Podcast appearances and mentions of Daniel J Boorstin

En esta oportunidad el Comunicador y Escritor Juanjo Vargas interpreta un fragmento del famoso libro "Los Descubridores" dónde Daniel J. Boorstin cuenta la historia de la humanidad. Las perdidas Artes de la Memoria Más sobre Juanjo Vargas juanjovargas.com

In this episode, Jerry and Stably discuss The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America by Daniel J. Boorstin, a book that explores the construction of unreality in American media and culture. Jerry introduces the book as his pick and notes its thematic resonance with previous discussions, particularly those around Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death. The hosts agree that Boorstin's work predates many of Postman's arguments and, in some ways, anticipates the cultural shift toward media-driven realities.Stably and Jerry unpack Boorstin's central argument that American culture increasingly operates within “mirrors upon mirrors of unreality,” where pseudo-events—artificial happenings staged for media consumption—dominate public perception. Boorstin, writing in the late 1950s and early 1960s, critiques how society becomes incentivized to embrace these fabricated realities, constructing what Jerry calls “castles in the air.” This critique extends across multiple facets of public life, including politics, advertising, and entertainment, all of which blur the line between authenticity and illusion.The discussion touches on Boorstin's seemingly conservative perspective, as he neither explicitly condemns the shift toward pseudo-events nor advocates for a return to a previous era. Instead, he opts to describe the phenomenon with striking clarity, allowing the implications to speak for themselves. This ambiguity prompts Jerry to reflect on Boorstin's ultimate goals or desired outcomes, noting that while the book is critical, it refrains from offering solutions or alternatives.Stably and Jerry also draw connections between Boorstin's work and Marshall McLuhan's theories on media, highlighting the shared observation of media as an environment that reshapes human experience. They discuss how Boorstin's observations remain relevant, despite the book's age, as contemporary media landscapes have only amplified the prevalence and impact of pseudo-events.Throughout the conversation, the hosts emphasize the enduring value of Boorstin's analysis, particularly in an era where digital media and social platforms further complicate notions of authenticity. They reflect on specific examples of pseudo-events in modern society, noting parallels to Boorstin's original case studies and illustrating how the themes of the book continue to manifest today.By the end of the episode, Jerry and Stably underscore the significance of The Image as a foundational critique of media culture. While Boorstin stops short of prescribing change, his work serves as a powerful lens for examining how societies construct and consume manufactured realities. The hosts conclude with a shared appreciation for Boorstin's prescient insights, leaving listeners with a deeper understanding of the book's arguments and their implications for contemporary life.

Eddie's got another quote. This one is attributed to historian Daniel J. Boorstin.“The greatest obstacle to discovery is ignorance. It is the illusion of knowledge.” Sound applicable? We think so. Eddie looks back to the early days of the podcast. We thought we knew a lot. We did not. Fast-forward five years, we now find ourselves fully aware of our ignorance. Our advice based on our experience? Admit that you don't know much. Ask the stupid questions. You won't know more unless you ask more questions. Don't get trapped in arrogant ignorance.  Check out the partners that make our show possible.Find Us Online: BrosPodcast.com - LinkedIn - Youtube - Instagram - Facebook - TikTok - Eddie's LinkedIn - Tyler's LinkedInIf you enjoy the podcast, please rate us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to us! Thanks for listening!

The Network, by Scott Woolley, tells the history of wireless communications, and the stories of the characters that were a part of it. It's the first book strictly about media history that I'm summarizing and adding to my best media books list. Wireless communications start with wired communications Wireless communications today of course include cell phones, but The Network takes us from the wireless telegraph, to radio, to television, and finally to satellites. First, it gives a little background on the history of the electric telegraph, the invention which suddenly made it possible to move, in minutes, messages that used to take weeks to reach their destinations. The electric telegraph was able to change the world thanks to one simple action: The ability to move a piece of metal at the end of a wire. That was enough to develop codes that could transmit messages, based upon the simple movement of that piece of metal. This process started in 1822, when Christian Órsted attached a copper wire to a battery and saw a nearby compass needle move. There was a several-decade-long race to develop an electric telegraph. The first transatlantic cable was opened for business by 1866. A big customer of these telegraph services were stock traders, who could buy shares in London, sell them a few seconds later in New York, and always profit if their trades were executed in time. Morse code was the winning format for turning the movement of a piece of metal into messages that could travel around the world. A claim in The Network I couldn't find a source for, but that sounds pretty cool: The clouds in New York City at night used to have projected on them news, election results, and sports scores – in Morse code. From a worthless accidental discovery to worthwhile wireless The history of wireless communication started with a discovery as accidental as Christian Órsted's: Heinrich Hertz noticed that metal objects moved slightly when lightning struck nearby. He later conducted experiments where he successfully generated sparks through the air. It was pretty cool, but he concluded that the invisible waves he had discovered were “of no use whatsoever.” Electrical signals that traveled through the air were made very useful, indeed, by Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi. For much of its early years, most people thought his Marconi Company was a scam. Like the dot-com and crypto booms, many companies at the dawn of wireless technology made off with investors' money. One article, with the headline, “Wireless and Worthless,” pointed out that more criminals were being prosecuted from wireless companies than from any other industry. Besides, what did we need wireless technology for, when there were companies such as The Commercial, which was probably the hottest tech company in New York in the early 1900s? It owned five of the sixteen cables crossing the Atlantic Ocean, and one of the two that crossed the Pacific – which was 10,000 miles long. 10,000 miles was pretty impressive, especially when you consider that in 1896, Guglielmo Marconi could only send a wireless message one mile. What was the point? The pseudo-events of Guglielmo Marconi Marconi was good at building buzz for his wireless technology through public demonstrations – you could call them pseudo-events, a la Daniel J. Boorstin's The Image, which I talked about on episode 257. In front of an audience, he'd ask a volunteer to carry around a “magic box.” He'd build tension from the stage, then push a lever, which would make the magic box buzz from afar. In 1898, when his wireless range was somewhere around ten miles, Marconi set up a telegraph receiver on the yacht of the prince of Wales. Queen Victoria sent the first mundane wireless text message, asking, “Can you come to tea?” The prince replied, “Very sorry, cannot come to tea.” After all, he was on the ocean. By 1899, Marconi could send a message over the English channel, and by 1901, he could send a message 225 miles. Marconi had competition in trying to send a wireless message across the Atlantic, which was 3,000 miles. Nikola Tesla, with the money of J.P. Morgan, was working on a fifty-five ton, 187-foot-tall steel super-antenna. And Marconi didn't have the funding to build something like that. Marconi won that race across the Atlantic. In one of his publicity stunts, he was able to relay “Marconigrams,” as he called them, from celebrities in London to celebrities at a dinner party in New York. But, that wasn't enough to impress stock traders who relied on wired telegrams – the messages took ten minutes to arrive, with pre-arranged help in expediting them as they traveled to and from coastal locations on wired connections. And radio waves are easier to transmit at night than during business hours, when radiation from the sun interferes with wireless signals. As the Titanic sank, Marconi rose But in 1912, the day before Marconi Company investors were to vote on whether to further fund the company, the Titanic sank. Using Marconi's wireless technology, an ocean liner, the Olympic, fielded a message from the Titanic, over 500 miles away, which included coordinates, and said, “We have struck an iceberg.” Another ocean liner, the Carpathia, came to the rescue. Thanks to Marconi's wireless technology, of the Titanic's 2,223 passengers, 706 survived. What followed sounds like the third act of a great movie: When Marconi arrived at a lecture that had already been scheduled, there was a crowd overflowing out the building. He received a standing ovation, including from the once-skeptical Thomas Edison. And the vote of Marconi shareholders, on whether to issue another $7 million in stock to build stations for intercontinental telegraphs, was a no-brainer. David Sarnoff: The early days of an innovator Working at Marconi at that time was the young David Sarnoff, who had started at Marconi after being fired for taking the day of Rosh Hashanah off work at Marconi's rival company, the Commercial. A Russian immigrant, Sarnoff's father had recently become unable to work, so he had set off to support the family as an office messenger boy, at only fifteen. Being a telegraph operator was a hot tech job at the time. David Sarnoff bought a used telegraph key, so he could spend his evenings practicing his coding skills – his Morse-coding skills. He worked his way up until he was managing Marconi's New York office, but then transferred to what seemed like a step down – as an inspector in the engineering department. Edwin Armstrong's signal amplifier It was as chief inspector David Sarnoff met Edwin Armstrong, who demonstrated to him an amazing signal amplifier. From a Marconi station in New Jersey, Armstrong's amplifier turned signals from an Ireland station from barely audible, to loud and crisp. They were then able to listen in on signals from competitor Poulsen Wireless, as their San Francisco station communicated with their Portland station. They were even able to listen to Poulsen's Hawaii station, despite the fact Poulsen's own San Francisco station – the breadth of a continent closer – could barely pick up the signal, amidst a Hawaiian thunderstorm. Sarnoff thought he had found the key technology that would help Marconi dominate wireless telegraphy, and free it from having to share its revenue with rival cabled networks. Instead, Guglielmo Marconi himself refused to believe the results of the story, and another executive publicly chided Sarnoff within the company for conducting the unauthorized experiments, which he believed merely drove up the prices of inventors' patents. Edwin Armstrong becomes Major Armstrong Armstrong ended up selling the patent for his amplifier to AT&T. Through the use of that amplifier and other wireless-technology inventions, Edwin Armstrong achieved the rank of Major Armstrong in WWI. During WWI, Britain and Germany cut one another's cables, making wireless communication even more important. The British military took over Marconi's wireless stations within their empire. Armstrong helped intercept Germany's wireless communications. RCA, born from a patent pool But during the war, the way wireless technology patents were split up amongst companies became a problem. It was impossible to build useful devices without using a variety of innovations, and thus infringing on other companies' patents. The Navy used its wartime powers to allow American manufacturers to use any wireless patents they wanted, without consequence. Once the war was over, the military sought to maintain this freedom of innovation, and – as a matter of national security – keep the American radio industry out of foreign hands. They struck a deal to cut off the American portion of the British Marconi company, and pool together patents from AT&T, Westinghouse, G.E., and – interestingly – United Fruit Company, who had patents for communications systems on their Central American banana plantations. The name of this new company: RCA. Its general manager: David Sarnoff. Sarnoff's radio Sarnoff had pitched to his bosses at Marconi, in 1915, a “Radio Music Box.” Far more complex than moving a piece of metal, voice had first been transmitted over radio waves in 1906, and The Navy had done “radio telephone” calls, but nobody had thought of using radio to transmit to a wide audience. His pitch described a box with amplifier tubes, and what he called a “speaking telephone.” He wrote, “There should be no difficulty in receiving music perfectly when transmitted within a radius of 25 to 50 miles. Within such a radius there reside hundreds of thousands of families.” Sarnoff had already experimented with the concept by transmitting music, to a boat cruising around Manhattan, from a phonograph in Marconi's New York office. Sarnoff's bosses at Marconi had ignored his radio music box pitch, but once he was in charge at RCA, he was free to pursue the idea. Sarnoff hadn't gotten much support for his ideas at Marconi, but he had learned the value of a well-crafted pseudo-event. The upcoming boxing match between the American, Jack Dempsey, and the Frenchman, Georges Carpentier was the perfect opportunity to show the value of using radio waves to broadcast sound to a large audience. The pseudo-event that launched radio As was customary for big events at the time, if you wanted an update, you could gather near a telegraph station, where someone would announce a text-message update of the event. In Paris, a flare was to be released from a plane after the fight: white if Dempsey won, red if Carpentier. But if you truly wanted to know what was happening, you had to be one of the ninety-one thousand people there in the stadium. So, the rich and famous were flocking to New York. 300 rooms were booked at the Plaza, 500 at the Waldorf Astoria, and 800 at the Biltmore. Actress Mary Pickford took her yacht all the way from Hollywood, through the Panama Canal, and some came in the 1921 version of a private jet: a private train car. But for the first time, people who couldn't be at the fight could get blow-by-blow updates. RCA teamed up with amateur radio operators, who rented out auditoriums and received a voice broadcast from ringside, via “radiophone.” This helped solve the chicken-and-egg problem of getting mass-audience radio started. You couldn't get people to buy receivers if they hadn't experienced a broadcast – and if there was nothing being broadcast – and it wasn't worth broadcasting if nobody had receivers. By getting a lot of people together for a global event everybody was already talking about, it was worthwhile to do a broadcast, and people got to see the potential of radio. Radio in its infancy Over the next three years, secretary of commerce Herbert Hoover granted licenses to 600 radio stations – small ones that broadcast across a particular city or county. There were no radio stations or programs in much of rural America. But Sarnoff was pushing the adoption of higher-powered AM transmitters that could broadcast to multi-state regions. This idea was opposed by the smaller stations that didn't want their audiences stolen, and also by AT&T. AT&T's raw deal in radio AT&T believed that since radio involved transmitting the voice, they, as the phone company, should be in charge of it. They also didn't want to lose revenue: For AM radio programs to be syndicated from one station to another, they had to be sent over AT&T's phone lines, as they would come out distorted if transmitted wirelessly. Additionally, AT&T felt duped from the negotiations over the RCA patent pool, which Sarnoff had been in charge of. Sarnoff had proposed that AT&T get the rights to sell radio transmitters, while RCA would sell radio receivers. This didn't seem like a bad deal in 1920, before the Dempsey/Carpentier fight, but now it looked like a raw deal, indeed. In 1924, RCA's AM radio sales were over $50 million, while AT&T had a measly market of 600 radio stations. Most of those stations ignored AT&T's patents and built their own transmitters, and AT&T wasn't successful in getting the revenue that was rightfully theirs. The first radio ad The radio broadcasting industry was experimenting with business models. AT&T ran the first radio ad in 1922. For fifty dollars, a suburban housing development got to broadcast on an AT&T station. Herbert Hoover called advertising-funded radio “the quickest way to kill broadcasting.” He wanted instead to fund radio broadcasts by placing a surcharge on the sale of each consumer radio receiver. David Sarnoff was on his side, which was odd, since an advertising-funded model would make his radios cheaper to consumers. Divvying up the radio waves There were also fights over who could broadcast on what frequency. The Radio Act of 1912 had been passed, after amateur telegraphers' messages had interfered with one another while communicating about the Titanic sinking. Hoover tried to regulate the frequencies some stations were broadcasting on, but it turned out the 1912 act had only regulated airwaves at least six-hundred meters long – the technological limit at the time. Some stations protested by deliberately overlapping their broadcasts, resulting in an hour of unpleasant squelches, followed by a message to support the passing of a law to regulate the airwaves. The Federal Radio Commission was formed in 1927, for that purpose. In 1934, it became the FCC, overseeing all types of electronic communications. How AM held back FM Sometimes, an inferior technology dominates, as VHS did over Beta, but sometimes, despite the best efforts of entrenched interests, the better technology prevails, as did eventually FM radio, over AM. AM radio signals are imprinted sounds on waves that vary according to amplitude, or the height of the waves. Thus “AM,” for “amplitude modulation.” FM radio waves are varied according to the frequency of the waves, or their width. Engineers in the radio industry and academia once thought frequency modulation wouldn't work. A 1922 paper from AT&T claimed to prove mathematically that it “inherently distorts without any compensating advantages whatsoever.” But Major Armstrong was pushing hard for the FM method. Armstrong once again conducted a demonstration for Sarnoff. His “little black box” that transmitted an FM signal had vastly superior sound quality than an AM radio. Sarnoff let Armstrong run tests with FM equipment from RCA's offices atop the Empire State Building – the tallest in the world at the time. The FM signal delivered better sound quality than AM with one twenty-fifth the signal power. FM threatened existing AM interests There was a lot at stake in switching to FM: It could deliver better sound quality, and – since signals could be transmitted on a variety of frequencies – it could add thousands of stations to the dial. But, there were already tens of millions of AM radios, and hundreds of expensive radio station transmitters that would become obsolete. A benefit to RCA, however, would be that with clearer signals, they would no longer have to pay AT&T for use of their phone network for syndicating content. Y2K of the 1940s: The bogus sun-spot scare In 1941, the FCC approved a band of FM stations between 42 and 50 MHz. At the start of WWII, Major Armstrong pushed the military to switch to FM, and waived any licensing fees, increasing adoption. After the war, there was a controversy about sunspots: They work in an eleven-year cycle, and in FCC proceedings, one engineer rose a stink about how the next time sunspots came around, they would interfere with stations on the existing FM band. Despite the fact nearly every expert disagreed with that prediction, the FCC moved the FM dial to the current 88 to 108 MHz band. This made $75 million worth of devices soon-to-be worthless, and pissed off hundreds of thousands of FM early adopters. (When the strongest sunspots in two centuries came along, the old FM band worked fine.) The stifling of FM radio continued. The FCC eventually cut FM broadcasts from a 150 mile radius to a 50-mile radius, which may not sound like much, but translates to a ninety-percent cut in coverage area. Conveniently, this meant FM stations could no longer send programs to neighboring markets through the air, and had to instead pay to use AT&T's expensive and low-fidelity telephone wires. AM radio interests had also taken over most FM stations, where they simply rebroadcast their AM programs. There was little incentive to buy an FM set, and by 1946, nine of ten radio manufacturers weren't bothering to make them. All of this was enough to prompt Major Armstrong to file an antitrust suit against RCA, claiming David Sarnoff was conspiring to stifle the FM radio industry. The bold bets Sarnoff made in TV David Sarnoff was very focused on making television work around that time. He made some bold bets that helped NBC, a spin-off from RCA, be the first on the air. Searching for office space during the Great Depression, Sarnoff had decided to move RCA and NBC into the expensive 30 Rockefeller Plaza, aka “30 Rock.” He pissed off shareholders by building elaborate radio studios. He had special wires installed in NBC's studios – for transmitting TV signals around the building – that weren't used for another twenty years. He had a giant studio built, with rotating stage, to work with television cameras that didn't even exist. Overall, he spent $50 million on television research over the course of twenty-five years, and it took a long time to pay off. Battles over TV airwaves The FCC's poor decisions continued in the proliferation of television. Despite warnings from engineers such as Major Armstrong, they allocated VHF channels so poorly, only one or two stations worked in most cities. They had to learn from their mistakes and start over with UHF stations. But UHF wavelengths were so short, the lower the channel number a station had, the further and more clearly their signal could travel. So, stations fought over the smaller-numbered of the sixty-eight channels. The television satellite David Sarnoff was there, once again, innovating in television. There was a battle over the color standard, and Sarnoff and RCA's NSTC standard was finally adopted by the FCC in 1953. “Relay-1” was the first American communications satellite, launched in 1962. It helped bypass AT&T's cables for syndicating programs, thus doubling RCA's revenue. Some events had previously been broadcast via airplane to expand coverage area. Relay-1's first trans-Pacific broadcast was supposed to carry to Japan an address from President Kennedy. Instead, it carried coverage of his assassination, and footage of the new president, Lyndon B. Johnson. There's your The Network summary As you can see, The Network covers a lot of the early history of wireless communications. It also does it with an engaging narrative style. There is of course much more. Read it to find out: Why there's no channel one. How Lyndon B. Johnson's wife Lady Bird built her media empire with some suspiciously favorable treatment from the FCC. The visions that Sarnoff had late in life for fiber optics, the internet, and e-books. Whether Major Armstrong's suicide at 63 had anything to do with his legal battles against David Sarnoff and RCA. If you've enjoyed this summary, you'll no doubt enjoy The Network. Thank you for having me on your podcasts! Thank you for having me on your podcasts. Thank you to David Elikwu at The Knowledge. As always, you can find interviews of me on my interviews page. About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is author of Mind Management, Not Time Management, The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast, his Love Mondays newsletter, and self-publishing coaching David helps you make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher YouTube RSS Email Support the show on Patreon Put your money where your mind is. Patreon lets you support independent creators like me. Support now on Patreon »       Show notes: https://kadavy.net/blog/posts/the-network-scott-woolley/

