Your First Job Out of College

​Your First Job Out of College Congratulations! You are going to enter the professional environment and start your career. Now your whole life is stretching out before you and you will face a new world of challenges. Remember how big your campus seemed when you arrived as a freshman? There were a lot of unknown people, everything was unfamiliar and challenging. Be ready to feel like a freshman again, now at work. What to Expect from Your First Job You need to be ready that your first job after college wont be your dream career. Sure, it will teach you some immeasurable skills and you will get that so much needed real world experience, but it doesnt mean that youre going to do the things you enjoy most of all. You may not even know what your dream job is. There is a lot of pressure to get a position after graduation because you have such high expectations and not enough practice. Most likely youll have to deal with the routine tasks. Before you get the cool assignments, you need to show your employer that you can handle the simple operations. If you only start searching for a job, this post on how to write a resume with no job experience will be very useful for you. The payment may not also be as you are hoping to get because most entry-level jobs offer entry-level salaries. Thats why think carefully before accepting a job offer, this will be your income for the next year or at least several months. For this reason, you should get to know effective salary negotiation tactics for college students. All in all, you have to realize that the point of your first employment is to try out different responsibilities, types of work to understand what you absolutely love. Linkedin has recently posted the list of the most popular first jobs based on resumes. How to Make the Most of a New Workplace Experience Your attitude to a new job will determine whether your experience will be a positive and fruitful one. Here are some practical tips and strategies to take the mostrld of grown-up opportunities: Approach every task with enthusiasm. You need to deal with all the tasks and duties in a confident and efficient manner. Apply the â€Å"can do† approach on a regular basis, be attentive to details and dont forget to smile. Be a team player. Treat other people positively and demonstrate how well you can communicate. Youll work much better altogether and succeed faster which is essential for every business. Keep learning new things. Always look for the opportunities to improve your knowledge. Learn new things, develop essential skills and youll be amazed at how fast you grow. Join professional groups. Attend meetings, training sessions, join national and regional groups to share your experience and develop professionally. Find a mentor. A good mentor will greatly help you after graduation by keeping you motivated and focused all the time. Find someone you admire and ask them to help you at the early stages. Offer to help others. If you have some free time and know how to help your co-workers with some tasks, suggest your assistance. Youll cast yourself in a positive light. Building relationships at your first job is very important. Check out the ways to build relationships with colleagues at your first job. Make Sure to Avoid the Common Mistakes This is going to sound almost impossible, but try to make your first job experience ideal. New graduates always make the mistakes when they are facing a tough job market, so to have a better chance of success, you need to overcome the common problems. Here are some really useful pieces of advice that will turn your first job into a really effective and memorable â€Å"adventure†: Be proactive enough – dont sit back being casual in your work. Dont rely solely on the Internet, take advantage of networking and cooperation with colleagues. Never focus on searching a dream job, instead look for your first job. Try not to set expectations too high. Dont waste time and start making useful connections. Avoid looking unprofessional – delete all â€Å"three Bs† photos (beer, bongs, bikinis) from your profile page. Youll only have one first job, so make everything possible not to turn it into a nightmare. Remember to have fun, make new friends and youll have an exciting and positive professional experience!

