Band dream essays

Band dream essays I can remember growing up and thinking the best part of the Katy football games where when the band marched at halftime. I would stand on the bleachers and wave my hands up and down pretending to direct the band. The sound of the music, the neat uniforms and the gleam of all the instruments under the stadium lights was wonderful. I started dreaming way back then of being in the Katy band just like my older brother. I watched and listened as my brother practiced his music everyday. I knew that I would have to work just as hard to achieve my goal of being in band. I was afraid that learning how to read music would be difficult for me. When I joined the West Memorial Junior High Band I realized reading music came naturally to me. I continued in the band all through junior high, knowing all my efforts would soon bring me to my goal of being a part of the Katy Band. Before I knew it, I was standing at the end zone at Rhodes Field waiting to make my first half-time performance. I was so nervous as I walked to my place on the field. Was I really was ready to do it? I counted one two three then we started. I went thru my first set then my second and third and so on. When I got to the tenth it was over. I had done it and had not mess up once. I was very proud of myself when the band directors said what a really good job we had done especially since most of us had never marched before. After I finished I remembered back to when I was a kid in the stands thinking that some kid out there was like me dreaming to be on the field. On my way back to the stands I had realized how much band had changed my life already. As I got back into my seat I realized I had not only accomplished my dream, but many other things. I had met new friends including my best friend and boyfriend I will keep all through high school and hopefully longer. I have learned through hard work and dedication you can achieve your dreams. ...

Challenges administrative assistants face and how to deal with it

Challenges administrative assistants face and how to deal with it Administrative assistants are the office superheroes. Their job includes  making sure the office is running effectively and as smooth as possible while still juggling their other duties. Great administrative assistants are an invaluable asset to any company. But sometimes they face challenges from their coworkers  whether is it being taken for granted or even being taken as a personal assistant; administrative assistants constantly have to fight these challenges in the office. Here are 5 common challenges administrative assistants face and how to deal with it effectively.Source [Quill]

Financial Management during Economic Downturn Essay

Financial Management during Economic Downturn - Essay Example However, during the period of economic downturn or recession, this task is little more difficult as financial decisions are not likely work out as planned by a financial manager. Planning is relatively a simple task as it basically needs only past data with information on how to relate them to future conditions. But, when it comes to realise that financial outcomes do not come out as planned, the firm's financial position gets affected adversely and eventually its existence. Keeping this in view the present paper attempts to discuss the problems that are faced by a financial manger during the period of economic downturn. The paper does not discuss the issue from the view point of any particular firm. Instead it presents the issue from a macroeconomic point of view taking all types of firms. Economic downturn or recession is an economic situation wherein the general economic activities experience a slow down. When the general economic activities of a country get affected by a recession, the country's economic progress and growth will surely be affected leading to low GDP; spending; employment opportunities; capacity utilisation; and individual and household income (Roland 2007). In fact, these variables are necessary to the economic progress and prosperity of a country and its business activities. In short, economic slowdown affects the business activities by low demand for goods and services, poor cash flow from customers and low lending by financial institutions in the economy. This will eventually result in unavailability of finance (log term and short term), less collection from debtors, unavailability of factors of production for enterprises in the economy (The United States Department of Labor 2006). These cause serious financial implications such as low profitabi lity and less growth to the shareholders, which threaten the smooth functioning of business operations. As a result, the individual financial manager should chalk out certain financial plans to revive his firm from economic slowdown. 3.0 Financial Manager's Role The financial manager's role is pivotal in a firm which runs through a tough economy leading to poor debt collection and credit availability. The responsibility of a financial manager in such a pathetic situation is to revive the firm to the earlier position. But it is a huge task and he needs to take and follow a proactive approach rather than reactive efforts. He should take initiatives right from financial planning and budgeting on the anticipation of economic slowdown at any time in future. Moreover, the plans and budgets are to be aligned to the actual happenings in such a way that there is no big gap between the two. The following sections will detail some of the important measures to be followed by a financial manager in times of general economic recession. 3.1 Cash flow Projections Liquid cash is an essential element for the smooth flow of routine business activities. Cash is needed for a number of activities right from purchasing stationery to payment of dividend to shareholders. Unless the firm has a level of cash enough to meet the daily needs, the business operations get affected and will adversely impact the flow of goods and services to the customers. This implies liquid cash is an essential asset, the absence of which will affect the normal operations and

