Saturday, October 6, 2012

The Fundamentals Of Verbs

This post outlines the basic principles of the verb, the workhorse of language.

A verb describes an action (talk), an occurrence (become), or a state of being (live). Verbs are complicated by their many variable states, based on inflection depending on functions. For example, an action might, depending on the number of talkers, be described with the word talk or the word talks. (This quality is called agreement.)

Based on the tense of the sentence, the verb, accompanied by an auxiliary, or helper, could appear in the phrases "will talk," "has talked," or "was talking." (Tense is one of several similar qualities; the others are aspect, how the action or state occurs through time, and modality, the expression of the speaker's attitude toward the action or state.)

Other qualities of verbs are the voice (such as active voice, as in the form of the verb saw in "Many saw it as a turning point," or passive voice, as exemplified by the syntax in "It was seen by many as a turning point") and the valency — whether the verb is intransitive (accompanied by a subject alone, as in "It moves"), transitive (accompanied by a subject and a direct object, as in "We went to the store"), or ditransitive (accompanied by a subject, a direct object, and an indirect object ("I brought him the report").

The six types of verb follow:

An intransitive verb is one that does not precede a noun or an adjective. If any part of speech follows an intransitive verb, it is usually an adverb ("I walked quickly") or a preposition ("I walked in").

A linking verb precedes a noun ("She remained home") or an adjective ("He appeared tired"); an adverb may not follow a linking verb. In these sample sentences, home is an example of a predicate noun, and tired exemplifies predicate adjectives.

A transitive verb — sometimes, to distinguish it from two other types described below, called a one-place transitive — precedes a noun ("We watched the movie") or a noun phrase ("They talked in the dark"). In this case, the noun or noun phrase is called a direct object because it is the thing being acted on in the manner indicated by the verb.

Two types of verbs are called two-place transitive verbs. The first, labeled the Vg type (the letters stand for verb and give), precedes two nouns or noun phrases ("I bought my wife a bouquet of flowers") or a noun or noun phrase and a prepositional phrase ("I bought a bouquet of flowers for my wife") in succession. The first word or phrase after the verb is an indirect object (a recipient) and the second is a direct object.

The second type of two-place transitive verb, the Vc type (c is for consider), precedes a noun or noun phrase and another one ("I consider the chairman an arrogant person"), or an adjective ("I believe that the chairman is arrogant") or an infinitive phrase ("I found the chairman to be arrogant"). The first word or phrase after the verb is a direct object, and the second is a complement, so called because it teams up with the direct object to complete the thought.

A to-be verb is one that is a form of the phrase "to be," such as is, were, or being. A to-be verb precedes a noun ("I am a fool"), an adjective ("I was foolish"), or an adverb of place, a class of adverb that describes where something occurs ("I am in the doghouse.") These other parts of speech are sometimes referred to as predicate nouns, predicate adjectives, and predicate adverbs.

As is the case with nouns, a sentence need not include a verb (for example, "Right" spoken or written as an affirmation), but not much can happen in communication without reference to an action, an occurrence, or a state.

Thanks to Mark Nichol / DailyWritingTips
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/the-fundamentals-of-verbs/

 
 

50 Nautical Terms In General Use

The vocabulary of sailing has enriched the English language with the development, by analogy, of new senses for nautical terms. Here are fifty such words with their original meanings and their landlubber connotations.

