There are lots of things to like about my job, but if I had to pick a favorite, it would be watching my students transition from teenagers to professionals. There are a variety of paths that students choose upon graduation and in the years that follow - some work overseas, some perform a year or … Continue reading The Best Part of My Job
I was at a meeting today (yes, you can feel sorry for me) and since it was the first time for this committee to meet, we started off by introducing ourselves. In addition to our name, how long we have been at Villanova, and what we did, we were also asked to share the best … Continue reading It Only Took Me 34 Years to Realize This
It's been a while since I've taken an online personality test, but when I read Carlayn's outstanding post about her experience with the Enneagram test, I thought I would take it. Here is some background information about the test, from its web site: The Enneagram is a personality system that aims to reveal how emotions … Continue reading Meet Jim Borden, the Enthusiast (Seriously?)
In today's Pinkcast, Dan Pink interviews Christine Porath, a Georgetown University professor and author of Mastering Civility: A Manifesto for the Workplace. In the interview, Porath shares a remarkably simple technique for deepening respect and promoting belongingness in any setting. In other words, how to be more civil and kind. Porath notes that civility is … Continue reading The 10-5 Rule for Civility
When I was growing up one of my favorite things to do was to work on brain teasers. My favorite type of puzzle was a logic puzzle, the kind where you have to do things like find the matching first and last names of five guys, what house they live in, what their favorite food … Continue reading Another Favorite Childhood Memory: Brain Teasers
I came up with the first part of the title for this post based on a case competition we had today for our students. When I said the name of the company to myself (Hot Chicken Takeover), the first thought that came to my mind was Nick Gilder's song, "Hot Child in the City", but … Continue reading Hot Chicken in the City. (Growing Wild and Sitting Pretty).
I'll admit it. Over the years there have been times when students have asked me a question to which I didn't quite know the answer, but for some reason, I decided to answer anyway. Sometimes I got lucky and gave the right answer, and sometimes I've given the wrong answer. And sometimes I gave an … Continue reading The Art of Giving an Effective Non-Answer
A story in the Wall Street Journal this week indicated that Americans are staying in their houses much longer than they used to. Homeowners nationwide are remaining in their homes typically 13 years, five years longer than they did in 2010, according to a new analysis by real-estate brokerage Redfin. According to data from the … Continue reading I Guess I Don’t Like Change
The quote above comes from the famous Aesop's fable of the Lion and the Mouse. Here's the short story, in case you've forgotten it or never heard of it. A Lion lay asleep in the forest, his great head resting on his paws. A timid little Mouse came upon him unexpectedly, and in her fright … Continue reading “No Act of Kindness, No Matter How Small, Is Ever Wasted”
Note: this article will be of little interest to most, if not all, readers. Unless you're into hearing someone complain about how changes to a search algorithm ruined their life, it's best that you just hit the like button and move on. For those who decide to continue reading, you've been warned. In late September … Continue reading Thanks, Google, for Crushing My Hopes and Dreams
Borden's Blather 