Coming out of The Rut.

Too many vacations that last too long, too many movies, too much TV, too much video game playing – too much undisciplined leisure time in which a person continually takes the course of least resistance gradually wastes a life. It ensures that a person’s capacities stay dormant, that talents remain undeveloped, that the mind and spirit become lethargic and that the heart remains unfulfilled.
-Stephen Covey, Author of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Once you leave college a lot of the spontaneity that your daily routine used to have is gone. If you try you can keep the spontaneity in your life but it is hard. I have said this in previous a previous post, but once you start working a 9 to 5 the days get very monotonous and the time just passes quicker then you would like. A lot of times your day may go something like this: Wake up, get dressed, eat something on the go for breakfast, get on the same road that you commute on every day for your morning drive to work, arrive at work, settle in, spend your next 8 hours working on a project, assignment, or task that you have been working on for the last six months. If you are lucky your projects change frequently, if you are unlucky you have been doing the same repetitive task for the last 5 years. When you finally to get home from your commute from work to home you rarely feel like working on a side business, going to the gym or taking part in some other productive activity, so what do you do? Most likely you will take part in a few of the activities that Mr. Covey mentions in the quote that I began this post with, thus falling into what I like to call The Rut. To digress for a quick second, if you are working the good ol 9 to 5 and you are not that far removed from college, the problem of taking too many vacations that last too long, as described by Mr. Covey, is not a problem you have to worry about, companies make sure you can’t do that by instituting the crazy leave policies, I wish I had the problem of being able to take to many vacations, okay now back to the topic of this post.

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Been in a bit of a rut lately but this song
helps get me through it.

This song helped me get through college, I used to listen to it all the time at my first job, and I think its about to start being on repeat at my current job. If you are a fan of Mr. West’s blog, as I am, then you have probably seen this. If you don’t read is blog, maybe you have seen it someplace else, but anyway..here it is…(Unreleased) Spaceship Video from College Dropout.

Spaceship from kwest on Vimeo.

Working For A Small Company –
7 Reasons Why You Might Want To Do It.

Of course I want to work for myself and that is my overall goal. I still feel like you are not truly financially independent unless you are working for your self. However, I will concede that I have noticed some benefits from working at a small company as opposed to a larger company. Granted, I have not been at the new company that long, but here are a few of the things I have noticed.

1. More interaction with company leaders.
   One of the biggest problems I sometimes experienced at the larger company I was with was that I did not get to interact with real decision makers, matter of fact they didn’t even know my name. I could sometimes interact with mid level managers pretty well, but the people that really made decisions were hard to speak to. It’s kind of hard to learn how the real decision makers got where they are without ever getting to talk to them. When I say decision makers, I mean your VPs, Presidents, CEOs, and tech directors. I am talking about the people that don’t have to ask to permission to get something done, I am talking about the people that give permission.

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Working for a Big Company vs Working for a
Small Company.

Making My Decision To Move To A Small Company

When I made the decision to quit my first postgraduate job at a large (20,000 people large) successful consulting firm and go to a small startup-consulting firm, I felt like the decision was huge. When I notified my old job most of my co-workers had mixed reactions, some told me I would be running back, other’s told me that I should do it now since I am young and could afford to take the risk. After working at the large firm for close to three years I was beginning to get comfortable and to some extent lazy. I will never forget what one of my co-workers, who was a subcontractor from a small company told me; he sent me an email saying that I was about to make a great decision and that working for a small companies has advantages and disadvantages, but that it would force me to work harder and tap into my innovative entrepreneurial spirit. After a month of weighing the pros and cons, I made the switch. Continue reading…

Dope Consequence Track!!

So hot, I had to post it before I left for servitude.

Hot Interiors: A Modern Twist on a Classic Apt.