  1. Aboard: on a vessel (assisting or in sympathy with)
  2. Aboveboard: above the deck (out in the open, honest)
  3. Adrift: not tied or secured (acting or living without purpose)
  4. Aground: resting on the seafloor on shore (halted by circumstances)
  5. Anchor: a heavy object that holds a vessel in place (a person or thing that figuratively keeps another person or thing steady)
  6. Awash: water level with or slightly covering the deck (overwhelmed)
  7. Bail: to throw out seawater or rainwater that has collected in a vessel (to help, or to abandon)
  8. Ballast: stabilizing weights placed in the hull of a vessel (something that steadies or weighs down)
  9. Beachcomber: a sailor without a berth or a shipboard assignment (a person living on or near a beach or the shore or one who searches such areas for salvage, or both)
  10. Bearing: one's position (posture or deportment)
  11. Becalm: to come to a stop because of a lack of wind (to halt progress)
  12. Berth: a sailor's assignment, or a sailor's bunk (a position or placement, in a location or in rankings)
  13. Bilge: the lowest part of a hull (outdated or useless comments or ideas)
  14. Capsize: to overturn (to ruin or interfere)
  15. Chart: a navigational map, or to map a course (a display of graphical information, or to set a course)
  16. Cockpit: a steering or berthing compartment (the pilot's compartment in an airplane, or a place for cockfighting or location notorious for violence)
  17. Course: the direction a ship is sailing (a procedure or a way of acting)
  18. Current: a movement of water (the prevailing mood or tendency)
  19. Heading: the direction a ship is sailing (one's course)
  20. Headway: progress or rate of progress in sailing (progress in general)
  21. Helm: steering apparatus, or to operate such equipment (a position of leadership, or to lead)
  22. Jury rig: to rig makeshift equipment (to make a quick fix using available materials)
  23. Keel: the backbone of a vessel, running along the center of the hull (balance, as when someone is on an even keel)
  24. Keelhaul: to drag a sailor underneath the ship along the hull as punishment (to punish severely)
  25. Leeway: sideways movement of a vessel because of current or wind (flexibility)
  26. Log: originally, a length of wood attached to a line and tossed overboard to measure speed, then a device with the
    same function; also, a record of operation (an accounting of any activity or progress)
  27. Lookout: a sailor standing watch (someone keeping watch, or the position from which the person does so)
  28. Manhole: an opening in to a compartment (a hole providing access underground or into a structure)
  29. Mooring: securing with anchors or lines, or a place where mooring occurs (a stabilizing influence)
  30. Navigation: the operation of a vessel (direction for traveling or movement through a virtual area, as on a website)
  31. Overhaul: to ready equipment for use (to rebuild or repair)
  32. Pilot: a steersman, or to steer a vessel (an operator of an aircraft or spacecraft, or to operate such a craft or to direct
    an operation or procedure, or a business or organization)
  33. Quarantine: temporary sequestration of a vessel because of the possibility of spreading disease, or the location of
    the sequestration (enforced isolation, especially because of contagion, or the place of isolation)
  34. Quarters: assigned living areas or workstations on a vessel, or an assembly of all crew members (lodging)
  35. Rudder: an immersed blade of wood, metal, or plastic attached to a vessel and turned remotely to change its direction
    (a guiding force)
  36. Salvage: to rescue or save a ship and/or its cargo, or the compensation for doing so; also, the property salvaged
    (saving something from being destroyed or discarded, or what is saved)
  37. Scuttle: to sink a vessel by cutting a hole in the hull (to ruin something by abandonment or sabotage)
  38. Scuttlebutt: a cask for holding drinking water and, by extension, the idle talk exchanged while drinking from it (gossip)
  39. Seaworthy: in condition to be operated (solid or valid)
  40. Ship: to send cargo or passengers by sea (to transport or distribute)
  41. Shorthanded: lacking enough crew members (not having enough people to perform a task)
  42. Sounding: a measurement of the depth of water (seeking an opinion or a statement of intention)
  43. Stow: to put away and, by extension, to keep one's opinion to oneself (to arrange, load, or store)
  44. Swamped: submerged (overwhelmed)
  45. Tack: to change a vessel's direction, or the new direction (to shift one's viewpoint, as in "take a new tack")
  46. Tide: the change of surface level of a body of water because of gravitational fluctuations (a fluctuating or rising phenomenon)
  47. Under way: in motion (in progress)
  48. Wake: the visible track of a vessel through water (aftermath)
  49. Waterlogged: filled or soaked with water but afloat (full of or saturated with water)
  50. Watertight: capable of preventing water from entering (solid, flawless)

Thanks to Mark Nichol / DailyWritingTips
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/50-nautical-terms-in-general-use/

 
 

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

The Top Meeting Pet Peeves That Plague Organizations

Tell most business people that there's another meeting on their agenda, and you'll likely see them shake their heads, roll their eyes, and mumble something under their breath. That's because nearly all meetings succumb to a few pet peeves—those annoying meeting happenings that derail the meeting's purpose, waste time, and cause friction and frustration among attendees.

While all types of meetings fall prey to pet peeves, it's the process-oriented, information-sharing meetings that most business people dislike…and that are the most common. Even though the role of this sort of meeting is to keep others informed and to learn how what they're doing fits in the big picture, many people leave this type of meeting feeling confused, aggravated, and sometimes overwhelmed.