I recently advertised my book on a billboard in Times Square. It was cheaper than you think, and was up for less time than you might expect. But it's still paying dividends. Times Square is a big deal (duh) Times Square is the epitome of mainstream success. The biggest brands have locations there, and any big brand you can name advertises there. 350,000 people walk through Times Square on a typical day. It's also one of the most-photographed places on Earth, with many of those photos and videos being shared on television shows such as Good Morning America, and on TikTok or Instagram. A lowly self-published book advertised next to the biggest brands When my friend, Robbie Abed, told me you can advertise in Times Square for cheap, I knew I had to run an ad for Mind Management, Not Time Management. A book about a new approach to time management, in a city obsessed with time management, in a place with “time” right in the name? It was a match made in heaven! The very thought of my lowly self-published book advertised on the front of Forever 21, above a Sunglass Hut, across from the Disney store, next to McDonald's, in Times Square made me laugh the maniacal laughter of an evil villain plotting to take over the world – in some Disney movie, of course. Will a billboard sell books? Before I explain how I advertised in Times Square for cheap, I'm sure some of you are thinking, “Will advertising on a billboard sell books?” You're right to think that since people are walking or driving through Times Square, even if they noticed my billboard in this place that is nearly all billboards, they're not going to stop what they're doing, take out their phones, and order my book on Amazon. The making of a pseudo-event But that's not the point. By advertising my book in Times Square, I was creating a “pseudo-event”. I talked about pseudo-events in my summary of Daniel J. Boorstin's The Image on episode 257. A pseudo-event is a reality constructed just so it can be covered in media. By being covered in media, the constructed reality becomes reality. Pseudo-events can be funny, or horrifying. They can be based upon truth, or lies. But our media is full of them. Most “leaks” you see, every talk-show interview, and every planned event are pseudo-events. Instagram is one pseudo-event after another. Reality is constructed for media, and media constructs our reality. My book really was advertised in Times Square. My lowly self-published book really is a “big deal.” How much does a Times Square ad cost? People want to know, how much does it cost to advertise your book in Times Square? Some people guess five-thousand dollars. Some guess twenty-. I advertised my book on a Times Square billboard with Blip Billboards. Blip is a platform that lets you buy short displays of an ad on electronic billboards across the U.S. Each “blip” lasts fifteen seconds. I paid about nine cents per blip in tests I ran in Chicago, and had a blip run in Times Square for as little as twenty dollars. “As little as” twenty dollars? I'll get into my exact costs in a bit. But first, was my pseudo-event worth it? Here are some of my wins from this fifteen-second ad so far. Win #1: A retweet from Tim Ferriss My first big win from my Times Square billboard was a retweet from Tim Ferriss. Tim Ferriss asks his podcast guests what message they would advertise to the world. I've always thought if I were asked that question, my answer would be the title of my book, Mind Management, Not Time Management. So, I made sure one of my billboards was as plain as possible. It just said, “Mind Management, Not Time Management.” Then, I shared a video of the billboard on Twitter, making sure to tag Tim (whom I've never met nor talked to). It was a long shot, but it worked. Tim retweeted it. Tim has 1.8 million followers. I did see a decent spike in sales. Hard to know if this was the cause, but I didn't have competing promotions. Win #2: Speaking for the New York Public Library My second win was speaking for the New York Public Library. When I emailed my readers to let them know my book was advertised in Times Square, it turned out one reader organizes events for the New York Public Library. This reader was excited to hear about my book being advertised in Times Square, and this prompted them to invite me to speak over Zoom to the library's audience. They promoted the event to their email list of one million subscribers, and the day before the event, my new friend there informed me that: The NYPL stocked all of my books, in paper, ebook, and audiobook formats. My event was featured on NYPL's home page My book was selected as the NYPL Business Center's “book of the month.” The video of my speaking event is now listed on the library's CEO series page, along with talks by Marie Forleo, Seth Godin, and A.J. Jacobs. I also got a couple links to my website from nypl.org, high-authority links which boost my site in search rankings. Win #3: Advertising that paid for itself My third win is that some of my advertising paid for itself. And I don't mean through book sales. If you sign up for Blip, you'll get $25 free advertising credit. Some people have already used that link, and apparently spent enough for me to also earn a couple $50 credits, which reduced the price of my ads! Win #4: ? My Times Square ad came and went in a flash, but it continues to pay dividends I can't predict. For example, in May I was telling someone at a conference in Phoenix about advertising in Times Square, and it turned out they had already seen one of my posts about it. There's no telling who is reading this article, and what effect it will have on them. Like I talked about on episode 280, hidden complexity makes simple actions very powerful. Fun pseudo-events like this breed positive Black Swans. A pseudo-event lasts a moment, but lives on forever. A Times Square ad lasts a moment, but the photo, video, and story lasts forever. What did this cost? I advertised on a Times Square billboard for as little as $20, but what did this all cost in the end? Here's the breakdown: Chicago test campaign: $65.58 (I ran some test campaigns in Chicago, to get familiar with the system.) Times Square campaign: $290 (I ran a small test, got impressions for as little as $20, but then increased my bids and budget to be sure the ad would run during a given time block.) Photographer: $200 (I got referred to a photographer from my friend, Robbie Abed, who had found them on Craigslist. I hired them for the one hour my ads were scheduled to run.) Blip referral credits: -$100 (A couple people must have used my referral link, and spent enough for me to get $50 in credits each.) Total cost: $455.58 This was a really fun campaign, and though the ROI isn't as clear as the Amazon ads I talk about in my income reports, I think it's safe to say it has been paying off, and still is. About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is author of Mind Management, Not Time Management, The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast, his Love Mondays newsletter, and self-publishing coaching David helps you make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher YouTube RSS Email Support the show on Patreon Put your money where your mind is. Patreon lets you support independent creators like me. Support now on Patreon »       Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/book-times-square-billboard/

