Independence: American-Made & Other
? Sue Tinnish, PhD
Empowering Leadership & Growth | Executive Coach | Vistage Chair | Peer Group Facilitator
Welcome to the?MAD?newsletter - for C-level Executives who want to?Make?A?Difference - in themselves and their organizations.
July 4, 2022
In this Issue
American Made
Today is July 4…the day we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence; perhaps the most consequential document ever written.?It made America possible.?But have you ever read it??
After the fireworks are over and before the long weekend is gone, take five minutes (it’s a quick read) and expand your citizenship IQ regarding what all the fuss was really all about 246 years?ago.?It’s only 1,320 words in length (about three pages)?and offers an enlightening list of the?many grievances that drove the Founders to take the existential risk of declaring independence from the greatest power on earth at that time.??
These grievances will make many of our complaints pale in comparison.?The signers were the ultimate protesters, rebelling against the mightiest nation on the planet with the best standing army in the world at the literal risk of their lives. As Benjamin Franklin, one of the signers, remarked at the time of the irrevocable choice they had just made, “We must all hang together or most assuredly, we will all hang separately.“?
The Declaration of Independence ?was our indispensable American moment. Take a few minutes to study one of the greatest documents ever written. You may be surprised what’s in it…and you’ll probably be one of the few Americans who’ve read it start to finish.?(I just read it this year upon publication of this newsletter/)
It’s what makes us Americans.?Happy Fourth of July!
The Other?Independence
The Declaration of Independence’s most treasured words affirm that among our most “inalienable rights are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”?For many people, happiness, to varying degrees, requires financial independence as well.
Scott Galloway, professor, entrepreneur, and author of the?“No Mercy, No Malice” blog, provides his formula for financial independence in this 10-minute video: How well do you and yours understand the “Algebra of Wealth?”
?Small is Beautiful (again)
Boomers will remember a popular book from the 70’s titled “Small is Beautiful” that took to task the well-intentioned mega-projects of that time that did not produce the intended benefits. Professor Roger Martin in his “Play to Win” blog offers an analogy to that theme that may help you look at your marketplace with fresh eyes. Many companies get addicted to the high volumes that large customers provide.?But such volume comes with a cost, and some are starting to wonder if it’s worth it.
Marketers should check out Dr. Martin’s short blog post on the topic Small is Beautiful:?Why You Need to Pay More Attention to Small Customers .?
Large is Temporary
Many CEOs are captivated by the annual lists of the largest companies.?As interesting as the rankings may be in any given year, what’s really edifying, and sobering, is how the rankings change over time.??
领英推荐
The American Business History Center (ABHC) publishes “Largest Companies Charts” and updates them annually.?What is interesting (and perhaps a little disturbing) for CEOs is not just these companies’ relative position on the list?but that?entire industries?have been displaced down the chart.?Autos and oil dominated in 1994;??check out the leading industries in 2021 for an object lesson in just how much can change. ?The most interesting feature of these charts is their dynamic nature;?press the green animation button in the lower left corner of the graph and watch the rankings change year by year and which companies rise and fall.??
BTW, if you’d like some insights into why companies lose a dominant position, check out the least known, but perhaps most important of Jim Collin’s books,?How the Mighty Fall .??Or watch this short video interview with Collins.?How close is your company to “falling?”
?
American Ingenuity for the Fourth
American ingenuity has been long and rightly celebrated for what it’s brought to us and how our freedom makes it possible. A timely example of this is?how drones are being creatively used to replace fireworks this Fourth of July.
?Fireworks have been impacted by supply chain and transportation issues, making them significantly more expensive this year.?Moreover, in many parts of the American West that have been ravaged by wildfires, the?risk of fireworks shows is just too great a risk to public safety.??
What to do??Many cities have replaced their fireworks displays with fleets of drones (2 min video) programed to present a visual, safe, and cost-effective tribute in the night sky to the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave?(a great example of innovation by using a new technology to satisfy an old need).?
Removing the Front Door
The first line of IT defense for many companies are the usernames and passwords employees use to access their companies’ IT systems; it’s akin to have a lock on the front door and an alarm system to advise you if it’s opened by someone not entitled to do so.?You wouldn’t put a note on the door telling an intruder the key is under the doormat or what the alarm code is. But that’s what many companies do according to?Vistage IT Security Speaker and Cybersecurity Expert Mike Foster.?Mr. Foster?suggests you remove the front door.??Find out how to do that in his recent blog post:?Anatomy of a Password Attack, and How to Prevent Them .
?
Econ Recon
A Monty Python Economy:??Remember the character in Monty Python “Search for the Holy Grail who kept insisting “I’m not dead yet!”???Dr. Brian Wesbury’s recent post suggests a similar analog to the increasing fears of a recession.?Check out his blog post??We’re Not Already in a Recession.”
The Surge Ebbs:?The money supply, and consequently inflation, surged during Covid. Dr. Wesbury’s urges calm in his posting this week which posits that recent measures of the money supply indicates that “The Monetary Surge Continues to Ebb” ??suggesting that as of now?“things appear to be moving in a direction that will bring down inflation in the years ahead.”
Dis or De:? Inflation comes in several flavors and it’s important to know which is which. Lauren Saidel-Baker of ITR Economics does and offers a few interesting paragraphs on?the difference between deflation and disinflation .?Be sure you know the difference.
2008 vs 2030:??The Great Recession of 2008 caught many by surprise.??The economists at ITR Economics have been forecasting a Great Depression in 2030.?Take a few minutes for ITR”s short posting?how 2008 and 2030 will be the same and how will they be different .
?
I also publish this newsletter via email. DM me if you would like to subscribe. I'd be grateful if you would recommend or forward this newsletter to your customers, vendors, and colleagues.?
Sue Tinnish, PhD,?Vistage Chair, 847.404.7325,?[email protected]
Helping high-ticket B2B service businesses close MORE deals FASTER at HIGHER PRICES using First-Time Offers that will break your cash register. ?? Podcast Host ?? Multi Best-Selling Author
2 年"They loved their country better than their own private interests; and, though this is not the highest form of human excellence, all will concede that it is a rare virtue, and that when it is exhibited, it ought to command respect. He who will, intelligently, lay down his life for his country, is a man whom it is not in human nature to despise. Your fathers staked their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor, on the cause of their country. In their admiration of liberty, they lost sight of all other interests." - Frederick Douglass
Empowering CEOs & Presidents for Exceptional Growth | Vistage Peer Advisory Chair | Executive Coach | Transformational Strategist | Acclaimed Author & Speaker
2 年Sue Tinnish, PhD, I always enjoy your MAD newsletter but found your narrative about the signing of the Declaration of Independence particularly meaningful. Sometimes we focus on the celebration and not the meaning of the holiday. As we watch the fireworks, we should remember that we're celebrating the founding of our country.