This is a huge problem for business, because if a meeting isn't informative at the very least and enjoyable at the most, then the company is wasting a lot of money getting people together. Additionally, if your meetings aren't on the mark, you'll get a reputation for holding poor meetings, which erodes morale and productivity.

To ensure your meetings are effective, informative, and enjoyable, be aware of the top five meeting pet peeves and avoid them at all costs.

Pet Peeve #1: Not Having an Agenda or Not Sticking to One
The top three rules for Toastmasters are to start the meeting on time, end it on time, and always have an agenda. This rule should be true for business meetings too.

Having an agenda is not only simple courtesy; it also tells attendees that the meeting has a goal and will be productive. An agenda gives the meeting facilitator control over the meeting's flow, keeps the meeting on task, and reduces confusion among participants. Realize that the agenda does not need to be elaborate; a simple bullet list of topics is all you need to prepare.

Remember to send the agenda out a day or so before the meeting so attendees can prepare. And if you forget to send it out early, bring copies of the agenda to hand out when the meeting starts. On meeting day, stick with the agenda. If a topic comes up in conversation that is not on the agenda, offer to address that topic after the meeting. This way you keep the meeting on schedule and don't derail the meeting's purpose.

Pet Peeve #2: Lack of Facilitation
Some people mistakenly believe that meetings run on their own; that all you have to do is get a group of people together in a room and they'll automatically produce good results. Wrong! Getting the people together is the easy part; leading them in a productive discussion takes skill. That's why solid meeting facilitation is so critical.

The facilitator's job is to control the flow of the meeting, to help attendees work together, to provide structure to the meeting, and to get everyone involved. When attendees are allowed to have their cell phones ringing during the meeting, when one or two people are permitted to dominate the conversation, or when it's acceptable for key people not to contribute to the discussion, good facilitation is lacking. Therefore, make sure all your meetings have an effective facilitator at the helm.

Pet Peeve #3: People Arriving Late to the Meeting
How many meetings have you arrived to on time, only to have the meeting start late as everyone waits for others to show up? Even worse, if the meeting does start on time, it restarts 10 minutes later when a few people straggle in. Rather than continue with the meeting, the facilitator attempts to bring the latecomers up to speed by rehashing everything that was just covered.

But why penalize the people who arrived on time? A better approach is to close the door when the meeting starts and put a note on the door that says Meeting in Progress. Those who arrive late will know to sneak in as inconspicuously as possible…and, hopefully, they won't make the same mistake next time. Additionally, unless the late person is the boss, don't restart the meeting later. When meeting start times are enforced and honored, people will make the effort to be on time.

Pet Peeve #4: Using PowerPoint™ When It's Not Needed
PowerPoint is an essential business tool, but it's not effective for all meeting types. Unfortunately, many people believe that ALL meetings require the use of PowerPoint. Not true! Typical information sharing meetings require a facilitator asking questions and everyone contributing in round-robin style. Watching someone read PowerPoint slides is not how these meetings should run. After all, if people simply needed to read pages of text, you could just send them the file and skip the meeting completely.

Of course, if your informational meeting needs more of people's senses involved, then use PowerPoint to add that visual component. Likewise, if you're combining everyone's data and showing it in chart or graph form, PowerPoint is great. But don't use PowerPoint just for the sake of it. Know why you're using it, and then do it right.

Pet Peeve #5: Listening to Unprepared or Ineffective Speakers
Nothing is worse than listening to a monotone speaker who says "um" or "ah" every other word…or having someone start his or her portion of the meeting by saying, "I really didn't prepare anything for this, so let's just wing it."

While everyone should speak and offer ideas at these meetings, some people may have to give more thoughtful, polished information. These people should be identified beforehand so they have time to prepare. This is crucial, because in most organizations, to be promoted you must have solid public speaking skills.

Additionally, if someone simply isn't good at giving presentations, no matter how much preparation he or she does, that person needs to get support and training to become more effective. Granted, no one wants to tell a colleague, "You need to work on your public speaking skills," but offering support to others will not only make meetings more effective, it will also make the company stronger.

Do Your Part
Business meetings are a mainstay in our work-world, so no matter what you think of them, they'll never go away. Knowing this, isn't it time we all work to avoid the top meeting pet peeves? If we all do our part, we can make meetings more enjoyable, more productive, and more meaningful for everyone involved. And that's one kind of meeting everyone will love to attend.