Should Philosophers care about the history of philosophy Essay

Should Philosophers care about the history of philosophy - Essay Example Philosophers should have a considerable link to the history of philosophy as cited by many theorists and thinkers. Many philosophical concepts used today have their origin in philosophical history and they are just an evolved form of the ideas generated in the past. As a matter of fact, to give a an extensive interpretation of predecessors is quite common in the philosophical world where Hegel, Heidegger and Nietzsche are often quoted as to give a contemporary philosophical thought by reviewing the history (Sorell & Rogers, pp. 1). However, philosophers in the English-Speaking part of the world do not care about its history since; their type of philosophy is more of an analytical nature, which is required to be concise and relevant to the era in which people are living. The history of philosophy plays a significant role in giving an introduction and a deep knowledge of the subject to the aspiring students of today’s world. It is important for initial philosophers to have a tho rough understanding of the basis of the subject upon which they would base their further assumptions and concepts for the field to grow. Moreover, it is only through the knowledge of the history of philosophy that the philosophers would come to realize, which concepts and ideas were flawed and rejected like that of Descartes (Sorell & Rogers, pp. 2) so that they may look out for their new dimensions and correct them to widen the scope. History of any kind pertaining to any subject is an important aspect to retain if growth is one of the objectives. Considering philosophy, we know well that there have been quite well known philosophers in the history of humankind who have made tremendous efforts in analyzing different philosophical problems and searching for their solutions in a logical manner. It would be merely a waste of time, money and resources if contemporary philosophers involve themselves in the same process in case they do not give any heed to the subject’s history. N evertheless, philosophy is one of the subjects whose concepts and ideas always have a hook. They are grown with related links and this way, subsequently, the field advances (Sorell & Rogers, pp. 4-5). Every other point always has a relevance to something of the pas that helps in giving an advanced cognition for the contemporary philosophers and a chance to learn from their predecessors who might be dead but whose extensive researches are always present for them to learn and make progress. It is often said that the philosophers who fail to understand the past accounts and happenings in the related field, subsequently, fail to hold a firm grasp over following assumptions and thus end up with bas results (Sorell & Rogers, pp. 38). A philosopher can, certainly, not do philosophy without a perspective or without a standpoint. This standpoint or direction is given merely by having a thorough review of the past philosophers and their immense work done in this regards. The subject divided a multiple dimensional approach by the doer and a well-done background analysis to proceed (Makumba, pp-11). In many cases, there has to be an inspiration which drives a philosopher to make further detailed analysis and take the object forward. This inspiration is the result of the philosophers’ research and review of the historical literature and the earlier philosophers. Additionally, in philosophy there are reservation of thoughts and ideas held by the people against or in favour of any theory or assumption put forward. These reservations are further carried by generations and generations in the same manner without actually referring to the actually happening. While, in philosophy, the contemporary philosophers should have a proper understanding of the past ideas and concepts and should hold their own judgement without any biases carried for generations. Only on the basis of first-hand knowledge of the historical accounts of ideas and concepts can the philosopher base a str ong and authentic argument to