Biography of Senator George McGovern

Biography of Senator George McGovern George McGovern was a South Dakota Democrat who represented liberal values in the United States Senate for decades and became widely known for his opposition to the Vietnam War. He was the Democratic nominee for president in 1972, and lost to Richard Nixon in a landslide. Fast Facts: George McGovern Full Name: George Stanley McGovernKnown For: 1972 Democratic nominee for president, longtime liberal icon represented South Dakota in the U.S. Senate from 1963 to 1980Born: July 19, 1922 in Avon, South DakotaDied: October 21, 2012 in Sioux Falls, South DakotaEducation: Dakota Wesleyan University and Northwestern University, where he received a Ph.D. in American historyParents: Rev. Joseph C. McGovern and Frances McLeanSpouse: Eleanor Stegeberg (m. 1943)Children: Teresa, Steven, Mary, Ann, and Susan Early Life George Stanley McGovern was born in Avon, South Dakota, on July 19, 1922. His father was a Methodist minister, and the family adhered to the typical small-town values of the time: hard work, self-discipline, and avoidance of alcohol, dancing, smoking, and other popular diversions. As a boy McGovern was a good student and received a scholarship to attend Dakota Wesleyan University. With Americas entry into World War II, McGovern enlisted and became a pilot. Military Service and Education McGovern saw combat service in Europe, flying a B-24 heavy bomber. He was decorated for valor, though he did not revel in his military experiences, considering it simply his duty as an American. Following the war, he resumed his college studies, focusing on history as well as his deep interest in religious matters. He went on to study American history at Northwestern University, eventually receiving a Ph.D. His dissertation studied the coal strikes in Colorado and the Ludlow Massacre of 1914. During his years at Northwestern, McGovern became politically active and began to see the Democratic Party as a vehicle to achieve social change. In 1953, McGovern became the executive secretary of the South Dakota Democratic Party. He began an energetic process of rebuilding the organization, traveling extensively throughout the state. Early Political Career In 1956, McGovern ran for office himself. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and was re-elected two years later. On Capitol Hill he supported a generally liberal agenda and established some important friendships, including with Senator John F. Kennedy and his younger brother, Robert F. Kennedy. McGovern ran for a U.S. Senate seat in 1960 and lost. His political career seemed to have reached an early end, but he was tapped by the new Kennedy administration for a job as director of the Food for Peace Program. The program, which was very much in keeping with McGoverns personal beliefs, sought to combat famine and food shortages around the world. President John F. Kennedy and George McGovern in the Oval Office. Getty Images   After running the Food For Peace Program for two years, McGovern ran for the Senate again in 1962. He won a narrow victory, and took his seat in January 1963. Opposing Involvement in Vietnam As the United States increased its involvement in Southeast Asia, McGovern expressed skepticism. He felt the conflict in Vietnam was essentially a civil war in which the United States should not be directly involved, and he believed the South Vietnamese government, which American forces were supporting, was hopelessly corrupt. McGovern openly expressed his views on Vietnam in late 1963. In January 1965, McGovern drew attention by delivering a speech on the Senate floor in which he said he did not believe the Americans could reach a military victory in Vietnam. He called for a political settlement with North Vietnam. McGoverns position was controversial, especially as it put him in opposition to a president of his own party, Lyndon Johnson. His opposition to the war, however, was not unique, as several other Democratic senators were expressing misgivings about American policy. As opposition to the war increased, McGoverns stance made him popular to a number of Americans, especially younger people. When opponents of the war sought a candidate to run against Lyndon Johnson in the 1968 Democratic Party primary elections, McGovern was an obvious choice. McGovern, planning to run for re-election for the Senate in 1968, chose not to enter the early running in 1968. However, after the assassination for Robert F. Kennedy in June 1968, McGovern attempted to enter the contest at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Hubert Humphrey became the nominee and went on to lose to Richard Nixon in the election of 1968. In the fall of 1968 McGovern easily won re-election to the Senate. Thinking of running for president, he began to utilize his old organizing skills, traveling the country, speaking at forums and urging an end to the war in Vietnam. The 1972 Campaign By late 1971, the Democratic challengers to Richard Nixon in the upcoming election seemed to be Hubert Humphrey, Maine senator Edmund Muskie, and McGovern. Early on, political reporters did not give McGovern much of a chance, but he showed surprising strength in the early primaries. In the first contest of 1972, the New Hampshire primary, McGovern finished a strong second to Muskie. He then went on to win the primaries in Wisconsin and Massachusetts, states where his strong support among college students boosted his campaign. George McGovern campaigning in the spring of 1972. Getty Images   McGovern secured enough delegates to assure himself the Democratic nomination on the first ballot at the Democratic National Convention, held in Miami Beach, Florida, in July 1972. However, when insurgent forces which had helped McGovern took control of the agenda, the convention quickly turned into a disorganized affair which put a deeply divided Democratic Party on full display. In a legendary example of how not to run a political convention, McGoverns acceptance speech was delayed by procedural squabbling. The nominee finally appeared on live television at 3:00 a.m, long after most of the viewing audience had gone to bed. A major crisis hit McGoverns campaign soon after the convention. His running mate, Thomas Eagleton, a little-known senator from Missouri, was revealed to have suffered from mental illness in his past. Eagleton had received electro-shock therapy, and a national debate about his fitness for high office dominated the news. McGovern, at first, stood by Eagleton, saying he supported him one thousand percent. But McGovern soon decided to replace Eagleton on the ticket, and was skewered for appearing indecisive. After a troubled search for a new running mate, as several prominent Democrats turned down the position, McGovern named Sargent Shriver, President Kennedys brother in law who had served as leader of the Peace Corps. Richard Nixon, running for re-election, had distinct advantages. The Watergate scandal had been kicked off by a break-in at Democratic headquarters in June 1972, but the extent of the affair was not yet known to the public. Nixon had been elected in the turbulent year of 1968, and the country, while still divided, seemed to have calmed during Nixons first term. In the November election McGovern was trounced. Nixon won a historic landslide, scoring 60 percent of the popular vote. The score in the electoral college was brutal: 520 for Nixon to McGoverns 17, represented only by the electoral votes of Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. Later Career Following the 1972 debacle, McGovern returned to his seat in the Senate. He continued to be an eloquent and unapologetic advocate for liberal positions. For decades, leaders in the Democratic Party argued over the 1972 campaign and election. It became standard among Democrats to distance oneself from the McGovern campaign (though a generation of Democrats, including Gary Hart, and Bill and Hillary Clinton, had worked on the campaign). McGovern served in the senate until 1980, when he lost a bid for reelection. He remained active in retirement, writing and speaking out on issues he believed important. In 1994 McGovern and his wife endured a tragedy when their adult daughter, Terry, who suffered from alcoholism, froze to death in her car. To cope with his grief, McGovern wrote a book, Terry: My Daughters Life and Death Struggle With Alcoholism. He then became an advocate, speaking out on alcohol and drug addiction. President Bill Clinton appointed McGovern as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture. Thirty years after his work in the Kennedy administration, he was back advocating on food and hunger issues. McGovern and his wife moved back to South Dakota. His wife died in 2007. McGovern remained active in retirement, and went skydiving on his 88th birthday. He died on October 21, 2012, at the age of 90. Sources: George Stanley McGovern. Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed., vol. 10, Gale, 2004, pp. 412-414. Gale Virtual Reference Library.Kenworthy, E.W. U.S.-Hanoi Accord Urged By Senator. New York Times, 16 January 1965. p. A 3.Rosenbaum, David E. George McGovern Dies at 90, a Liberal Trounced But Never Silence. New York Times, 21 October 2012. p. A 1.

Impact of Internal Factors on Strategic Planning Essay

Impact of Internal Factors on Strategic Planning - Essay Example rt Macauley decided to rescue victims who survived during the crash and he started dealing with the mission of helping the victim, but he had to deal with the financial issues. The mission of starting the organization of providing disaster and other emergency relief took the stage. Therefore, with the help of Pope John Paul and financial aid from other people; the organization started operating in 1982. The mission of the organization is to restore health, save lives and offer relief services through delivering effective medicines during disaster period or any other emergence cases within America and across the globe. One of the key aspects of the AmeriCares in the internal environment is leadership aspects. Leadership is one of the effective aspects that are taken into consideration in the AmeriCares organization. The organization has varied leaders who are assigned different roles in a hierarchy manner. Marquis and Huston (2009) argue that leadership styles employed in an organization can impact organizational performance in case leaders does not take it into consideration. Different leaders employ leadership styles depending on the environment or leadership behaviors; hence, this might impact strategic planning in the organization (Harrison and Association of University Programs in Health Administration, 2010). AmeriCares  association  is  an independent and fair organization; thus, it recruits leaders with effective skills for managing the company. Thus, leadership skills, behaviors and styles employed by each leader may hinder effective decision making process; thus impacting strategic planning process. Another aspect is the organizational structure within the internal environment. The company is structured in a manner that enables leaders to make an effective decision process when handling significant issues. The flow of information is from the top management leaders to the bottom; thus, poor management and effective communication in the hierarchy may

