. Attempting to come to an agreed upon criteria of what is ethical with such an elaborate, disparate supply chain is daunting.
The Ethical Sourcing Movement in the Mainstream Jewelry Industry
Meanwhile, a small segment of passionate, dedicated people in the mainstream jewelry industry are attempting to define "ethical sourcing", with the ultimate aim of some kind of agreed upon criteria leading to true, third party certification. This is going to be a long process. An Ethical Jewelry Summit organized by Earthworks Action is scheduled in Washington DC in late October, 2007.
The jewelry industry derives most of its revenues from diamonds, precious and gemstones and precious metal. The ethical sourcing movement has attracted the interest of governments, large corporations and the World Bank, where the Washington meeting is to take place.
Most raw materials in the jewelry industry are sourced from small scale mining, and efforts are under way to bring ethical practices to this sector. FLO 's early efforts focus on ARM (Association For Responsible Mining). Some companies, such as the Rapaport Group and Columbia Gem House, have taken strong initiatives on their own, extrapolating the fair trade concept to apply to gemstone sourcing. However, precious metals and gems in themselves do not make up an entire piece of jewelry.
Though a finished piece of jewelry could be analogous to a fair trade chocolate bar which may have parts that are independently certified, we cannot have ethically sourced jewelry without addressing manufacturing which has its own labor and environmental concerns. Unlike coffee, mainstream jewelry cannot be easily manufactured in a developing world village because it requires a huge initial investment in equipment and raw materials.
Apart from companies that source their manufactured products from ethical factories, the most notable experiment in this regard is taking place in South Africa in a project called, Vukani-Ubuntu. The project essentially trains people from local townships into the main steam jewelry trade, providing training, mentoring and equipment. It is heavily supported by government and NGOs. But according to Lores Mares, CEO of the South African Jewelry Counsel, one of the most difficult challenges is bringing the product to a market.
Jewelry is strictly a commodity that is heavily cost driven. This ethical sourcing concept does not bring added value because the market is undeveloped. My anecdotal research shows that the progressive, green shopper who buys from Patagonia does not feel at ease with a typical jewelry sales person. Winning the progressive eco demographic back will be easy. Yet those in the mainstream jewelry world who are involved are sincere and heavily driven by humanitarian concerns-with the possible exception of the larger corporations who may be joining to polish their blood diamond, dirty gold image.
Though millions of websites reference "fair trade jewelry," the designation is, at this point, too ambiguous for all but a few main stream jewelry manufacturers to use. The consumer interested in ethically sourced jewelry needs to look for detailed information as to sourcing, labor and environmental practices. At present, transparency is often more valuable to the consumer than any designation.
Investigating the Self-Proclaimed Fair Trade Jewelers
Global Exchange comes up number one on Google in the organic, unpaid listings for the "fair trade" jewelry search. The Transfair logo at the bottom of their website would lead a shopper to believe that their jewelry, like the coffee they sell, is third party certified.
In the context of their claim, I emailed them, asking about the source of their precious metal and the environmental safeguard for their manufacturers - proper ventilation and disposal or toxic chemicals used in the manufacturing of the jewelry they sell. Finally, sterling silver is supposed to be .925% silver. Imports out of small villages in developing countries are notorious for labeling as sterling silver jewelry which has less silver content than real sterling silver.
Global Exchange wrote back explaining that their jewelry is made in a village by small scale artisans and fair working conditions, which they monitor. They could not answer questions about the environmental practices of these small manufacturers and did not monitor sterling content.
This application of the term "fair trade" to jewelry by Global Exchange is backed by a fair trade concept that exists outside of FLO. Global Exchange also referred me to the Fair Trade Federation (FTF), of which they are a member. FTF 's website FAQ pages lists jewelry as a product. I interviewed Carmen Iezzi, the executive director of FTF, which helped me understand that FTF has nothing to do with products: only businesses that sell them-a subtle distinction probably lost on the average person.
Global Exchange, at least, has some history behind their ethical stance; there are many companies and stores using the concepts of "fair" and "eco" around their products with more questionable accountability.
Though "fair trade" jewelry is helping some villagers in the developing world, it is a negligible niche market in the mainstream jewelry industry as a whole, which does over hundred and fifty billion dollars annually.
The Difficulty of Fair Trade in the Main Stream Jewelry Industry
Taking the concept of "fair trade" jewelry out of the village and into the mainstream global jewelry market (think gold, diamonds, bling bling) is like banging that old square peg in a round hole. At present, the industry is totally commodity based and price driven, somewhat like lumber or oil. Fair trade concepts are just not part of the paradigm.
Consider the general conditions required for a fair trade item which is fairly straight forward: coffee. The beans are organically grown often in farms that work collectively, fostering entrepreneurship which translates into broader community prosperity. Third party certification assures a level of integrity that the ethical consumer buying at Whole Foods feels good about.
To translate the same concept into a jewelry product, one would have to factor in labor and environmental practices in the sourcing of precious metal and gemstones. Mining and development of the raw material - metal refining and gemstone cutting - are additional steps. Manufacturing a finished product presents another process with its own labor and environmental issues. Plus, there is a wide range of jewelry products, from toy rings to the high end. Attempting to come to an agreed upon criteria of what is ethical with such an elaborate, disparate supply chain is daunting.
The Ethical Sourcing Movement in the Mainstream Jewelry Industry
Meanwhile, a small segment of passionate, dedicated people in the mainstream jewelry industry are attempting to define "ethical sourcing", with the ultimate aim of some kind of agreed upon criteria leading to true, third party certification. This is going to be a long process. An Ethical Jewelry Summit organized by Earthworks Action is scheduled in Washington DC in late October, 2007.
The jewelry industry derives most of its revenues from diamonds, precious and gemstones and precious metal. The ethical sourcing movement has attracted the interest of governments, large corporations and the World Bank, where the Washington meeting is to take place.
Most raw materials in the jewelry industry are sourced from small scale mining, and efforts are under way to bring ethical practices to this sector. FLO 's early efforts focus on ARM (Association For Responsible Mining). Some companies, such as the Rapaport Group and Columbia Gem House, have taken strong initiatives on their own, extrapolating the fair trade concept to apply to gemstone sourcing. However, precious metals and gems in themselves do not make up an entire piece of jewelry.
Though a finished piece of jewelry could be analogous to a fair trade chocolate bar which may have parts that are independently certified, we cannot have ethically sourced jewelry without addressing manufacturing which has its own labor and environmental concerns. Unlike coffee, mainstream jewelry cannot be easily manufactured in a developing world village because it requires a huge initial investment in equipment and raw materials.
Apart from companies that source their manufactured products from ethical factories, the most notable experiment in this regard is taking place in South Africa in a project called, Vukani-Ubuntu. The project essentially trains people from local townships into the main steam jewelry trade, providing training, mentoring and equipment. It is heavily supported by government and NGOs. But according to Lores Mares, CEO of the South African Jewelry Counsel, one of the most difficult challenges is bringing the product to a market.
Jewelry is strictly a commodity that is heavily cost driven. This ethical sourcing concept does not bring added value because the market is undeveloped. My anecdotal research shows that the progressive, green shopper who buys from Patagonia does not feel at ease with a typical jewelry sales person. Winning the progressive eco demographic back will be easy. Yet those in the mainstream jewelry world who are involved are sincere and heavily driven by humanitarian concerns-with the possible exception of the larger corporations who may be joining to polish their blood diamond, dirty gold image.
Though millions of websites reference "fair trade jewelry," the designation is, at this point, too ambiguous for all but a few main stream jewelry manufacturers to use. The consumer interested in ethically sourced jewelry needs to look for detailed information as to sourcing, labor and environmental practices. At present, transparency is often more valuable to the consumer than any designation.
The Diamond Trade in 2007: How Much Blood Remains?