In Trust Me, I'm Lying, Ryan Holiday reveals the media manipulation tactics he used as Marketing Director of American Apparel, and for his PR clients. Meanwhile, he exposes the inner workings of a modern media machine in which incentives make it impossible for the version of reality depicted in the media to come close to resembling the truth. I think it's Holiday's best book, and one of the best media studies books. So, here, in my own words, is my Trust Me, I'm Lying summary. Yes, this book is about lying Before Ryan Holiday became known as an author of modern stoicism books, he dropped out of college at nineteen to apprentice under 48 Laws of Power author, Robert Green. He later was the marketing director for American Apparel, and now has a PR agency, Brass Check, where he advises corporate clients and authors. As the title of the book suggests, the tactics Holiday confesses to might make your skin crawl. They involve deliberate provocation, bribery, impersonation, and – since it's called Trust Me, I'm Lying – making stuff up. But everyone should read it This may turn people off to the book, but if you're an author, marketer, entrepreneur, musician, filmmaker, or comedian, you're in the business of trying to get your message into the world. So, ignore this book at your own peril. The people with whom you compete for attention are using these tactics. Understanding these tactics is a good way to understand the mechanics of media. You can use this knowledge to get your message out in less nefarious ways (more on that later). And, if you're someone who thinks it's your duty to read the news, to “stay informed,” you owe it to yourself to read this book. But be prepared to have that belief challenged, and your conception of reality altered. Media is a “racket” Holiday describes the modern media system as a “racket,” the word which Major General Smedley D. Butler once used to describe war. He defined it as something “where only a small group of insiders know what's really going on and they operate for the benefit of a few and at the expense of basically everyone else.” Journalists are poor, busy, and desperate for a story The main insider in the modern media system is the journalist, more generally, a “blogger,” who might be someone writing articles for a small blog, or even a major media outlet such as the Huffington Post. Holiday uses “blogger” and “journalist,” interchangeably, and I will, too. Journalists are poor To help you understand the motivations of many of these journalists, Holiday points out this: They might have gone to an expensive grad school, and now live in a big, expensive city, such as NYC, San Francisco, or Washington D.C. They've been close enough to taste a $200,000-a-year journalism job. But now they're churning out articles at a breakneck pace, without even getting health insurance. Meanwhile, the people they cover are rich and successful, and may include talentless reality TV stars. New York magazine called the result “the rage of the creative underclass.” Journalists are busy These bloggers have to write a face-melting amount of content. When journalist Bekah Grant left VentureBeat, she wrote a post saying she averaged five posts a day – more than 1,700 articles in twenty months. Henry Blodget, founder of Business Insider, said his bloggers need to generate three times their salary, benefits, and overhead costs to be worth hiring. So, an employee making sixty-thousand dollars a year needs to produce 1.8 million page views a month, every month. (1.8 million page views is a lot. At my current traffic, it takes me about a decade to generate that much on my blog, and I make more than sixty-thousand dollars a year.) Journalists are desperate for a story Most sites that journalists write for make their money from ads, and the way to make money from ads is to generate page views. As such, many journalists are paid by the page view. I've personally heard this from a friend who worked for a newspaper with a good reputation, covering news for a major city. So, journalists are desperate for a story that will generate page views. So, if you give them a juicy story that will generate page views, they will generally publish it. They're too busy to fact check it, and since they're compensated by the page view, they aren't motivated to care whether or not it's true. Readers want to be entertained, and don't care what's true So you've got poor, busy, and desperate journalists paid by the page view, and the people they're writing for want to be entertained. Negativity attracts attention In 2010, Jonah Berger analyzed 7,000 articles from the New York Times' most-emailed list. He found that the best predictor of virality was: how much anger does the article evoke? Increasing the anger rating of an article had two-and-a-half times the impact of increasing its positivity rating. The human mind is irresistibly attracted to negativity. When subjects of a study were shown footage of war, airplane crashes, and natural disasters, they paid more attention and remembered more than non-negative footage. Corrections don't work Negativity attracts page views, so journalists want juicy stories, and don't care if they're true – and neither do readers, it seems. One study found that when people were shown a fake article with a correction at the bottom, they were more likely to believe it than those who saw an article without a correction. (Note from me: this finding hasn't been consistent across other studies. (Is that a correction you believe?) In any case, people's beliefs are still resistant to contrary facts.) Despite this, online news outlets are financially motivated to publish stories, whether they're true or not. A Gawker reporter once said, “Gawker believes that publicly airing rumors out is usually the quickest way to get to the truth,” going on to say, “Let's acknowledge that we can't vouch for the veracity or truth of the rumors we'll be sharing here.” Journalists are motivated to publish false stories, and, as Holiday points out, “While the internet allows content to be written iteratively, the audience does not read or consume it iteratively.” In other words, they see the story, not the correction. Media manipulation strategy: Trading up the chain Holiday shares nine media manipulation tactics in the book, but they all essentially serve the strategy that Holiday calls, “trading up the chain.” And trading up the chain is something you can do, even without lying. The chain Here's how it works: Get coverage on smaller outlets. Those stories then get covered on mid-level outlets. Finally, major outlets pick up stories from the mid-level outlets. Smaller outlets can be individual blogs, social media, or local websites that cover a neighborhood or scene. Mid-level outlets are blogs of newspapers or local television stations. They can also be “sister sites” of bigger outlets, so they might be affiliated with Newsweek, or CBS. Major outlets are the big ones, like the New York Times, CNN, or The Today Show. It's easy to get coverage on the small outlets It's easy to get coverage on smaller outlets, Holiday says. If there's a bigger outlet on which you want coverage, review stories for patterns. What are the stories about? Is there a smaller outlet where stories consistently show up before stories on the bigger outlet? The smaller the outlet, the less they fact-check Holiday says the smaller an outlet is, the less they fact check. This is where the lying comes in. Holiday confesses to creating fake email accounts to send tips to bloggers, leaking fake internal memos, and having his assistant pose as him over email and even over the phone. You don't even have to start with the small outlets. Holiday says he successfully “conned” reporters from Reuter's, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, The Today Show, and the New York Times. Using HARO, or “Help a Reporter Out” – which is an email list reporters use to find story sources – he found journalists who were looking for experts on various subjects. Holiday isn't an expert on, say, vinyl record collecting, but these reporters were presumably on deadlines, and so not inclined to fact check. Holiday says he did it as a stunt to prove how ridiculous he thinks HARO is, and points out that even after he publicly embarrassed these outlets, they continue to use the service. Subprime truth One of my favorite observations from the book is that the fuzziness of truth in the media is like the subprime mortgage crisis. During the subprime mortgage crisis, banks sold loans to other banks, who sold those to other banks. These loans were rated by ratings agencies that were overwhelmed, and driven by conflicts of interest. One example of false information in the media Holiday seized upon was when a journalist misinterpreted the Wikipedia page of Holiday's client, Tucker Max. Holiday had written Max's page to show that his book had been on the New York Times best-seller list for some period of time in each of three consecutive years. The journalist apparently read that, then wrote a story saying Max's book had been on the best-seller list for three years. That was wrong, but Holiday ran with it, updating the Wikipedia page to say Max's book had, indeed, been on the list for three years, citing the incorrect article as proof. (The Wikipedia page has since been corrected.) Like the subprime mortgage crisis, in the news media, overwhelmed and conflicted reporters write stories, which are then picked up by other overwhelmed and conflicted reporters. In Balaji Srinivasan's second appearance on the Tim Ferriss show, which I summarized on episode 274, he describes how a different kind of chain could ensure verifiable truth gets traded up the chain – in this case, a blockchain. Pseudo-events By getting a story into one outlet, then “trading up the chain” to get it covered in another, you're creating a “pseudo-event.” If you remember my summary of The Image on episode 257, author Daniel J. Boorstin describes pseudo-events as fake events that are deliberately placed in the news, so that they become real. Holiday created a lot of pseudo-events for Max when his movie based upon his book, I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, was debuting. He bought ads in newspapers around the country, then sent anonymous complaints to the newspapers, leaking those complaints to blogs, to get coverage. He notified college LGBT and women's rights groups of screenings, so they would protest at theaters and the nightly news would cover it. He bought a billboard, defaced it, and reported it to journalists to get news coverage. It seems almost certain that the Russian Internet Research Agency read Holiday's book. They spent many years – and probably still are – hacking public opinion in the U.S. and in other countries, creating Facebook pages for various causes, “astroturfing” those pages with activity from fake profiles, then using that influence make real-life events happen. For example, in 2016 they organized opposing protests – one through the Facebook group, “Heart of Texas,” the other for “United Muslims of America” – at the same time, on the same day, across the street from each other. Trading sensationalism up the chain for free advertising Holiday says his “leveraged advertising strategy” of running sensational ads for American Apparel just to get news coverage was responsible for 50% growth in online sales in three years with “a miniscule ad budget.” He says he deliberately designed ads that would inspire outrage: dressing up kids like adults, putting clothes on dogs, or writing ad copy that didn't make sense. When he couldn't use some promotional Halloween costume photos, because of copyright concerns, he had one of his employees leak them to Gawker and Jezebel, where they were covered in an article that got ninety-thousand views. He ran ads on small websites, featuring porn actress Sasha Grey, completely nude. The ads were covered by Nerve, Buzzfeed, Fast Company, Jezebel, and more. All this coverage for just $1,200 in ads (though it's not clear how much he paid Grey). He says, “my strategy has always been: If I want to be written about, I do things they have to write about.” This is how, according to Holiday, Donald Trump got $4.6 billion of free publicity during his presidential campaign. Pseudo-events for reputational damage control Because of the way the media works, Holiday says if a client of his is in trouble, the best strategy is to create what's essentially a pseudo-event. A major newspaper wrote a hit piece on a client of Holiday's. The journalist who wrote the hit piece was also running a hate blog about the client's company on the side. The client complained to the journalist's editor, but they didn't seem to care. So, Holiday advised his client to write an internal memo to his company, then forward that memo to a competing outlet, which published an article with the memo. The memo was apparently quite damning, because the original newspaper had no choice but to respond. Because bloggers aren't incentivized to care about the truth, and readers are attracted to drama, Holiday says there's no point in trying to correct something that's been said about you in the media. If you want to try, he says, “be prepared to have to be an obsequious douche. You've got to flatter bloggers into thinking that somehow the mistake wasn't their fault.” Ways of using these tactics that are less...gross I personally can't judge Holiday for using these tactics. The medium is the message; as one of Holiday's chapters proclaims, “everyone else is doing it”; and there's no denying that Holiday is good at getting coverage for himself and his clients. But, I'm probably not the only one uncomfortable with impersonating others and lying to get coverage. You can still learn a lot from Trust Me, I'm Lying. Trade up the chain Trading up the chain is a completely legitimate tactic. If you want coverage somewhere, pay attention to where they get their story ideas, and what stories they like to cover. This applies to influencers, too. I no longer interview people on this podcast, but I get so many pitches that are totally irrelevant. You have a better chance of, say, getting interviewed on a podcast, if you tailor your pitch to the target show. And if you get coverage from a micro-influencer that influences a bigger influencer, you might move up the chain. Be remarkable While anger gets a lot of attention, you don't have to be negative in your marketing. You can instead be remarkable – what Seth Godin calls a Purple Cow. I love the ridiculous book titles of author Chuck Tingle. Are you ready for this? How could you not laugh when you hear the title, Domald Tromp Pounded in the Butt By the Handsome Russian T-Rex Who Also Peed On His Butt And Then Blackmailed Him With the Videos Of His Butt Getting Peed On. Even if you don't buy one of his books, his titles are attention-grabbing and spread. Bread Face Blog makes a living smashing bread with her face. It's so absurd, it has to attract attention. The Instagram algorithm sees that attention, and gets her videos in front of more people. The New York Times had to write about her – how could they not? Create a message for the medium If the medium is the message, create a message for the medium. Whatever you're creating, think about how it spreads through media, whether that's social media, traditional media, or word-of-mouth. Lately, I've been seeing how people on Instagram share highlights of quotes in books. It makes sense to have larger pull quotes in my next book, so they have something pretty to take a picture of. Have you been to a restaurant or event where there's a decorated nook specifically for taking photos and sharing them on social media? Not an accident. While researching Times Square ad space for my own publicity stunt I'm working on, I saw one fact sheet point out that Times Square was “the third-most Instagrammed location in the world.” Point being if you put up an ad there, lots of people bragging to their friends about their trips to New York will spread your ad for you. When I write a title of a book, I ask myself if it passes the “cocktail party test.” How would it feel to tell someone at a cocktail party you're reading a book by this title? Proud and strong? Good. Embarrassed or weak? Bad. Mind Management, Not Time Management is what I call a “turnkey title.” The title alone makes a statement you can use, without reading the book. It helps make it memorable, so it spreads. Create pseudo-events Today's media is increasingly participatory. People are not just consumers of media, but also makers of media. By creating pseudo-events, you can get more out of the media you create. I recently saw a cool video on TikTok, showing the process of making a video that showed the process of making a pizza. I know, meta, right? It's a pseudo-event. The video of them making pizza was made for the media. The video of them making the video making pizza made me think they're really good cinematographers. Of course, they teased the original video at the end of the cinematography video, and I had to go watch it. Many readers of the books I write also write books. So, my KDP income reports are essentially pseudo-events. One reason they exist is, I have a business writing books for people who write books, and they show that I know how to run a business writing books. They attract the attention of people who will like my books. Be careful Trust Me, I'm Lying is a must-read for anyone doing anything with media. But be careful what you do with these tactics. I know I've heard Tucker Max lament the reputation he's gained as a result of the tactics in the book. I've also heard Max say the same for Holiday – that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to write a book that says he's a liar right in the title. As Holiday warns, “if you chase the kind of attention I chased, and use the tactics I've used, there will be blowback.” There's your Trust Me, I'm Lying book summary Not all of the book is tactics. Much of it is more media commentary, with some media history sprinkled in, and some airing of grievances Holiday has with various journalists and media outlets. Despite the damage Holiday may have done to his reputation by writing Trust Me, I'm Lying, I really appreciate the book, and it took guts to confess to the things he did in the book. It's on my list of best media books. About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is author of Mind Management, Not Time Management, The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast, his Love Mondays newsletter, and self-publishing coaching David helps you make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher YouTube RSS Email Support the show on Patreon Put your money where your mind is. Patreon lets you support independent creators like me. Support now on Patreon »       Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/trust-me-im-lying-summary/