Applied Construction Management Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Applied Construction Management - Coursework Example The car park will have the entrance the exit gates which will all face the main road. The entrance to the car parking will be from the side of Ragian Road with the exit being placed on the side of Rampart Road. The parking for the disabled people will be on the ground floor and to the left side of the entrance. The parking for other people will be on towards the right of the entrance and they will be able to park from the second to the third floor. Additionally, the car park will have surveillance cameras that will be placed on both the entrance towards Ragian and at the exit towards the Rampart road. Other surveillance cameras will be place at each parking section with the control room located at the third floor of the building (Oyedele, Ajayi and Kadiri, 2014). The building will have four floors. The last floor will act as offices for executives and other people. The car park apartment will be painted blue green which are the company colours. Barriers will also be placed at the entrance and the exit to control traffic as well as acting as security control. The barriers will be manned by the personnel at the control room as well as the personnel located at both the entrance and the exit. The painting will be done by the Solai painters with the lighting system being conducted by the Harold lights. The lighting system will be fixed to all floors as well as the parking sections. The lighting system will be raised to ensure that all the area in the park is well lit. The other issue that the contractor will take care of is the signage that will be located on the various sections of the park with an aim of giving direction to the people who will be visiting the park (Bennett and Ormerod, 2011). The park will have signs that will show directions a s well as the points of services. The contactor will ensure that the work