In March, 2007, I traveled to Turkey, where I attended the Istanbul Jewelry Show. There I met a diamond dealer, the president of a large firm with a large booth. He was the brother of a personal friend and had been in the diamond industry for many years. His primary business was the Russian market, the fabulously rich oligarchy which has a large appetite for bling. The larger, the better.
"How much do conflict diamonds still enter the supply chain?" I asked.
"A huge amount," he said. He didn't trade in these stone, but his customers were not so concerned about the issue. By stating that much of the world diamond market does not care much whether diamonds are from conflict zones or not, he merely confirmed what NGOs such as Global Witness, who broke the conflict diamond story, have said for years.
Blood Diamonds Still Enter the Market
If someone brings a pocket full of uncut diamonds to the back alleys of Mumbai, Antwerp or New York, they will find a way into the supply chain. Amnesty International, states that conflict diamonds are still being widely circulated. No one knows how many thousands of women wear engagement rings purchased some time in the last fifteen years that funded the deaths of 3.7 million Africans. The sourcing of diamonds has too often embodied the opposite of what diamonds represent, when a person falls to his or her knees to propose to their beloved.
The Kimberly Certification Process has definitely affected the trade of blood diamonds. It is an honest and valiant attempt by the international diamond industry to regulate the trade while continuing to have some control of the market, which is in their interest.
However, the Kimberly Process is self enforced, the practices in the diamond industry are highly secretive and there is no system of independent, periodic reviews of signature countries. Diamonds can change hands many times before they reach the jeweler. It is impossible for the sector to close all of the potential holes in the supply chain; from mine to market.
Blood Diamond: Symptoms of Much Greater Issues
Blood diamonds are merely a symptom of much greater issues, though. The current war and destruction in Africa are the result of the colonial policies that destroyed complex cultural structures - the racist, dehumanizing commoditization of people and resources that even now still fatten the economies of the developed world.
For blood diamonds to not exist, we would have to eliminate poverty and injustice in the war torn African countries that are too much in chaos to reap the benefit of this resources. No single government or trade organization can stop this. Love, compassion, fairness and equality would have to be more important than the current relentless greed that drives human misery.
Now, add to the above another issue in the news last year: certification. Last year GIA, was implicated in a grading scandal that rocked the industry. Even a slight variance in grading can mean millions of dollars in a parcel of diamonds. The issues have been resolved and people have lost their jobs and their reputations. Yet recently, when looking to purchase a diamond, an industry insider remarked that certain labs are "softer" in their grading of diamonds than others. This is not the first anecdotal evidence I have heard that has led me to believe that the grading of diamonds is not as objective it is made out to be.
There are extremely wide ranging views on these issues, and many people in the jewelry trade would probably dispute what I write here. Diamonds represent over 50% of the business for the jewelry industry as a whole. For my company, it is less than 10%. I have less to lose in giving my candid insider 's opinion, but it is only an opinion, a snapshot; and I would never pretend to be an authority on this subject.
From the point of view of ethical purchases, the obvious solution for some is to avoid the African supply chain. You can purchase diamonds that are certified from Canada. However, many African countries depend upon legitimate diamond trade, so the ethics of boycotting African diamonds has its drawbacks.
Even Nelson Mandala asked that African diamonds not be boycotted. Ironically, he has become a spoke person for De Beers. De Beers itself has taken on new development initiatives in an attempt to polish their image.
Blood-Free but Still Not Fair Trade
Just because a diamond is from a Kimberly certified source does not mean that it is something that you can feel proud of owning it, as this New York Times article entitled: "Diamonds Move From Blood To Sweat And Tears."
The Kimberly process is regulatory program. It does not address wages or environmental conditions. At present, there are over a million, perhaps as many as 1.3 million diamond diggers. Most of these people are poor. They are often paid under market for their finds. Diamond areas can be as large as a hundred square miles. Even in established mines, as much as 20% the diamond rough may be lost to theft.
The Quest for Fair
The decision of where one should purchase their diamonds can leave the ethical consumer in a "Catch 22." The most worthy viable, ethical solution is to push for ethically sourced, or "fair trade" diamonds now. Already, there are strong industry initiatives to change the way diamonds are mined. One of the most noteworthy is taking place right now in Sierra Leon. However, most diamonds from mines that have strict environmental and fair labor protocols, such as those produced by Wade Watson in Sierra Leon, are mixed in with other diamonds in the diamond cutting centers.
A small group of people, from manufacturers to major players in the diamond industry, have championed ethical jewelry. The "Ethical Jewelry Summit" which took place at the world bank on Oct. 25th, 26, 2007, focused on the plight of small scale, artisan miners in the diamond and precious metal sectors.
Consumers can help too. If just one out of ten of those in search of a diamond engagement ring asked for a "fair trade" diamond, the process would move more quickly. A recent article in the Rapaport Magazine (9/07, published only in print) surveyed sales people in Las Vegas, NV jewelry stores. The article generated some controversy. It found that many who sell diamonds even now, know very little about the conflict diamond issue. These sales people must be besieged by an army of educated consumers who demand ethical diamond sourcing.
The jewelry business, like most every other business, has always shown itself to be more motivated by money than by ethics. However, all of those involved in ethical jewelry practices hope to move our initiatives forward with the support of people in the market who share our humanitarian concerns.
"How much do conflict diamonds still enter the supply chain?" I asked.
"A huge amount," he said. He didn't trade in these stone, but his customers were not so concerned about the issue. By stating that much of the world diamond market does not care much whether diamonds are from conflict zones or not, he merely confirmed what NGOs such as Global Witness, who broke the conflict diamond story, have said for years.
Blood Diamonds Still Enter the Market
If someone brings a pocket full of uncut diamonds to the back alleys of Mumbai, Antwerp or New York, they will find a way into the supply chain. Amnesty International, states that conflict diamonds are still being widely circulated. No one knows how many thousands of women wear engagement rings purchased some time in the last fifteen years that funded the deaths of 3.7 million Africans. The sourcing of diamonds has too often embodied the opposite of what diamonds represent, when a person falls to his or her knees to propose to their beloved.
The Kimberly Certification Process has definitely affected the trade of blood diamonds. It is an honest and valiant attempt by the international diamond industry to regulate the trade while continuing to have some control of the market, which is in their interest.
However, the Kimberly Process is self enforced, the practices in the diamond industry are highly secretive and there is no system of independent, periodic reviews of signature countries. Diamonds can change hands many times before they reach the jeweler. It is impossible for the sector to close all of the potential holes in the supply chain; from mine to market.
Blood Diamond: Symptoms of Much Greater Issues
Blood diamonds are merely a symptom of much greater issues, though. The current war and destruction in Africa are the result of the colonial policies that destroyed complex cultural structures - the racist, dehumanizing commoditization of people and resources that even now still fatten the economies of the developed world.
For blood diamonds to not exist, we would have to eliminate poverty and injustice in the war torn African countries that are too much in chaos to reap the benefit of this resources. No single government or trade organization can stop this. Love, compassion, fairness and equality would have to be more important than the current relentless greed that drives human misery.
Now, add to the above another issue in the news last year: certification. Last year GIA, was implicated in a grading scandal that rocked the industry. Even a slight variance in grading can mean millions of dollars in a parcel of diamonds. The issues have been resolved and people have lost their jobs and their reputations. Yet recently, when looking to purchase a diamond, an industry insider remarked that certain labs are "softer" in their grading of diamonds than others. This is not the first anecdotal evidence I have heard that has led me to believe that the grading of diamonds is not as objective it is made out to be.
There are extremely wide ranging views on these issues, and many people in the jewelry trade would probably dispute what I write here. Diamonds represent over 50% of the business for the jewelry industry as a whole. For my company, it is less than 10%. I have less to lose in giving my candid insider 's opinion, but it is only an opinion, a snapshot; and I would never pretend to be an authority on this subject.
