Rothacker Reviews

"Is Bob in?"

I worked with three or four others in a small office for many years. If the person who normally answered phones was tied up, we all pitched in and answered the phone. The owner's calls were screened. If he didn't want to talk to someone we had to take a message. It went something like this:

Customer: "Is Bob in?"

Me: "Please hold the line while I check. Can I say who is calling?"

Boss: "Take a message."

Me: "Bob's not at his desk right now, can I take a message?"

Many of the callers were familiar with our office layout and where I sat. From my office I had practically a clear view of the entire building. So the instant I asked the caller if they could hold the line while I check, they knew the call was being screened. Most were polite and went along with the game. Some called me out on the carpet. But I always mumbled something and did the diplomatic thing, which for the record I hated. When I became boss in another operation, I answered almost every call.

Apparently that wasn't enough. The duration of time that I screened calls must have been greater than when I didn't. Because as karma goes, I'm in the hole. I can't tell you how many times that since I have becomed disabled, my calls get screened.

Of course there's another factor that I didn't have to deal with years ago:

Caller: "Is Bob in?"

Office: ""Please hold the line while I check. Can I say who is calling?"

Caller: "Never mind. I'll call him on his cell."

Pinterest and Getting Real

This post is about helping teens prepare for post-secondary education and their careers.

I caught Pinterest fever about six weeks ago and I have yet to find a cure. Pinterest allows one to post pictures found on the Internet and those from their computer. Pictures, along with brief descriptions, are posted in categories. Follwers can repin the image and or comment on yours. I created a category which I named Books Worth Reading. Yesterday I posted an image of Kenneth Gray's book, Getting Real: Helping Teens Find Their Future. In the description I wrote one of the dumbest statements I've ever written online: "This book is a tad expensive, but still worth it."

Write much more than a few sentences in a Pinterest description and you'll lose the reader. The staggering amount of images being uploaded now just about guarantees you'll get no longer than a two second look. I am going to leave my comment anyway, and elaborate here for those interested in their kids' future.

The book Getting Real is a spotlight on a mind boggling economic problem in the U.S. But even more important than that, it illuminates a pathway for parents and those intested in helping teens, toward post-secondary and career success. Here's a quick look at the economic problem:

For every 100 students who enter 9th grade, 70 graduate from high school. Of those 70, 21 go directly to work. The other 49 go to college. Of those 49, approximately 25 drop out. Of the 24 who graduate from college, 12 find commensurate employment. And most of this information is based on facts prior to 2008!

Aside from the obvious, I'm not concerned about numbers here. I'm concerned about Danny. Danny goes to public high school. He struggles and has below average grades. His parents are divorced and his dad is not a part of his life. His mom, who works 50 hours per week and has little time for him, his guidance counselor and all of his relatives think he should go to college. As Danny enters 12th grade, he has absolutely no idea what he wants to do in life. He knows that he can carry a C average this year and graduate. He figures he'll go to community college and figure it all out.

What do you suppose Danny's chances are of making one of those 12 kids who graduates from college and finds work commensurate with his education?

Here's the thing. With early preparation and career direction, Danny could eliminate wheel-spinning, confusion, the needless waste of time and money, and settle in an occupation that's both in demand and one that will support himself and or family. The key is preparation. And armed with Kenneth's book here, it will not cost much more than time. Kenneth's pathway is doable. It makes so much sense that I can't understand why his book isn't more popular.

Getting Real is about fifteen bucks more than your average paperback book. A tad expensive? There is no relationship to fifteen extra bucks and your child's future. Even if you half-heartedly applied the information here, you and or your kids will still be thousands and thousands of dollars ahead.

Books worth reading on my Pinterest board.

It's lovely to see you again

I was walking along down the road when I came upon a memory and he asked me, "Say where are you going?"

I told him, "It's lovely to see you again my friend. Walk along with me to the next bend."