Professional Communication at the Workplace Essay Example for Free

Professional Communication at the Workplace Essay Interpersonal communication is essentially the exchange of communication between one person(s) and another. Like any other form of communication, interpersonal communication involves the sender of the message and the recipient of the message. The message can only be passed correctly if both the sender and the recipient pass it correctly and understand each other. I work for a voluntary group at the University. This group aims at reaching out to the less fortunate both in the institution and the society generally. We do not offer financial help as such but instead focus on the abilities of the people we interact with and give them the necessary counsel and advice they need. In this way, we give them ideas on how they can actually help themselves out financially. This organization involves a lot of interaction, both within ourselves as the members of the organization and also between us and the people we interact with. As such there is a lot of interpersonal communication that goes on. The group consists of a total of ten members, and as they say, we are like our fingers; we come in different sizes and lengths, not literally but in terms of age, personalities, gender, culture, spiritual orientation and physical abilities and disabilities. This whole structure of diversity makes communication, particularly interpersonal communication, an issue worth debate. This is because the way we choose to communicate within ourselves and others is bound to affect our service delivery either positively or n egatively. The following part of the paper will critically analyze each of these factors mentioned above that makes us diverse in our communication, interpersonal communication.CITATION Joh12 p 56 l 1033 (Johnson, 2012, p. 56)Age The voluntary group I work for is extremely diversified when it comes to age, with members from the extreme sides of the age spectrum. The oldest member in the group is aged forty seven, while the youngest is seventeen. Most of the members, about seventy percent, are aged between seventeen and twenty five. The main reason behind this is the fact that the organization requires the participation of both the old and young. For instance, the young and vibrant group, which forms the majority of the group, is required to move up and down and interact with the people we look forward to offering our help to. The older group is mostly involved ion critically analyzing our case studies and give direction on the best way forward. It is therefore not easy to hold a conversation between these two groups that are different in terms of age. For instance, young people will always base their ideas on what social media says. They will go with current trends since that are what they are familiar with a nd immediately make a decision. The older group will look at trends on a more historical point of view and analyze historical events in relation to the topic of discussion before coming up with a remedy. The young members, moreover, communicate with a lot of slang because as much as this organization is based on official business, it is also a social and interactive group as well. This way, the message at times is not passed effectively from one person(s) to another. The consequence of this communication gap is that the goals of the organizations are not at all times met and therefore efficiency is not achieved as well.CITATION Ric01 p 76 l 1033 (Pircadi, 2001, p. 76)Perceived Emotions, Relationships and Personality Our personalities define us. We have different personalities just as we are different in other aspects of our lives. The personality of a person is one thing that psychologists have proved beyond reasonable doubt that is very difficult to change. The personalities of a person will most of the time dictate the way in which they communicate. Some people are introverts and as such they tend to keep to themselves. They listen more than they speak. They think more and learn more from their surrounding and the people around them. Others are outspoken and will speak more. They express themselves through speech. The relationship between or among people also influences communication. CITATION Joh12 l 1033 (Johnson, 2012)This I have witnessed in my voluntary work group. People tend to open up to those they are close with and give less details to the people they are not that close to. One’s family tends to know them better because of the blood relationship that exists as compared to outs iders. Finally, people perceive and express their emotions very differently. Jerry, a member of my voluntary group tends to hide his low moments in smiles. It is therefore not easy to tell what he is going through. I, on the other hand will always show it. I have no way to hide and it is communicated through my emotions. The way we react to how we feel will determine the way we communicate. There are those of us like Jerry who will drown our sorrows in smiles and those like me who will communicate it just as it is. It is therefore very clear that we communicate our emotions very differently and this goes way back to our personalities.CITATION Joh02 p 94 l 1033 (Gray, 2002, p. 94)Spiritual Orientation The world is composed of people with very diverse spiritual backgrounds. Spiritual background forms the foundation of the life of a person. More often than not, the behavior of a person is well explained by their religious beliefs. This is also the case with communication most of the time. Spiritual diversity will create diversity in speech and in communication generally. For instance, Moslems do not shake hands as a sign of greeting. Their greetings are always in form of speech. This is unlike other religions where people are allowed to shake hands casually and even hug. People from strong religious backgrounds and those with high faith are also very cautious with their speech. They tend to taste their words before they spit them out, that is, they are sensitive in their speech so as not to hurt others. The voluntary group that I work with, or rather that I work for has all Christians but one Moslem, Rahima Nassir. She, in one way or another, communicates in a different way from the rest. Most of the time, she refers to the Allah, who is the Supreme Being according to her religion. This happens especially in cases where she tries to sound optimistic and give a hopeless situation hope. The voluntary group involves a lot of interaction and therefore we have to be warm as we interact with others. This is at times not very easy to achieve owing to the fact that some religious beliefs have certain strains. Rahima is not the only one that faces such challenges. Even along the Christian front, there are various denominations which uphold different values. These values make the approach to various situations very differently. CITATION Gai10 p 104 l 1033 (Forey, 2010, p. 104)Gender The gender of a person also affects communication, particularly interpersonal communication. The female species has a different way of passing a message from the male species. One thing I love the most about my voluntary group is that we are balanced when it comes to gender. Out of a group of ten, we have five ladies and five gentlemen. This gives a ratio of one to one. However, this gender difference can at timers be a major setback in terms of communication. The Ladies, for instance would like to be addressed in a more soft way even when it comes to simple aspects such as greetings. Important to note is that communication does not involve only speech, there is verbal and non-verbal communication, all of which should be considered. Throughout the time that I spend with members of my organization, I have observed that men and women have very different modes and methods of communication. Most of the time, male members are very radical in their speech as well as their illustrations. La dies have a different approach. They, more often than not, are very soft both in their speech and illustrations. It is for this reason that they (ladies) are extremely cautious in their speech. I also noted that the men speak fewer words as compared to the ladies. Ladies speak more, except in a few instances.CITATION Mar09 p 85 l 1033 (Gufey, 2009, p. 85)Person with Disability They say disability is not inability. However, this part of the paper will view disability as a hindrance to communication to an extent. People with disabilities, physical disabilities for that matter, face a lot of challenges when it comes to passing a message effectively. This bottleneck is faced by not only the sender of the message but the recipient as well. The voluntary group that I work for or rather the members of the group that I work with experiences such challenges. In the group, there are two people with physical disabilities. Jerry is a deaf while Geoffrey is visually impaired. Of the two, I think Geoffrey has the most difficult time when it comes to communication. For one reason or the other, Geoffrey happened to be the secretary of the organization at some point in time. He therefore took minutes during meetings and did all the secretarial work. This position, I can say he deserved. Geoffrey is very brilliant besides being very diligent in his work. The main challenge that group faced was the translation of the brail recorded minutes. No one in the group understood brail language apart from Geoffrey himself. He was the only one that could read and understand the minutes. Consequently, he had to step down as secretary after a fortnight of good leadership. Jerry on the other hand, cannot communicate easily and effectively. As a matter of facts, he is most of the time misunderstood and the group experiences a lot of instances with miscommunication. Sign language is not that easy to understand. This impacts negatively on the communication in the organization. Both Jerry and the rest of the members have a hard time in communicating. The importance of both Geoffrey and Jerry in the group can never be underestimated but then at times the challenges effective communication a tall order.CITATION Per08 p 119 l 1033 (Mcintosh, 2008, p. 119)Culture Culture is a very important aspect that should be put into consideration when it comes to effective communication. The culture of a member or members of a group determines how the message is conveyed and it also determines how the message is perceived. Culture affects communication to a very great extent simply because the culture of a person will dictate their style of communication. This means that the more diverse the cultures are, the more diverse their styles of communication. Though to a small extent, there is cultural diversity in our voluntary group. In essence we have people from diverse cultural group. For matters of convenience, I will describe the cultural diversity as high culture and low culture, not that any culture is more superior to another, but for explanatory purposes. For instance, Evelyn, the group’s organizing secretary, is from the high culture. This category mainly focuses their communication on arts and by arts I mean it is more of music, drama et cet era. This category will therefore involve people with a very high esteem since for one to be able to express themselves through arts; they have to be extremely bold, just typical of Evelyn. On the contrary, the low culture category involves large audiences. A good illustration of how culture can affect communication is that in some cultures for instance, it is very vital to maintain eye contact during communication while in others; eye contact can be seen as offensive and unacceptable. Barry, the chairman of our voluntary group and Miley, our secretary are most of the time caught up in such a situation due to their religious differences.CITATION Jos14 p 92 l 1033 (Chesobro, 2014, p. 92)Conclusion and Recommendations With over seven billion people in the world, it is expected that people will differ in relation to various aspects of life. Even people from the same family, people with the same cultures, same religious beliefs and people from the same age group will at one point or the other differ. Communication, on the other is also very important. Each and everything we do revolves around communication. No man is an island. This simply means we have to live harmoniously with each other. For this reason, communication is very important. This paper has not focused on intrapersonal communication but interpersonal communication since this is the way we interact with each other in our work places. Without effective interpersonal communication at our work places, it almost difficult to make any social and economic progress. However, I have learnt from my work experiences at my voluntary group that diversities will always be there, they are there to stay. These are some aspects of life that we should a ccept them just in the way they come. We can never be the same. It is therefore very important to understand and embrace each of our diversities, placing our differences aside. From my own case study it is clear that communication is very important. It is equally clear that challenges must arise due to the diversities in various life aspects. Therefore, from my own experience, I would recommend that we respect the fact that we are not and can never be the same but try as well to burn any bridges that might exist as a result of the differences amongst us. We are one and shall always be one, despite our differences. Let us let communication to make us and not break us. References 1033 Avery, C. (2001). The Flexible Workplace. New York: New York University Press. Chesobro, J. (2014). Professional Communication at the Workplace. New York: New York University Press. Eunson, B. (2009). Communication in the Workplace. New York: Edgeworth Publishers. Forey, G. (2010). Globalization, Communication in the Workplace. Oxford University Press. Gray, J. (2002). Mars and Venus in the Workplace. Oxford University Press. Gufey, M. E. (2009). Essentials of Business Communication. New York: New York University Press. Johnson, J. (2012). Solving Problems in Technical Communication. Oxford University Press. Mcintosh, P. (2008). Interpersonal Communication In The Workplace. New York : New York University Press. Muema, T. (2007). Effects of Poor Communication in the Workplace. Miley and Sons Publishers. Pircadi, R. (2001). Skills of Workplace Communication. New York: New York University Press. Source document