From the point of view of ethical purchases, the obvious solution for some is to avoid the African supply chain. You can purchase diamonds that are certified from Canada. However, many African countries depend upon legitimate diamond trade, so the ethics of boycotting African diamonds has its drawbacks.
Even Nelson Mandala asked that African diamonds not be boycotted. Ironically, he has become a spoke person for De Beers. De Beers itself has taken on new development initiatives in an attempt to polish their image.
Blood-Free but Still Not Fair Trade
Just because a diamond is from a Kimberly certified source does not mean that it is something that you can feel proud of owning it, as this New York Times article entitled: "Diamonds Move From Blood To Sweat And Tears."
The Kimberly process is regulatory program. It does not address wages or environmental conditions. At present, there are over a million, perhaps as many as 1.3 million diamond diggers. Most of these people are poor. They are often paid under market for their finds. Diamond areas can be as large as a hundred square miles. Even in established mines, as much as 20% the diamond rough may be lost to theft.
The Quest for Fair
The decision of where one should purchase their diamonds can leave the ethical consumer in a "Catch 22." The most worthy viable, ethical solution is to push for ethically sourced, or "fair trade" diamonds now. Already, there are strong industry initiatives to change the way diamonds are mined. One of the most noteworthy is taking place right now in Sierra Leon. However, most diamonds from mines that have strict environmental and fair labor protocols, such as those produced by Wade Watson in Sierra Leon, are mixed in with other diamonds in the diamond cutting centers.
A small group of people, from manufacturers to major players in the diamond industry, have championed ethical jewelry. The "Ethical Jewelry Summit" which took place at the world bank on Oct. 25th, 26, 2007, focused on the plight of small scale, artisan miners in the diamond and precious metal sectors.
Consumers can help too. If just one out of ten of those in search of a diamond engagement ring asked for a "fair trade" diamond, the process would move more quickly. A recent article in the Rapaport Magazine (9/07, published only in print) surveyed sales people in Las Vegas, NV jewelry stores. The article generated some controversy. It found that many who sell diamonds even now, know very little about the conflict diamond issue. These sales people must be besieged by an army of educated consumers who demand ethical diamond sourcing.
The jewelry business, like most every other business, has always shown itself to be more motivated by money than by ethics. However, all of those involved in ethical jewelry practices hope to move our initiatives forward with the support of people in the market who share our humanitarian concerns.
Understanding the World of Tomorrow
Most people do not easily accept the new, mostly because of the unknown factor that people tend to call fear. It is not only as Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky had put it that "taking a new step, uttering a new world is what people fear most." Even in slight things the experience of the new is rarely without some stirring of foreboding.
In the case of drastic change, like the one information technology has currently imposed on the distribution systems inside every market discussed earlier, the uneasiness is deeper and more lasting. No man is really prepared for that which is wholly new. Everyone has to adjust and every radical adjustment is a crisis in self-esteem. By undergoing through a change people have to prove themselves right. It needs inordinate self-confidence to face drastic change without inner trembling.
In present times, global population is subject to drastic change and has evolved to a population of misfits, unbalanced, explosive and hungry for action. Through action mankind can regain confidence and control, can prove its worth, while at the same time it is actually a reaction against the lost balance. Thus, drastic change is one of the agencies that release a man 's energies, but certain conditions have to be present if the shock of change is to turn people into effective men of action. There must be the abundance of opportunities, and there must be a tradition of self-reliance. This era of technological advancements is probably the most challenging one.
The conditions that prevail today, from the film distribution industry to the ability of people to shop online from Italy while living in Brazil, have created a population subjected to drastic change that it is only a matter of correct timing before plunging into an orgy of action. The issue now is the sacrifices one has to endure in either case. Becoming active and consciously getting involved in any type of action, within any kind of market, the civilized individual has to select a position regarding his/her role in the overall process and sacrifice blissfulness that usually comes from states of ignorance, or apathy.
As Sigmund Freud had written in his book 'Civilization and its Discontents,' civilization imposes such great sacrifices on a man 's aggressiveness that we can understand better why it is hard for him to be happy in that civilization. According to Freud, the civilized man has exchanged a portion of his possibilities of happiness for a portion of security.
Although Freud did not discussed the outcomes of distribution and the severe interference of markets to the circulation process, he successfully conveyed that the stages through which a person undergoes before beginning to feel happy entail usually a scary process of unknown outcomes and difficult to comprehend practices. By trying to avoid the unknown consequences of any major change, people prefer to remain in their constant place with or without any control of their destiny, but holding on to the feeling of security in their familiar environment.
But through network connections and progressive learning practices, this practice has already changed. Future generations will be better equipped to judge the present choices vested upon us. The only thing present generations can do before accepting any change offered, is study and research the reasons behind the negative reactions people tend to have when any kind of distribution advancement is introduced to ease their usual routine. It is always an issue of control and respect of choice.
In the case of drastic change, like the one information technology has currently imposed on the distribution systems inside every market discussed earlier, the uneasiness is deeper and more lasting. No man is really prepared for that which is wholly new. Everyone has to adjust and every radical adjustment is a crisis in self-esteem. By undergoing through a change people have to prove themselves right. It needs inordinate self-confidence to face drastic change without inner trembling.
In present times, global population is subject to drastic change and has evolved to a population of misfits, unbalanced, explosive and hungry for action. Through action mankind can regain confidence and control, can prove its worth, while at the same time it is actually a reaction against the lost balance. Thus, drastic change is one of the agencies that release a man 's energies, but certain conditions have to be present if the shock of change is to turn people into effective men of action. There must be the abundance of opportunities, and there must be a tradition of self-reliance. This era of technological advancements is probably the most challenging one.
The conditions that prevail today, from the film distribution industry to the ability of people to shop online from Italy while living in Brazil, have created a population subjected to drastic change that it is only a matter of correct timing before plunging into an orgy of action. The issue now is the sacrifices one has to endure in either case. Becoming active and consciously getting involved in any type of action, within any kind of market, the civilized individual has to select a position regarding his/her role in the overall process and sacrifice blissfulness that usually comes from states of ignorance, or apathy.
As Sigmund Freud had written in his book 'Civilization and its Discontents,' civilization imposes such great sacrifices on a man 's aggressiveness that we can understand better why it is hard for him to be happy in that civilization. According to Freud, the civilized man has exchanged a portion of his possibilities of happiness for a portion of security.
Although Freud did not discussed the outcomes of distribution and the severe interference of markets to the circulation process, he successfully conveyed that the stages through which a person undergoes before beginning to feel happy entail usually a scary process of unknown outcomes and difficult to comprehend practices. By trying to avoid the unknown consequences of any major change, people prefer to remain in their constant place with or without any control of their destiny, but holding on to the feeling of security in their familiar environment.
But through network connections and progressive learning practices, this practice has already changed. Future generations will be better equipped to judge the present choices vested upon us. The only thing present generations can do before accepting any change offered, is study and research the reasons behind the negative reactions people tend to have when any kind of distribution advancement is introduced to ease their usual routine. It is always an issue of control and respect of choice.
Equal Rights In The Workplace
Discrimination in the workplace takes many forms. It can be related to either race, age, gender, religion or sexual orientation. This was previously driven by moral or ethical grounds and public relations. In the past, many people who don't fall into the common bracket have found it difficult to actually find jobs, then to cope with the opposition they face once their diverse lifestyle is public knowledge.
However, in recent years, the huge cultural shift in Britain has led to a greater demand for acceptance. The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation), updated in April 2007 was introduced for the sole purpose of preventing discrimination on the grounds of sexual preference. Many companies are readily implementing structures to accomodate with the realisation that the right employee can come from any walk of life. The result being that not only is equality being observed as it should but companies are thriving with the added skills being brought in.