About the Author(s) Jean Kelley,  author and entrepreneur, is the managing director of Jean Kelley Leadership Alliance whose faculty and trainers have helped more than 750,000 leaders and high potentials up their game at work in the U.S. and in Canada.

Thanks to Jean Kelley / AMANET / AMA—American Management Association
http://www.amanet.org/training/articles/The-Top-Meeting-Pet-Peeves-That-Plague-Organizations.aspx?pcode=XA9T&CMP=NLC-LeadersEdge&wm_tag=email&spMailingID=4344389&spUserID=NzQ3MTU2NzU2MgS2&spJobID=130875481&spReportId=MTMwODc1NDgxS0

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What to Do After Your Job Interview

So you've had a job interview and now you're waiting to hear back from the employer. Now what? Do you just sit and wait, or should you be doing anything in the interim? The answer is a little bit of both.

These seven steps will help keep your candidacy strong, while also keeping you from going crazy with suspense.

1. Send a follow-up note. Within a few days after your interview, send a follow-up note by email or postal mail. These are often thought of as thank-you notes, but a good one will go well beyond thanking your interviewer for her time. A really effective note will reiterate your interest in the job and build on the conversation from the interview, even referring back to points that were covered and your thinking on them since then.

2. But don't follow up excessively. As eager as you might be to hear back from the employer, following up too frequently can turn a good candidate into an annoying one who won't get hired. Phoning or emailing weekly or checking in before the time when you've been told a decision is overly aggressive and may kill your chances for an offer.

3. Review the questions you were asked in the interview and how you did. Were there questions that tripped you up, or where you felt your answers were weak? Write these questions down so that you can practice better answers for next time.

4. Think about whether you want the job. Too many job seekers just accept any job that's offered to them, without thinking through whether they're the right fit for the work, the culture, and the people. That, of course, is a recipe for ending up in a job where you're miserable. So think through what you've learned about the job and the company. Is this work you'd like to do every day? Is the manager someone you'd want to work for? Being thoughtful about these factors can help you end up in the right job, not just any job.

5. Realize that hiring often takes longer than anyone involved thinks it will. Don't be alarmed if you don't hear back from the employer immediately. The hiring process often takes longer than the employer intends, for all sorts of reasons—the decision makers are out of town, scheduling conflicts have delayed a final interview, the bureaucracy required to finalize an offer takes time to work through, and so forth. It's nerve-wracking, but don't read too much into it.

6. Keep applying for other jobs. Whatever you do, don't stop your job search while you wait to hear back. It doesn't matter how great your interview was, or how much you clicked with your interviewer, or how perfect the job seems for you. It doesn't even matter if the interviewer told you that you were the top candidate and you should expect an offer soon. Until you actually have a firm job offer, preferably in writing, keep applying for other jobs. Too many people have stopped their job search because one particular job seemed like a sure thing—only to have the offer never come through. Don't let that happen to you.

Plus, applying for more jobs is a good way to burn off nervous energy while you're waiting for them to call.

7. Move on mentally, if necessary. If you find yourself agonizing and frantically checking your email every 20 minutes, wondering when you're going to hear something, do this instead: Move on. There's nothing to be gained by the agonizing and waiting and wondering; you're far better off putting it out of your head and moving on. If the employer eventually calls, it will be a pleasant surprise. And if they don't, you'll have already moved on anyway.

Alison Green writes the popular Ask a Manager blog, where she dispenses advice on career, job search, and management issues. She's also the co-author of Managing to Change the World: The Nonprofit Manager's Guide to Getting Results, and former chief of staff of a successful nonprofit organization, where she oversaw day-to-day staff management, hiring, firing, and employee development.

Thanks to Alison Green / Money USNews / U.S.News & World Report LP
http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2012/09/12/what-to-do-after-your-job-interview

 
 

25 Tips For Managing Your First Direct Reports

Congratulations, you're now the boss! Welcome to the deep end of the pool — now it's time to learn to swim.

