For the past several years (decades actually), I’ve worked diligently at a computer. When not working, I’ve spent a fair amount of time playing online games with family and friends… at the computer.
But even when I’m not working, I have a computer checking email every 2 minutes. Anything I get that’s work related takes priority and I answer promptly. But not yesterday!
I didn’t respond to a work email for 7 hours.
The email wasn’t from a client or prospect, but it was work related just the same. And you know what? The world didn’t end. That delay was nothing in the grand scheme. The rain still fell and spring green got greener…
Y’all probably think I’m crazy and making a big ole’ deal out of nothing at all. But for me, that step was monumental. I’ve been known to conduct business even on vacations (yup — on every single one of them).
And since the earth didn’t implode because I took a long time to respond to an email…
I may do the same thing again today. Heck, I may even take nap lessons from Merida because she’s a pro with a ton of experience and I need a new hobby.
Work life balance is a real thing.
Cultivating work-life balance promotes productivity, reduces stress, and fosters a fulfilling existence. It’s time I pull back from work and add more to the life column. Yesterday was the first step.
Feel free to join me on my journey to life as a bum! 😉
Now you know: The actor who starred in ‘The Great Train Robbery’ — and 70 other movies — retired from the cinema to work as a milkman and later owned a cigar store.
I shared photos of my family the other day taken when my favorite brother visited, but have another I didn’t share…
I’m sharing it now because it’s proof that with AI, you can go anywhere. The best example is our recent rafting expedition in a faraway swamp.
AI algorithms can produce highly realistic and convincing outputs.
As artificial intelligence (AI) technologies continue to advance, it’s becoming more difficult to distinguish between what’s real and what’s digitally created. The above photo took me about 2 minutes with Photoshop, and y’all know it’s fake — but there’s a whole lot out there that’s so realistic it’s hard to tell the difference.
Seeing isn’t always believing anymore.
Be careful not to assume everything you see on the internet — or read — is factual. 🙂
You CAN believe it when I tell you my back is losing the barndo’s landscaping battle. The yard improvement posts I shared on shelleyerwin.com over the past 2 days is as real as it gets. How long before yardwork can be done with AI? (My poor ole’ back wants to know.)
Now you know: In 2001, a 13-year-old Boy Scout named Cody Clawson went missing for over 18 hours near Yellowstone Park. Clawson resorted to using his belt buckle to signal to planes overhead. Eventually, he got a pilot’s attention – and that pilot was none other than Harrison Ford.
As I was huddled in the bathroom with two big dogs on Tuesday to avoid potential bodily harm from a tornado, I received a robocall from what appeared to be our local CVS. It totally ticked me off!
Upon a closer look, I found their phone number is being spoofed… used by a scammer to masquerade as a trusted entity.
This doesn’t make sense to me…
We have apps that can replicate human intelligence and problem-solving abilities, but not one that can stop call spoofing? We have apps that can manipulate a photo to move a creek to a spot where there isn’t one… but not an app that can stop call spoofing?
What doesn’t work.
You can use a spam blocker on your phone but that doesn’t stop calls coming from spoofed numbers. You can block the number — but what if it’s a number of a company you use? (Like me with CVS.) You can sign up for the government’s ‘do not call’ list — but that doesn’t do a thing to prevent spoofing.
They’re working on it… at least that’s what they say.
While phone companies and regulatory bodies are working on implementing solutions for call authentication and verification systems, such as STIR/SHAKEN, it remains a cat-and-mouse game as malicious actors continue to find new ways to spoof caller ID.
In the meantime, don’t be mad at CVS — and don’t call-back people you don’t know.
Now you know: The temperature on the moon at the Apollo 11 landing site was 200ºF (93ºC).
Maybe it’s because my job revolves around how to better serve customers and I notice it more, but it sure seems like a majority of businesses only care about the sale.
My recent online purchase from Yankee Candle…
Please note that Yankee is the largest candle manufacturer in the United States. Because of their poor service, I’ll be sticking with Swan Creek Candle Company.
I placed my online Yankee Candle order 3-weeks ago. Because it still hadn’t made it to my doorstep, today I looked up the FedEx tracking number supplied to find it took that long for Yankee just to create a packing slip. I reached out for help via their chat module.
Mehraj (an Islamic/Muslim name originating in India meaning moon kingdom) apologized for the inconvenience and shipping exception.
Me: It’s not an inconvenience or a shipping exception. Yankee charged me for products that weren’t delivered. Please cancel the order and refund my card with the same expediency as you debited it.
But that’s not the end of the story…
I get an email that says… “It may take up to 3 billing cycles for your financial institution to process the refund back into your account. Please contact your financial institution if you have questions about processing time.” 🙄
THREE BILLING CYCLES? Not counting the time I spent choosing my items and ordering them — or the time in chat with Mehraj in India — I quite possibly will be without my money for up to 4 months without getting one thing in return.
Candles won’t be nearly as important when windows can be open and spring is in the air.
Now you know: Danny DeVito’s short stature is the result of Multiple Epiphyseal Dysplasia (Fairbank’s disease), a rare genetic disorder that affects bone growth.
When Scott and I were in high school, college was the next step to get ahead in life. Why? Because college graduates have typically had access to a wider range of job opportunities and were better equipped to adapt to changing market demands.
When my son, Ben, was at that particular crossroad, nothing much had changed. College was still the direction one should be encouraged to go to be successful.
Back then, we didn’t see AI coming.
You may or may not believe as I do… that AI will create earth-shattering changes. I believe it’s already started. Now, everyone has access to insights and productivity like never before. That means humans must be more competent as to not be replaceable — and for some, competency won’t be enough.
My child rearing days are behind me and I’m great with that. At my stage in life, I’m happy I don’t have to make the decisions young parents do today. But if I did…
I’d encourage my kids to become plumbers, electricians, contractors or mechanics.
AI can’t fix your toilet, repair an electrical short, shingle a roof, or find out why your car’s A/C quit working. People still need those professions with or without the benefit of AI.
It’s scary when you analyze recent data — especially when what businesses see as their primary challenge is not congruent with what prospective employees are looking for…
Recent research shows keeping pace with technology is the #1 challenge for businesses today.
Recent research shows work-life balance is the #1 challenge for individual professionals today.
Now you know: When baseball player Roberto Clemente died in a plane crash, his teammate Manny Sanguillen was the only one of his teammates who did not attend the memorial service. He instead chose to dive into the shark-infested crash site to try and help to retrieve the body.