In 2006, the population of London was just over seven and a half million. According to statistics, 10% of that number are from the gay and lesbian community. If the members of that community are discriminated against, thats 750,000 potential workers with untapped skills and talents that could just be what your company needs to thrust it forward into a more competitive position.
Many companies are realising that, not only do they have to comply with the law but it is actually a massive benefit to them to do so. Skilled people come from all walks of life and bring their own unique talents with them. When you look at services like the police force, it also has a wider community benefit as minority groups do not feel alienated and can actually relate to these organisations and feel they are more understood.
According to a study composed by the BBC into what companies are doing about diverse recruitment they found that Penguin Books are actively hiring from minority backgrounds. First ScotRail discovered that of the 900 train drivers they employ, 879 of them are men. To redress the balance, they are looking into diverse recruitment to encourage women to apply.
Diversity recruitment is also a growing business in itself. Helping companies to become more aware of the whole LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) community and bringing their skills and available workers to the attention of organisations looking to employ staff from all walks of life - thus widening their potential as a business.
The Home Office are setting a fine example in this
regard. After requesting the help of a diverse recruitment company to assist them in attracting applications from minority groups to enlist in the prison service, their target of 7% of candidates from alternative backgrounds jumped to 52% of actual applicants. It is taking time for the lesbian and gay community to trust employers but these figures show that things are moving in the right direction.
London Fire Service also recognise the benefits of recruiting from the wider community and launched a campaign to attract servicemen and women specifically from the gay community. Using publications and websites particularly aimed at the recruitment of gay people the diversity of the work force has increased tremendously.
Barclays, Selfridges and The Royal Navy are also helping to dispel the discrimination of minority groups by actively seeking out skills and talent using diverse recruitment and leading the way for smaller companies to follow.
However, in recent years, the huge cultural shift in Britain has led to a greater demand for acceptance. The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation), updated in April 2007 was introduced for the sole purpose of preventing discrimination on the grounds of sexual preference. Many companies are readily implementing structures to accomodate with the realisation that the right employee can come from any walk of life. The result being that not only is equality being observed as it should but companies are thriving with the added skills being brought in.
In 2006, the population of London was just over seven and a half million. According to statistics, 10% of that number are from the gay and lesbian community. If the members of that community are discriminated against, thats 750,000 potential workers with untapped skills and talents that could just be what your company needs to thrust it forward into a more competitive position.
Many companies are realising that, not only do they have to comply with the law but it is actually a massive benefit to them to do so. Skilled people come from all walks of life and bring their own unique talents with them. When you look at services like the police force, it also has a wider community benefit as minority groups do not feel alienated and can actually relate to these organisations and feel they are more understood.
According to a study composed by the BBC into what companies are doing about diverse recruitment they found that Penguin Books are actively hiring from minority backgrounds. First ScotRail discovered that of the 900 train drivers they employ, 879 of them are men. To redress the balance, they are looking into diverse recruitment to encourage women to apply.
Diversity recruitment is also a growing business in itself. Helping companies to become more aware of the whole LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) community and bringing their skills and available workers to the attention of organisations looking to employ staff from all walks of life - thus widening their potential as a business.
The Home Office are setting a fine example in this
regard. After requesting the help of a diverse recruitment company to assist them in attracting applications from minority groups to enlist in the prison service, their target of 7% of candidates from alternative backgrounds jumped to 52% of actual applicants. It is taking time for the lesbian and gay community to trust employers but these figures show that things are moving in the right direction.
London Fire Service also recognise the benefits of recruiting from the wider community and launched a campaign to attract servicemen and women specifically from the gay community. Using publications and websites particularly aimed at the recruitment of gay people the diversity of the work force has increased tremendously.
Barclays, Selfridges and The Royal Navy are also helping to dispel the discrimination of minority groups by actively seeking out skills and talent using diverse recruitment and leading the way for smaller companies to follow.
Staying Focused with Your Home-Based Business Goals
As an owner of a home-based business, you will have to learn to stay focused on your goals/reasons why you originally chose this direction. It is so easy to become distracted when you are working from home; since there are always a hundred other things that need your attention. Think about all those days when you were at your j.o.b. and you would think if I were home I could be getting so much done. Training yourself to stay focused on your home-based business can prove to be a challenge.
The most common distraction many of us face on a daily basis are; children/family, friends stopping by to visit, laundry/house cleaning, interruption from the phone, mail/email, television (your soap operas can wait) and many more.
As a home-based business owner, always remember what your goals/reasons were for bringing your work home. Was your goal to own a home-based business so you could avoid day care raising your children? Was your goal to become debt free? Was your goal to work at your own convenience and having the freedom that comes along with it? Was your goal to make money for yourself instead of that demanding boss?
Here are a few tips to help you stay focused when starting out with your home-based business:
#1: Always keep reminding yourself of the reason why you started your home-based business! If you forget about your why you will loose focus and you will be returning to your j.o.b. very quickly. It is far too easy to get distracted from initial reasons why you wanted to be home and when this happens then end results are sure to prove negative.
#2: Act as if you are punching a time card; keep your day as if you were reporting to a regular j.o.b. Some go to work for the social aspect or to get out of the house; while others go to work to make money. Usually those earning a commission have a stronger work ethic and stay focus attitude even when they are working for someone else. They are not usually the type that report to work to socialize. When working for yourself, your salary is directed by productivity. No productivity - no positive results = no income. Focus, focus, focus this is the only way to see positive results and usually these results can be met working a shorter day.
#3: Scheduling around the families activities is very important and is usually a juggling act. However it is workable; as long as you dedicate a minimum number of hours each day. It 's a good idea to block out this time on a calender so everyone involved knows this is when you will be working. With small children this could be done during nap time or in the evening after the children are in bed. When the children are older, it becomes much easier to tell them that you will be working between certain hours. Your family and friends must realize that there are certain hours of every day that you focus on your home-based business so unless it is an emergency you are not to be interrupted.
#4: The biggest challenge you will run into is from your friends and family who misunderstand what working from home really means. Many misinterpret it or forget that you actually have to do work to see the end results. Therefore you might be constantly targeted to babysit or have constant visitors for that cup of coffee, early morning chat session. Family can be your toughest critique always trying to offer you advice on finding a j.o.b.
You must stand your ground on this one. Don't try to argue the point that you do have a real j.o.b just make them understand that during specific hours you are to be treated as if you are at that j.o.b. even though you are at home. Remind others how important this is to you and if they wish to have that cup of coffee to call first so you can work it around your work schedule. It is up to you to make sure everyone close to you understands how important your work is to you; this is the only way you will get their respect.
#5: To keep yourself productive, especially if your time is limited; dedicate a certain time of the day to answering emails. The best time for this would be first thing in the morning and just before leaving the home office for the day. Give yourself about two hours a day to complete this task. Answering email can consume your business and cause a negative result in your productivity.
#6: Don't get side tracked by the meaningless daily activities. For example, if you find yourself focusing on the book work instead of the important tasks that are needed to keep you business running like advertising or returning phone calls then it may be time to out source. Maybe find yourself an assistant to take care of the book work so you can keep your focus on the needed daily tasks.
At the end of the day your results are completely dependent upon you and the decisions you make everyday in running your home-based business. Remember your goals/reasons for starting your home-based business and always keep these reasons as your focus. The only way to see success is by staying dedicated and true to your home-based business; without it your business will not survive.
Stay focused on your goals/reasons with strong work ethics along the discipline necessary to reach your success and dreams. It will be a reality as long as you stay true to those goals!
The most common distraction many of us face on a daily basis are; children/family, friends stopping by to visit, laundry/house cleaning, interruption from the phone, mail/email, television (your soap operas can wait) and many more.
