March 11, 2009
Is Gen-X Moxie starting to bloom?
Reinvent this, you Boomer running dog lackeys, you Gen-Y teacups. Eve Tahminciogluan, an MSNBC contributor, notes that Gen-X (defined liberally as those born between 1961 and 1981) is "getting hit with a double whammy". First, the dot-com bubble bursts--and now this, The Recession. But the article trumpets the degree of Gen-X Moxie, self-reliance and true grit:
This generation never had any illusions that an employer would take care of them for life, says Neil Howe, economist, demographer and co-author of “Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069.”
“Generation X never expected any security,” he says, adding that the mentality of the company man or woman was dead by the time these individuals entered the workforce.
They are also a resilient lot, he adds... In contrast to the younger Generation Y group with their overprotective parents and baby boomers still pining the loss of the gold watch days, Gen Xers never “trusted that the world or anyone was going to take care of them," he says.
That's the spirit! (We hope it's true.) Yes, do what Boomers and their Greatest Generation parents did when they got stung: (1) spit on it, (2) run a lap, (3) whiskey and soda.
Posted by Holden Oliver at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
February 26, 2009
The Recession as Teacher.
Is this the end of the right to be helpless? Our astral twin, the uncommonly cruel but clear-eyed workaholic boomer apologist, New York's Scott Greenfield, had provocative things to say about, uh, real life, in this post: "Economics 101 (Slackoeisie Version)". What if you are among the "laid-off young", and need to hit the streets, he asks?
If you are fortunate enough to have clients, they will expect you to perform for them in exchange for paying you. This is not a novel concept, no matter how foreign it may seem to you. This was how your old bosses did things, while you were insulated from the harsh business aspect of the practice.
Your clients will call you or come to you with the expectation that you will provide legal services. They will expect your services to be timely, professional and minimally competent. They will not care about your work/life balance, and your need to take a "mental health day" off at the expense of a filing deadline will not be understood or accepted. Clients can be so darned unreasonable.
Some people. The way that guy struts around on his blog.
Posted by Holden Oliver at 12:43 AM | Comments (0)
January 23, 2009
China depositions: So what's the deal there?
We want to know, too. Even though China signed a treaty with the U.S. on evidence in 1980, and acceded to the Hague Evidence Convention in 1998, China attached strings to both and, well, nothing really happens if you want to take a deposition in mainland China. Two days ago Dan Harris at China Law Blog wrote "Taking Depositions In China. It Can Be Done. Just Kidding". He was inspired by several posts in early 2008 at the Experience Not Logic: Business and Law in China--which, by the way, is a dead-on if not perfect title for any website, blog, book or course about doing business in China. Read these links on taking evidence in China. Do you have different experiences or takes?
Posted by JD Hull at 07:29 PM | Comments (0)
September 23, 2008
Get used to it: lawyers aren't royalty.
It's not about the lawyers anymore. No one cares you're a lawyer. Not impressive. A big so-what. In America, they made it easy to become a lawyer. Some day, everyone, including your waitress in Richmond, Kentucky, will be a lawyer. So get a head start on those you can. Distinguish yourself by serving clients. And get higher standards.
See Rule 9: Be There For Clients--24/7 from our Mr. Rogers-like but deadly serious 12 Rules.
Posted by Holden Oliver at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2008
Coming soon: "Why Johnny Can't Work".
Or "The New Employee as Houseplant". Dan Hull just got back to the States--and now suddenly goes back to Europe for a few days. But he plans to finish the above when he returns. ("I may have figured out why these people can't accomplish anything; so alert the Media..."). Whatever, Dan.
In the meantime, see at Scott Greenfield's "The Lawprofs Respond: The Slackoiesie are Differently Abled" at Simple Justice and Jeffrey Harrison's "Creating Disabilities" at MoneyLaw. Greenfield, a hero to boomers, is on a roll. Query: can "high self-esteem" exist along side marginal abilities/low self-respect? And isn't this in the DSM IV somewhere?
Posted by Holden Oliver at 12:23 AM | Comments (2)
July 27, 2008
Exciting global news: French inching toward actually working again.
The French, uh, work ethic, so to speak. We've written about this subject before--and this news has us in a tizzy. Sixty-three years is a damn long holiday, even for Europeans. Bloomberg News: "French Lawmakers Pass Bill to Increase Work Hours":
July 24 (Bloomberg) -- French lawmakers passed a bill to increase work hours, eroding the 35-hour weekly limit and handing President Nicolas Sarkozy his sixth legislative victory this week before the summer recess.
The law allows companies freedom to negotiate the workweek, triples the annual ceiling of overtime, and lets white-collar workers swap days off for more pay. Sarkozy was elected in May 2007 after campaigning on the slogan "work more to earn more", saying the decade-old 35-hour workweek reduced French competitiveness and set back economic growth. [more]
Posted by JD Hull at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
May 20, 2008
Who cares what makes Generation Y tick?
