Mommy, you made my heart wrinkle

Posted on November 15, 2023 by Stan

[This guest article is by Jana De Anda]

I am the proud mother of a gregarious, talkative, energetic and articulate five-year old daughter named Adaline whose light shines in every room she enters. The honor of that role is not lost on me and my gratitude for her runs deep.

I also co-founded and run a strategy execution consulting firm headquartered in San Diego, with a second office in Portland, which employs close to 30 people as of this year. We serve major brands through transformation efforts that require data-driven approaches, process optimization, innovation, strategic program design and change management.

I tell you all this as backdrop to this story. As an entrepreneur, a leader and a strategic consultant, I’m often mentally tapped at the end of the day, and I have trouble sleeping through the night most of the time.

On one particular night, I had awakened around 1:00 a.m. and was having a particularly hard time getting back to sleep. Around 4:00 a.m., I had just fallen back to sleep when my daughter woke up, asking to come sleep with my husband and I, as young kids often do.

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This ain’t AI

Posted on July 29, 2023 by Stan

Computing power, data storage and transmission speeds have all continually advanced from the moment counting tools were first employed to extend human mathematics beyond our ten fingers. Calculations were aided and our ability to do higher order math improved through the use of tally sticks thousands of years ago. The abacus was introduced in Babylonia nearly five thousand years ago. The slide rule, a major step forward in being able to complete highly complex mathematical problem-solving was invented by William Oughtred sometime between 1620 and 1630, shortly after the introduction of logarithmic numerical scaling.

The first mechanical computation machine was invented by Charles Babbage in 1822. The first electro-mechanical, automatic computation machine, now called a “computer”, was invented in 1941 by Konrad Zuse. In 1945, another significantly improved computer called ENIAC became fully operational, which used the same vacuum tube switches that Zuse employed. ENIAC weighed thirty tons. It was the invention of semi-conducting materials which allowed components to be made smaller, with less heat and faster operational speeds, that began the incredible rate of advancement and reduction in size of computers.

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When the world feels like too much

Posted on May 19, 2023 by Stan

Guest writer: Serra Sewitch-Posey

Something is happening to me. Or more than that it’s like, parts of myself that have always been there are starting to expand and overwhelm other parts of me. It feels a bit alarming, like I’m mutating in ways I can’t control. And it also feels so personal, so unique to my own experience, and yet I have a strong feeling that this is normal for someone of my age at this time in my life. And normal for someone living in this society at this point in history.

Ok, I’ll get to the point. The point is, I’ve always been sort of half and half introvert/extrovert. I like hanging out with friends, I like parties, I like conversations and social events in general but then of course I need to recharge by having time by myself. Up until now it has felt pretty balanced. I don’t know if it’s my job or what, but my tolerance for social interaction has been getting lower and lower. I’ve been hitting my limit a lot quicker, and needing more time to recharge afterwards.

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The proposed four day workweek vs reality

Posted on March 11, 2023 by Stan

There is a range of versions that states and Congress are considering recently, to enact a reduction in the standard work week. One version, working 40 hours in four days, has been an option for employers for many years, as long as the employees agree to it as well. This allows the overtime rules to still apply to “non-exempt” roles, i.e., those which are paid for hours worked and must be given overtime pay rates when working more than the daily or weekly standards.

For positions that are “exempt” from wage and hour laws–those that are the type of role which qualifies for the exemption, and which must be paid a fixed salary above a certain threshold–there are no wage and hour rules for working hours per day or week. An exempt role gets paid for results, not for hours worked. Such roles include those that are generally termed “professional” or “knowledge” positions, leadership roles and sales jobs.

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