Sense and sensibility on the major characters Research Paper

Sense and sensibility on the major characters - Research Paper Example Marianne outspoken and unrestrictive while Elinor is otherwise. Austen disapproves sensibility and shows regard for sense. Elinor does counseling and decision making. Elinor’s love is concealed. Marianne makes mistakes. Marianne’s love is expressed. Marianne sees no attraction in Edward and ignores Colonel Brandon. Willoughby appears as a hero to Marianne. She realizes that she herself was responsible for her dilemma. Edward is a principled man. Willoughby’s real personality comes to forefront when he maliciously makes fun of Colonel Brandon. He was a flirt and devious person. Marianne and Willoughby demonstrate the theme of sensibility through their love bondage. The love bondage between Elinor and Edward demonstrates the theme of sense. Conclusion Elinor succeeds because of using sense. Marianne fails and learns to use sense in place of sensibility to be successful. Realizing her fault, she marries her true partner, Colonel Brandon. Sense has an edge over sensi bility. Effects of Sense and Sensibility on Major characters Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen portrays a number of characters that shape the story of the novel. The characters in Austen’s work describe life and journeying through the course of life with the help of sense and sensibility. Austen draws a line between ‘sense’ and ‘sensibility’. According to Austen, these terms are different from one another. In the novel, the character of Elinor, who is also the protagonist of the work, shows sense while Marianne’s character shows sensibility. Elinor and Marianne are sisters, but have different personalities. The major characters of the work are Elinor Dashwood, Marianne Dashwood, Edward Ferrars and John Willoughby. Other characters of the story circulate and help these characters to develop and get to a certain destination. Austen describes sense as rationality, reasoning and responsibility while sensibility as expressive, emotional, impetuo sity and passion. Elinor is successful based on her sense while Marianne falls short because of her sensibility. Sense and Sensibility draws a clear distinctive line between sense and sensibility with the support of two major characters of the novel that are Elinor Dashwood and Marianne Dashwood. Elinor is older than Marianne and stands for sense because of her qualities such as reasoning, self-control, accountability towards family and society and consideration of others’ betterment. However, Marianne stands for sensibility because of her qualities such as emotionalism, naturalness, outspokenness, impetuously and unnecessary expressiveness (Armstrong 53). Elinor loves Edward, but keeps her feelings concealed, and makes use of rationality while Marianne outspokenly and unrestrictive makes known about her feelings about Willoughby. The difference between their personalities is portrayed through their behaviors towards the men they love. However, this cannot be said that Elinor using sense never shows passion and Elinor using sensibility never talks intelligent. Elinor is passionate in her love, but her style is diverged from Marianne. Austen being against the sensibility of eighteenth century points towards the importance of sense in her novel. From Elinor’s success, she proves that sense is not a negligible characteristic while she disapproves sensibility by showing the failure in Marianne’s relationship to Willoughby (Lauber 21). In her portrayal of Elinor, she draws a picture of a woman who is able to succeed being restrictive and