We walked and spoke and reminisced. Finally he said, "David my boy, I'm out when we round that bend. Delving into yesteryear is good so long as when we emerge we are refreshed and inspired to do greater things."

I said, "I know, but it certainly was lovely to see you again my friend."

More Soul Searching with Penelope Trunk

Okay, I finished Penelope's book. Since I don't write a book review of any book that I don't like, there's one driving force behind the ones that I do write. It goes something like this:

Eleven year old, out of breath David who jumps off his bike and runs up the driveway to his buddy's front door and bangs on door until his buddy comes out: "Bobby, Bobby! Ya gotta see Timmy's new bike! It's gotta banana seat and four foot sissy bar! You're gonna want to buy one man!"

Well, that's how I am towards the books I really like.

Even though Penelope has taught me a very valuable lesson, I still have one problem with this book. I cannot recommend it. I would recommend it, if you could buy it, but you can't. Penelope printed 1,000 copies, signed, numbered and sold them out. That's it, there ain't no more and she will not print no more and there will be no more editions. Capeesh?

Now, in a way this does make me feel good. It increases the value of my book. That is, it makes me want to cherish it even more, because I'd never sell it to a soul.

Please allow me to pause for a moment and dispense with the review of this book right quick. Penelope's intent on writing this book was to help her friend Melissa, stay on track with the development of her career. Penelope dives into the forty or so years she has spent collecting material and comes up with material in which she divides into the following sections:

1. Soul
2. Path
3. Work
4. Lost
5. Found
6. Happy
7. Life

Since you can't get the book there's little use in me telling you what it's all about. I will say, if Melissa listens and follows through, she will have a most fulfilling life and career.

About that lesson from my most favorite ex-professional volleyball player on the planet. Actually, Penelope was just doing her thing. The lesson comes from the reaction of a few people who were upset with themselves for not getting the book before it sold out. I do not want to be in that position!

Moving forward, I'll make sure to pay attention to folks like Penelope and organizations like Brazen Careerist. One such organization that offers limited time availability on promotions is The Domino Project. All this really requires of me is a little more focus, and the willingness to tune into those who are providing value and to tune out those who are not (you know who is filling your inbox with gobbledy-gook).

I think I'll go cancel a couple of e-mail subscriptions right now.

Increased Security

We've had activity in and around our community pool that could benefit from increased security. Board members have worked tirelessly to make this happen. I was up at the pool today and noticed the new patrol. To our board members, especially the one who sits at the same table located by the swimming lanes, a huge thanks!

Soul Searching with Penelope Trunk

I received a copy of Penelope Trunk's latest book last week. 999 other people did as well. It's a sold-out, limited edition. I'd tell you the book's name, but from cover to cover, it's nowhere to be found*.

This isn't a formal review. It's more of a "I can hardly wait to write something about this book because I like it so much even though I've only read half way through it," kinda thing.

Quick little story first.

I ordered this book March 18. I hadn't received it by the beginning of April so I wrote a note to Penelope. She said it was one of those "order printing after all book orders came in," kinda deal. I should get the book in six weeks. A week later Penelope sent out a global e-mail to those who ordered the book. She said book to arrive in mid May, she would then sign them and ship them out. Towards the end of June Penelope sent out another e-mail letting us know the books arrived. We'd receive them as soon as they were signed.

Perhaps this process could have been handled differently, although Penelope's hands were tied because they were dealing with a printer in China. But it doesn't matter one bit to me. From the first time I read Penelope's stuff in the late 90's I've been totally smitten with her, with her learn-from-experience demeanor, with her honesty, with her passion and desire to help Gen-Y, with her tell-you-what's-real style and with her writing ability. Add in the street cred that she's developed with Brazen Careerist and it's a no-brainer. No problemo.

Conduct yourself in a manner that pleases your market, audience or reader and when that inevitable bump in the road comes, it isn't a problem.

