Archive | Careers

Audley

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On August 17, 2021

Category: Careers, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Small Business Success

I have a friend named Audley Bain. Audley and I have known each other since 1992, when we were introduced by the late Ralph Kaufman. Ralph and his wife, Dorothy, lived across the street from David and me during the winter months (they were “snow birds” from New York) when we lived in Lighthouse Point. […]

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Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On August 17, 2021

Category: Careers, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Small Business Success

Audley was at the house today.  And, not a moment too soon, as it had been too long since he was there.  In a Florida summer, the frequent rains wreak havoc with his plans to get to each of his customers’ yards on a timely basis.  And, with those rains, the grass (and weeds) grow […]

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Pride v. Humility

Certain words or phrases catch my attention depending on their usage. I’m thinking today about how often one hears “I’m humbled to win this award…” It could be an athlete, musician, actor, or anyone whose work is recognized. What strikes me is what I perceive as a false sense of humility. Winning recognition should make […]

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When I think of the word, “proud,” I smile and think of Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon, known professionally as the character she played onstage, Minnie Pearl.  Minnie Pearl usually opened her stage appearances with a signature phrase: “How-dee! I’m so proud to be here!”.  Never did I hear her say, “Hello!  I’m so humbled to […]

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Effort Justification

Social psychology is amazing (at least, in my opinion!) in its ability to explain things that would otherwise be hard to understand. Take the topic of effort justification as one example. Cognitive dissonance theory postulates that people do not like to have two attitudes or beliefs that conflict with one another. Cognitive dissonance leads to […]

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I suppose the question is, does working harder than necessary, overcoming obstacles, or paying more, make something better?  Does a meal taste better if you have to wait for a table?  Does scarcity make something more desirable?  Does engaging in a bidding war for something on eBay make one want the item more?  Does going […]

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Output = Effort x Ability

Social psychologists, as well as other types of psychologists, have studied achievement motivation for many decades. In goal directed situations, there are several ways in which someone can achieve the desired outcome: ability, effort, and luck. Success and failure also depend, of course, on the difficulty of the task being undertaken. When considered together, these […]

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I clearly remember that early employee to whom Melissa referred.  How could I ever forget her?  She tried so hard; she really gave it her all.  But, often, that was not enough.  This made it difficult to manage her without deflating her sense of self.  Reacting to “I tried so hard,” by pointing out her […]

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Exude Competence

Many years ago, when I was working for another trial consultant, one of the clients spoke to my boss and told her that I “exuded competence.” The boss was happy to hear this and to tell me. I took it as a high compliment because it reinforced my goal of doing what I say I’m […]

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David is right.  We have to exude competence if we are to convince others that we possess the expertise necessary to perform a job.  When I first became a trial consultant, way back in 1989, the person who trained me was a particularly tough task master.  He greatly disliked my psychologist’s way of pensively contemplating […]

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Work Life Balance

The term “Work Life Balance” seems to have existed for a long time. In writing this post, I did a bit of quick research and found the concept was not well defined until the last 20 years. Researchers have identified 3 key balance components: time, involvement and satisfaction. When work or life (family) demands are […]

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Due to the lasting impact of COVID-19 on our nation’s workplaces, the issue of work/life balance has taken on a new urgency.  Although many corporations are requiring their employees to return to the office full time, and some workplaces, such as hospitals, never allowed remote working, other employers are struggling for ways to keep their […]

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Do You Still Need to Practice?

Recently, I remarked to my bass guitar teacher, Phill Fest, that many of my friends question my need to take bass lessons, due to the fact I have been playing the bass guitar for over 20 years. (This was the subject of a previous post, in which I mentioned that, although I have been playing […]

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I took piano lessons as a child, but fishing seemed much more fun than piano, so I didn’t play piano long!  But, call it what you want, practice, playing, fishing, getting better, and staying strong at anything takes time and effort.  I’ve written about Dr. Fran Kinne before. She started playing piano at age 3 […]

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The Destruction of Goodwill

Negativity bias has a long history of research within social psychology. Negativity bias refers to the tendency of many people to assign greater importance to negative information than positive information. Considerable research has revealed that negative adjectives and descriptions contribute more to people’s overall impressions of others than positive adjectives and descriptions. It is important […]

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Goodwill can be fleeting.  I am thinking about some other recent interactions and encounters where it has disappeared quickly.  A fast food restaurant which forgets to include the dipping sauces, or hands out sub standard (for them) food comes to mind.  Another restaurant which has great Vietnamese food but frequently gets the take out order […]

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Happy Roofers

On the day I am writing this post, David’s and my roof is in the third day of being removed, in preparation for a new roof to be installed. Although we have been through this process in the past, in 2005, when we lost the roof on our previous house during Hurricane Wilma, our current […]

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This whole re-roofing process has been an experience. The happy roofers part makes some of it into a positive one. I’ve never seen anything like it. The energy of these guys after 12 hours in the hot sun, on a roof, is inspiring. The work is incredibly hard. The materials are heavy, and what we […]

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Wardrobe Malfunction

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On June 3, 2021

Category: Business Travel, Careers, Getting the Job Done, Jury Research, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, RoadWarrior, Travel, Trial Consulting

The most famous wardrobe malfunction was in 2004 at the Super Bowl halftime show and involved Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake. While it later became apparent that this was a planned incident, not a malfunction, it sure got the world’s attention. But, that is not what this post is about; it is about more mundane […]

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The recent loss of our employee’s pants is the latest in a long string of similar incidents among Magnus’ staff. We have experienced numerous wardrobe malfunctions, all of which are now rather humorous but which were, at the time they happened, pseudo crises, especially for the person with the malfunction. Here is a list of […]

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