Virtual Friends

At one time they were considered to be unhealthy. Depending on what generation you have grown with they may even have been called scary, potential criminals, stalkers - weirdos etc. However, it is nearly impossibly today to not have them: Virtual Friends. Whether you play an online game, or participate in social networking sites - you develop a social online network that you would not have in real life. That is not to say that you cannot cross friends over, or meet your online buddies. And yes - as with anything you still need to retain caution.

How many years ago was it? Did you ever have a pen pal? Or perhaps you have written a soldier overseas to help them through the war. Why was that not considered odd? Criminals only visit the internet, I see. Consider gambling at the casino, a game, and chatting with the people around you over a quick beer or soda in between hands or while the dealers are changing out. What is different between that - and any other online game?

I have a Facebook page, had a Myspace page, play an online game (mmo) and even have a blog. I also chat on Vent with people while playing the game that I play. I hope you would have guessed that by now. I live my life in the open and only keep certain information hidden. I will not tell you my address or social security number. Most other information is restricted as well but it is nothing that you could not find by going to your local record holder. Much of this information is free or costs minimal amounts.Of course none of my 392 friends are weird and I know each one of them. Sure...

I can tell you from experience that I have had family members have their sole social interaction online. Another family member "left" their significant other to meet an "online friend." Another family member has met several people in various spots of the US. I cannot say that I agree, however, that is not the point. Where we have sites like eHarmony, Match.com etc. why are some things acceptable and others not?

If you want an eye opening experience visit http://www.familywatchdog.us/. While visiting this site think about the stigma of online predators. You have some living next door.

5 - S Your Life

5-S - you may ask? What is that? More than likely it is something that you do - in many instances of your life. Clean out the clutter and put things away. 5-S stands for Sort, Straighten, Sanitize, Standardize, and Sustain. It is a part of a lean journey where the waste is removed. Directly, you may remove waste by the discarding of unused items. Indirectly, you may gain time, or make your task more efficient.

Consider the following: Imagine a day that you were late for work. The alarm clock "did not" go off and you are frantically running around your house. The "Flight of the Bumble Bee" is playing in the background. Thing about your clothes. Now, knowing that you are late - find what you need in the pictured room.

The very thought is a logistical nightmare! Yes, I will admit that my room does look like this, but this is not my room. However, I never claimed to be efficient in the process of keeping my room clean. Regardless, it is a point that relates from the largest of manufacturing plants down to something you do everyday.

The idea of lean, which is what 5-S is a part of, is waste reduction. In this case it is time by removing all the items that you are not using. If you find that you are using all the items - great - except we must now organize. It is an art as well as a discipline. When you begin this journey in your home it will take some time to establish. Consider small things first. Go through your sock drawer and remove all the unmatched socks. Match all the socks while you are there. Make sure your socks have a certain spot, your shirts, your jeans, your shoes, etc. Everything has a SPECIFIC place. This is not the hard part by the way. The use of the system is the easy part and you will be very thankful for it when you get accustomed to it. I must warn you, the hard part, will be to put everything back the SAME WAY, EVERY TIME. Everything has a place, and everything in its place.Once you have the standard set - label it. Place a label that can work for everyone. Make it kid friendly too! If you set up a standard process - and find yourself deviating take a moment and revisit the process. If you place your socks in drawer 4 and your map says the socks belong in the other room - should you adjust your map? Your standard process should also be realistic, and adaptable. I caution the adaption portion - only if your plan changes the standard. If your plan does not change, and you just start adapting here and there based on "time" or "laziness" then you have broken your process and the 5-S will crumble. However, you may get to play the "Flight of the Bumble Bee" song. If you just want to hear the song, go to this site.

One last visual to help you understand the effects of 5-S. Consider a word search puzzle. Consider the length of time that you spend looking for the words. The diagonal, vertical, and horizontal words that cross or share letters - even the really tricky ones that go backwards. Now if the words were already circled, or listed out in the same order or manner so they were easy to pick out - how long would that puzzle actually take?

Once you have this down, consider all of the other things that you could do? The garage, your tool box, the cupboards, etc. Other examples can be found by visiting this site of "before and after" pictures of 5-S.