Managing your first direct reports is one of the most challenging transitions a leader will ever have to navigate. If I were to sit down over a beer or cup coffee and mentor a new first-time boss, here's what I'd have to say (over a series of meetings, not all at once):

1. Be prepared.
Granted, while in many cases it may be too late to prepare, it shouldn't have been. There are lots of things an aspiring leader can do to get ready to be a manager, including on-the-job experiences, reading, taking courses and learning from others. If you get offered a promotion and you're not prepared, you've got nobody to blame but yourself.

2. Recognize that it's a new job.
Even though you were most likely promoted within a function where you were the best engineer, you are no longer an engineer — you're a manager. The good news is, you have a track record of success. You know how to learn and succeed so don't ever lose sight of that and don't lose your mojo.

3. Learn "situational leadership."
SL is a must-have leadership framework for any manager. Buy the book, take a course or ask someone to teach it to you. It's basically a model for figuring out how to manage each of your employees, depending on how much direction they need.

4. Get to really know your employees.
Spend time with each and every employee and get to know their jobs, career and development goals, hopes and dreams, strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, the names of their children and pets, where they live and anything else that's important to them.

5. Learn and practice active listening.
If I had to pick just ONE skill, listening would be the one I'd say is the most important skill to master as a leader.

6. Let go of the details.
Focus on the what, not the how. From executive coach Scott Eblin, author of "The Next Level."

7. You're no longer a "friend."
Last year, I wrote a post called "I'm Your Boss, Not Your Friend; 10 Reasons Why Your Boss Shouldn't be Your Friend." Based on the comments, it was clear that not everyone agreed with me. You may choose to disagree with me, but you should at least be aware of the pitfalls and traps in trying to be friends with your employees.

8. You may be surprised to discover your former co-workers have some "issues."
New managers are often shocked to discover some of the performance and personal issues their boss was discreetly dealing with. Now, it's your job to pick up where your boss left off.

9. Learn to deal with performance issues.
Your previous boss may have been sweeping issues under the rug or perhaps been in the middle of working with an employee. Either way, you'll need to learn a consistent and effective way to deal with employee performance issues. Didn't anyone tell you? It comes with the territory.

10. Treat EVERY one of your employees with respect.
Never, ever, ever waiver from this.

11. Use the four magic words: "What do you think?"
From management guru Tom Peters.

12. Pay attention to your new team.
While you may be the team leader of your team, you're now a member of a brand new team — your manager's management team. Managing sideways is just as important as managing up and down. From team guru Patrick Lencioni.

13. Be available and visible.
Don't let "I never see my boss" be how your employees describe you.

14. Set up and maintain a schedule of regular one-on-ones and team meetings.
Then treat these meetings as a top priority.

15. Embrace your role as a leader.
This one's not as obvious as it sounds. I managed employees for over 20 years before the light went on for me and I realized what an extraordinary and rewarding responsibility leadership could be. Don't take it lightly.

16. Learn and practice a coaching model.
GROW (goals, reality, options and will) is as good a model as any. Again, read about it, take a course or ask someone to teach it to you.

17. You'll make mistakes.
Lots of them. Get used to it, and most importantly learn from those mistakes, and don't repeat them.

18. Learn to ask awesome questions.
You don't have to have all of the answers — it's better to ask the right questions.

19. Have a box of Kleenex on your desk.
Trust me on this one — don't get caught short-handed. Unlike baseball, there is plenty of crying involved in management.

20. Read Bob Sutton's "12 Things Good Bosses Believe."
There are a lot of great articles and books I could recommend, but this one is a must for any boss. Read it over and over at least once a year. The key take-away: Get over yourself.

21. Subscribe to at least five leadership and management blogs, and read at least one leadership book each year.
I know a lot of managers who read a book a month — but I realize that's not realistic for many. Blogs are free, easy to read and digest and plentiful. For a sampling of many of the top leadership blogs, try here, here or here. And don't forget to subscribe to SmartBrief on Leadership.

22. Be you.
It's called "authentic leadership," and it involves being clear on who you are and what you stand for.

23. Develop a strategy.
Better yet if you involve your team in creating a vision, mission and goals. It's all about alignment.

24. Be clear on and agree on expectations.
Expectations are a two-way street — make it a dialog.

25. There is no "on" and "off" switch.
Being a boss — better yet, a leader — is a 24/7 role. It's not something you can turn off after 5 p.m. and go out and let your hair down with the gang. You're a role model, good or bad, and your behavior sets the standard for the culture you create for your team. From Marshall Goldsmith, author and executive coach.

