Pointless Pollution: The Chlorine Whitewash

Paper mills dump tons of dioxins - byproducts of the chlorine bleaching process - into American streams and rivers. Dioxins accumulate in fat cells, and have been implicated in higher cancer rates, as well as reproductive and developmental harm in both animals and humans. If paper mills only had to bleach a very few premium products, how much less dioxin would be released into the environment?

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Categories: Corporate Culture | Leadership | Environment | Optimism

1 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 9:56 AM

Customer Service Heroes: UPS Driver Daryl Hansen

Few companies live to the ripe old age of 100, and fewer still are more vibrant at 102 than at any other time in their history. United Parcel Service (UPS) was founded by a couple of teenagers as the American Messenger Company in 1907.  This week, two events helped me understand why the company is going strong in 2009.

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Categories: Marketing | Corporate Culture | Customer Service | Competitive Advantage | Optimism

1 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 11:08 PM

Thoughtful Toys for Every Child

Have you seen the Toys"R"Us toy guide for differently-abled kids? If not, click the link and check it out. As the company website explains, "For nearly 20 years, we have published the annual Toys"R"Us Toy Guide for Differently-Abled Kids, an easy-to-use resource featuring specially selected toys that aid in the development of children with physical, cognitive or developmental disabilities."

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Categories: Education | Disabilities | Optimism

1 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 11:57 PM

Contemplating the Thinkable

Many people over forty did not believe the Berlin Wall would come down in their lifetime. Of course, many people did not believe CDs would replace vinyl LPs, or that Arizona would ever go to the Super Bowl. Not only do these unthinkable things happen - they seem to happen suddenly.

For sixty years, almost no one has believed there can be peace in the Middle East, but the wheel of history is gaining momentum. As we saw with the Iron Curtain, when enough people demand change, change comes.

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Categories: Leadership | Economics | Optimism

1 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 11:22 AM

The Most Important Thing to Learn Before You Graduate

In a best-case scenario, we learn both career skills and money skills before leaving school, but most schools do not offer much in the way of financial education. The evidence is all around us in this recession: even people who excel in academics are at risk of life-long insecurity if they do not learn how to manage their money.

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Categories: Education | Management Skills | Finance | Economics | Optimism

8 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 4:44 PM

GM's Big Dreams

The standout exhibit at the 1939 World's Fair belonged to none other than General Motors. Called Futurama, the display took visitors on a tour through an incredibly detailed - and mostly accurate - model of the continental United States as it would appear in the far-off future of 1960. Considering that the World's Fair took place after ten years of Depression and while Europe was descending into the madness of war, General Motors' imaginative optimism seems all the more impressive.

General Motors recognized the harsh facts in front of them, but nevertheless dreamed big dreams and worked to make them come true - they helped to create America's future. So what happened?

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Categories: Marketing | Creativity | Customer Service | Leadership | Competitive Advantage | Optimism

0 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 5:35 PM

Preparing for College

Congratulations to this year's high school graduates. Those of you preparing to enter college in the fall will be investing more money than ever before for your education, so here are some thoughts on getting your dollar's worth.

1. Small talk is a big deal. College is a great place to acquire friends and ideas, and small talk starts the process. You're about to be thrust into a new environment, and your willingness to chat shows that you are interested in life and people. Project a demeanor of openness and positivity; use your idle time in the dorms or hallways to start conversations and form friendships. Of all the skills you learn or refine in college, the art of conversation may be the most valuable throughout your life.

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Categories: Creativity | Education | Leadership | Optimism

1 comments - Posted by Paul Orfalea at 9:28 AM