As I have said in previous posts, I love architecture and modern interior design.  I love seeing older buildings with a modern interior twist.  I feel like larger cities like NY and Chicago have a good rep for converting historical buildings into more modern residences while still keeping the exterior facade in tact.  One city that I feel is definitely getting looked at a lot heavier now, but has been slept on for years, is Washington, DC.  Aside from the fact that it is my hometown and I am partial with it, the District of Columbia has some architectural gems.  Yes its true, New York has the amazing Brownstones in areas like Brooklyn and Harlem, but people really sleep on DC.   One just need look in areas like Columbia Heights and Capitol Hill to see homes that were built in the early 1900s and earlier that have been gutted and given a modern twist.

Anyhow, I was recently reading an article on apartment therapy, when I saw an article on a building that was built in 1910.  Just so happens that my elementary school was directly behind this building.  I always new the building’s exterior was gorgeous but I really had no idea what was on the inside.  Since they are condos, the interiors of each unit depend on the individual style of its tenant.  This unit that was featured in apartment therapy is amazing. The only thing I am not really feeling is the dark blue disk on the ceiling, I definitely think that could have been done in a better color, if at all.

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A day in the life of a 9 to 5

I saw this commercial while I was on vacation, I immediately found the link on YouTube and emailed myself the link. This commercial is crazy, because it is a perfect example of how 9 to 5 life can rob you of your essence.

Time To Start Thinking about Retirement

A few days ago my job called in some reps from the company that handles our 401k plans to give a presentation about our benefits. I am glad that I actually attended this meeting as opposed to skipping out on it like I wanted to. It was very interesting to hear the thoughts and concerns of the various age groups that were present at the presentation. While there were many different views on retirement, everyone agreed on the fact that retirement is something that needs to be meticulously planned out. I can honestly say that retirement planning has not been something at the forefront of my mind, at least in terms of utilizing a 401K or some similar financial instrument as the sole actor in my retirement strategy. Especially due to the current economic climate I have really been wondering what I should do with my money and how I should save for my retirement. At my first job I did contribute to my 401K a little, but I have not begun to contribute at new job.

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Cam’Ron (Killa) Crafts the song for a movement

Now, I heard this song and saw this video months ago, way before I started this blog. Every since then I added it to my list of videos I would post if I ever started a blog. I am sure that a bunch of other people have posted this, but I don’t care. I am an avid hip hop fan, and I get a lot of flack for this, but Killa Cam is one of my all time favorite artists. I been rocking with dude since the Children of the Corn days when he was riding with Murder Ma$e and Big L. A lot of people say hes trash, and in all honesty even though I like him, a lot of times his bars are suspect. But every now and again, my man drops something that makes me realize why he is one of my favs. Hey, its not his fault lyrics don’t sell and he didn’t start moving units till he utterly dumbed down (people didn’t want to hear him spitting stuff like D-Rugs).

Anyhow, with all that’s going on with the economy and all the people out there that hate their jobs (Not that I completely hate my job as much as I hate the idea of being dependent on working for someone else), any how, I’ve rambled on enough, suffice to say Killa dropped an anthem.

Epiphany For The Day

I feel that at least once a week I have an epiphany: some idea I feel is so profound that it will change my life. I tell friends and family, and I think they will be amazed at how profound my thoughts are, but after about a week or two I forget about the epiphany. Anyhow, my epiphany for this week’s is this: I, like most other people, lack control of my life. I know, it’s a strange concept, especially since we humans have free will and the ability to make decisions, but I firmly believe that a large portion of the humanity is bred to accept the fact that they don’t have control over their lives and not even notice.

Two events occurred this week that made me realize how little control I have over my life. The first event occurred at the doctor’s office. While sitting in the docs office this week, I noticed a sign that basically informed me that I was obese. I immediately realized that I had to exercise and change my diet. So now, in addition to the project that I am trying to work on I must also incorporate the gym into my daily schedule. The second event that occurred revolved around a conflict of schedule between the company I work for and a class I was schedule to take, basically I have to make a choice between taking a class I am interested in and attending a work related event; what sucks is that this work related event is on a weekend, which is supposed to be my time. Anyhow, these events made me realize that our lives have to be planned around our jobs. More and more I am starting to believe that the only people that really have control of their lives, aside from the super rich, are entrepreneurs.

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