"We expect anything and everything. We expect the contradictory and the impossible. We expect compact cars which are spacious; luxurious cars which are economical. We expect to be rich and charitable, powerful and merciful, active and reflective, kind and competitive. We expect to be inspired by mediocre appeals for excellence, to be made literate by illiterate appeals for literacy...to go to 'a church of our choice' and yet feel its guiding power over us, to revere God and to be God." —Daniel J. Boorstin

Intro.(1:35) - Start of interview.(2:22) - David's "origin story". He grew up as an "army brat" including living in Germany for about 10 years. He went to high school in West Point, NY. He stayed to go to college in Buffalo, where he also got his MBA. He left the Army and came to CA, where he ran IT for a company. He eventually went to law school first to Santa Clara, and then to UC Davis.(4:17) - His experience joining Fenwick in 1997, "in the front-end of the dot-com boom getting started." "I learnt a lot in the bubble years, and it was a tremendous advantage to my career to have done that early on."(5:32) - On the origin of Fenwick's Corporate Governance Surveys (published externally starting in 2007). "It was started to provide more than anecdotal advice to clients." The Mercury News published the SV150 List (a list of the largest Silicon Valley companies measured by revenue), and the idea was to compare and contrast that list with the S&P 100 (comprising 100 major blue chip companies across multiple industry groups.)(11:41) - On boardroom diversity: The percentage of women directors is now almost identical for the SV150 (30.3%, up from 25.7% in 2020) and S&P 100 (30.2%, up from 28.7% in 2020). On the impact of institutional investors in this change, SB-826 and AB-979 in CA, and the Nasdaq's diversity rule. "Silicon Valley had been behind in gender diversity. Institutional investor attention was the largest driver of increasing gender diversity on boardrooms."(16:15) - On dual-class share structures. The adoption of dual-class shares has emerged as a recent clear trend among Silicon Valley technology companies (from 2.9% in 2011 to 21.3% in 2021, as opposed to S&P 100 that where it decreased from 9% in 2011 to 8% in 2021). Per Prof. Jay Ritter data, 46.2% of all 2021 tech IPOs had dual class share structures.(23:05) - On the prevalence (and complexities) of dual-class share structures in private companies.(26:43) - On directors getting more than one vote ("disproportionate voting rights amongst directors"). Note DGCL 141(d).(29:17) - The Peloton case and how dual-class shares may impact shareholder activism.(31:46) - On sunset provisions for dual-class shares. "The Council of Institutional Investors' 7-year sunset provision is not convincing, 10-12 years is more convincing due to a variety of factors, including investments in R&D and traditional growth horizons."(35:11) - On staggered (or classified) boards: Over the period from 2004 through 2021 proxy seasons, staggered boards have dropped from around 45% to just 3% in S&P100, while they have increased to 52.1% in SV150 companies. "This is a perfect example of why 'best practices' are not equivalent ("there is no one-size-fits-all") in large cap and smaller cap companies." "This reflects the reality that one of the principal reasons for classification, as a takeover defense, is less compelling for some larger companies due to the sheer size of the companies and relative dispersion of their stockholdings."(39:54) - On majority voting. "The rate of implementation of some form of majority voting among S&P 100 companies has risen from 10% to 96% between the 2004 and 2021 proxy seasons. Among the technology and life sciences companies in the SV 150, the rate has risen from 0% as recently as the 2005 proxy season to 56.3% in the 2021 proxy season." "I don't see a lot of data that says that [majority voting] has much of an impact one way or another." "Zombie directors is a nice soundbite, but it's somewhat of an unfair pejorative."(45:09) - On the "stay private vs. go public" debate. "The relative success of companies that have gone public with dual-class share structures has informed the market of what is more or less acceptable." "There are a variety of choices that can be used to go public." "There is a lot of psychic, morale and social value in going public: it's still part of the dream in Silicon Valley to go public." "Liquid currency is a good thing too, particularly for growth via acquisitions." "I do expect this year 2022 to be a lower year for IPOs... the volatility is very high. See VIX index."(51:47) - David's favorite books:The Discoverers, by Daniel J Boorstin (1983) (and other books by same author)Wonderful Life, by Stephen Jay Gould (1989) (and other books by same author)To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (1960)(52:25) - Who were your mentors, and what did you learn from them?Colleagues he's worked with over the years at F&W, including Gordy Davidson, Mark Stevens and Richard Dickson.Clients such as Tram Phi (GC at Docusign) Mike Dillon (longtime GC at Sun)(54:08) - An unusual habit or an absurd thing that he loves: The English Premier League (fan of Tottenham Hotspur F.C.)(56:00) - The living person he most admires? His parents, particularly his mother.David A. Bell is partner at Fenwick and the co-chair of the firm's corporate governance practice.  __ You can follow Evan on social media at:Twitter: @evanepsteinLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/epsteinevan/ Substack: https://evanepstein.substack.com/__Music/Soundtrack (found via Free Music Archive): Seeing The Future by Dexter Britain is licensed under a Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License

Khoa học, như chúng ta vẫn thường tưởng tượng, là những phát minh đầy tính cách mạng, mang trong mình những miêu tả như “độc nhất”, “vô tiền khoáng hậu”, “lừng lẫy năm châu, chấn động địa cầu”. Thực ra, khoa học giống như một quả bóng tuyết: khởi đầu là những viên tuyết nhỏ bé, cứ lăn dần qua hàng thế kỷ, để rồi trở nên khổng lồ. Quả bóng tuyết đó, nếu không có những đốm tuyết ban đầu bên trong, sẽ trở nên rỗng tuếch và tự sụp đổ bởi sức nặng của chính nó. Cuốn sách Những Nhà Khám Phá của Daniel J. Boorstin đã cho thấy khoa học là một hành trình không hồi kết, và con người đã luôn bồi đắp và tiếp sức cho nó. Tác giả lần theo bốn chủ đề chính trong quá trình khám phá thế giới và phát triển khoa học: thời gian, không gian, tự nhiên, xã hội. Đặt mua sách “SENECA: NHỮNG BỨC THƯ ĐẠO ĐỨC – CHỦ NGHĨA KHẮC KỶ TRONG ĐỜI SỐNG” tại đây: https://b.link/seneca-tap01 Ghé Nhà sách Spiderum trên SHOPEE ngay thôi các bạn ơi: https://shp.ee/ynm7jgy Kênh Spiderum Giải Trí đã có Podcast, nghe tại đây: https://anchor.fm/spiderum-giai-tri ______________ Bài viết: Lược sử khám phá khoa học - Phần 1: Thời gian và Không gian Được viết bởi: Tengaria Link bài viết: https://spiderum.com/bai-dang/Luoc-su-kham-pha-khoa-hoc-Phan-1-Thoi-gian-va-Khong-gian-6W27jEg0MfSU --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/spiderum/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/spiderum/support

"DJ Meredith motivates you with the latest Electronica from artists like Coldeed, Collins, DJ Wickbone & so many more! Tracks like ‘Pega Pega' by Jami, MC Malaika will help you smash your fitness goals! “If the plan doesn't work, change the plan but never the goal.” “Growth means choosing happiness over history.” "We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear." – Martin Luther King, Jr. "Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be." – Daniel J. Boorstin 00:00 - Mic Break 01:40 - Fish In The Sea (Extended Mix) - Coldeed 05:36 - Don't Forget (Original Mix) - Alex Nocera, Roy Batty 09:56 - Move Like That (Radio Edit) - Dujak 12:24 - Mic Break 12:29 - Pega Pega (Original Mix) - Jami, MC Malaika 14:44 - Loving You - Collins 19:12 - Wake Up - Collins 21:59 - My Shit Kicks Like - Collins 25:41 - Mic Break 25:44 - Back To You (Harlie & Charper Extended Mix) - DJ Wickbone 30:08 - Oh Yeah (House Mix) - Köbes 35:17 - Mixed Messages (Radio Edit) - Kamino 38:44 - Mic Break 38:51 - No Rules (Radio Edit) - André Salmon, Xavier Iturralde 42:22 - Somebody Else (Original Mix) - Gianni Ruocco, Le Roi Carmona 48:03 - Intentions (Original Mix) - Addiel LS, Funkitunes, Jay Ancor 51:08 - Mic Break 51:23 - Another Planet (Original Mix) - Dex Wilson 53:50 - Nutrition (Extended Mix) - Body Ocean 59:23 - Body Moving (Radio Edit) - AYAREZ, Don Vega 63:15 - Mic Break 64:47 - Only One - Felix Cartal, KAREN HARDING 67:59 - Finish "

"DJ Meredith motivates you with the latest Electronica from artists like Coldeed, Collins, DJ Wickbone & so many more! Tracks like ‘Pega Pega' by Jami, MC Malaika will help you smash your fitness goals! “If the plan doesn't work, change the plan but never the goal.” “Growth means choosing happiness over history.” "We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear." – Martin Luther King, Jr. "Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be." – Daniel J. Boorstin 00:00 - Mic Break 01:40 - Fish In The Sea (Extended Mix) - Coldeed 05:36 - Don't Forget (Original Mix) - Alex Nocera, Roy Batty 09:56 - Move Like That (Radio Edit) - Dujak 12:24 - Mic Break 12:29 - Pega Pega (Original Mix) - Jami, MC Malaika 14:44 - Loving You - Collins 19:12 - Wake Up - Collins 21:59 - My Shit Kicks Like - Collins 25:41 - Mic Break 25:44 - Back To You (Harlie & Charper Extended Mix) - DJ Wickbone 30:08 - Oh Yeah (House Mix) - Köbes 35:17 - Mixed Messages (Radio Edit) - Kamino 38:44 - Mic Break 38:51 - No Rules (Radio Edit) - André Salmon, Xavier Iturralde 42:22 - Somebody Else (Original Mix) - Gianni Ruocco, Le Roi Carmona 48:03 - Intentions (Original Mix) - Addiel LS, Funkitunes, Jay Ancor 51:08 - Mic Break 51:23 - Another Planet (Original Mix) - Dex Wilson 53:50 - Nutrition (Extended Mix) - Body Ocean 59:23 - Body Moving (Radio Edit) - AYAREZ, Don Vega 63:15 - Mic Break 64:47 - Only One - Felix Cartal, KAREN HARDING 67:59 - Finish "

QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Universities, the traditional refuge of timelessness, nowadays look for big names, and enlarge their public relations and press relations departments to make the university itself a celebrity, known for its well-knownness.” ~Daniel J. Boorstin (1914-2004), historian and 12th Librarian of Congress “Jesus Christ goes to the cross and dies as the perfect fulfiller of the law because the law was burdensome and we could not fulfill it. But on the other side of the cross, the redeemed of Christ say that the law no longer hangs over us, but is instead underneath us as the path. It's the narrow path, actually, that Jesus speaks of in the Sermon on the Mount. It points us to what pleases God…. So, the law is a delight to us because it yields in us the fruit of righteousness and it forms us into the image of Christ—who was the perfect fulfillment of the law.” ~Jen Wilkin, writer and speaker “God's law is our pleasure when the God of the law is our God.” ~C.H. Spurgeon (1834-1892), famed London preacher “We are glorious ruins…glorious because we were created by God for the noble purpose of being His image bearers; yet ruins because sin has marred the divine image we were designed to display, at times beyond recognition.” ~Francis Schaeffer (1912-1984), author and founder of L'Abri in Switzerland “Though now long estranged, Man is not wholly lost nor wholly changed, Disgraced he may be, yet is not dethroned, And keeps the rags of lordship once he owned.” ~J.R.R. Tolkein, “Mythopoeia,” a poem written for C.S. Lewis “That every human being possessed an equal dignity was not remotely a self-evident truth. A Roman would have laughed at it. To campaign against discrimination…however, was to depend on large numbers of people sharing in a common assumption: that everyone possessed an inherent worth. The origins of this principle…lay not in the French Revolution, nor in the Declaration of Independence, nor in the Enlightenment, but in the Bible.” ~Tom Holland, English author and historian SERMON PASSAGE John 5:30-47 (ESV) John 1 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.'”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known. John 5 16 And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. 17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” 18 This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. 19 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. 21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. 22 For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. 25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. 30 “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. 31 If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. 32 There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. 33 You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. 34 Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. 36 But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38 and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. 39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. 41 I do not receive glory from people. 42 But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. 43 I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44 How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? 45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.” ― Daniel J. Boorstin In today's episode, we discuss the various investments that one could have put money in around this time last year (May 12, 2021) and how much each investment is worth today. The one investment (at the time of this recording) with the largest increase in value shocked us both and leads to a deeper conversation about the importance of doing your own due diligence before investing in anything. Can you guess which investment ended up being worth 100x a year later? Tune in to find out! (P.S. NOT financial advice) LOOTB Website: https://lifeoutofthebox.com/  Button Ph.D. Website: https://buttonphd.com/

QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Universities, the traditional refuge of timelessness, nowadays look for big names, and enlarge their public relations and press relations departments to make the university itself a celebrity, known for its well-knownness.” ~Daniel J. Boorstin (1914-2004), historian and 12th Librarian of Congress “Jesus Christ goes to the cross and dies as the perfect fulfiller of the law because the law was burdensome and we could not fulfill it. But on the other side of the cross, the redeemed of Christ say that the law no longer hangs over us, but is instead underneath us as the path. It's the narrow path, actually, that Jesus speaks of in the Sermon on the Mount. It points us to what pleases God…. So, the law is a delight to us because it yields in us the fruit of righteousness and it forms us into the image of Christ—who was the perfect fulfillment of the law.” ~Jen Wilkin, writer and speaker “God's law is our pleasure when the God of the law is our God.” ~C.H. Spurgeon (1834-1892), famed London preacher “We are glorious ruins…glorious because we were created by God for the noble purpose of being His image bearers; yet ruins because sin has marred the divine image we were designed to display, at times beyond recognition.” ~Francis Schaeffer (1912-1984), author and founder of L'Abri in Switzerland “Though now long estranged, Man is not wholly lost nor wholly changed, Disgraced he may be, yet is not dethroned, And keeps the rags of lordship once he owned.” ~J.R.R. Tolkein, “Mythopoeia,” a poem written for C.S. Lewis “That every human being possessed an equal dignity was not remotely a self-evident truth. A Roman would have laughed at it. To campaign against discrimination…however, was to depend on large numbers of people sharing in a common assumption: that everyone possessed an inherent worth. The origins of this principle…lay not in the French Revolution, nor in the Declaration of Independence, nor in the Enlightenment, but in the Bible.” ~Tom Holland, English author and historian SERMON PASSAGE John 5:30-47 (ESV) John 1 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.'”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known. John 5 16 And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. 17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” 18 This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. 19 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. 21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. 22 For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. 25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. 30 “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. 31 If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. 32 There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. 33 You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. 34 Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. 36 But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38 and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. 39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. 41 I do not receive glory from people. 42 But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. 43 I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44 How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? 45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

Does image-based media make us think less about our principles and ideals, and more about pursuing mere appearances? Daniel J. Boorstin thought so. In his book, The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America, Boorstin breaks down why “The Graphic Revolution,” has built a world where our fantasies are more real than our reality. In this book summary, I'll explain why Boorstin says, “By sharpening our images we have blurred all our experience.” Pseudo-events The thirtieth anniversary of a hotel is coming up. They reach out to leaders in the community to form a committee: A banker, a society matron, a lawyer, a preacher. The committee plans a banquet to celebrate the thirty years of service the hotel has given the community. They invite journalists to the banquet to take photos and report it in the newspapers. This hotel's anniversary banquet is what Boorstin calls a “pseudo-event.” Pseudo-events have these four qualities: Pseudo-events are planned, not spontaneous. Pseudo-events are created so they can be reported. Pseudo-events are only ambiguously related to reality. Pseudo-events are self-fulfilling. The event is evidence of the thing the event was planned to illustrate. The thirtieth anniversary banquet didn't happen spontaneously: The hotel created a committee for it. The main reason to have the banquet was to generate press. If the hotel was so valuable, would they have to task members of the community with planning the banquet? It was hardly real. But since this contrived banquet happened, it served as evidence that the hotel was, in fact, valuable to the community. The Graphic Revolution Boorstin blames the proliferation of pseudo-events on what he calls “The Graphic Revolution,” or our rapidly-growing ability create and disseminate imagery. The Graphic Revolution was cited, by the way – as a trigger to our departure from long-form text – in Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death, which I summarized on episode 252. The foundation of The Graphic Revolution was built when the telegraph was first applied to news reporting in the 1830s and 40s. The first American newspaper was monthly, but when information could suddenly be transferred around the world in seconds, news became a product to be manufactured. The Associated Press was founded in 1848, making news a salable commodity. As printing technology became more sophisticated – such as the New York Tribune's press, which in the 1870s could print 18,000 papers per hour – the capital required to run a newspaper meant it made good business sense to find more and more news to report. The American Civil and Spanish-American Wars, while newsworthy events, made the news machine bigger and more hungry, leaving more space to fill with pseudo-events once the real events subsided. As the term “Graphic Revolution” implies, graphics were a part of the proliferation of news. The first photograph that appeared in a newspaper was published in 1880. But also, audio is a part of the Graphic Revolution. The phonograph was invented in 1877, followed by radio broadcasts in 1900. The birth of Readers' Digest In 1922, De Witt and Lila Acheson Wallace used scissors and paste to put together the first issue of their magazine, in a one-room basement office in Greenwich Village. They carried the magazine copies to the post office and mailed them. It was an instant success. The Wallaces were able to start Reader's Digest with almost no money, because they didn't need editors or writers. De Witt simply went to the New York Public Library, and wrote summaries of articles in the magazines there. Reader's Digest became more popular than the magazines it was summarizing. In fact, it was nearly twice as popular as America's second-most popular magazine. Reader's Digest became so popular, that – according to the company's official historian – they had to help the magazines they were summarizing stay in business. To do this, they would write a short summary of an article. They would then write the article and place it in another magazine. At one point, more than half of summaries published in Reader's Digest were of articles they had placed in other magazines. The copy is more real than the original As Boorstin says, ”The image, more interesting than its original, has itself become the original.” The runaway success of Reader's Digest was a symptom that reading had become not about reading – it had instead become about creating the perception of being “well-informed.” People wanted to browse the summaries to feel that they were aware of what information was out there, not to learn anything from the information itself. As the Graphic Revolution and our ability to reproduce images has strengthened, copies have become more real to us than originals. We go to an art exhibit to see the original of the painting we've seen copies of – visitors to a Gauguin exhibit once complained that colors in the original paintings were less-brilliant than the reproductions they were used to. Movies became important in about 1910, often reproducing stories found in novels – by 1917, Publishers' Weekly was writing about “cinema novels.” In the 1880s, you could only enjoy music if you or someone near you was playing an instrument. By the 1930s, Muzak was mashing together 24-hour mixes of sound to be played in businesses as “background music.” At one point, streaming their “muzak” made them the largest user of telephone networks. And yes, bloggers like myself gain traffic by attracting readers to summaries of books, such as The Image, by Daniel J. Boorstin. Images beget images The proliferation of imagery creates demand for that imagery, which drives demand for pseudo-events. This shapes our culture, driving us away from our principles. Pseudo-events are in higher demand than actual spontaneous events for several reasons: Pseudo-events can be planned to be more dramatic. Pseudo-events are easier to spread (you can have the news release ready to go before the pseudo-event happens – Boorstin points out it should be called a news “holdback”). Pseudo-events are easily repeated. Pseudo-events cost money to produce, so there's more incentive to spread them (the publicist wants to show results, the client wants those results, the journalists need something to write about). Pseudo-events make more sense (they are planned, after all). Pseudo-events are more memetic. They have elements people want to spread. Pseudo-events are social currency. Knowing about pseudo-events happening in the world becomes a test of being “informed” – something that's encouraged on the societal level. Pseudo-events spawn other pseudo-events. The effects of pseudo-events As pseudo-events spread in our image-based media, they change what we value in our culture. Pseudo-events affect who we look up to in society, how we travel, and what art we value. Pseudo-events and heroes Pseudo-events shape whom we choose as heroes. We used to choose heroes based upon their accomplishments, and how those accomplishments represented our ideals. Now we choose our heroes based upon how they appear in media – are they in the news a lot, and do they project an image in which we see ourselves? I shared in my Amusing Ourselves to Death summary that early U.S. Presidents wouldn't have been recognized on the street. We didn't know them by their images – we knew them by the words they wrote or said. Demagogues such as Mussolini, Stalin, or Hitler show what we get when we seek someone who fits our image of a “Great Leader.” Today, our heroes are our celebrities. We don't make them famous because they are great – we think they are great because they are famous. Celebrities know that to be celebrities they need to get in the news and stay there. They create pseudo-events of themselves, including intensifying their images by publicizing relationships between one another. Meanwhile, dead people who deserve to be heroes fall into the background – they won't hire a publicist, and journalists get nothing out of writing about them. Pseudo-events and travel Pseudo-events have shaped the way we travel. The word “travel” used to mean the same as “travail.” In other words, travel meant trouble, work, and torment. We love that we can easily get directly to our destination, and bypass any places that might be along the way. We calculate distance not in miles, but in hours. We don't move through space, we move through time. We expect the faraway to be familiar, and we expect the nearby to be exotic. But travel used to be travailing. It meant spending time with strangers and strange cultures. It meant getting lost and being disoriented. But the capital required to build railroads and then highways meant we needed more people traveling. And to get more people to travel, we had to make travel less travailing. Travel has become a tautology. At the time Boorstin wrote The Image, in 1962, that meant traveling to Mount Sinai to see where they filmed the movie The Ten Commandments – or traveling to Rome to see if the Trevi Fountain really looks like it did in the movie Three Coins in the Fountain. Today, we go to see the places we've seen on Instagram, then take a selfie to…post to Instagram. Pseudo-events and movies I already mentioned how novels were made into movies, which then spawned novels written to become movies. The mass-distribution of actors in movies spawned the star system. Movie-goers wanted to see stars with a distinctive look, such as Mary Pickford's golden curls or Charlie Chaplin's bowed legs and cane. By being put on film, actors no longer get direct feedback from their audiences. Actors aren't tested by how well they interpret the story – the story is tested by how well it displays the actor. The “bestselling” book is a pseudo-event The publishing industry became driven by what Boorstin calls best-sellerism. The Bookman was a literary journal that turned the idea of the best-seller into an institution, around the turn of the century. Printing books costs money, so publishers started planning “reprints” before they even released the originals. A paperback publisher wouldn't plan their paperback until they had a contract to print the hardback. The hardback publishers wouldn't print a hardback until they had a contract to print the paperback. Either contract served as evidence the book was popular, which would drive sales. Booksellers only wanted to order new books they were sure would be bestsellers. Yet the public became so obsessed with purchasing bestsellers, bookstores couldn't carry the really big bestsellers. Retail stores like Macy's would sell them below cost to attract customers, thus making bookstores unable to compete. We want to be deceived Pseudo-events are so ubiquitous in every part of our life, we've come to expect them. We actually want to be deceived. We expect the advertising we encounter to be hyperbolic and non-sensical. Maybe we want to see the originals of the photoshopped model not to change our unrealistic expectations, but rather to marvel at the work that goes into deceiving us? Consider that Schlitz advertised their beer bottles were steam-sterilized, which boosted their sales, or that Lucky Strike advertised the tobacco in their cigarettes was toasted. Nevermind that all beer bottles were already steam sterilized, and all cigarettes toasted. The claim by Ivory soap that their soap is 99.4% pure is just a little modest, so as to be believable nonsense. Are we pursuing images, or are we living life? Boorstin may sound like he wants people to get off his lawn – and he does write with a shrill tone much of the time. But much like Marshall McLuhan would say two years later in Understanding Media, which I summarized on episode 248, Boorstin is mostly trying to make us aware of our own illusions. Boorstin's concern is mostly that, “We fill our lives not with experience, but with the images of experience.” Neil Postman later built on Boorstin's ideas to warn in Amusing Ourselves to Death, that image-based media was devolving our discourse into nonsense. A final quote from Boorstin: Chewing gum is the television of the mouth. There is no danger so long as we do not think that by chewing gum we are getting nourishment. But the Graphic Revolution has offered us the means of making all experience a form of mental chewing gum. There's your The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-events in America summary I hope you enjoyed this summary of The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-events in America, and lest your reading experience consist only of summaries, check out the full book. I personally found it to be a great history of media and publishing. It's one of the major classics of media theory – a must-read for anyone who creates media. The Mind Management, Not Time Management audiobook is here! Listen to the Mind Management, Not Time Management audiobook free with an Audible trial, or search for the audiobook on your favorite platform. About Your Host, David Kadavy David Kadavy is author of Mind Management, Not Time Management, The Heart to Start and Design for Hackers. Through the Love Your Work podcast, his Love Mondays newsletter, and self-publishing coaching David helps you make it as a creative. Follow David on: Twitter Instagram Facebook YouTube Subscribe to Love Your Work Apple Podcasts Overcast Spotify Stitcher YouTube RSS Email Support the show on Patreon Put your money where your mind is. Patreon lets you support independent creators like me. Support now on Patreon »     Show notes: http://kadavy.net/blog/posts/the-image-a-guide-to-pseudo-events-in-america-daniel-j-boorstin/

