On a scale of 1-10 (one low, ten high) estimate the level of control you have over your own life.
Now go to this site and take the survey:
http://www.dushkin.com/connectext/psy/ch11/survey11.mhtml
The site gives you a score relating to a level of control. Internal Control means you feel you are in charge of your life. External Control means you feel that something or someone other than you controls your life.
How does your score on my question compare with the survey? Are they similar?
Now for the important part. Do you feel comfortable with the answers? If you do, great. IF NOT, I ask you to write down a list of steps you could take to get you where you want to be.
This self awareness and self analysis are the most important steps in making change.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Monday, September 10, 2007
The White Devil
This post is about eating right. Coming from me, this is a little out of whack - I have not eaten right for about 90% of my life and I weigh 20 pounds more than I should.
But the evidence is clear, eating processed foods with high sugar content is about the worst thing a person can do for their health (other than smoking or drinking/drugs).
The real enemies are sugar (along with high fructose corn syrup) and white flour. They cause our bodies to chemically do some bad shit that ends up giving us big guts and a high propensity for diabetes.
The right way down the road to eating more healthily is to give these things up. Switch to getting your sugars from natural places like fruits and switch to 100% whole grain bread and pasta and eat wild rice instead of white rice.
I do my best to follow these rules and when I do, I feel better, my waist shrinks and occassionally I lose a pound or two.
But the evidence is clear, eating processed foods with high sugar content is about the worst thing a person can do for their health (other than smoking or drinking/drugs).
The real enemies are sugar (along with high fructose corn syrup) and white flour. They cause our bodies to chemically do some bad shit that ends up giving us big guts and a high propensity for diabetes.
The right way down the road to eating more healthily is to give these things up. Switch to getting your sugars from natural places like fruits and switch to 100% whole grain bread and pasta and eat wild rice instead of white rice.
I do my best to follow these rules and when I do, I feel better, my waist shrinks and occassionally I lose a pound or two.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Touring Engineering
This past Friday, the ICC Engineering students and faculty went to Duluth to learn more about careers in engineering. We started with 6 engineers from Minnesota Power talking to the group about what they do in their different disciplines (Thank you Maggie). Then Rodney V set up a cool demonstration of a fluid system designed to test the different methods for cleaning ballast tank discharges in Great Lakes ships. The day ended with an awesome two hour tour of Cirrus that Amber M set up for us.
Here's the great part - the students were so totally pumped by the end of the day. We can sit in classrooms and talk until we are blue in the face about why these young people should continue down the path to becoming an engineer. But that doesn't compare in any way with what they get out of seeing engineering in practice and talking to practicing engineers.
Do you have place we can come? We've got lots of money for renting buses. We are looking for great places to visit. You are the people who can help us out. Let me know if you have any good ideas. Thanks in advance.
Here's the great part - the students were so totally pumped by the end of the day. We can sit in classrooms and talk until we are blue in the face about why these young people should continue down the path to becoming an engineer. But that doesn't compare in any way with what they get out of seeing engineering in practice and talking to practicing engineers.
Do you have place we can come? We've got lots of money for renting buses. We are looking for great places to visit. You are the people who can help us out. Let me know if you have any good ideas. Thanks in advance.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Contact
As engineers we have a scientific training that makes us want empirical evidence to explain every phenomenon. If we can't prove it, we don't believe it.
As humans many of us believe in a higher being and we do so based on faith.
These two approaches can clash in our minds at different times in our lives.
Tonight, Gordy put on a showing of the movie Contact (starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey and based on the book by Carl Sagan) for our engineering students. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. If you have, watch it again.
This movie can help us science based thinker come to grips with faith.
As humans many of us believe in a higher being and we do so based on faith.
These two approaches can clash in our minds at different times in our lives.
Tonight, Gordy put on a showing of the movie Contact (starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey and based on the book by Carl Sagan) for our engineering students. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. If you have, watch it again.
This movie can help us science based thinker come to grips with faith.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Scholarship Drive
Take a guess what the college budget is for an ICC student living in our dorms?
.... over $14,000!
Just a few years ago that number was less than half of what it is now. It is a crime against society as far as I'm concerned. Nonetheless it is a design constraint underwhich we must go forward as a program. I am trying to solve the problem on several fronts by searching for money from the NSF and from private foundations. In addition, I am in the beginning stages of raising money on an annual basis from engineering alum. I started in August by writing to my former HCC Engineering students (there are 87 of them) and asking them to donate to ICC for scholarships. Guess what? They have! I have commitments from HCC alum for over $5000 by January 1st.
Now I will be contacting ICC alum. You will hear from me soon as I look to ask you to pay back those who helped you by helping our future engineers attain their education.
I pay over $1000 per year to this account as do Aaron/Carol, and Brad. We hope that you may be able to help to.
TBL: We are all at different financial situations and in different stages of life. I would only ever ask you to contribute what you could no matter how little or how much.
.... over $14,000!