As a home-based business owner, always remember what your goals/reasons were for bringing your work home. Was your goal to own a home-based business so you could avoid day care raising your children? Was your goal to become debt free? Was your goal to work at your own convenience and having the freedom that comes along with it? Was your goal to make money for yourself instead of that demanding boss?
Here are a few tips to help you stay focused when starting out with your home-based business:
#1: Always keep reminding yourself of the reason why you started your home-based business! If you forget about your why you will loose focus and you will be returning to your j.o.b. very quickly. It is far too easy to get distracted from initial reasons why you wanted to be home and when this happens then end results are sure to prove negative.
#2: Act as if you are punching a time card; keep your day as if you were reporting to a regular j.o.b. Some go to work for the social aspect or to get out of the house; while others go to work to make money. Usually those earning a commission have a stronger work ethic and stay focus attitude even when they are working for someone else. They are not usually the type that report to work to socialize. When working for yourself, your salary is directed by productivity. No productivity - no positive results = no income. Focus, focus, focus this is the only way to see positive results and usually these results can be met working a shorter day.
#3: Scheduling around the families activities is very important and is usually a juggling act. However it is workable; as long as you dedicate a minimum number of hours each day. It 's a good idea to block out this time on a calender so everyone involved knows this is when you will be working. With small children this could be done during nap time or in the evening after the children are in bed. When the children are older, it becomes much easier to tell them that you will be working between certain hours. Your family and friends must realize that there are certain hours of every day that you focus on your home-based business so unless it is an emergency you are not to be interrupted.
#4: The biggest challenge you will run into is from your friends and family who misunderstand what working from home really means. Many misinterpret it or forget that you actually have to do work to see the end results. Therefore you might be constantly targeted to babysit or have constant visitors for that cup of coffee, early morning chat session. Family can be your toughest critique always trying to offer you advice on finding a j.o.b.
You must stand your ground on this one. Don't try to argue the point that you do have a real j.o.b just make them understand that during specific hours you are to be treated as if you are at that j.o.b. even though you are at home. Remind others how important this is to you and if they wish to have that cup of coffee to call first so you can work it around your work schedule. It is up to you to make sure everyone close to you understands how important your work is to you; this is the only way you will get their respect.
#5: To keep yourself productive, especially if your time is limited; dedicate a certain time of the day to answering emails. The best time for this would be first thing in the morning and just before leaving the home office for the day. Give yourself about two hours a day to complete this task. Answering email can consume your business and cause a negative result in your productivity.
#6: Don't get side tracked by the meaningless daily activities. For example, if you find yourself focusing on the book work instead of the important tasks that are needed to keep you business running like advertising or returning phone calls then it may be time to out source. Maybe find yourself an assistant to take care of the book work so you can keep your focus on the needed daily tasks.
At the end of the day your results are completely dependent upon you and the decisions you make everyday in running your home-based business. Remember your goals/reasons for starting your home-based business and always keep these reasons as your focus. The only way to see success is by staying dedicated and true to your home-based business; without it your business will not survive.
Stay focused on your goals/reasons with strong work ethics along the discipline necessary to reach your success and dreams. It will be a reality as long as you stay true to those goals!
Proof That Cheap Doesn't Always Pay
After leaving school, I was quite desperate to get myself into work and took this secretarial job as a fill in. Five years on and I'm still here. I'm still churning out letters from our antiquated printer that only works if you thump it six inches in from the back and for which Mr Parker will only buy cheap ink cartridges. Cheap ink cartridges are all very well if you get them from a reputable company but not Mr Parker.
We don't need reputable, he says, we need cheap. Cheap office equipment, cheap office furniture, cheap paper that rips most of the time when it 's making a desperate bid to be free of the printer and, of course cheap ink cartridges.
I've tried pointing out to Mr Parker that we can still get cheap ink cartridges from a decent, trustworthy company but he panics that no one can match the cheap that he gets from his dodgy dealer that comes round selling things from the back of his grimy old Morris Minor.
I've let things drift along for too long now and to be honest Mr Parkers meanness gets me down. It extends to my wage packet and the supermarket carnations he sends me out for on his wife 's birthday. How he manages to keep his business running is beyond me. In fact, I think he knows how dire things have got because whenever he needs to see clients he always takes them to a restaurant.
Not that mean, you may think, but he has an agenda. He lulls them into thinking they're getting a top class service by treating them to a slap up lunch but they don't realise that he and the restaurant owner have a deal. Mr Parker gets the meal cheap, of course, and I type up his letters, with cheap ink on cheap paper, of course. It 's a sort of 'you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours' type of arrangement but in a seedy, mean way. To see the two of them scheming makes my teeth itch.
Mr Parker gets his money back from the meal of course. He adds it on to the clients' final bill so he wins all round. The client has not only received a cheap meal and a cheap service but he ends up paying over the odds for it and very rarely do they muster up the nerve to complain due to Mr Parkers oily, smooth talking ways.
Another anniversary of my time with the company comes and goes and still I receive no pay rise, no advancement on my original school leaving wage and I am heartily sick of it. I have been applying for other local jobs and dared to take a sick day to attend interviews. For this I received a written warning, on that cheap tatty paper with smudged print from the cheap ink cartridge! This man knows no decency!
Two weeks later and I receive the call I have been praying for. My interview with the office in town has been successful and I am to start in two weeks time. While Mr Parker is at another of his cheap lunches, I take great delight in typing out my resignation. I realise the cheap ink cartridge and cheap paper has jammed the printer, yet again and I make my way over to release it.
With one foot on the edge of the desk, I'm tugging at the paper when Mr Parker walks back into the office and startles me. Taking my eye off the job in hand for a split second, I slip on the cheap nylon carpet, my foot goes through the cheap chipboard desk, the paper frees from the jam and I fly backwards into a heap bringing ink from the cheap ink cartridge spilling all over my suit.
One broken ankle, a new suit and a compensation claim to cover my loss of dignity in front of the client as well as the injuries and Mr Parker is about to find out that not everything in life is cheap.
We don't need reputable, he says, we need cheap. Cheap office equipment, cheap office furniture, cheap paper that rips most of the time when it 's making a desperate bid to be free of the printer and, of course cheap ink cartridges.
I've tried pointing out to Mr Parker that we can still get cheap ink cartridges from a decent, trustworthy company but he panics that no one can match the cheap that he gets from his dodgy dealer that comes round selling things from the back of his grimy old Morris Minor.
I've let things drift along for too long now and to be honest Mr Parkers meanness gets me down. It extends to my wage packet and the supermarket carnations he sends me out for on his wife 's birthday. How he manages to keep his business running is beyond me. In fact, I think he knows how dire things have got because whenever he needs to see clients he always takes them to a restaurant.
Not that mean, you may think, but he has an agenda. He lulls them into thinking they're getting a top class service by treating them to a slap up lunch but they don't realise that he and the restaurant owner have a deal. Mr Parker gets the meal cheap, of course, and I type up his letters, with cheap ink on cheap paper, of course. It 's a sort of 'you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours' type of arrangement but in a seedy, mean way. To see the two of them scheming makes my teeth itch.
Mr Parker gets his money back from the meal of course. He adds it on to the clients' final bill so he wins all round. The client has not only received a cheap meal and a cheap service but he ends up paying over the odds for it and very rarely do they muster up the nerve to complain due to Mr Parkers oily, smooth talking ways.
Another anniversary of my time with the company comes and goes and still I receive no pay rise, no advancement on my original school leaving wage and I am heartily sick of it. I have been applying for other local jobs and dared to take a sick day to attend interviews. For this I received a written warning, on that cheap tatty paper with smudged print from the cheap ink cartridge! This man knows no decency!
Two weeks later and I receive the call I have been praying for. My interview with the office in town has been successful and I am to start in two weeks time. While Mr Parker is at another of his cheap lunches, I take great delight in typing out my resignation. I realise the cheap ink cartridge and cheap paper has jammed the printer, yet again and I make my way over to release it.