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge.” – Daniel J. Boorstin No one could have predicted the rollercoaster we’ve experienced this year. From scary drops to tremendous rebounds, we’re reminded that diversifying your portfolio is a much sounder strategy than continually preparing for the worst case scenario. Listen […]

"Keep your workout music fresh all year long and crank up this high intensity party for your pavement! This heart pounding playlist will provide you with all the entertainment & motivation you need to amp up your sweat session courtesy of RetroVision, Quizzow, Enzo Darren and so many more! Tracks like ‘Dynamic’ by Qulinez will inspire you to crush your fitness goals! “Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” – Neil Gaiman "Imagination and fiction make up more than three quarters of our real life." – Simone Weil "When one burns one's bridges, what a very nice fire it makes." – Dylan Thomas “You are not hard to love. A mountain does not become small for those who cannot climb.” – Tonya Ingram "The return we reap from generous actions is not always evident." – Francesco Guicciardini "Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be." – Daniel J. Boorstin "The very essence of instinct is that it's followed independently of reason." – Charles Darwin “Words are but pictures of our thoughts." – John Dryden “Don’t treat people as bad as they are, treat them as good as you are.” “Two mental actions can change your life: forgive yourself. Move On.” – Steven Aitchinson “Running, you should know, is a kind of stillness.” – How To Escape from a Leper Colony “I started concentrating so hard on my vision that I lost sight.” – Robin Green 00:00 - Mic Break 01:47 - Ready For The Weekend (Club Mix) - R3hab, NERVO feat. Ayah Marar 06:07 - Venice Beach (Extended Mix) - ReOrder 12:18 - Mic Break 12:28 - Found You (Extended Mix) - RetroVision 16:31 - This Far (ASCO Extended Remix) - Raven & Kreyn feat. Nino Lucarelli 21:21 - Mic Break 21:28 - Past, Present, Future (Festival Mix) - Pulsedriver, Chris Delay, Brooklyn Bounce 26:06 - Dynamic (Original Mix) - Qulinez 31:38 - Mic Break 31:44 - Circa-Forever (Radion6 Extended Remix) - Rapid Eye 37:32 - Psycho Killers (Johan Ekman Remix) - R.E.L.O.A.D. 44:47 - Mic Break 44:55 - Sonorous (Extended Mix) - Quizzow & Leonard A 50:10 - Pegasus (Vigel Extended Remix) - Protoculture 55:03 - Mic Break 55:10 - Bergen (Extended Mix) - Purple Haze 60:29 - Adonis (Original Mix) - Enzo Darren, Delaney Jane 65:45 - Mic Break 65:52 - Overdrive - Protostar feat. Emma McGann 69:38 - teQno (Music Is The Answer) (Extended Mix) - Quintino 74:46 - Mic Break 74:53 - Goddess VIP - Rameses B 79:37 - Ray Of Sunshine (Original Mix) - Raneem 86:52 - Mic Break 86:57 - Sos (Original Mix) - Ralph Good feat. Polina Griffith 92:09 - 002 (Original Mix) - Raito 98:34 - Mic Break 98:39 - I Am Alright (Laurent Wolf Extended Remix) - Nari & Milani feat. Tava 105:30 - All The Time (Original Mix) - My Digital Enemy 110:15 - Mic Break 110:23 - Voices (Tribute To Afrika) (Deep In Congo Mix) - Mr. Pj 115:53 - Uwaye (Original Mix) - Redjesh & Praveen 122:23 - Mic Break 122:30 - Vai Rolar O Som (Afro Remix) - Mustafa 127:41 - Yemaya (Justin Beatz Remix) - Ray MD 133:57 - Shine On (Calvo Extended Remix) - R.I.O. & Madcon 138:16 - Mic Break 138:32 - So Hot (Mac Desi Remix) - R.O.N.N., Ron Carroll, Elektra 144:40 - We Love Music (Main Mix) - Mr. Luu Point 5 The Drumfreak, Rawsoulfuric 151:22 - Mic Break 152:41 - Carrier (Ryan Truman Remix) - Rescue Poetix, Doc Link, Ryan Truman 159:02 - Da Bump - Mr. V feat. Miss Patty 164:02 - Finish "

"Keep your workout music fresh all year long and crank up this high intensity party for your pavement! This heart pounding playlist will provide you with all the entertainment & motivation you need to amp up your sweat session courtesy of RetroVision, Quizzow, Enzo Darren and so many more! Tracks like ‘Dynamic’ by Qulinez will inspire you to crush your fitness goals! “Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” – Neil Gaiman "Imagination and fiction make up more than three quarters of our real life." – Simone Weil "When one burns one's bridges, what a very nice fire it makes." – Dylan Thomas “You are not hard to love. A mountain does not become small for those who cannot climb.” – Tonya Ingram "The return we reap from generous actions is not always evident." – Francesco Guicciardini "Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be." – Daniel J. Boorstin "The very essence of instinct is that it's followed independently of reason." – Charles Darwin “Words are but pictures of our thoughts." – John Dryden “Don’t treat people as bad as they are, treat them as good as you are.” “Two mental actions can change your life: forgive yourself. Move On.” – Steven Aitchinson “Running, you should know, is a kind of stillness.” – How To Escape from a Leper Colony “I started concentrating so hard on my vision that I lost sight.” – Robin Green 00:00 - Mic Break 01:47 - Ready For The Weekend (Club Mix) - R3hab, NERVO feat. Ayah Marar 06:07 - Venice Beach (Extended Mix) - ReOrder 12:18 - Mic Break 12:28 - Found You (Extended Mix) - RetroVision 16:31 - This Far (ASCO Extended Remix) - Raven & Kreyn feat. Nino Lucarelli 21:21 - Mic Break 21:28 - Past, Present, Future (Festival Mix) - Pulsedriver, Chris Delay, Brooklyn Bounce 26:06 - Dynamic (Original Mix) - Qulinez 31:38 - Mic Break 31:44 - Circa-Forever (Radion6 Extended Remix) - Rapid Eye 37:32 - Psycho Killers (Johan Ekman Remix) - R.E.L.O.A.D. 44:47 - Mic Break 44:55 - Sonorous (Extended Mix) - Quizzow & Leonard A 50:10 - Pegasus (Vigel Extended Remix) - Protoculture 55:03 - Mic Break 55:10 - Bergen (Extended Mix) - Purple Haze 60:29 - Adonis (Original Mix) - Enzo Darren, Delaney Jane 65:45 - Mic Break 65:52 - Overdrive - Protostar feat. Emma McGann 69:38 - teQno (Music Is The Answer) (Extended Mix) - Quintino 74:46 - Mic Break 74:53 - Goddess VIP - Rameses B 79:37 - Ray Of Sunshine (Original Mix) - Raneem 86:52 - Mic Break 86:57 - Sos (Original Mix) - Ralph Good feat. Polina Griffith 92:09 - 002 (Original Mix) - Raito 98:34 - Mic Break 98:39 - I Am Alright (Laurent Wolf Extended Remix) - Nari & Milani feat. Tava 105:30 - All The Time (Original Mix) - My Digital Enemy 110:15 - Mic Break 110:23 - Voices (Tribute To Afrika) (Deep In Congo Mix) - Mr. Pj 115:53 - Uwaye (Original Mix) - Redjesh & Praveen 122:23 - Mic Break 122:30 - Vai Rolar O Som (Afro Remix) - Mustafa 127:41 - Yemaya (Justin Beatz Remix) - Ray MD 133:57 - Shine On (Calvo Extended Remix) - R.I.O. & Madcon 138:16 - Mic Break 138:32 - So Hot (Mac Desi Remix) - R.O.N.N., Ron Carroll, Elektra 144:40 - We Love Music (Main Mix) - Mr. Luu Point 5 The Drumfreak, Rawsoulfuric 151:22 - Mic Break 152:41 - Carrier (Ryan Truman Remix) - Rescue Poetix, Doc Link, Ryan Truman 159:02 - Da Bump - Mr. V feat. Miss Patty 164:02 - Finish "

"DJ Meredith motivates you mid-week with the latest Electronica from artists like Afrojack, NLW, Funkstar De Luxe and so many more! Special remixes by Buzz Low & Firebeatz will help you work towards demolishing your fitness goals!! “You know you’re on the right track when you have no interest in looking back.” "Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be." – Daniel J. Boorstin "Words are but pictures of our thoughts." – John Dryden "The very essence of instinct is that it's followed independently of reason." – Charles Darwin 00:00 - Mic Break 01:37 - Weekend - Ben Ambergen & SIMONNE 03:50 - Let It Rip (Buzz Low Extended Remix) - Afrojack & Brohug feat. Titus 07:31 - Candy On The Dancefloor (Extended Remix) - Tujamo 11:46 - Mic Break 11:50 - Soundcontrol (Extended Mix) - Jaxx & Vega vs. SEEQ 15:32 - Mind The Grind (Original Mix) - Dyro 18:36 - We Got The Sound (Original Mix) - Disco Fries, Big Nab 23:07 - My Whistle (Extended Mix) - Tiesto & Sikdope 26:28 - Mic Break 26:35 - Hydra (Extended Mix) - NLW & Blinders 30:22 - Sun Is Shining (Firebeatz Extended Remix) - Funkstar De Luxe 34:48 - Find You (Original Mix) - Melsen 37:10 - Real Love (Extended Mix) - Asketa & Natan Chaim feat. Kyle Reynolds 41:06 - Mic Break 41:11 - Let’s Get Widdey (Extended Mix) - NO SIGNE 44:52 - Work (Extended Mix) - MOTI 48:25 - ResuRection (Maurice West Extended Remix) - Planet Perfecto Knights 53:15 - Mic Break 53:30 - Do It (Extended Mix) - Modern Machines 56:53 - Money (Extended Mix) - Sunstars 60:12 - Mic Break 61:30 - Move It (Extended Mix) - Jaded 65:05 - Finish "