Dan McCarthy is the director of Executive Development Programs at the University of New Hampshire. He writes the award-winning leadership development blog Great Leadership and is consistently ranked as one of the top digital influencers in leadership and talent management. He's a regular contributor to SmartBrief and a member of the SmartBrief on Workforce Advisory Board.

Thanks to Daniel McCarthy / SmartBlogs / SmartBlog On Leadership / SmartBrief, SmartBlogs
http://smartblogs.com/leadership/2012/09/27/25-tips-managing-first-direct-reports/

 
 

Monday, October 1, 2012

Why Your Brain Is Irrational About Obama And Romney

Subliminal Influences Guide Our Voting Preferences.

With the 2012 presidential election looming on the horizon in November, consider these two crucial questions: Who looks more competent, Barack Obama or Mitt Romney? Who has the deepest and most resonant voice? Maybe your answer is, "Who cares? I vote for candidates based on their policies and positions, not on how they look and sound!" If so, that very likely is your rational brain justifying an earlier choice that your emotional brain made based on these seemingly shallow criteria.

Before the election, I urge you to read Leonard Mlodinow's new book, Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior (Pantheon). You will gain such insights as that higher-pitched voices are judged by subjects as more nervous, less truthful and less empathetic than speakers with lower-pitched voices and that speaking a little faster and louder, with fewer pauses and greater variation in volume, leads people to judge someone to be energetic, intelligent and knowledgeable. Looks matter even more. One study presented subjects with campaign flyers featuring black-and-white photographs of models posing as Democrats or Republicans in fictional congressional races; half looked able and competent, whereas the other half did not, as rated by volunteers before the experiment. The flyers included the candidate's name, party affiliation, education, occupation, political experience and three position statements. To control for party preference, half the subjects were shown the more suitable-looking candidate as a Democrat, and the other half saw him as a Republican. Results: 59 percent of the vote went to the candidate with the more capable appearance regardless of other qualifications. A similar study in a mock election resulted in a 12-percentage-point advantage for the more authoritative-looking politician.

To test these effects in real elections, Princeton University psychologist Alexander Todorov and his colleagues had volunteers rate for "competence" black-and-white head shots of all the candidates in 600 contests for the U.S. House of Representatives and 95 races for the Senate from 2000, 2002 and 2004. Results: candidates rated as more competent won 67 percent of the House races and 72 percent of the Senate ones. In a follow-up study published in 2007 the psychologists conducted the face-evaluation process before the 2006 elections, predicting the winners in 72 percent of Senate runs and 69 percent of gubernatorial competitions based on the candidates' appearances alone.

These data—and others—confirm what was perceived the night of September 26, 1960, during the first televised presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. Well rested and tan from campaigning in California, Kennedy was radiant, like an "athlete come to receive his wreath of laurel," journalist Howard K. Smith noted. In contrast, Nixon had been campaigning right up to the debate and had been hospitalized for a knee infection that had left him with a 102-degree fever and looking pale and haggard, worsened by his notoriously heavy five o'clock shadow. Seventy million people watched the event. Millions more listened on the radio. According to a study published in the trade journal Broadcasting, those who saw the debate thought Kennedy won, whereas those who heard it gave Nixon the nod. For example, when New York Herald Tribune writer Earl Mazo first observed reactions to the debate at a conference, he observed, "Nixon was best on radio simply because his deep, resonant voice conveyed more conviction, command, and determination than Kennedy's higher-pitched voice and his Boston-Harvard accent. But on television, Kennedy looked sharper, more in control, more firm." These conclusions were replicated in a 2003 study in which subjects who viewed the debate were more likely to think Kennedy won than those who listened to it.

Why are we so influenced by such apparently trivial characteristics as voice and looks? In our evolutionary past they served as proxies for health, vigor and overall fitness (in both the physical and evolutionary sense). Such cognitive shortcuts remain necessary today because in a world abuzz with information overload, it isn't possible to rationally analyze all incoming data. So, on Election Day, try to override your predictably irrational propensity to succumb to these influences and engage your rational brain to vote the issues and not the person.

Thanks to Michael Shermer / ScientificAmerican / Scientific American, Division of Nature America, Inc.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-your-brain-irrational-about-obama-romney&print=true

Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior By Leonard Mlodinow [Hardcover]

Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior By Leonard Mlodinow [Kindle Edition]

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