It's Monday, and after a nice breakfast with my old Ragan pal Sarah McAdams, I blew the rest of the morning running completely useless errands, a trip punctuated by scraping the ass-bumper of the new Subaru on a fire hydrant. It turns out red doesn't go very well with silver.
I get home and read an e-mail sent to me with one of those obnoxious I'm-going-to-bore-everybody-with-my-favorite-quote signatures.
Here was the quote: "Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means."
Who said it? Albert Einstein.
Look, Einstein: I don't go around spewing elegant mathematical formulas. Why don't you leave the clever communication quotes to writers like me—dig it, wiseguy?
To hell with Mondays. To hell with Einstein on leadership.
Comments (7)
I think you need either a good drink or a good nap.
Sorry to hear about the bumper scraping - that stinks! (And will no doubt result in a few more useless errands for you.)
I don't mind when people include their favorite quote in their e-mail signature, but I DO hate when it's a stupid quote. Not to pick on Einstein (gotta respect the guy) but setting an examply is most definitely not the only means of influencing people.
Posted by Andrea S-R | October 15, 2007 12:06 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 12:06
Here, here! Einstein was an idiot and we're all brilliant. Hurrah!
Posted by Eileen | October 15, 2007 12:35 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 12:35
Oh, and David, go ahead and spew forth mathematical formulas. If you're anything like me (and, I think, most writers) you too got a "D" in math and haven't a clue what you're talking about. Which is why you're a writer a not a chemist. Am I anywhere close?
Posted by Eileen | October 15, 2007 12:37 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 12:37
You mean you don't appreciate
if f( x(r,s), y(r,s) )
\[ \frac{\partial f}{\partial r} = \frac{\partial f}{\partial x} \frac{\partial x}{\partial r} + \frac{\partial f}{\partial y} \frac{\partial y}{\partial r} \]
\[ \frac{\partial f}{\partial s} = \frac{\partial f}{\partial x} \frac{\partial x}{\partial s} + \frac{\partial f}{\partial y} \frac{\partial y}{\partial s} \]
if f( x(r,s) )
\[ \frac{\partial f}{\partial r} = \frac{\partial f}{\partial x} \frac{\partial x}{\partial r} \]
\[ \frac{\partial f}{\partial s} = \frac{\partial f}{\partial x} \frac{\partial x}{\partial s} \]
????????
What are you, a barbarian?
Posted by Craig Jolley | October 15, 2007 3:36 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 15:36
Craig, that's a formula for failure.
Posted by David Murray | October 15, 2007 3:38 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 15:38
What the frac is Craig talking about? That equation is all frac'd up, and it is giving me a frac'n headache.
I HATE math.
Posted by Tom Keefe | October 15, 2007 4:39 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 16:39
Let's see... If:
"frac" = synergy, and
"partial" = leveraging and
all those other letters = the flavours of the month bullshit bingo buzzwords,
...this could be the strategic plan of some of the companies I've worked for.
So, I'd have to say Craig is fully on-topic for Comms.
P.S. See, Communicators can so do math. Nyah!
Posted by Kristen | October 15, 2007 4:42 PM
Posted on October 15, 2007 16:42