With one foot on the edge of the desk, I'm tugging at the paper when Mr Parker walks back into the office and startles me. Taking my eye off the job in hand for a split second, I slip on the cheap nylon carpet, my foot goes through the cheap chipboard desk, the paper frees from the jam and I fly backwards into a heap bringing ink from the cheap ink cartridge spilling all over my suit.
One broken ankle, a new suit and a compensation claim to cover my loss of dignity in front of the client as well as the injuries and Mr Parker is about to find out that not everything in life is cheap.
Should Mega Churches Run Their Business Like A Corporation?
Recently my son, who is a minister with a master in divinity from the South Western Baptist Theological Seminary, in Dallas, Texas was fired from his job. He had put years of service into the biggest First Southern Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas as their Video Production Engineer.
He was highly praised and he was known by the nickname of 'Wonder Boy', all because he could run the television ministry with ease. He also directed, produced, managed a large staff, and even installed and wired expensive television equipment. Just months before he was fired, a new senior pastor was hired and part of his job is to trim the fat from the budget.
My son was only paid $35,000.00 a year as the Video Production Engineer. Yet his salary which could never take care of a family of four was considered worth sacrificing for the all mighty dollar.
My son explained to me that a senior pastor was actually a CEO and that mega churches are run like a corporation. I of course am a proud mother of my very accomplished son. But my question is the same question that anyone would ask who has ever worked for a Mega church, 'Should Churches Run Their Business Like a Corporation?'
We are all aware of how a big business is run. We know from the media how a newly hired CEO over a multi-million dollar corporation always begins by letting go of the highest paid employees. We may have even had a family member or friend who experienced such a horrendous blow. Just the same when we hear these stories almost everyone acknowledges that this is just plain wrong!
People should not be treated like they are just money. They should be respected for the years of service and any change up in a company should be about production quality or lack of services. Of course if an employee was known to be lazy, well, he or she should be fired, but never because of money.
Unfortuately today people are treated like a commodity instead of being respected for their achievement. Men and women who have worked for years in a company are fired just before retirement to save the company money. Experienced men and women of all ages are pushed aside for cheaper labor. They are a force of people who have been disrespected and humiliated and forced to look for a new job even though they had done their old job with excellence.
The truth is we live in a corrupt world. Greed abounds everywhere and people are being sacrificed for money. However, my question is, should multi-million dollar churches behave the same as the world? Should they run their churches like big businesses?
I was always taught that God was over the church and the pastor was a shepherd to the people teaching them God 's word through love. The pastor is to imitate Jesus Christ and be an example of 'What would Jesus Do' in all life situations, even in how he manages the affairs of a church.
Because we live in a corrupt and evil world we need good examples. We need the kind of role models that reflect the very characteristics of the Almighty God. This is the way we learn the principles that are taught in the Bible. This is how we show the world that we are different from them. This is how we justify our biggest call as Christians. We are supposed to go throughout the world and teach the message of the gospel of Christ.
John 15: 12-14, "My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you. The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them. And you are my friends if you do what I command you."
This verse is the essence of what is required to show others you are a Christian. To imitate God we must be willing to love to the point of sacrificing our very lives. This is a message of hope that will bring people who don't know God into the church. A message that they are so important, the church would die for them.
Unfortunately in today 's church too many pastors have become managers of money. They have responsibilities to keep the budgets down low so that money is allocated to the proper places such as giving to the poor and other charities. But is this what God wants a pastor to do?
When the first churches were established, the Holy Spirit inspired people to give up everything they had in order to further the ministry of Jesus Christ. People needed to make sacrifices so the entire world would have the ability to hear the good news about Jesus' saving power.
Acts 4: 32-35, "The group of believers was one in mind and heart. No one said that any of his belongings was his own, but they shared with one another everything they had. With great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God poured rich blessings on them all. There was no one in the group who was in need. Those who owned fields or houses would sell them, bring the money received from the sale, and turn it over to the apostles; and the money was distributed to each one according to his need."
This is how the first churches began their ministry. They needed money in order to build churches. They needed money to take care of the people who were giving to the church. Everyone was making sacrifices, but soon the apostles became frustrated and they realized that to allocate money was not what they were called to do.
Acts 6: 1-4, "Some time later, as the number of disciples kept growing, there was a quarrel between the Greek-speaking Jews and the native Jews. The Greek-speaking Jews claimed that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of funds. So the twelve apostles called the whole group of believers together and said, 'It is not right for us to neglect the preaching of God 's word in order to handle finances. So then, brothers, choose seven men among you who are known to be full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, and we will put them in charge of this matter. We ourselves, then, will give our full time to prayer and the work of preaching.'"
This is a powerful story because it explains the truth about what is the most important call for a pastor in a church. A pastor is to give his full time to prayer and the work of preaching.
There is more to this story than a pastor 's call to ministry. It also talks about how churches need the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. A Spirit that inspires people to give. A Spirit that reflects God 's approval for how they are running their church according to His principles.
If God is left out of the church then churches will not be able to meet their budgets. In the time of the disciples when money was needed people went and sold their property. Today there are millionaires in mega churches. There are people who own several vacation homes. People who have so much money, they can never spend it all before they die. What would happen in today 's churches if when a budget couldn't be met a millionaire goes out and sells one of his many homes?
Maybe the real problem isn't about running a mega church like a corporation, but that the people aren't being led by the Holy Spirit to give the money that the church needs in order to fill its budget. Maybe money problems show that the church has left God out? Maybe churches have turned out to be clubs instead of houses for teaching the word of God.
Churches have a responsibility to be an example of love. They are never to allow money to be the reason why a person is let go when they are doing a good job. They are to show a distinct difference between how they are run compared to how the world does things. No church should ever be run like an evil corporation whose only concern is about how to make more money.
Jesus proclaims in the parable of the 'Good shepherd' what a shepherd must do in order to show people who God really is. A Shepherd loves his sheep and wants to keep them safe from the influence of the world. He does this by being willing to die for his sheep.
John 10: 11, "I am the good shepherd, who is willing to die for the sheep."
John 10: 14&15, "I am the good shepherd. As the Father knows me and I know the Father, in the same way I know my sheep and they know me. And I am willing to die for them."
What would happen if today 's church actually did what God commands? The story of the good shepherd shows the world that to be like God we must be willing to die for the sheep. What would happen if the Mega Churches started caring about the people who work for them like the good shepherd?
I am very proud of my son! He is a good man and a good father. He has given his life to the ministry of God. The people of the church know him and his family. They know that in a month, he and his wife will be welcoming a new baby boy into their family. His insurance will run out two weeks before the baby is suppose to be born. What does this say about churches? Should Mega Churches Run Their Business like A CORPORATION?
He was highly praised and he was known by the nickname of 'Wonder Boy', all because he could run the television ministry with ease. He also directed, produced, managed a large staff, and even installed and wired expensive television equipment. Just months before he was fired, a new senior pastor was hired and part of his job is to trim the fat from the budget.
My son was only paid $35,000.00 a year as the Video Production Engineer. Yet his salary which could never take care of a family of four was considered worth sacrificing for the all mighty dollar.
My son explained to me that a senior pastor was actually a CEO and that mega churches are run like a corporation. I of course am a proud mother of my very accomplished son. But my question is the same question that anyone would ask who has ever worked for a Mega church, 'Should Churches Run Their Business Like a Corporation?'
We are all aware of how a big business is run. We know from the media how a newly hired CEO over a multi-million dollar corporation always begins by letting go of the highest paid employees. We may have even had a family member or friend who experienced such a horrendous blow. Just the same when we hear these stories almost everyone acknowledges that this is just plain wrong!
People should not be treated like they are just money. They should be respected for the years of service and any change up in a company should be about production quality or lack of services. Of course if an employee was known to be lazy, well, he or she should be fired, but never because of money.