John Steinbecks East of Eden - Good Versus Evil Essay -- East Eden Es

Good Versus Evil in East of Eden    The idea of good versus evil is illustrated in several ways in John Steinbeck's East of Eden. This is seen through the external conflicts in the novel, the internal conflicts of the characters, and a universal understanding of the battle between good and evil.    External conflicts between the main characters, Cathy and Adam, reflect the idea of good versus evil in their relationship. Cathy, who is much like Satan, creates a huge fight between Adam and his brother Charles with her manipulations. Later, she ruins Adam's dreams and breaks his heart when she shoots him and leaves, sending Adam into a deep depression. After twelve years, Adam snaps out of his dream world and confronts Cathy. Cathy is now called Kate and works in a whore house called Faye's. Despite her actions, Adam realizes that he doesn't even hate Cathy for the hurt she has caused him. He finds peace with himself, renewing his once abandoned relationship with his sons. Then there is the relationship between Charles and Adam. Charles physically and mentally abuses Adam to the extent that he tries to kill him when Charles thinks that their father, Cyrus, loves Adam more. Throughout all this Adam still loves Charles, even after he finds out that Charles and Cathy had slept together and his sons may have even been fathered by Charles. Later in the novel, Adam forgives Charles and writes him a letter to try and put their differences aside, only to find out that Charles has died. Cal and Aron are Cathy's twin sons. In their relationship they too have many conflicts, Aron, the "good" son, studies religion and Cal, the "evil" son, gambles and visits whore houses. Aron tries to convert Cal, but Cal refuses to convert a... ...sin, while the second commands him to do so. The inconsistency results in Lee studying the original Hebrew text with his philosophical Chinese elders and a Rabbi. Together they find that the original Hebrew text uses the word timshel : thou mayest rule over sin. This verb emphasizes that a person has the power of free will, putting into his own hands the ultimate decision of whether he will do of good or evil deeds.    The idea that man's relationship with good and evil is not predestined is a central idea in this novel. The conflict between good and evil is a universal battle. Many characters in the novel, East of Eden, struggle both internally and externally with Good versus evil.    Works Cited Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath, The Moon is Down, Cannery Row, East of Eden, Of Mice and Men. New York: Heinemann/Octopus, 1979. pp.475 - 896.

Research Paper Mark Twain

Isabella Thomaz Donna Hunter – Period 2 Research Paper – Mark Twain October 26, 2012 MARK TWAIN: A REMARKABLE MAN WHO PAINTED THE WORLD â€Å"Classic' – a book which people praise and don't read. † When Samuel L. Clemens (more often referred to as Mark Twain) said this, he meant it in a humorous sense, but he also wanted people to understand it’s meaning. People call books like Huck Finn and Gatsby classics, yet the idea that these books are actually read by everyone isn’t so. Twain isn’t just a classical writer because we deem him so, he is given that title for the political influence he managed to present to his readers.He wanted to show that the idea of romanticism was healthy for young children unless used excessively. He expressed this point by creating Tom Sawyer, a boy who idolized romanticism; a movement in the arts and literature that originated in the late 18th century, emphasizing inspiration, subjectivity, and the primacy o f the individual. And to have a balancing opposite, Huckleberry Finn was added into the equation – a boy who had no education but grew up both mentally and physically quickly because of his poverty.Twain’s idea of this political influence was a major impact on the people in his time because of the segregation of the whites and blacks – which was such a very big issue in that time with protests and such – and so his views were very democratic. We still value his influence today, not just because of the slavery issue but because of the controversy between romantic dominance and peaceful intelligence, romanticism having a more imaginative effect and intelligence striking your knowledge and building it on facts.That is why The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn are meant for different aged readers – to impact a certain influence at a younger age when you read Tom’s story which is widely more imaginative, and to see t he change of Twain’s attempt to get his point across of romanticism being unhealthy for people like Tom in Huck’s story. At the beginning of Huck’s story, there is a robber’s scene where the two boys and their friends try and create an environment such as in a wild west book and it is told in both boys’ perspectives, however they are viewed or seen entirely differently.William F. Byrne descbribes it as a change in Huck and Tom’s characters from the Adventures of Tom Sawyer to the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because where Tom describes them, â€Å"We ain’t burglars. That ain’t no sort of style. We are highwaymen. We stop stages and carriages on the road, with masks on, and kill the people and take their watches and money. † (Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: 26-28) Huck chooses to call themselves robbers, and eliminate the imagination by saying that they don’t kill people and that he was only in it for the profit, to which he found none.And then as Byrne points out, â€Å" In the earlier book Huck was the odd man out on issues of the imagination; the other boys welcomed the opportunity to share Tom’s dreams. In this case, however, we are told that all the boys resigned; it is Tom who is the odd man out. The other boys are perhaps getting too old for this kind of imaginative play, but not Tom. He alone remains determined to re-enact the kinds of dramatic events he has read about in fiction. † (Byrne, William F. Things have changed in the boys life and this is how Twain begins to reveal his controversial conflicts with romantic imagination in both Tom and Huck’s stories. A further demonstration of Twain’s political implications is Huck’s response to both Tom’s and the ‘duke’ and ‘dauphin’s’ (two men who happen to hop onto Huck’s raft with Jim, an escaped slave) dominance of being in charge. Huck, in order to prev ent quarrels and maintain peace. He allows them to take charge and does whatever they say.The only difference between Tom’s dominance and the two men who hop on Jim and Huck’s raft is that Huck only follows Tom because he offered the poverty-stricken boy friendship. Also Tom’s fascination with romantic imaginations entertains Huck because it is the only bit of boyish quality he can attain to. The ‘duke’ and ‘dauphin’ have a sense of charge to the point that Huck actually has no say in the matter because even though he has grown up and craves more to the understanding of real-world problems, he is but a boy and Jim is an escaped slave.But there is something more Twain included to Huck’s behavior, and this is that because of his father’s physical dominance, he has shriveled into a sheep. He naturally allows himself to be put below someone else. â€Å"The silent assertion that nothing is going on which fair and intelligent m en are aware of and are engaged by their duty to try to stop. † (Mark Twain) Twain’s words describe Huck’s form of character simply and this is a fascinating idea that Twain uses to distinguish Huck’s realism to Tom’s romanticism cognitive thinking.Twain shows how people have become so much more involved in romanticism imagination without even knowing it. The technological advances in society drive man to a more dominant state of mind and that men value their strive for dominant success over things like a family member’s death. He uses the Grangerfords and Shepherdsons, two families and neighbors with an ongoing feud that causes conflicts with the family members who want nothing to do with it, feud to express this for example when one from each family secretly gets married and this causes a battle that inevitably kills Huck’s friend, Buck.This is an influential topic more to present day society than from his time because everywhere you look, mankind is fighting with each other and we relentlessly regard what should be valued over money and political problems – our family’s well being and to look around our crumbling society that can only be reconstructed by everyone dropping their arms and helping one another out to become one with peace without having to give in to a dominant force as Huck Finn has allowed to be done to him.There is definitely a classical sense about Mark Twain, but it is not because someone just says ‘Oh hey this guy is a really good writer,’ it is a remarkable sense because he has a very powerful and political influence that was seen both in his time and ours, specifically with his books Tom Saywer and Huck Finn. Even if they are different. I believe his influence will continue to strive forward because if it’s one thing he made distinct, a part of mankind will always strive for dominance and those who see it and want to solve real-world problems will likely b e the sheep created by physically dominated men like Huckleberry Finn.But they won’t be alone. Because as Twain influence reaches more and more sheep, they will become the lions and end the dominant strive and will maintain peace through equality. Works Cited: – Marshall, Donald G. â€Å"Twain, Mark. † World Book Student. World Book, 2012. Web. 28 Oct. 2012. – Foner, Eric, and John A. Garraty. â€Å"Twain, Mark. † The Reader's Companion to American History. Dec. 1 1991: n. p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 28 Oct 2012. – â€Å"Mark Twain. † Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 28 Oct. 012. Web. 28 Oct. 2012. . – â€Å"Twain, Mark (1835-1910). † The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather guide. Abington: Helicon, 2010. Credo Reference. Web. 28 October 2012. – Byrne, William F,. â€Å"Realism, Romanticism, and Politics in Mark Twain. † Realism, Romanticism, and Politics in Mark Twain. National Hu manities Institute, 1 Nov. 1999. Web. 28 Oct. 2012. . – Twain, Mark. â€Å"Chapter 4. † Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. New York: Random House, 1996. 26-28. Print.