From a marketing e-mail I received today:
Are you frustrated by young workers who feel entitled to success, need constant praise, want everything to be 'their way'? Are you struggling to attract and retain a generation of workers whose commitment seems more temporary than permanent?
This is Generation Y, a workforce of as many as 70 million, and the first wave is just now taking their place in an increasingly multigenerational workplace.
In this 1-day seminar, we'll show you how to motivate and manage Generation Y. You'll learn what makes them tick, how to retain them, and make them productive and energized.
It's your problem, Gen-X and Gen-Y. Not ours. Work, figure it out, ask questions, and we'll help you--but it's your job to adjust to "us" and the often hard adventure of learning to solve problems for your employer and its clients.
Posted by JD Hull at 11:59 PM | Comments (28)
May 03, 2008
France's American-esque president: his tough first year.
Nicolas Sarkozy was elected on May 7, 2007. According to The Economist, in "Sarkozy's France: The Presidency as Theatre", his difficult first year in office can be divided into three acts. In Act II, as we reported in December, the business-oriented President Sarkozy on national television told millions of his countrymen:
The French needed to work harder, he told the country that invented the 35-hour working week. They needed to invest more in brainpower; and the state needed to tax and spend less. [more]
Posted by JD Hull at 11:11 PM | Comments (0)
December 14, 2007
Getting nastier: Guild files NLRB complaint against studios.
LOS ANGELES (AP)- Union officials representing striking Hollywood writers said Thursday they have filed an unfair labor practices complaint claiming studios violated federal law by breaking off negotiations [on Dec. 7].
The Writers Guild of America demanded in a statement that the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers return to the bargaining so the six-week strike can be ended and thousands of workers idled by the walkout can return to their jobs.
The studios quickly responded: the "baseless, desperate NLRB complaint is just the latest indication that the WGA’s negotiating strategy has achieved nothing for working writers.” [more]
Posted by Holden Oliver at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
December 03, 2007
Sarkozy to France: Get off your derriere and back to work.
Speaking of picket lines and protests, nearly 19 million French viewers heard words to this effect in a televised interview on Thursday. WAC? still loves Paris above all places and the French above all Europeans. However, and as we've suggested, it's high time for the French--the West's high-minded guardians of culture, conscience and taste--to start working again. Between 1901 and 2002, the French (population about 60 million) won 44 Nobel prizes, fourth behind the US (pop. 287 million), UK (60 million) and Germany (83 million). Why not excel once again in the world's marketplaces as well? Begin by chucking the 35-hour work week, a madness the French president thinks is killing the country. So in Saturday's Financial Times, see "Sarkozy Urges France to Work Harder", and for a list of President Sarkozy's specific proposals, designed in large part to increase French consumer purchasing power, see Reuters.
Posted by JD Hull at 11:06 PM | Comments (1)
December 02, 2007
California FedEx court: drivers are employees, not ICs.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Supreme Court of California on Thursday denied the final appeal of FedEx Corp.'s domestic ground unit, which tried to overturn a lower court's ruling that FedEx drivers are employees and not independent contractors. [more]
Posted by Holden Oliver at 02:37 PM | Comments (0)
October 20, 2007
Life-life balance: Pres. Sarkozy v. French utility unions
This past week, France was hobbled by transport, electricity and gas worker strikes to protest French President Nicolas Sarkozy's proposals to end generous pensions for certain public-sector workers. Currently, some workers can retire on full pensions at 50. Sarkozy, president since May, had promised to end such "special regimes" during his election campaign. See at The Economist "Sarkozy's Bad Week".
Posted by Holden Oliver at 11:59 AM | Comments (0)
September 20, 2007
French to start working again?
WAC? loves the French above all Europeans. See our Ile St Louis post in March entitled "Ernest, the French aren't like you and me". But 62 years (since 1945) is a hell of a long vacation, and enough is enough. Not everyone loves the new president of France, pro-business tough guy Nicolas Sarkozy, but The New York Times reports that at least he's got the right idea:
Sarkozy Takes Aim at Retirement Perks
PARIS, Sept. 18 (NYT) — President Nicolas Sarkozy of France took the first perilous steps to rein in generous early retirement perks of powerful unionized workers on Tuesday in a speech demanding “a new social contract” that could raise their retirement age to 65 from as low as 50. [More]
Posted by JD Hull at 08:38 PM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2007
"Would've left work earlier today, but fell asleep at my desk."
Happy Monday, American workers. And buck up, as we hear from a Gallup poll that 77% of you hate your damn job. Not a good stat. But there's hope. Please see at Gruntled Employees the piece "Ept Managers Lead to Gruntled Employees" and the linked-to materials.
Posted by Holden Oliver at 07:57 PM | Comments (0)