The driving force behind the book is that Penelope wants to help her associate, Melissa, keep her career on track. So Penelope digs into her Library of Congress-sized archive of articles and finds those that will be of use to Melissa. Place those articles in a well designed book of gold-lined pages that is aesthetically appealing and pleasing to touch and you have a most excellent career / life guide.

Actually, this is total value for me. I could try to take the time to peruse Penelope's site and assemble similar articles. But by the time it would take me to do it, I still wouldn't nail down all the articles of help and I wouldn't have them all neatly assembled in a book that stands out from three hundred or so others that I keep at arm's length from my writing chair. Not to mention it's a limited edition. One that's numbered and personally signed.

One of the things I love about this book is that it has plenty of white space - plenty of room to journal and write notes.

More to come on Penelope's new book...

*Penelope explains about the book's title in this post.

#Trust30: Travel

From Chris Guillebeau: "Not everyone wants to travel the world, but most people can identify at least one place in the world they’d like to visit before they die. Where is that place for you, and what will you do to make sure you get there?"

I would love to travel across the United States in an RV with my wife Rosemary. If we were able to sit down and design the ultimate trip, it would transcend from being a trip and turn into a lifestyle. Here is what we'd do.

Rosemary is a romance author. She has written and published three books. She is working on number four while on the road. Traveling from town to town, she talks to people about her art in small venues and bookstores. Rosemary has the God-given talent of making a difference in people's lives. She instills confidence and belief in would-be writers.

As for myself, I need to write my way through elucidation...

I am insanely interested in people who live their passion, excel at it and continue to develop it. Someone at this level has achieved a level of freedom. That's the part that holds a death grip on my soul.

The book Stones into Schools came into my life early last year. No matter what is being said today about author Greg Mortenson, he went into Pakistan and Afghanistan and built schools for their children, with a focus on girls. He recants an African proverb in the book: "If you teach a boy, you educate an individual; but if you teach a girl, you educate a community." He refers this to a phenomenon known as the Girl Effect, which coincidentally, is the name of a most noble organization.

While I admire what Greg did overseas, I can't help but to think about American girls and the very same thing here on our soil. I am talking about girls in dire need of support, safety, shelter, food and most importantly education.

Due to a debilitating illness, I am not able to work. But given certain parameters and my own time frame, I could write about those who are physically out there in the trenches trying to educate our American girls.

So, while traveling in the States with Rosemary, I am writing about freedom...the freedom that those who are immersed in their passion have found and the freedom for American girls in need to become not only productive members of society, but blacksmiths forging the will, character and future of our nation.

When I speak of education, I am not necessarily limiting it to that which an institution provides.

As for what I have done to get there and make this happen? I believe that my number one most limiting factor is my lack of good health. From there the excuses just begin to vomit out of my mouth...the ability to afford such a thing, what to do with our possessions, how to financially support ourselves etc. In other words, I haven't done jack.

Today's prompt.

#Trust30: Post-it Question

Today's prompt is from our friend Jenny Blake

#Trust30: One Strong Belief

I need to write out today's prompt:

The world is powered by passionate people, powerful ideas, and fearless action. What’s one strong belief you possess that isn’t shared by your closest friends or family? What inspires this belief, and what have you done to actively live it?

To some degree my family and friends share in most of my beliefs. The one in which I will write about today however, probably draws this sort of dull eye reaction: "Yeah I suppose it could work, but again, that's just David off on some wild-ass tangent again."

I believe that a student who is a passionate learner, who seeks wisdom, knowledge and information in stories told by those who travel the road before her, has a chance to leap frog over the student who doesn't. And if this person stays connected to the storyteller in a respectful manner, possibly even helping the storyteller out in some way, she will be remembered at a most opportune time - perhaps at graduation when she is looking for a job.

The fact that I've seen this work first hand inspires my belief. I struggle communicating my intent however. Most students seem to not get it, including daughter #2. Action on this belief can be seen at Standing out in a Sea of Sameness Facebook page.

 

#Trust30: Today

Today is an opportunity to put another brick in the wall.

Today's prompt.