Key Symbol – Statue of Liberty

Lazarus inscribed on her base, â€Å"Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tots to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door! (Lazarus)† For in these words a key symbol of American pride became that which beckons to all who wish for more, for better, and for liberation from that which oppresses them. For Americans, the Statue of Liberty is a key symbol distinguishing liberty and freedom. She carries the Insurmountable burden of being the symbol for America's cantonal pride through Its accomplishments.Originally named â€Å"Liberty Enlightening the World†, the statue was constructed as an Icon celebrating America's victories over adversity. This was evident at the statue's Inauguration In 1886. Before a crowd of thousands and President Grover Cleveland, the American people intensified † almost immediately†¦ † That the statue â€Å"†¦ Was widely regarded as a symbol of the nation. † (Scorcher Arts and Entertainment) The people instantaneously accepted this magnificent work of art as a symbol of their power and strength.Furthermore, the eye symbolism can be felt through the emotions evoked through the interpretation of her â€Å"no-nonsense† facial attitude seen through all those who look upon. This is a representative of strength and resolve in the people of America. This is confirmed by the work of the sculptor Birthday, and his eloquent portrayal in the subtleties of expression, â€Å"Liberty serious demeanor underscores the Idea that liberty Itself comes at a cost and must not be taken lightly. † (Scorcher Arts and Entertainment) â€Å"Finally, almost covered by the drapery, Liberty left foot, which few viewers et to see, treads upon the broken shackles of tyranny.The receding position of her right leg makes the statue, when viewed from the south, seem to be striding onward to shed her lig ht before her. † (Scorcher Arts and Entertainment) Americans feel strongly about Lady Liberty and realize that having their personal freedom comes with cost, many times paid for in human lives and other sacrifices, but through it all as a nation of determined people, they will continue to break the shackles of tyranny and stride onward stronger than before.Furthermore, as a gift room France to the people of the united States to mark the Centennial of the American Declaration of Independence, the Statue of Liberty was given to recognize America for Its accomplishments and tribulations In Just one hundred short years of history. This key symbol was given in honor of the accomplishments the newly Torment unlace states Ana undergone since ten selling AT ten Declaration AT Independence: a Civil War and reconstruction of a nation, the overcoming of slavery, the death of a great leader, and a revolution not unlike the one experienced by theFrench. The people of France looked upon the United States as being triumphant over all odds and still remaining a strong independent nation; and from this, the Statue of Liberty as a symbol of national pride was born. The symbolism found in the Statue of Liberty is not exclusive to Just the people of America. Its representation of liberty and freedom is known throughout the world to those seeking safe harbor within her borders. The statue represents freedom, liberty for those immigrants that are in search of an opportunity and a new life.Immigrants re inspired to seek refuge in the United States through shared tales of how Lady Liberty stands at the doorway to this new life, and beckons them in with her colossal torch of light. The emotional perception and imagery is so intense that countless immigrants have been compelled to sell virtually all their worldly possessions, pack into ships like herds of cattle and make uncertain Journeys across stormy seas. The symbolism is further reinforced by those that have completed the Jo urney, as they share their tales of Lady Liberty with those souls seeking inspiration. For many the iris memory was the ‘lady with the torch'. † (Brownstone) A simple glimpse can conjure up an almost religious enchantment. It was not uncommon for passengers to weep or pray with gratitude upon seeing her verdigris face in the harbor. This is marked by the account of one immigrant, Celia Ripens as she recalls, â€Å"l saw the Statue of Liberty. And we all ran out and I prayed because I heard so much in Poland about it- the Statue of Liberty. (Brownstone) Moreover, another immigrant recalls being shown by her uncle the Statue of Liberty, and she notes that â€Å"That I will never forget. (Brownstone) Countless passengers on immigrant ships, many with their bodies wracked by illness and terrible seasickness, would rush up to the densely crowded decks, teeming with people to witness their first sight of the Statue of Liberty; a symbol proclaimed by the immigrating peoples a s their icon for success and newly afforded opportunities in a new land.Embodied in art work, and held as a cherished icon, Lady Liberty has appeared in countless renderings on American currency. The image of liberty has been seen on coins, Liberty Loan Bonds, and a number of commemorative coins. Her image stirs up the emotions that people relate to freedom and success, that her image has been endeared to financial freedoms as well. Liberty stands tall on a Liberty Loan Bond, issued during World War I to help boost the economy. Her likeness and images have graced the new dollar coins, giving an impression once again of triumph over adversity.As a key symbol not only to her nation, but to her home state of New York, her distinctive shape graces the small space of the US State Quarter, and after the events of September 1 1, 2001 her image has been shown on commemorative coins as symbol of triumph and solidarity over adversity against her nation. Lady Liberty is not only a key symbol, she is a work of art, having been represented in mediums from the copper of her frame to the renditions of many artists who endear her more and more in their works.She is truly a key symbol to the nation's people. As one AT ten most recognizable symbols AT American Justice Ana Treetop, Lay Liberty stands tall embodying Americans with national pride, as well as an intrinsic sense of personal pride. The statue continues to strengthen the American peoples' solve in their times of adversity. This strength continues to perpetuate through the stories and coinage passed from one generation to the next.The tales of the countless people that overcame unthinkable odds to simply pass before the lady with the torch, Liberty Enlightening the World is a reminder that Americans are those people. Americans are the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses that yearned to breathe free. Yet, through everything America endures, as a nation the people of the United States continue to draw on and find ref uge in the comfort and solidarity of his national key symbol, not to only guide them, but to serve as a reminder of their strength.

