Normal.dotm 0 0 1 634 3616 dougflutie 30 7 4440 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; "Times New Roman"; mso-ascii- mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi- mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Welcome… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">This is my first Jerusalem Times blog… Nice to meet y'all… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">I thought I'd launch this new adventure with a brief introduction of the pain you might face in coming months… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">First, an apology, though… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">For some totally inexplicable reason that I can't defend, I've never been to Israel. It's strange, because I have terrific family and great friends there—which makes this all the more inexplicable. So, while I have every intention of visiting soon, if you decide to stop reading right now, I'll understand—totally! No hard feelings… Normal.dotm 0 0 1 4 28 dougflutie 1 1 34 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; "Times New Roman"; mso-ascii- mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi- mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} A brief introduction—and a gift… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">About six weeks ago, two friends and I decided to launch a new project we decided to call “The-Gift-Tree.com.” <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">Our idea was simple: Through the medium of story-telling, our goal was to help people bring their ideas to life—and to bring life to their dreams. We thought we'd use our combined experiences as a story-telling tool. We saw our stories as “gifts” we'd put under a tree. We hoped that, as we did, we might just make a difference for the better in the lives of those we touch. We'll see… I know that hope springs eternal! <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">In this project, I'm in quite illustrious company... <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:6.0pt; margin-left:40.5pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">My one co-founder is Steve Burrows CBE, a world-renowned civil and structural engineer who was honored by Her Majesty the Queen for his achievements in civil and structural engineering around the world. Steve is now Exec VP of an engineering firm that employs over 32,000 people around the world. His only two incurable maladies that I know of are his a wickedly dry sense of humor and passion for Manchester Unite. As I've mentioned, each is incurable. Sadly, there is no hope for him. If you have an irresistible urge to send him a donation, you may send it to me. I hope I'll then remember to pass them on to him… <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:6.0pt; margin-left:40.5pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">My other co-founder is Prof. Diane Swanson, PhD. She is Professor of Management at Kansas State University where she chairs the Business Ethics Education Initiative. She is also a prolific author in the world of business ethics. Her only noticeable malady is her insatiable appetite for ethics. If this is curable, you'll be the first to know… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">So, in this my inaugural post, I thought I'd offer a special gift that I'd illustrate by telling you parts of my own story… Normal.dotm 0 0 1 5 33 dougflutie 1 1 40 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; "Times New Roman"; mso-ascii- mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi- mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} My first gift to you: “Assume nothing!” <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">I don't know about you, but, for my whole life, I've been trying to identify dots and then trying to connect them. My optimistic hope was that this might lead me to conclusions that might make sense. I can now tell you that sometimes this happened. Often, though, it didn't… <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">So, let me offer you a few examples of how some dots can lead you astray if you make too many assumptions. I thought I'd use my own background as a vivid example of this. <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">Consider this— <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt; margin-left:31.7pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">Just because I'm in the company of two enormously impressive professionals in my new project, you can't assume for a moment that this thereby makes me an enormously impressive professional too. It doesn't… Trust me… I know… <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt; margin-left:31.7pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">Similarly, when you read that, after leaving South Africa, I worked for an international trading company as a personal assistant to the managing director in their London and Zurich offices, you can't assume that this qualifies me for anything. It didn't then and it doesn't now… (Incidentally, I have no recollection of learning anything from my London and Zurich experiences. Nothing, nada, squat…) <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt; margin-left:31.7pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">And when you read that I created my own international business law firm in Los Angeles, you can't assume that my greatest challenges had anything to do with any sophisticated legal issues. No, my greatest challenge was simply to get paid… <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt; margin-left:31.7pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">And when you read that I was later the CEO of an international music company, you can't assume that I must have at least a few musical bones in my body. Well, I don't … <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt; margin-left:31.7pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">And when you read that I was the CEO of an internationally renowned award-winning architectural design firm, you can't assume either that I'm an architect or that I have a wondrous flair for design. Again, I'm not—and I don't… <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:9.0pt; margin-left:31.7pt;line-height:150%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:150%;">Finally, when you read that I wrote a critically acclaimed book on Scams and Nelson Mandela, you can't assume that I can write—or that hordes of people (other than close friends and family) have now read and enjoyed my book… Again, I'm not—and people haven't… Normal.dotm 0 0 1 3 19 dougflutie 1 1 23 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; "Times New Roman"; mso-ascii- mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi- mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Have I made my point? Normal.dotm 0 0 1 560 3197 dougflutie 26 6 3926 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; "Times New Roman"; mso-ascii- mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi- mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} <span style="mso-bidi-line-height:150%;font-family: Arial">I hope so! :-)
(photo credit: The Jerusalem Post)