Monthly Archives: August 2018

Rest in Peace… Senator John McCain…

Published August 27, 2018 | By daryl

As an Arizona resident, John McCain has been my Senator for 22 years. I did not always agree with him, but I always had great respect for him.

I was greatly annoyed by the smear by “W” against him in South Carolina in 2000, when the story was spread that he had fathered a black child. I was in South Carolina at the time on business, and saw the local news stories.

The truth is he and his wife had adopted an infant with a birth defect from Bangladesh. She was their youngest daughter. In spite of the racist lie, he was gracious in the resulting loss of the primary.

Although I never met Senator McCain, his office responded quickly and politely whenever I wrote about an issue — even when we disagreed. Not always true of other politicians.

Here is a favorite personal McCain story:

Shortly after moving to Arizona from Minnesota, I found myself sitting behind the late Senator Paul Wellstone (MN) on a flight to Minneapolis. BTW, we were both in coach. Wellstone, like McCain, was not pretentious.

As we were retrieving our bags from overhead, I told Senator Wellstone I was a former constituent, as well as an admirer of his willingness to fight for what he deemed right.

He asked where I now lived, and I replied “Arizona — where the politics are clearly not the same as Minnesota.” I’d already seen enough of Arizona politics to make me question my move.

Wellstone thought a minute, and then replied, “You know, you have a good man there in John McCain.” Political opposites, both often worked together with mutual respect.

As I soon learned, Wellstone was right. McCain spoke truth to those in power. He condemned torture, spoke out against racism (No ma’am, Senator Obama is not an Arab…), and criticized dirty politicians.

He was truly an officer and a gentleman, an increasingly rare breed.

Rest in peace, Senator McCain.

P.S. Sorry if I stepped on any political toes (no, not really…) As consultants, we often need to “call them as we seem them” … just as John McCain did.

Posted in Anecdotes & Musings, Rants | Leave a comment

Tell stories … not just facts…

Published August 20, 2018 | By daryl

This post was inspired by Michael Katz, Chief Penguin of Blue Penguin Development. I subscribe to his free bi-monthly newsletter, and suggest you do so too. Great marketing ideas (and even classes) for solo entrepreneurs.

In a recent newsletter, Michael opened with this great story, where he recommended using stories to illustrate ideas. Since I like and use stories in my training classes, I sent him the following comment:

Hi Michael,

Here is a quick story. I’ve been telling stories as real world examples in my engineering training classes for many years. But I often wondered if it was effective or just boring people.

That was until Phoenix blogging colleague and friend Pamela Slim pointed out research showing we humans remember stories even if we forget facts.

So I started telling people at the beginning of the class that I would illustrate key points with stories, and why I was doing so.

End of class reviews typically include comments like “loved the stories; great stories, and more.” So I no longer worry.

Which brings me to another quick story. As an engineering student 50+ years ago (where has the time gone?) a favorite professor told the story of a researcher at Bell Labs who discovered a new semiconductor electronics effect.

What made the story interesting was the researcher had a PhD in forestry – he was originally hired to study telephone poles.

At the next exam, the prof asked about the “XYZ” effect. For some reason I could not remember, but I wrote it was discovered by a Bell Labs researcher with a PhD in forestry.

The prof gave me full credit with a note on the exam saying “not the answer I was looking for, but you were obviously listening in class.”

He had many other fascinating stories that I still remember, and think of him whenever I tell a technical story in my classes.

Thanks for sharing your stories!

Just got back from a class. Many positive comments about the stories, and how much students appreciated my sharing real world experiences, rather than just pumping out facts and equations.

Stories also work with general consulting recommendations. They can prove a point, while also reinforcing your credibility. Sometimes you need to convince a client to try something they don’t really want to do — success stories can help!

More MichaelKatz info here:

Resource Review – The Likable Expert Gazette (January 2013)

Writing Magazine Articles – An Interview with the Blue Penguin… (September 2016)

Some Marketing References… (September 2017)

Join us TONIGHT (8/20/18) for the FREE Monthly Teleconference

“Ask Daryl Anything About Consulting”
Register here
Bring you questions, or just listen and learn from others

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Do You Have The Courage To Quit Your Job?

Published August 6, 2018 | By daryl

So asked fellow blogger Cubert at Abandoned Cubicle in a recent post. Cubert is a 40 something engineer who is (by design) a year from Financial Independence and retirement.

In this post, he expresses concerns about being bored and more in retirement. Perfectly normal to get the jitters as one approaches the cliff. Remember the same feelings myself, but with the parachute strapped on my back, I JumpedToConsulting and never looked back.

Here are my comments of encouragement:

Quit my corporate job 31 years ago to start an engineering consulting practice. It has been a blast, and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Was it retirement? No, but it WAS freedom from the cubicle and all the attendant corporate BS. On second thought, maybe it was a form of early retirement.

And while now winding down in my 70s, I still do 6-8 projects a year — of my choosing. Keeps me professionally engaged and brings in fun money.

Did I miss the paychecks? No. While the business income fluctuated, I drew a modest fixed salary and watched expenses like a hawk. Banked the profits in investments and tax deferred retirement accounts.

To begin, I stashed away enough to go six months without pay, but never needed it. Was back to my old paycheck level in a year, and exceeded it soon after. Was fully financially independent in a few short years.

Did I miss the routine? Hell no. As a consultant, every day brought something new and challenging. No more boring and useless meetings. No more cleaning up messes created by higher-ups in the food chain.

Rather, interesting work that helped improve things for my clients.

Did I miss the prestige? Are you kidding? Never needed it, and am often bemused by those who do. Maybe that is why I was never a good corporate rat.

Not bragging — just offering some encouragement for everyone.

And trust me, Cubert — you won’t be bored. Rather, you will wonder when you ever had the time for a full time job. You may even wonder why you didn’t do so earlier. Best wishes as you transition to your new life!

In a reply, Cubert expressed a specific concern about health insurance. With a young family, a very legitimate concern. My advice here was to purchase the highest deductible policy available, and self-insure the nominal stuff. More below:

The Affordable Care Act makes that simpler, as you can not be denied coverage. I know several independent consultants who have taken advantage of that — one with a congenial heart defect. (Please — no comments from political trolls.)

Cubert also expressed possible interest in consulting in his retirement. As an engineer, that is very doable as his skills and experience are already in demand. More below:

Finally, I invited Cubert, and anyone else interested in consulting, to join us for my new FREE monthly teleconference on consulting. Register Here.

Join us for our next FREE monthly teleconference.
“Ask Daryl Anything About Consulting”
Register Here

Posted in Boomers, Encouragement | 2 Comments