The Roles And Responsibilities Of Managers

The Roles And Responsibilities Of Managers It is very important if a manager wants cooperation from his team or employees, or to pay attention. A good manager practices empathy and respects the personal values, opinions and ideas of the people he interacts with. He should listen and respond and offer praises and encouragements when they make progress. By doing that he will enhance their self esteem and will build trust. As the boss, his ability to develop trust and confidence, resolve problems and issues will result in a productive, goal oriented work group. He should encourage his team to ask for help, get involved and participate. A capable manager is often described as having a vision of where to go and the ability to articulate it. Communication skill A manager is the middle person in between the top management level and the team that reports to him. He is also the teams link to the larger organisation. He must have the ability to effectively negotiate and use persuasion when necessary to ensure the success of the team and project. Through effective communication, manager supports individual and team achievements by creating guidelines for the career advancement of team members and for accomplishing tasks. He has to ensure that communication between the two layers is smooth and is conveyed clearly to avoid misinterpretations and dissatisfaction. Good communication skills are useful to develop his negotiation and customer service skills, especially if he deals with clients. A good planner In order for a manager to achieve long term goals and commit to strategies for substantial earnings, he has to communicate the vision of the company to his subordinates. He should break down and clarify the goals that each team or individual have to perform and assign work schedules and strategies to them. It also involves thinking and planning out strategies on how to improve quality and also being cost conscious and effective. Having goals and planning out the directions allow for effective time management and saves cost and resources. Setting deadlines and goals helps keep employees focused, busy and motivates them to do their work. A good manager should talk to each of his employees about the companys goals, and work with them to set individual goals directly linked to organizations target mission. He should make sure that the employees understand their professional growth path in the company. Decision Maker The daily routine of making decisions for a manger includes determining how to approach an employee who is not performing or lacking progress and how to bring about change to the organization and its team. His day to day decision is based on whats important, whats right and not whos right. Leadership skill This is one of the most important skill. His position entails him to guide and give direction so that the team can perform effectively. A good manager offers job coaching, training and support. In order for individuals to meet the needs and objectives, they may need extra input, information or skills. The performance of his team depends on his abilities to empower them. How well a person performs depends on his motivation. His task as the boss is to encourage and coach others to improve themselves and the quality of their work. He needs to implement in them the desire to excel and accept responsibility and self management. Appraiser A good manager need to have the capacity to evaluate and examine a process or procedure and decide on the best choice to produce an outcome. He looks at the importance, quality and values and then taking the best approach. He is also expected to track the progress of each individuals activities and effectiveness, review them and offer feedback and counselling. Recognize problems It is impossible for a manager to know about personality conflicts, lagging productivity or other problems in the office if he has his head in the sand. If he notices a change in an employees work habits or attitude, he should try to get to the root of the problem before that problem starts to affect rest of the staff. Provide Satisfaction The subordinates of a manager are happy when they are provided with the necessary tools and resource. They feel secure if the management puts priority to health, safety and cleanliness issues. And this in turn helps in satisfying customers by giving good quality of service or product and taking care of their needs. New methods and technologies A manager should keep himself updated on methods and technologies that can make him and his team more efficient. Proper use of power In order to achieve the goal expected from a manger, he must have power and authority to act in a way that will stimulate a positive response from the workers. A manager depending on the situation, exercises different types of power, viz reward power and expert power. Besides the formal basis, the informal basis of power also has a more powerful impact on organizational effectiveness. A manager is only effective when his subordinates obey his orders. So, the manager uses appropriate power so that his subordinates willingly obey the orders and come forward with commitment. Proper time management Time is the most precious and vital thing in management. There are three dimensions of time boss imposed time system imposed time self imposed time As the manager has a thorough knowledge of the principle of time management such as preparing time charts, scheduling techniques, etc., he should utilize the time productively in the organization. Relationship Managerial behavior implies the existence of a manager managed relationship. This relationship arises in an organization. A manager should have a very good relationship with all his subordinates. It is very important for both his personal and official life. Sources of influence In case of a manager, authority is attached to his managerial position. In other words, managers obtain authority from his followers or subordinates. Sanctions A Manager has command over all allocation and distributions of sanctions between employees. For Example, Manager has control over the positive sanctions such as promotion and awards for his task performance and the contribution to organizational objectives. Manager is also in a position to exercises the negative sanctions such as with- holding promotions, or mistakes, etc. A leader has different type of sanctions to exercise and grant. He can generate or with hold access to satisfying the very purpose of joining the groups social satisfactions and related task rewards. These informal sanctions are relevant to the individual with belongingness or ego needs: where as the organizational sanctions granted or exercised by the managers are geared to the physiological and security needs of individual. Competence Selection of managers in an organization is done on their ability to successfully lead others rather than on past technical expertise. A manager who has a winning track record is considered competent. Competence also requires expertise in management skills. A capable and competent manager has the ability to challenge, inspire, model, enable and encourage his employees. Cool under pressure In a perfect world, projects would be delivered on time, under budget and with no major problems or obstacles to overcome. This happens due to a manager who takes all these problems in stride. When efficient managers encounter a stressful event, they consider it interesting, they feel they can influence the outcome and they see it as an opportunity. They take these events as a challenge rather than a stress. To be an exemplary role model Managers who set high standards or goals and achieve them are great leaders by examples. The ability to tolerate stress and remain poise under job pressures and still maintain a high activity and energy level is the main quality of a manager. In order to be a respected and efficient manager, a manager needs to work hard in his personal growth. EFFECTIVE DEALING OF PROBLEMS BY A MANAGER In a workplace a manager suffers from a lot of problems from his employees. These problems may be personal or