Unfortuately today people are treated like a commodity instead of being respected for their achievement. Men and women who have worked for years in a company are fired just before retirement to save the company money. Experienced men and women of all ages are pushed aside for cheaper labor. They are a force of people who have been disrespected and humiliated and forced to look for a new job even though they had done their old job with excellence.
The truth is we live in a corrupt world. Greed abounds everywhere and people are being sacrificed for money. However, my question is, should multi-million dollar churches behave the same as the world? Should they run their churches like big businesses?
I was always taught that God was over the church and the pastor was a shepherd to the people teaching them God 's word through love. The pastor is to imitate Jesus Christ and be an example of 'What would Jesus Do' in all life situations, even in how he manages the affairs of a church.
Because we live in a corrupt and evil world we need good examples. We need the kind of role models that reflect the very characteristics of the Almighty God. This is the way we learn the principles that are taught in the Bible. This is how we show the world that we are different from them. This is how we justify our biggest call as Christians. We are supposed to go throughout the world and teach the message of the gospel of Christ.
John 15: 12-14, "My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you. The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them. And you are my friends if you do what I command you."
This verse is the essence of what is required to show others you are a Christian. To imitate God we must be willing to love to the point of sacrificing our very lives. This is a message of hope that will bring people who don't know God into the church. A message that they are so important, the church would die for them.
Unfortunately in today 's church too many pastors have become managers of money. They have responsibilities to keep the budgets down low so that money is allocated to the proper places such as giving to the poor and other charities. But is this what God wants a pastor to do?
When the first churches were established, the Holy Spirit inspired people to give up everything they had in order to further the ministry of Jesus Christ. People needed to make sacrifices so the entire world would have the ability to hear the good news about Jesus' saving power.
Acts 4: 32-35, "The group of believers was one in mind and heart. No one said that any of his belongings was his own, but they shared with one another everything they had. With great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God poured rich blessings on them all. There was no one in the group who was in need. Those who owned fields or houses would sell them, bring the money received from the sale, and turn it over to the apostles; and the money was distributed to each one according to his need."
This is how the first churches began their ministry. They needed money in order to build churches. They needed money to take care of the people who were giving to the church. Everyone was making sacrifices, but soon the apostles became frustrated and they realized that to allocate money was not what they were called to do.
Acts 6: 1-4, "Some time later, as the number of disciples kept growing, there was a quarrel between the Greek-speaking Jews and the native Jews. The Greek-speaking Jews claimed that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of funds. So the twelve apostles called the whole group of believers together and said, 'It is not right for us to neglect the preaching of God 's word in order to handle finances. So then, brothers, choose seven men among you who are known to be full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, and we will put them in charge of this matter. We ourselves, then, will give our full time to prayer and the work of preaching.'"
This is a powerful story because it explains the truth about what is the most important call for a pastor in a church. A pastor is to give his full time to prayer and the work of preaching.
There is more to this story than a pastor 's call to ministry. It also talks about how churches need the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. A Spirit that inspires people to give. A Spirit that reflects God 's approval for how they are running their church according to His principles.
If God is left out of the church then churches will not be able to meet their budgets. In the time of the disciples when money was needed people went and sold their property. Today there are millionaires in mega churches. There are people who own several vacation homes. People who have so much money, they can never spend it all before they die. What would happen in today 's churches if when a budget couldn't be met a millionaire goes out and sells one of his many homes?
Maybe the real problem isn't about running a mega church like a corporation, but that the people aren't being led by the Holy Spirit to give the money that the church needs in order to fill its budget. Maybe money problems show that the church has left God out? Maybe churches have turned out to be clubs instead of houses for teaching the word of God.
Churches have a responsibility to be an example of love. They are never to allow money to be the reason why a person is let go when they are doing a good job. They are to show a distinct difference between how they are run compared to how the world does things. No church should ever be run like an evil corporation whose only concern is about how to make more money.
Jesus proclaims in the parable of the 'Good shepherd' what a shepherd must do in order to show people who God really is. A Shepherd loves his sheep and wants to keep them safe from the influence of the world. He does this by being willing to die for his sheep.
John 10: 11, "I am the good shepherd, who is willing to die for the sheep."
John 10: 14&15, "I am the good shepherd. As the Father knows me and I know the Father, in the same way I know my sheep and they know me. And I am willing to die for them."
What would happen if today 's church actually did what God commands? The story of the good shepherd shows the world that to be like God we must be willing to die for the sheep. What would happen if the Mega Churches started caring about the people who work for them like the good shepherd?
I am very proud of my son! He is a good man and a good father. He has given his life to the ministry of God. The people of the church know him and his family. They know that in a month, he and his wife will be welcoming a new baby boy into their family. His insurance will run out two weeks before the baby is suppose to be born. What does this say about churches? Should Mega Churches Run Their Business like A CORPORATION?
Avoiding a Hostile Workplace: Fairness in Employee Discipline
The environment of your workplace is vital to employee satisfaction, reduction of turnover, and productivity. It is also vital to the legal stability of your business.
A hostile work environment can be the basis for many types of employee complaints and causes of legal action. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lists as a basis for employee complaints the existence of a "hostile work environment." The creation or continuation of a hostile workplace environment can be the beginning of a legal quagmire of lawsuits, wrongful termination suits, and discrimination complaints. The atmosphere of a harsh and antagonistic workplace can be a death sentence for your business.
One of the biggest factors affecting hostility in the workplace is inequity and selective discipline. Employees frequently site favoritism and unfairness as their reasons for discomfort and intimidation at work. It can also be the basis for proving a pattern of discrimination in your workplace.
It is essential for all managers to apply coaching and discipline in an equitable fashion. Once employee standards are established, infractions of these standards must be applied fairly and without bias. Failure to hold workers accountable to employee standards of conduct and behavior in a consistent manner will lead to accusations of bias and favoritism. The consequences of such accusations are far reaching and will affect management credibility at all levels of your organization.
Establishing a written and clear code of employee conduct is only the first step in good human resource management. This written policy is only as good as the enforcement of its standards. Just as your personnel policies were written in a neutral and impartial manner so must be the enforcement of these policies.
Infractions and violations of personnel policies should be dealt with in an established way. Degrees of discipline such as verbal warnings and written warnings should be contained in your protocols and associated time frames should be attached. Follow these protocols without regard to the personalities involved. Circumstances that mitigate infractions can and should be documented as part of this process.
There may be factors that make one breach of conduct different or less severe than another and there should be a venue for written comments in discipline documentation. But these mitigating circumstances should not preclude discipline. You may know and understand why someone broke the rules and may indeed find these factors understandable but the perception of favoritism must be avoided at all costs. It may mean writing up an employee for something you feel was justified but to just dismiss the violation fails to take into account the perceptions of other employees and the effectiveness of your personnel policy.
Take the time to communicate your views and feelings about the infraction and document them properly. This is an exercise in fairness and consideration that you owe your employees. It can turn discipline into constructive coaching.
The perception of employees is the key to creating a work environment that is neutral to the personalities and personal preferences involved. Discrimination occurs when your employees perceive that they are being treated differently than others. When the tardiness of one worker is excused because they have to take their child to day care but the tardiness of another worker without such a valid reason is cited with warnings can cause the perception of unfairness.
In your warning to the employee with day care issues you can mention your empathy with working parents and suggest flextime options or carpooling as constructive suggestions but the employee 's failure to adhere to work rules must be documented. Other employees may not know about their coworkers obligations and be angry when they are written up for tardiness and others are not. Hostility can be avoided by consistent and equitable enforcement of work rules.
Avoiding the impression of unfairness can go a long way to maintaining an impartial workplace, the satisfaction of employees, and the feeling that everyone is being treated in the same way. It also takes the perception of bias out of the employee relations equation. Though it means hard choices it can mean the difference between a hostile and hospitable work environment.