Pictures found at:
http://lizette.i.ph/photo/d/760-1
http://webscripts.softpedia.com/screenshots/Word-Search-Game-24400.png/DSC02131.JPG?g2_GALLERYSID=TMP_SESSION_ID_DI_NOISSES_PMT

Plastic and Modeled

On a recent business trip I stayed at a very fancy hotel. Of course it was not like the MGM or anything comparable in Vegas – but for my meek salary any tiny spot of positional latitude, it was nice. Now that I have stated how far down on the totem I am, I must admit the trip was paid for by the company. That which is not already paid for will be when I submit the receipts.

Now as I prop my feet up and listen to “Bama Breeze,” by Jimmy Buffet I am pondering over the day – thoughts – and events. The song really has nothing to do with the story here – other than its significance to simplicity.

What started this train wreck of my imagination and slight frustration? Well, upon check in to the hotel, I was asked for my name and photo ID. I handed over the requested materials. The gentleman asked me for confirmation of my stay and I nodded in affirmation. The next statement was the stray bullet. “Can I have your credit card?”

The hotel has been pre-paid by the company for which I work so I just asked him to look at the file and see that all is in good order. However, he still persisted that a credit card was due. I let the man know that I do not have one (as nice as I could without making it obvious that I was a little embarrassed/irritated). His next comment sealed the deal.”So you are not going to take any refreshments out of the room?” My reply was “No.”

“Well Sir, I will send someone to your room to take all the refreshments out of the room.” He commented back.

My rebuttal, “Would you like me to go now and open the door for them?” (I have something more on this later...)

This event was not the end of my day but consider the impact of the situation. We live in a society that demands we are culturally sound with amenities for every situation. I must admit that if my own personal finance was in order I would have a small credit card. However, I do not have a credit card or even a cellular phone. Thinking about this event I began to illuminate all the advertisements that I have seen recently. Many of them require a credit card for the discount, or a cellular phone so that you can be “texted” a code. Heck, even the Salvation Army (in many bigger cities) has credit card swiping capability. 

I wonder what happened. It is almost like we are reverting to the beginning of the credit card, or “Diner’s Card.” It makes you exclusive. The very fact that the Salvation Army has the ability to accept credit cards is an oxymoron. Understand that the purpose is to collect more money – that many people do not carry cash today. So, to keep up to the culture they have adapted. Basic business is to adapt with the culture, however, I struggle with the other side of the coin. There will be some people who give when they cannot afford it, creating more debt for themselves, or sharing their debt.  I am sure that it is the middle man being cut out. The rich get richer and the poor live rich getting more into debt with the middle man taking sides with the previous.

In a world where bigger is better and faster is more – I wonder what wall we will slam up against to realize that “hey – it is ok to just be average.” Materialism is an addiction that we must come to terms with. The prices continue to rise and the customers will continue to justify the needs.  Basic Business: Supply and Demand. The price will continue to rise to find the equilibrium or ideal quantity for the store to have on hand that the customers will buy. Then, in many cases, the stores will offer a sale when their inventories are high to turn product. Guess what – it’s a deal only to move product. The price between sale and retail is the extra profit the store makes. Most of the items at full retail have a nice sticker on them. The splendid word that feeds the addiction is “New!” Now how is all of this rant tied in to the above?

We are expected to have money available at all times based on society. If you do not have the funds available now, then simply charge it – this will help us be culturally savvy. But, before I finish my little topic - I wanted to share a small tidbit of information. In the event that you do fall behind in your credit cards and you need to settle to get out of the compound interest rates you do have options. Before you go to bankruptcy there are options. You do have options to negotiate. I have successfully cut credit card bills up to 50% off of the collected rate. According to CreditCard.com, the profits are very large. Which means they have room to cut fees - and still make a profit. That is the beauty of compound interest.

Profitability 

Profits or Losses at Top 10 U.S. Credit Card Issuers in 2008
1. Chase: $780 million profit
2. Bank of America: $520 million profit
3. Citi: $530 million loss
4. American Express: $850 million profit
5. Capital One: $1.00 billion profit
6. Discover: $710 million profit
7. Wells Fargo: $990 million profit
8. HSBC: $520 million profit
9. US Bank: $1.07 billion profit
10. USAA: Not listed

Ok - I have grossly got off topic but wanted to throw several ideas at you about this subject. The point is, we should avoid a cultural view of ourselves when looking at material items. It is ok - to not be what is expected by the worldly view or status quo. And just to cap off the blog - remember when I mentioned "more of this later" about the hotel stay. They never did remove the refreshments. He was "calling my bluff." 

Images of credit card trap as viewed: http://www.fairloanrate.com