official. Some of the most common problems are briefed below : Poor performance People think that poor performance occurs due to lack of skill but it is not always like that, it may also occur as employees are disorganised. Proper guidance can correct this problem. If performance difficulties relate to a lack of skills, additional training or coaching can solve these problems. Job incompatibility Sometimes skills of an employee arent compatible with their assigned tasks or regular duties. In this type of cases, offering the employee additional training or assigning them a different set of tasks is usually the most appropriate course of action. Sloppy work Whenever a manager notices that, an employee has made some errors, he should point out the mistakes to the employee and monitor their work more closely. If the problem persists, he should speak with the employee and detail the most serious examples of problems with their work. A good manager always remains positive and remembers the employees contribution to the company. Create an effective message A managers message should fit executives, middle managers, supervisors and employees. An effective message by a manager should also explain the employees ´ day-to-day duties directly affect the companys performance and he should touch on the values and pride of the employees. A direct face to face interaction by a manager can help to inspire employees and to reinforce positive attitude in them. This interaction helps the employees to adapt any change in the organization. Listening to employees Employees feedback is very important in an organization in case of managing change. Holding focus groups with employees is a great way to gauge reaction and monitor the progress of change. A manager can also ask his employees to provide feedback through email or company intranet. Even a blog can be used for this purpose which is quite popular now. For a successful change management proper communication is very important. Talking to your employees is not an one-time event, a good manager should reinforce his message by communicating quite often and on a regular basis. EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT MANAGERS An efficient leader can be summarised as a person who has a lot of capability where as an effective leader is one whose works produce good results for an organization. Effectiveness and efficiency are mutually exclusive things. They are both fundamental preconditions for a manager. Being effective means that one has the ability to properly analyse the evolving environment and selecting the right things as the areas of strategic focus for the enterprise. On the other hand, being efficient requires a carefully carved cultural and operational framework which helps the manager to achieve a particular degree of success, given the level of resources applied to a particular objective. Both the terms efficient and effective refer to the ability of a person, enterprise, or process to perform a function well. High efficiency refers to an efficient person while an effective person has high effectiveness. However there is a small but very significant difference between these two measure of performance. Efficiency refers to the economy in use of resources for performing a task, and effectiveness refers to the total output generated. Efficiency is measured in terms of ratio of output generated divided by inputs used in the process for example, widgets produced per kilogram of raw material used. Effectiveness measures the total output produced for example, total widgets produced in a day. An example is given to understand the concept. Two different lathe operators, say X and Y, are assigned the task of making bushes on a lathe. Let us say A produces 200 bushes in a shift, and in the process uses up 8 kilogram of steel rod in the process. In comparison, B produces 120 bushes using 10.5 kilogram of steel rod. The effectiveness and efficiency of these two lathe operators based on their performance is compared in table below: Operator Effectiveness Efficiency X 200 Bushes per shift 25 Bush per Kg of Steel Y 320 Bushes per shift 18 Bush per Kg of Steel So, we see that operator A has higher efficiency but lower effectiveness. In management, both efficiency and effectiveness are very important. The relative emphasis to be given to efficiency and effectiveness depends from situation to situation. One more example will completely justify the concept. For example, we must be careful to control the quantity and cost of water used in a factory during routine operations. However, if the same factory is on fire, we will not think twice about using whatever water can be made available for putting out the fire. Effective Versus Efficient The difference between effective and efficient are loaded with some of the most important concepts : Efficient doing things right Effective doing the right things Both concepts are very important and both concepts are utilised in the management of work. These concept begins with organization and does not depend on the position of an employee whether he is a manager or a staff employee. The great business writer Peter Drucker defined five functions in his writings : Objective setting Organising the team or group Communicating and motivating Performance measurement Developing people Effectiveness means that the job was done correctly and was accomplished but does not regard whether the job was done inexpensively or on time. Whereas, efficiency means that the job was accomplished cheaply and on time yet may not be a very thorough and impressive accomplishment. Efficient is defined as working without waste or using a minimum of time, effort and expense. But, the definition does not define the goals of the operation. A person can be very efficient but still he cannot get a positive result because he is not doing the right things at the right time. Thats where effective comes in. Effective means having the desired result. Once the desired result is obtained, the tasks leading to the result can be isolated and these tasks can then be completed efficiently. Some characteristics of an efficient manager are : He is organized. He can find things quickly He know how to use the tools on his computer to the nth degree He writes readable and actionable emails His meetings are well run He processes all the financial reports properly and on a regular schedule He knows how to work well with his employees Some characteristics of an effective manager are : Meeting deadline for reports and contributions Making a quota Earning the amount targeted Leading the time to define and execute a project We will consider an example to clear out the difference between the two qualities, i.e. how a manager solves a problem efficiently : STEP 1: He defines the problem in detail. Once he satisfied that the problem is well defined, then he starts looking for a solution. STEP 2: The second stage is the alternative courses of action that solve the problem. In this stage multiple potential solutions are generated. This step involves some research and asking others about their ideas. Here, the manager comes up with 2-3 alternative solutions. STEP 3: The third stage is related with studying each option and the advantages and disadvantages related to it. One alternative may appear quicker but might be costlier whereas the other alternative might be less costly but requires a lot of effort and time. Proper understanding of each alternative helps to get the right solution. STEP 4: This step is related to the selection and implementation of the best solution. STEP 5: The final step is related to the monitoring of the implemented solution i.e. whether it worked or not. If the solution is not good enough then again need to follow step 1. CONCLUSION Efficiency and effectiveness are different but when combined leads to an unstoppable result orientation which feeds success. So, we can conclude that both efficiency and effectiveness are important for a successful manager. As a result of the managers hard work the employees work properly and in an efficient manner which as a result gives fruitful results to the company.