Ways of Seeing Similarities in Point of View in Cathedral and A Conversation with My Father

Ways of Seeing Similarities in Point of View in Cathedral and A Conversation with My Father The short stories Cathedral by Raymond Carver and A Conversation with My Father by Grace Paley, while they differ in characterization, both employ a detached narrative point of view to create an emotional experience of profound isolation in the reader.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Ways of Seeing: Similarities in Point of View in Cathedral and A Conversation with My Father specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In Carver’s (2006) story, we learn the emotional isolation experienced by the narrator almost immediately, through his description of his own wife’s attempted suicide, and his description of the death of Robert’s wife. Carver’s narrator maintains a cold distance from the emotional impact of having very nearly lost his wife before he met her. Carver’s narrator seems more engaged by the competition between himself and his wife’s first husband, as evidenced herein: â€Å"one night she got to feeling lonely and cut off from people she kept losing in that moving-around life. She got to feeling she couldnt go it another step. She went in and swallowed all the pills and capsules in the medicine chest†¦But instead of dying, she got sick. She threw up. Her officerwhy should he have a name? he was the childhood sweetheart, and what more does he want?† (Carver, 2006). As Bullock (1994) details, in the narrator’s account of his wifes attempted suicide, â€Å"the figures in the story- the wife, the officer, the blind man- seem a long distance away, tiny separated figures, observed by a detached, all-seeing eye. They might as well be figures on the screen of the television.† Similarly, when the narrator describes the loss of Beulah, Robert’s wife, he betrays an almost savage disregard for Robert’s emotions when he says, â€Å"Beulah’s health went into rapid decline. She died in a Seattle hospital room, the blind man sitting beside the bed and holding on to her hand. Theyd married, lived and worked together, slept togetherhad sex, sureand then the blind man had to bury her. All this without his having ever seen what the goddamned woman looked like. It was beyond my understanding† (Carver, 2006). Significantly, the narrator never names his wife. He identifies her only by role. This omission creates a distinct absence of personality in the woman. The narrator feels no real connection with her as a human being, aside from a mildly competitive instinct to assert his ownership over her body when she falls asleep and her robe opens in front of Robert. The point of view on display from Carver’s narrator reveals the vast emotional distance that exists between himself and other people, and he transmits and transfers this distance to us, the reader. The narrator feels nothing when describing intensely emotional events; he recounts them as though they were news.Advertising Looking for essay on comparative literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More As a result, the reader’s own emotional experience comes to resemble his: muted, and disengaged. Carver’s use of point of view allows us to perceive the world from the same standoffish, sharply critical distance that the narrator does, and ironically, this brings us closer to him. The narrator in Grace Paley’s (2006) A Conversation with My Father follows a different characterization than Carver’s, however, the point of view contains the same chilled â€Å"distance between observer and observed† (Bullock, 1994). Paley’s narrator initially appears more animated, more engaged, than Carver’s. An example occurs in the story’s opening when she expresses â€Å"I want to please him, though I dont remember writing that way. I would like to try to tell such a story, if he means the kind that begins: There was a wom an followed by plot, the absolute line between two points which Ive always despised. Not for literary reasons, but because it takes all hope away. Everyone, real or invented, deserves the open destiny of life† (Paley, 2006). Such passages suggest that Paley’s narrator might be more sympathetic to the plight of other humans than Carver’s narrator, and therefore, more capable of true human emotional empathy, however, when we look closer, we see that Paley’s narrator, like Carver’s, identifies her father exclusively by role. He is never named in the story. Also, Paley’s narrator betrays the same disparaging judgmental point of view as Carver’s when she says, â€Å"people start out fantastic, you think theyre extraordinary, but it turns out as the work goes along, theyre just average with a good education† (Paley, 2006). Critics such as Wilde delineate this story’s meaning via gender roles, and link gender to ways of seeing. Wilde (1987) explains that in A Conversation with My Father, â€Å"the paternal world – encoded in the fathers request that his daughter compose a simple story Just recognizable people and then write down what happened to them next –- bases itself on unexamined and peremptory powers of discernment and identification. Defensively but still smugly, it prescribes an impossibly simple, stable, and objective mirror to reflect what it takes to be the inevitable, sequential trajectory of lifes beginnings, middles, and ends.† However, the narrator herself displays the same critical, arm’s length point of view as Carver’s, which results in a similar isolating emotional experience in the reader. The way that the narrator tells the story of the neighbor across the street barely conceals her disapproval of the woman’s choices, as we see here: â€Å"Although she was often high herself, certain good mothering reflexes remained, and she saw to it that th ere was lots of orange juice around and honey and milk and vitamin pills.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Ways of Seeing: Similarities in Point of View in Cathedral and A Conversation with My Father specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, she never cooked anything but chili, and that no more than once a week. She explained, when we talked to her, seriously, with neighborly concern, that it was her part in the youth culture and she would rather be with the young, it was an honor, than with her own generation† (Paley, 2006). In this passage we see real similarities between the dismissal of emotion portrayed by the Carver narrator when describing the death of Robert’s wife and the near death of his own. Similarly, Paley’s narrator passes judgment on the neighbor woman’s motivations, as we see in this section: â€Å"In order to keep him from feeling guilty (because guilt is the stony heart of nine tenths of all clinically diagnosed cancers in America today, she said), and because she had always believed in giving bad habits room at home where one could keep an eye on them, she too became a junkie. Her kitchen was famous for a while a center for intellectual addicts who knew what they were doing† (Paley, 2006). There is a sarcastic and dismissive undertone to Paley’s narrator’s description, which echo’s Carver’s narrator description, as seen here: â€Å"She could, if she wanted, wear green eye-shadow around one eye, a straight pin in her nostril, yellow slacks, and purple shoes, no matter. And then to slip off into death, the blind mans hand on her hand, his blind eyes streaming tearsIm imagining nowher last thought maybe this: that he never even knew what she looked like, and she on an express to the grave. Robert was left with a small insurance policy and a half of a twenty-peso Mexican coin. The other half of the coin went into th e box with her. Pathetic† (Carver, 2006). Within Paley’s narrator’s description of her neighbor lies the same biting judgment and fault finding as Carver’s, and the same dismissal of emotional context as it pertains to action. The short stories Cathedral and A Conversation with My Father, at first glance, appear very different, not only because the narrators differ in gender, but also as the writing styles feel opposite. Carver’s voice remains minimalist and monotonous throughout, while Paley’s contains more tonal shifts and humor. However, upon closer inspection the reader sees that both narrators employ the same superior, cold, remote approach to human interaction, both pass harsh judgment on others, and both refer to those closest to them – Carver’s narrator’s wife, and Paley’s narrator’s father – exclusively by role and function, as opposed to by name. Both stories thus create an isolating emotion al experience on the page and in the reader.Advertising Looking for essay on comparative literature? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More References Bullock, C. J. (1994). From Castle to Cathedral: The Architecture of Masculinity in Raymond Carvers Cathedral. The Journal of Mens Studies, 4, 343-351. Carver, R. (2006). Cathedral. The Norton Introduction to Literature. A. Booth, J. P. Hunter, K. J. Mays (Eds.). New York: W. W. Norton Company. Paley, G. (2006). A Conversation with My Father. The Norton Introduction to Literature. A. Booth, J. P. Hunter, K. J. Mays (Eds.). New York: W. W. Norton Company. Wilde, A. (1987). Grace Paleys World-Inventing Words. Middle Grounds: Studies in Contemporary American Fiction. E. Elliot, (Ed.). Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press.