"DJ Meredith motivates you mid-week with the latest Electronica from artists like Afrojack, NLW, Funkstar De Luxe and so many more! Special remixes by Buzz Low & Firebeatz will help you work towards demolishing your fitness goals!! “You know you’re on the right track when you have no interest in looking back.” "Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be." – Daniel J. Boorstin "Words are but pictures of our thoughts." – John Dryden "The very essence of instinct is that it's followed independently of reason." – Charles Darwin 00:00 - Mic Break 01:37 - Weekend - Ben Ambergen & SIMONNE 03:50 - Let It Rip (Buzz Low Extended Remix) - Afrojack & Brohug feat. Titus 07:31 - Candy On The Dancefloor (Extended Remix) - Tujamo 11:46 - Mic Break 11:50 - Soundcontrol (Extended Mix) - Jaxx & Vega vs. SEEQ 15:32 - Mind The Grind (Original Mix) - Dyro 18:36 - We Got The Sound (Original Mix) - Disco Fries, Big Nab 23:07 - My Whistle (Extended Mix) - Tiesto & Sikdope 26:28 - Mic Break 26:35 - Hydra (Extended Mix) - NLW & Blinders 30:22 - Sun Is Shining (Firebeatz Extended Remix) - Funkstar De Luxe 34:48 - Find You (Original Mix) - Melsen 37:10 - Real Love (Extended Mix) - Asketa & Natan Chaim feat. Kyle Reynolds 41:06 - Mic Break 41:11 - Let’s Get Widdey (Extended Mix) - NO SIGNE 44:52 - Work (Extended Mix) - MOTI 48:25 - ResuRection (Maurice West Extended Remix) - Planet Perfecto Knights 53:15 - Mic Break 53:30 - Do It (Extended Mix) - Modern Machines 56:53 - Money (Extended Mix) - Sunstars 60:12 - Mic Break 61:30 - Move It (Extended Mix) - Jaded 65:05 - Finish "

REFLECTION QUOTES “Each of us is a singular narrative, which is constructed, continually, unconsciously, by, through, and in us—through our perceptions, our feelings, our thoughts, our actions; and, not least, our discourse, our spoken narrations.” ~Oliver Sacks (1933- 2015), famed neurologist “The reason why the theme of repentance is neglected…[is because it means] reshaping your life in quite a radical way. And people, just because they find it too costly of a prospect, …try to devise a way of being ‘Christian' which doesn't involve anything… radical….” “There is tremendous relief in knowing His love to me is utterly realistic, based at every point on prior knowledge of the worst about me….” ~J.I. Packer, British-born theologian “Man is not what he thinks he is, he is what he hides.” ~André Malraux (1901-1976), French novelist and Minister of Cultural Affairs “We suffer primarily not from our vices or our weaknesses, but from our illusions. We are haunted, not by reality, but by those images we have put in their place.” “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance—it is the illusion of knowledge.” ~Daniel J. Boorstin (1914-2004), professor at University of Chicago and the twelfth Librarian of the United States Congress (1975-1987) “‘Is God trying to get my attention by making my life harder or something?' I said. Blowing out smoke between questions, said out loud but mainly meant for God to hear and relent. ‘I mean, does God want me that much?' As grace would have it, He did.” ~Jackie Hill-Perry, poet and writer “We must allow the Word of God to confront us, to disturb our security, to undermine our complacency and to overthrow our patterns of thought and behavior.” ~John R.W. Stott (1921-2011), noted English clergyman and theologian SERMON PASSAGE Genesis 32:9-12, 22-32 (ESV) 9 And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, that I may do you good,' 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. 11 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him, that he may come and attack me, the mothers with the children. 12 But you said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.'” 22 The same night he arose and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 He took them and sent them across the stream, and everything else that he had. 24 And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. 25 When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob's hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.” 31 The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the people of Israel do not eat the sinew of the thigh that is on the hip socket, because he touched the socket of Jacob's hip on the sinew of the thigh.

Writer and director Peter Hedges on Daniel J. Boorstin's The Image, writing What's Eating Gilbert Grape, and the power of books in our darkest moments. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Why I Wake Early by Mary Oliver, An Ocean in Iowa and What's Eating Gilbert Grape by Peter Hedges, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton, and Daniel J. Boorstin's The Image. You can find transcripts of this episode and past ones on LitHub. Check out the podcast Get Booked, and the Start Doing collection and Nine Perfect Strangers from Macmillan Audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

https://wisdom-trek.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Wisdom-Unplugged2.png () Wisdom-Trek / Creating a LegacyWelcome to Day 452 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to WisdomInvest in Yourself – Wisdom Unpluggedhttps://wisdom-trek.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Invest-in-yourself2.jpg () Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 452 of our trek, and it is Thursday and time for our 3-minute mini-trek called Wisdom Unplugged. This short nugget of wisdom includes an inspirational quote with a little additional content for today's trek. Consider this your vitamin supplement of wisdom each Tuesday and Thursday. So, let's jump right in with today's nugget. Today's quote is from Daniel J. Boorstin, who says, “Books are the main source of our knowledge, our reservoir of first faith, memory, wisdom, morality, poetry, philosophy, history, and science.” Have you read a good book lately? If not you are missing out on the potential for self-development that could be yours. Books, in whatever format that you prefer, will open a universe of knowledge to you that you will otherwise miss. With the resources that we have available on the internet today, there are virtually no barriers and the investment is very low, other than the time that you invest in improving yourself. An investment in yourself will always have a significant return. There are no limits to what you can learn and what you can become except for the limits that you place on yourself. As God instructed Joshua, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” https://wisdom-trek.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Invest.jpg () That's a wrap for today's Wisdom Unplugged. If you would like access to my database of over 10,000 inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of https://wisdom-trek.com (Wisdom-Trek.com). As you enjoy these nuggets of wisdom, encourage your friends and family to join us, and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy. Thank you for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most importantly, your friend as I serve you through the Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal each day. As we take this trek of life together, let us always: Live Abundantly (Fully) Love Unconditionally Listen Intentionally Learn Continuously Lend to others Generously Lead with Integrity Leave a Living Legacy Each Day This is Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Every Day! See you tomorrow for Philosophy Friday!

Amelia Earhart, Aviation Pioneer   "Never interrupt someone doing something you said couldn’t be done.”   In the 19th century. It was thought by experts that going at speeds of over 30 miles an hour on railroad trains would induce suffocation. I am assuming that this was because the normal force of outward breath was less than the pressure of air rushing by at high speeds. This actually is logical in the absence of experimentation. I am assuming the only persons who had gone faster were those who had fallen from great heights, and they weren’t talking. Later it was proven to be just so much rubbish, and now we travel much faster with no ill effects other than the occasional bug on the windshield.  Sailing past the edge of the world that was thought to be flat, crossing the sound barrier, reaching the moon, and a myriad of other amazing things were once thought to be impossible, but humans surpassed their fear and reached these milestones, and lived. Humans who are less brave have a long history of predicting dire consequences when others are attempting something they are too afraid to try.  Those who spend so much time predicting doom and gloom are not going to accomplish much. Those who quietly experiment and work toward that “unreachable” goal, will have much more success. Remember, bravery is not the absence of fear, it is being afraid and pushing through that fear to accomplish the goal.   President of the United States, John Quincy Adams said: “Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.”   Don’t discount the value of discovery. Many of us are afraid to try things because we don’t know everything about the subject. It actually has nothing to do with being an expert. It doesn’t mean it can’t be done. It only means it hasn’t been accomplished YET. Learn what you need along the way, once you have set that theoretically unreachable goal. Don’t listen to those who know it can’t be done. They may have had the ability to innovate educated right out of them. You believe it can be learned and accomplished. Go for it.   “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge.” Daniel J. Boorstin     Amelia Earhart: The Official Site   Amelia Earhart on Wikipedia ----------------------------------     Samuel L. Jackson, Actor   “What kills me is that everybody thinks I like jazz.”   When humans meet each other, they feel the need to put others in a box for their own comfort. Stereotyping is something that we invent on our own. The fewer boxes we have to slot others into, the easier it is for us. Unfortunately, this makes it much harder for those we stuff into those boxes. According to Dictionary.com, a stereotype in culture is defined as: A too simple and therefore distorted image of a group. Believing that all old people are a certain way, all young people think this, all of a particular race have this habit, or rich people are all waiting to victimize any poor person that is out after dark, is simply wrong. Why not meet someone and reserve judgement  until the new person has proven what they REALLY are? It is a lot harder than you think to find two people who are exactly alike.  I was raised in a family with 5 boys, and no girls. One would think being raised in the same environment with the same parents would cause us to be identical. Not true. First of all, we each have a different turn to our personalities, and birth order has a lot to do with different pressures that shaped our lives and attitudes. Some live in town, some in the suburbs, and I like living out in the country. We have many different interests, and find that when one of us encounters a problem, we know who is best in a particular area, and we are each ready to listen to the expertise of the other. In the real world, I don’t like being told what I am thinking or what my value system must be because of what I appear to be. “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” is really good advice in this case. Read the person over time and learn what they are really like. Don’t let your preconceived notions box them in and don’t attempt to force them into behaviors they find alien, just to make yourself more comfortable. There are so many variations in thought and experience that new people can’t help but be interesting if you are open to listen and learn about them. The people I find the most interesting are those who have had the most different lives than what I have lived. How boring would life be if everyone were just like you, or at least could fit into the few little categories we each have created in our minds to keep everything nice and tidy. It’s only so our ways of thinking won’t be challenged by meeting someone who behaves differently than we think they should. Let’s let everyone be who they really are, and let them show us themselves. Don’t try to make it up for them. Let them be who they are.     A final quote: “Acceptance is not love. You love a person because he or she has lovable traits, but you accept everybody just because they're alive and human.” Albert Ellis   Samuel L. Jackson on International Movie Database   Samuel L. Jackson on Twitter   --------------------------------------------------------------- SUBSCRIBE!  iTunes  Stitcher  Tunein     CHECK US OUT ON   Facebook  Twitter  Tumblr

Today's buzz: Empowering managers. Want to improve your organization's performance management? If you're focusing on HR processes, but not your managers' POV or day-to-day style, listen-up! SAP and Baylor University researchers studied best practices, tools, and processes that empower natural manager behavior to make better performance-based job assignments, promotions, and pay decisions. The experts speak. Dr. Gary Carini, Baylor: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard…” (John F. Kennedy). Hannah King, Baylor MBA: “Nothing is more unequal than the equal treatment of unequal people” (Thomas Jefferson). Kevin Mitchell, Baylor MBA: “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge” (Daniel J. Boorstin). Dr. Gabriela Burlacu, SAP: “When you win, sometimes it overshadows a poor performance” (Duke's “Coach K”). Join us for Employee Performance: Empowering Managers.

Today's buzz: Empowering managers. Want to improve your organization's performance management? If you're focusing on HR processes, but not your managers' POV or day-to-day style, listen-up! SAP and Baylor University researchers studied best practices, tools, and processes that empower natural manager behavior to make better performance-based job assignments, promotions, and pay decisions. The experts speak. Dr. Gary Carini, Baylor: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard…” (John F. Kennedy). Hannah King, Baylor MBA: “Nothing is more unequal than the equal treatment of unequal people” (Thomas Jefferson). Kevin Mitchell, Baylor MBA: “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge” (Daniel J. Boorstin). Dr. Gabriela Burlacu, SAP: “When you win, sometimes it overshadows a poor performance” (Duke's “Coach K”). Join us for Employee Performance: Empowering Managers.