A hostile work environment can be the basis for many types of employee complaints and causes of legal action. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lists as a basis for employee complaints the existence of a "hostile work environment." The creation or continuation of a hostile workplace environment can be the beginning of a legal quagmire of lawsuits, wrongful termination suits, and discrimination complaints. The atmosphere of a harsh and antagonistic workplace can be a death sentence for your business.
One of the biggest factors affecting hostility in the workplace is inequity and selective discipline. Employees frequently site favoritism and unfairness as their reasons for discomfort and intimidation at work. It can also be the basis for proving a pattern of discrimination in your workplace.
It is essential for all managers to apply coaching and discipline in an equitable fashion. Once employee standards are established, infractions of these standards must be applied fairly and without bias. Failure to hold workers accountable to employee standards of conduct and behavior in a consistent manner will lead to accusations of bias and favoritism. The consequences of such accusations are far reaching and will affect management credibility at all levels of your organization.
Establishing a written and clear code of employee conduct is only the first step in good human resource management. This written policy is only as good as the enforcement of its standards. Just as your personnel policies were written in a neutral and impartial manner so must be the enforcement of these policies.
Infractions and violations of personnel policies should be dealt with in an established way. Degrees of discipline such as verbal warnings and written warnings should be contained in your protocols and associated time frames should be attached. Follow these protocols without regard to the personalities involved. Circumstances that mitigate infractions can and should be documented as part of this process.
There may be factors that make one breach of conduct different or less severe than another and there should be a venue for written comments in discipline documentation. But these mitigating circumstances should not preclude discipline. You may know and understand why someone broke the rules and may indeed find these factors understandable but the perception of favoritism must be avoided at all costs. It may mean writing up an employee for something you feel was justified but to just dismiss the violation fails to take into account the perceptions of other employees and the effectiveness of your personnel policy.
Take the time to communicate your views and feelings about the infraction and document them properly. This is an exercise in fairness and consideration that you owe your employees. It can turn discipline into constructive coaching.
The perception of employees is the key to creating a work environment that is neutral to the personalities and personal preferences involved. Discrimination occurs when your employees perceive that they are being treated differently than others. When the tardiness of one worker is excused because they have to take their child to day care but the tardiness of another worker without such a valid reason is cited with warnings can cause the perception of unfairness.
In your warning to the employee with day care issues you can mention your empathy with working parents and suggest flextime options or carpooling as constructive suggestions but the employee 's failure to adhere to work rules must be documented. Other employees may not know about their coworkers obligations and be angry when they are written up for tardiness and others are not. Hostility can be avoided by consistent and equitable enforcement of work rules.
Avoiding the impression of unfairness can go a long way to maintaining an impartial workplace, the satisfaction of employees, and the feeling that everyone is being treated in the same way. It also takes the perception of bias out of the employee relations equation. Though it means hard choices it can mean the difference between a hostile and hospitable work environment.
Retracting Sales Based On The Talmud
The Talmud cited the following incident: There was once a food shortage in Nehardea. All the people sold their mansions. Eventually, wheat arrived and Rav Nachman told them that the law is that the mansions must be returned to their original owners.
The Talmud notes that the reason why sales are void is because they were made in error, since it became known that the ship carrying the wheat was waiting in the port at the time the mansions were sold.
The Talmud in the daf yomi adds that this would explain the following conversation: Rami bar Shmuel said to Rav Nachman, if you rule like this, you will cause them trouble in the future. Rav Nachman replied that a food shortage is not common, and therefore we need not worry about the next one. Rami bar Shmuel retorted that a food shortage in Nehardea is indeed a common occurrence!
There are many legal issues that this Talmud is used to resolve.
Reuben desperately needed an operation and he desired a certain expert doctor to perform the surgery. The hospital told him that he presently was outside of the country, and will only be returning the following week. Reuben vowed an enormous amount of money to charity if the surgeon would return earlier than he originally intended. As soon as he uttered those words, the doctor was standing by his bedside. He told Reuben that he had decided to shorten his vacation. The question was asked - was Reuben obligated to fulfill his vow? Perhaps, he was not required to give the money to charity, for at the time that he pronounced the vow, the doctor was already in the country.
There was a certain city where a terrible edict was issued against the residents. They sent a message to a well-known Rabbi, who was famous for delivering miracles through his prayer. The Tzadik agreed, but requested of them to send a certain amount of money that he would be able to distribute to the widows and orphans residing in his city. A short amount of time after they sent the money, they received a letter that the decree had been cancelled. The city was overjoyed. However, one resident sent a letter to the Maharsham saying that perhaps, they should get their money back because he noticed that the date on the letter stating that the decree had been cancelled was before they actually sent the money. It appears that the giving of the money was erroneous.
Reuben and Simon bought two lottery tickets together. They made up that they each would share the winnings of each ticket. The reason for this decision was based on the Talmud in Bava Metzia that states that the mazal of two people together is better than one. After the lottery numbers were chosen, Reuben went to Shimon attempting to switch the deal. He said, let us each keep the winnings of our own individual ticket. Reuben did this because he already knew that the ticket that he was holding was chosen and he would receive fifty thousand dollars. Simon agreed to this new deal. The reason that Simon agreed was because the ticket that he was holding was chosen, and he would now receive the full share of a two hundred million dollars. Can Reuben now retract from the second deal?
Based on the decision of the Talmud, in all three cases it would seem, the money does not transfer when a deal was made after the circumstances causing deal are no longer prevalent.
The Talmud notes that the reason why sales are void is because they were made in error, since it became known that the ship carrying the wheat was waiting in the port at the time the mansions were sold.
The Talmud in the daf yomi adds that this would explain the following conversation: Rami bar Shmuel said to Rav Nachman, if you rule like this, you will cause them trouble in the future. Rav Nachman replied that a food shortage is not common, and therefore we need not worry about the next one. Rami bar Shmuel retorted that a food shortage in Nehardea is indeed a common occurrence!
There are many legal issues that this Talmud is used to resolve.
Reuben desperately needed an operation and he desired a certain expert doctor to perform the surgery. The hospital told him that he presently was outside of the country, and will only be returning the following week. Reuben vowed an enormous amount of money to charity if the surgeon would return earlier than he originally intended. As soon as he uttered those words, the doctor was standing by his bedside. He told Reuben that he had decided to shorten his vacation. The question was asked - was Reuben obligated to fulfill his vow? Perhaps, he was not required to give the money to charity, for at the time that he pronounced the vow, the doctor was already in the country.
There was a certain city where a terrible edict was issued against the residents. They sent a message to a well-known Rabbi, who was famous for delivering miracles through his prayer. The Tzadik agreed, but requested of them to send a certain amount of money that he would be able to distribute to the widows and orphans residing in his city. A short amount of time after they sent the money, they received a letter that the decree had been cancelled. The city was overjoyed. However, one resident sent a letter to the Maharsham saying that perhaps, they should get their money back because he noticed that the date on the letter stating that the decree had been cancelled was before they actually sent the money. It appears that the giving of the money was erroneous.
Reuben and Simon bought two lottery tickets together. They made up that they each would share the winnings of each ticket. The reason for this decision was based on the Talmud in Bava Metzia that states that the mazal of two people together is better than one. After the lottery numbers were chosen, Reuben went to Shimon attempting to switch the deal. He said, let us each keep the winnings of our own individual ticket. Reuben did this because he already knew that the ticket that he was holding was chosen and he would receive fifty thousand dollars. Simon agreed to this new deal. The reason that Simon agreed was because the ticket that he was holding was chosen, and he would now receive the full share of a two hundred million dollars. Can Reuben now retract from the second deal?
Based on the decision of the Talmud, in all three cases it would seem, the money does not transfer when a deal was made after the circumstances causing deal are no longer prevalent.
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