Just a few years ago that number was less than half of what it is now. It is a crime against society as far as I'm concerned. Nonetheless it is a design constraint underwhich we must go forward as a program. I am trying to solve the problem on several fronts by searching for money from the NSF and from private foundations. In addition, I am in the beginning stages of raising money on an annual basis from engineering alum. I started in August by writing to my former HCC Engineering students (there are 87 of them) and asking them to donate to ICC for scholarships. Guess what? They have! I have commitments from HCC alum for over $5000 by January 1st.
Now I will be contacting ICC alum. You will hear from me soon as I look to ask you to pay back those who helped you by helping our future engineers attain their education.
I pay over $1000 per year to this account as do Aaron/Carol, and Brad. We hope that you may be able to help to.
TBL: We are all at different financial situations and in different stages of life. I would only ever ask you to contribute what you could no matter how little or how much.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Friendship
Many of us take our friendships for granted. We have some really good friends who we rely on to help is in a huge variety of ways. This, of course, is one of the best parts about our lives. However, how often do we go out of our way and do something special for our friends to show them how much they are appreciated. In my case, I would have to certainly say not nearly enough. Tonight one of my good friends brought me a gift to thank me for being his friend. It is a handmade headdress. It is intricate and way cool. Here are some pics.
TBL: What could you do in your life right now to show a friend how much you appreciate them?
TBL: What could you do in your life right now to show a friend how much you appreciate them?
Monday, September 3, 2007
Transitions
The beginning of college is a most tumultuous time. I have 75 new engineering students who are starting this transition and I brought my Liz to college this weekend. I shared this posting with all of them through facebook and thought I would add it here. Perhaps you remember this time in your life:
"The hardest four months of my life were those that comprised the first semester of college. There are so many conflicting emotions and fears.
I think the hardest part was feeling like something was over forever. I knew I was in the right place and that my parents fully supported me, but my life as a child was over and that hurt. This caused me to be homesick.
College is scary. There is so much unkown. Am I good enough? Is everybody else smarter than me? Will I do well in my classes? Will I like my major? Do I have enough money to get to the end of the semester? Will I let down my family if I don't do really well?
I could go on and on. There is just so much.
Well, that first semester was 23 years ago. Since then I have been a friend and teacher to thousands of students who have gone through this same semester. From these experiences, I have some insight I can share with you.
The first is for you to understand that if you are feeling any of the things I listed above, you are perfectly normal and almost everyone around you is feeling the same way.
The second is that from this semester forward everything gets much better. Time will go faster, you will be happier, you will do better in your classes, you will become comfortable with your new life.
Third and finally, I offer up these suggestions for how to make it through this semester:
*Don't ever skip class. Nothing good can come from that bad habit.
*Do your homework as early in the day as possible - in other words, get all of your work done and then go have fun. The other way around just doesn't work well.
*Stay in communication with the important people in your life. These people are the ones who have always given you comfort - get comfort of them now when you need it.
*Learn how to do well in your classes. Don't just go through the motions of studying, but invest yourself in learning the material so that you can take it with you - by doing this you will do better in your classes.
*Find some study friends. Learning with someone else is much more effective and more fun.
*Do all the things your mother would tell you - eat right, get enough sleep, and find time to exercise.
This is the beginning of a wonderful new life. But the transition to getting there will feel like hell sometimes. My life is about helping you through this transition. I am available to talk anytime by facebook, email, or phone."
"The hardest four months of my life were those that comprised the first semester of college. There are so many conflicting emotions and fears.
I think the hardest part was feeling like something was over forever. I knew I was in the right place and that my parents fully supported me, but my life as a child was over and that hurt. This caused me to be homesick.
College is scary. There is so much unkown. Am I good enough? Is everybody else smarter than me? Will I do well in my classes? Will I like my major? Do I have enough money to get to the end of the semester? Will I let down my family if I don't do really well?
I could go on and on. There is just so much.
Well, that first semester was 23 years ago. Since then I have been a friend and teacher to thousands of students who have gone through this same semester. From these experiences, I have some insight I can share with you.
The first is for you to understand that if you are feeling any of the things I listed above, you are perfectly normal and almost everyone around you is feeling the same way.
The second is that from this semester forward everything gets much better. Time will go faster, you will be happier, you will do better in your classes, you will become comfortable with your new life.
Third and finally, I offer up these suggestions for how to make it through this semester:
*Don't ever skip class. Nothing good can come from that bad habit.
*Do your homework as early in the day as possible - in other words, get all of your work done and then go have fun. The other way around just doesn't work well.
*Stay in communication with the important people in your life. These people are the ones who have always given you comfort - get comfort of them now when you need it.
*Learn how to do well in your classes. Don't just go through the motions of studying, but invest yourself in learning the material so that you can take it with you - by doing this you will do better in your classes.
*Find some study friends. Learning with someone else is much more effective and more fun.
*Do all the things your mother would tell you - eat right, get enough sleep, and find time to exercise.
This is the beginning of a wonderful new life. But the transition to getting there will feel like hell sometimes. My life is about helping you through this transition. I am available to talk anytime by facebook, email, or phone."
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