Our elected leaders are telling us we need to tighten our belts.

Here are the concessions I’ve made in this bad economy:

·        the hinge on my phone broke two months ago and I am still using it;

·        I am near bald and no longer see the wisdom of paying someone else to “buzz-cut” my hair.

So, apparently it is my earnest belief that I can survive this current economic cycle; pay my mortgage, send my kids to college, and retire wealthy simply by NOT buying a new cell phone and NOT paying the roughly $12 per month that I spent on haircuts in my formerly-financially reckless days!  Read the rest of this entry »

Many, many years ago I sat around with an old grad-school buddy as we shared a dream sequence about our careers.

Both of us had significant achievements and accomplishments within our respective careers and had a vision of one day working together as consultants.

Our relationship started on the day of my first graduate school exam!  There I sat in the back (always the back!) of the classroom ready to take an exam in “Principles of Accounting.”  This was fairly significant as my bachelor’s degree was in Nursing, this was my first true ‘business’ course. 

The professor handed out the exam with this foreboding cautionary suggestion; “when calculating your accruals, make certain you take into consideration how many days are in a month.”  Read the rest of this entry »

“No seriously!”

That was a tag-line I used back in my stand-up days.  I would make an outlandish statement and then, as if to make it funnier, I would say, “No, Seriously!”  Pause, delay, “you’re right, I’m just kidding.   That’s my job!”

Back in the 1980’s I cut my teeth as a stand-up comic at Charm City Comedy Club with the likes of Dan Rosen (Writer and Producer of major motion pictures; “Dead Man’s Curve!”, “The Last Supper”), and Warren Hutcherson (Executive Producer of the Bernie Mac Show) were in my wedding;  FOX Television Entertainment reporter Bill McCuddy and I used to compete in talent competitions (he always won!).

It was my distinct pleasure to know a young Jeff Caldwell  (www.Standupguy.com) back in the day when he was more of a Hopkins Grad-student than “America’s Best Touring Comic” in the words of, yes, David Letterman.   Read the rest of this entry »

In the immortal words of LL Cool J, “Mama said Knock you out!”

The lyrics of this rap make LL Cool J sound like a tough guy!   But one of the lines tells the truth; “Old English filled my mind and I came up with a funky rhyme.”   The Old English is reference to a 22-oz Malt Liquor and the funky rhyme is the vehicle he used to try and project a tough persona.

Is this how you are confronting issues?

Do you get yourself all worked up and then spout off?  Read the rest of this entry »