Analysis of Shawshank Redemption Essay -- Essays on Film, Movies

The movie of the Shawshank Redemption is based on a short story by Steven King. The movie shows how prison life affects prisoners during their sentence in jail and after when they are released. The director concentrates mostly on the personal cost of adapting to prison life and how some convicts, once they conform, lose the ability to survive beyond the barbed wire and iron bars. As a character puts it, ‘These [prison] walls are funny. First you hate them, then you get used to them, then you start to depend on them.’ The director shows us to what extent prisoners can be made to ‘depend on them’. The two episodes that I will analyse are examples of two different ‘paths’ prisoners can take once released from prison. One is to survive and live their life, another is to give up and end it. In the movie Red, a prisoner at Shawshank says, ‘get busy living or get busy dying’. This quote plays an important role in the movie because Red and Brooks, two important characters who get out of jail have to make the choice to either ‘get busy living or get busy dying’. Red and Brooks are characters with many similar traits and have gone through many of the same circumstances. Both entered the confines of Shawshank Prison youths but left its walls as old men. They have seen many prisoners come in and out. They spent decades behind the dull enclosure and got used to it. They have adapted themselves to the concepts of routine, forced conformity, power abuse and have lost all elements of individuality within themselves. Red says â€Å"you come here for your life and that’s exactly what they take from you†. The episodes of the release of both men contri... ...ds hug, the camera pulls back, revealing the wide, distant horizon of the blue Pacific with no end in sight. No longer are the Red and Andy confined by walls and iron bars nor watched on by guards. Both are free. Brooks had attained the limits at prison, he had become institutionalised and once released had found the only way out was death. Red, on the other hand, had hoped, and hope had led him to freedom, to happiness, to redemption. Through the themes and the cinematic decisions applied in these two episodes the director has made these vital to the understanding of the movie. He has given two examples of the extreme situations to which prisoners go depending on their emotions. One of the emotions is yet one of the main themes of the movie, hope, and in my opinion it has been brought up extremely effectively.