Participant Observation -- Definition

Participant Observation Definition The participant observation method, also known as ethnographic research, is when a sociologist actually becomes a part of the group they are studying in order to  collect data and understand a social phenomenon or problem. During participant observation, the researcher works to play two separate roles at the same time: subjective participant and objective observer. Sometimes, though not always, the group is aware that the sociologist is studying them. The goal of participant observation is to gain a deep understanding and familiarity with a certain group of individuals, their values, beliefs, and way of life. Often the group in focus is a subculture of a greater society, like a religious, occupational, or particular community group. To conduct participant observation, the researcher often lives within the group, becomes a part of it, and lives as a group member for an extended period of time, allowing them access to the intimate details and goings-on of the group and their community. This research method was pioneered by anthropologists Bronislaw Malinowski and Franz Boas  but was adopted as a primary research method by many sociologists affiliated with the Chicago School of Sociology in the early twentieth century. Today, participant observation, or ethnography, is a primary research method practiced by qualitative sociologists around the world. Subjective Versus Objective Participation Participant observation requires the researcher to be a subjective participant in the sense that they use knowledge gained through personal involvement with the research subjects to interact with and gain further access to the group. This component supplies a dimension of information that is lacking in survey data. Participant observation research also requires the researcher to aim to be an objective observer and record everything that he or she has seen, not letting feelings and emotions influence their observations and findings. Yet, most researchers recognize that true objectivity is an ideal, not an actuality, given that the way in which we see the world and people in it is always shaped by our previous experiences and our positionality in the social structure relative to others. As such, a good participant observer will also maintain a critical self-reflexivity that allows her to recognize the way she herself might influence the field of research and the data she collects. Strengths and Weaknesses The strengths of participant observation include the depth of knowledge that it allows the researcher to obtain and the perspective of knowledge of social problems and phenomena generated from the level of the everyday lives of those experiencing them. Many consider this an egalitarian research method because it centers the experiences, perspectives, and knowledge of those studied. This type of research has been the source of some of the most striking and valuable studies in sociology. Some drawbacks or weaknesses of this method are that it is very time-consuming, with researchers spending months or years living in the place of study. Because of this, participant observation can yield a vast amount of data that might be overwhelming to comb through and analyze. And, researchers must be careful to remain somewhat detached as observers, especially as time passes and they become an accepted part of the group, adopting its habits, ways of life, and perspectives. Questions about objectivity and ethics were raised about sociologist Alice Goffmans research methods because some interpreted passages from her book  On the Run  as an admission of involvement in a murder conspiracy. Students wishing to conduct participant observation research should consult two excellent books on the subject:  Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes  by Emerson et al., and  Analyzing Social Settings, by Lofland and Lofland.

Crime in Perspective-105 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Crime in Perspective-105 - Essay Example One’s personal contention is that crime is the result of environmental conditions, such as poverty, urban pressures and a poor home life, which is consistent with social theories where society fails to control and monitor activities that could prevent criminal behavior. Crime is the result of failure to establish strong bonds with society: family, community, and productive peers. The strong attachment and appropriate support from parents and siblings could provide the initial and crucial bond to prevent tendencies for criminal behavior. Likewise, the involvement in rewarding activities, including pursuing continuing education and the recognition to contribute to society through employment would enable one to refrain from delinquent behavior. The circle of friends with positive backgrounds would provide one with a holistic and well balanced disposition in life. When society fails to provide an appropriate environment that would support and sustain humane living conditions and h as inefficiently implemented rules and legislations that would monitor and prevent deviant behavior, then, an environment of crime is initiated. References Reader's Digest.

Social Entreprenuerism Questions Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Social Entreprenuerism Questions - Research Paper Example Communities play an intricate role in the development and growth of the social enterprise. The community creates the legitimacy for the enterprise by providing marketing and distribution channels. It is; therefore, correct to insinuate that they are donor-investors as they contribute to the growth of the enterprise (Dees et al., 2002). Analyzing performance in this enterprise in crucial since everybody needs to be well- prepared for the task at hand. Any failure or laxity may prove detrimental to the growth of the enterprise (Dees et al., 2002). The rapid growth of profit-maximization organizations may prove difficult to come back from such a decline. One vital characteristic is their ability to convince a customer of the possible nature of the seemingly impossible. Their confidence is a personal trait that sets them apart from the rest (Dees et al., 2002). Confident individuals who try to sell something always have an edge over their competitors. I met a street vendor selling action figures who convinced me to purchase one. It was his confidence that enabled him to grab my