This Podcast Is Episode Number 0102 And It Will Be About The Top Ten Myths Of  Construction Bookkeeping Over The Past Few Decades We Have Heard And Read Some Really Good Construction Bookkeeping Myths And Legends And Here Are A Few #10 "I thought the QuickBooks website said that QuickBooks was easy to setup and use" #09 "Since it has Quick in the name then of course QuickBooks is easy, why else would they do that?" #08 "I know how to write checks and balance my bank statement so how hard can it be to use QuickBooks" #07 "I attended a full day QuickBooks class and got this pretty paper certificate that says I know QuickBooks"  #06 "I've been doing bookkeeping for over twenty years and you can't teach me nothing I don't already know" #05 "I have worked at a bank for over ten years and seen hundreds of financial statements so I can use QuickBooks" #04 "I am a C.P.A. and I know everthing about accounting, so doing the bookkeeping for a contractor child's play" #03 "I have lots of experience because the last four contractors I did bookkeeping for all filed for bankruptcy"   #02 "I took an accounting course in college so doing the bookkeeping for a construction company can't be that hard" #01 "I have a degree in accounting which I have never used, but I can do contractor bookkeeping how hard can it be?" We have heard hundreds more similar to the ones shown above; however, these are the top ten from number ten who will do the least damage to number one who will, has and does the most damage of all. As Daniel J. Boorstin said "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge." I find the more I learn about construction accounting the more there is about that I don't know. This is why everyone working here at Fast Easy Accounting are continually learning and updating our skills. And that is why we specialize in contractor bookkeeping services and only allow a few highly qualified business owners who are not directly involved in construction to be a part of this exclusive club. Do we cost more than most other bookkeepers and bookkeeping firms? That depends on what you want. If you want to spend as little as possible on your contractor bookkeeping services search Craigslist they have hundreds of them. I know this because we fix a lot of their QuickBooks setup messes.  If you want to hire a bookkeper employee consider these three important things: #1 - It will cost more than you think and you will still need outside accounting help! #2 - Bookkeeper embezzlement is on the rise! #3 - You need to invest at least $10,000 in hardware and software or you will pay for it in bookkeeper labor! the graphic below which shows that an in-house bookkeeper paid $15.00 an hour will end up costing you $25.29 per hour! And in most cases we can do the job for less money, faster and more accurately with a team of people, each one specializing in different areas of construction accounting and contractor bookkeeping services. #1 - Fully Burdened Bookkeeper Cost Simply means what it will cost you to hire someone including the company portion of the payroll taxes and all those little costs that only an accountant like me would think about. The example below shows a part-time in-house bookkeeper at $15.00 an hour working 10 hours a week. Notice this poor soul does not have any benefits at all and they still cost the company $25.29 per hour! For more on this please visit www.FastEasyAccounting.com/bc These costs do not include heavy training for your bookkeeper; read The Nine Steps for more information on this. The two happiest days in a construction company owner's life is the day he hires a bookkeeper and the day he outsources his bookkeeping. Generally speaking we know from our research a typical contractor with 2-4 employees and annual sales of $500,000 will need at least a part-time bookkeeper for 10 hours a week and they will try to get away with only paying them $15.00 an hour plus overhead and it will cost their construction company approximately $13,000 - $15,000 a year and most of the time they will still overpay their taxes, have bad or non-existent financial and Job Costing Reports. But you’d still need an in-house bookkeeper, right? Well… perhaps not. See, outsourcing is often interesting in that, while you still need administrative resources, they can be less skilled. They don’t need to have any contractors bookkeeping service skills to pick up the mail, make bank deposits, print checks, which can be done on your local computer even with QuickBooks Desktop version in the cloud. It’s likely a part-time office assistant could do that in addition to other duties and errands. #2 - Bookkeeper Embezzlement Is On The Rise Due to the ever increasing belief in "redistrubution of the wealth", the ever increaseing rise of "entitlement mentality" and general feeling that workers are being taken advantage of by their bosses and business owners a lot more office employees are stealing more than ever, and it will only get worse. The least costly embezzlement is that on average office workers are spending two hours a day on personal errands, phone calls, Facebook, twitter, youtube, personal email, cyber shopping and other social media and at $25.29 per hour it costs construction company owners like you $50.58 a day! If your contracting company earns 10% net profit, which is over four times the national average, that means you must sell, produce work and collect $505.80 a day to make up for the loss! Every Ten Minutes Your Bookkeeper Is Costing You $4.21 The most costly embezzlement could destroy your business and personal finances. There are Twenty One Signs Of Bookkeeper Embezzlement and if you have an in house bookkeeper you need to study them carefully and be on gaurd against all of them. Click here to learn more. You may be surprised to learn who the biggest most frequent offenders are and how easily they avoid prosecution. #3 - Invest At Least $10,000 In Hardware And Software 1.Desk, Chair and starter pack of office supplies = $1,200 +/- 2.High-speed desktop computer with lots of power custom built = $2,000 +/- 3.Minnimum two computer monitors with high resolution = $1,000 +/- 4.Computer network system (hardwired and wireless capable) = $2,000 5.Laserjet Printer = $500 +/- 6.Highspeed Scanner = $500 +/- 7.QuickBooks for Contractors software = $350 +/- 8.Microsoft Office Professional Software = $500 +/- 9.Acrobat Pro Software = $450 +/- 10.Other assorted software = $1,500 +/- You do not have to invest anything more than a few dollars and get the cheapest hardware and software you can find and you will save money in the short run; however, in the long run it will cost you dearly. If you bookkeeper wastes a two hours a day trying to get cheap worn out office equipment to do your contractor bookkeeping could cost your contracting company $3,287.16 a year! At 10% Profit You Need $32,871.60 More Sales To Maintain Your Profit Margin! In Some Cases - We can do more work for less money by providing you with real construction bookkeeping and accounting + payroll processing + monthly and quarterly tax reports + year end W-2, W-3 + profit and growth management consulting + financial and job costing reports + paperless data storage and more at a lower overall cost and as an added bonus show you how to make more money than you are now! I trust this podcast helps you understand that outsourcing your contractors bookkeeping services to us is about more than just “doing the bookkeeping”; it is about taking holistic approach to your entire construction company and helping support you as a contractor and as a person. We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations We understand the good, bad and the ugly about owning and operating construction companies because we have had several of them and we sincerely care about you and your construction company! That is all I have for now and if you have listened this far please do me the honor of commenting and rating podcast www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast Tell me what you liked, did not like, tell it as you see it because your feedback is crucial and I thank you in advance. You Deserve To Be Wealthy, Because You Bring Value To Other People's Lives! I trust this will be of value to you and your feedback is always welcome at www.FastEasyAccounting.com/podcast This is one more example of how Fast Easy Accounting is helping construction company owners across the USA including Alaska and Hawaii put more money in the bank to operate and grow your construction company. Construction accounting is not rocket science; it is a lot harder than that and a lot more valuable to construction contractors like you so stop missing out and call Sharie 206-361-3950 or email sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com Thinking About Outsourcing Your Contractors Bookkeeping Services? Click On The Link Below: www.FastEasyAccounting.com/hs Need Help Now? Call Sharie 206-361-3950 sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com In closing, I want to caution you that we may or may not be a good fit for your contracting company. This guide will help you learn what to look for in outsourced construction accounting. Thank you very much and I hope you understand we really do care about you and all contractors regardless of whether or not you ever hire our services.Bye for now until our next episode here on the Contractors Success MAP Podcast. Warm Regards, Randal DeHart | Contractors Accountant We Remove Contractor's Unique Paperwork Frustrations

Check out this quote from Daniel J. Boorstin. He said,"The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge." How often have we kidded ourselves that we knew something only to get more data or evidence later that made it clear we didn't have the full story? It happens all the time. Probably more than we realize. I find a related observation when it comes to attention. We think we see the world or situations or people clearly but inevitably it's all being filtered through lenses. It could be argued that we have an illusion of observation. Have you ever seen the famous video that asks you to count the number of times a basketball is passed between a group of college students? Check it out: {youtube}vJG698U2Mvo{/youtube} Interesting, eh? Selective attention is alive and well, and for all of us who desire to lead and deliver, we need to be acutely aware of how it works. In this premium episode I want to take time to highlight some points from the interview with Cathy to help you put the learning into action. First, let's start getting our arms wrapped around Cathy's point that our schools and workplaces are often more designed for the early 20th century instead of the 21st. We may not have control of how your schooling was structured, but let's start thinking about how we best go about helping ourselves and our team learn and work going forward. How about finding ways to embrace collaborative technologies in new and interesting ways instead of making people check them at the door? For example, typical meeting protocol is to discourage people from using their laptops and cell phones during meetings. But why not encourage people to be texting and chatting during meetings, especially virtual ones? If this seems dangerous or rude or a recipe for chaos for meetings, that's OK. It's the years of conditioning that we've had! IBM has found that by actively encouraging chatting during virtual meetings, it keeps people more engaged. I've experimented with this myself and found that it can significantly change the culture of web-based meetings for the positive. In Cathy's book she lays out a strong case for how IBM uses "backchanneling" to leverage technology in meetings. Second, and related, here's a tip I learned years ago. If people are moving their attention to their laptops or other devices, it may not just be that they're rude. That's a possibility, of course, but here's my point: it just be that the meeting is boring and irrelevant. I've learned that if someone isn't paying attention when I'm facilitating, the problem may not be them: it may be me! Find ways to more fully engage people. Maybe a different venue? Maybe on Second Life! How about this? I love using Poll Everywhere to allow people to respond to a poll by texting their responses. It's an expensive tool and shows results real time. I love it! It's fun and engaging. Let's realize that asking people to check their electronics at the door causes us to miss opportunities to engage them. Third, a proven project management and leadership principle is to involve others in the planning. I've often said we need to make sure that n is greater than one! But the point brought up in the discussion with Cathy is that it shouldn't just be "in addition to me" but also "different from me." Diversity of thought is not just something to do because it's politically correct. It's just plain more effective. Cathy's organization calls it collaboration by difference. As she mentions in the interview, we often say we want diversity of thought, skills, and opinions, but then we recruit in our own image. Whether at work or in our personal lives, there is value in collaboration by difference: surrounding ourselves with people who don't just look, think, and see the same as we do. Fourth, remember that technology is here to serve us, not the other way around. If you're finding that social networking or your handheld device or some new software tool is chewing up too much of your time, the problem may not be the technology. It might just be you. We need new habits for the new technology. I've found this simple little cube timer is a handy way to block out some time to focus on one thing. When it goes off, then I can (in Tony Schwartz's terms) pulse to something else. In some situations I find it best to close my web browser or shut down my mail client. At times I completely turn off my phone. I love Cathy's idea of using a different computer for some of the more fun things, or at least get up and move as part of your switching. Make the technology work for you. It's not the enemy—we just need new habits. Finally, as much as interruptions from others is frustrating, remember what Cathy and I talked about regarding Gloria Mark's research on distractions. 44% of the distractions didn't come from others. Rather, it came from us. As Cathy said, "Heartache and heartburn are more distracting than technology!" Work on calming your own distractions. I'm finding that using a Kanban board is helping me and my family stay focused on the most important projects at work and home. David Allen's teaching on getting things out of our mind and onto a list can be helpful as well. Realize that we are often our own distraction problem. Cathy's book isn't for everyone, but the lessons are relevant for us all. If you are particularly interested in how to improve education and the workplace to be better prepared for today's demands, I recommend you get a copy of Cathy's book. What's a challenge you're having in managing your attention? Send me an e-mail at andy@i-leadonline.com. I love hearing from Premium Subscribers. Hey, the People and Projects Podcast is now on Facebook! I invite you to Like us at http://www.facebook.com/pages/People-and-Projects-Podcast/224005747630357 and join the discussion. Thank you for being a premium subscriber to The People and Projects Podcast! Please let me know what questions you have and if there's anything I can do to help you lead and deliver. Thank you for joining me for this premium episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! Total Duration 6:54 Download the premium episode

Looking to make a change? Remember: transformation happens experientially, not intellectually. We often receive instruction and agree, “I see what you're saying,” but seldom do we actually do the thing we learned. We just agree with it in our minds. This is a problem. Daniel J. Boorstin said, “The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance – it is the illusion of knowledge.” Boorstin's statement becomes particularly poignant when you learn that he graduated with highest honors from Harvard, was a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford and earned his PhD at Yale. By occupation he was a lawyer, a university professor and the U.S. Librarian of Congress from 1975 to 1987. Yet Boorstin warned us that the illusion of knowledge was the greatest impediment to discovery. Are you willing to go exploring with Boorstin and Dewar and Michener and me? Tommy Dewar said, “Exploration makes one wiser; even if the only wisdom gained is to know where not to return.” James Michener won the Pulitzer Prize in 1948 for his book, Tales of the South Pacific. He went on to earn more than one hundred million dollars as the author of more than 40 novels. In his memoirs – published just a year before he died at the age of 90 – Michener wrote, “I feel almost a blood relationship with all the artists in all the mediums, for I find that we face the same problems but solve them in our own ways. When young people in my writing classes, for example, ask what subjects they should study to become writers, I surprise them by replying: ‘Ceramics and eurhythmic dancing.' When they look surprised I explain: ‘Ceramics so you can feel form evolving through your fingertips molding the moist clay, and eurhythmic dancing so you can experience the flow of motion through your body. You might develop a sense of freedom that way.'” – This Noble Land, chap.10 Michener, a novelist to whose success George Washington testified one hundred million times, instructed thousands of aspiring young writers during his years at the University of Texas and he gave each student the same advice. But do you suppose any of them actually took classes in ceramics and eurhythmic dancing? I doubt it. Would you have done what Michener said? Or would you have thought, “I get it,” and then walked on to seek advice from other experts? Would you have allowed the illusion of knowledge to rob you of http://wizardacademy.org/scripts/openExtra.asp?extra=39 (the joy of discovery?) Roy H. Williams

This year's Reith lecturer is distinguished Professor of American history, Dr Daniel J Boorstin, the twelfth Librarian of Congress. In his Reith lectures, entitled 'America and the World Experience', he explores how the USA developed into the superpower it is today. In this first lecture entitled 'The Birth of Exploration', Dr Boorstin explains why the desire to journey to new and undiscovered lands was important in the development of the United States of America. He considers the difference between a 'frontier' and 'the wilderness' for the first colonisers of the continent and explains how a community spirit of adventure made it all possible.