Tag: your job

This is still broken

Posted on by Carl Weber

I couldn’t help but count. I was waiting for my friend at a popular coffee shop.

Nine out of every ten cars. Including my friend.

They all drove over the curb. It seemed odd at first, but it was almost every car.

There was both surprise and panic on each driver’s face. “What just happened?”

Various degrees of possible damage to cars. Especially the low ones and to rims.

The sudden jolt of the SUVs going “off road.” Not so smooth when jumping the curb.

I couldn’t help but think of that TED talk.

Almost 20 years ago, Seth Godin gave a talk called “This is Broken.” It is easy to see things broken all around us after watching.

Seth gave examples of things broken for various reasons, including “not my job.”

This popular coffee shop has a problem. The parking lot is tight.

Customers are damaging their vehicles. The curbing and layout were part of a plan.

The plan was approved and met some standard. The reality is different than what was planned.

The plan is no longer working. Someone decided to put a large cement paver in that space to help ease the pain of each curb jump. To mitigate the issue.

This is Still Broken. The original design is not working.

Yet, it will be someone’s job to repair the curbing, and perhaps periodically replace the cement paver.

Yet, it will be someone’s job to fix rims, and pull dents.

Yet, it will be someone’s job to reply to possible claims.

But, whose job is it to fix this?

Whose job is it to develop better designs and regulations?

Whose job is to find what is broken and offer solutions?

Look around you (especially after you watch Seth’s talk). You may be surprised what is broken around you.

(Warning: you cannot unsee this video and you will notice everything that is broken!)

You will see what others can’t.

You will notice what is broken.

And, it just might be your job to fix it!

What did you want to be when you were a kid?

Posted on by Carl Weber

I was meeting with someone the other day who is moving away and making some life changes because their spouse’s job requires it.  During our meeting, we discussed careers and how the recent changes were about to create a real directional shift.  What started as a series of questions regarding their current field took an interesting turn.

 “Are you going to try to find a job in your field?”

“I am not sure, I have been doing this for a while.”

“Well, what did you want to be when you were a kid?”

It is a pretty simple question, but a stunned silence filled the next few moments.  Their face said it all.  There was something deep down that had been with them since their youth, but had not been uttered in years.

“I wanted to be an Egyptologist.”

The remainder of our time together included trying to figure out just exactly how an elementary kid even knew that that job existed.  We tried to determine how long this job idea continued.  It appears to have continued through the beginning of high school.  But reality set in later in school, and the pursuit of more concrete and practical jobs prevailed.  I could see by the spark and enthusiasm that came alive at the mention of this forgotten dream that it still held some power.

“So, where you are going, do they have a good museum?” I asked.

“Yes, yes they do.  Maybe I can try to get a job with them, or at the very least, volunteer some time.”

“Great idea.”

What did YOU want to be when you were a kid?  A pilot, an astronaut, a teacher, a writer, a baker, a dancer, an artist, a hero…an Egyptologist?  It is not too late to reach towards the dream of your youth.  Maybe just remembering will provide the spark you need to try something new.  Go ahead, the world is waiting for you.