Today vs yesterday, what has changed?

[Dragsinger]

Please ponder this question and give me your thoughts. Here is the background for my question.

For some time I have considered how a routine day has become more and more rare. In talking with others, I realize my observation is not unique. Some tasks (make that many tasks) now require a considerable amount of extra handling before reaching completion.
And the added “complication” is not unique to some trade or business model, it is wide spread over many situations. It seems to be that a day filled with time taking, unusual complications are now the normal day. Those tasks that once were considered routine are now the exception.
So to my question; “What has happened?” “What has added this burdensome complication to our lives?”

This is not a joke or something posted for entertainment. Nor am I interested in someone’s personal rant, rather, I respectfully request your insights and thoughts. My goal is a better understanding of today’s life pressures.

Respectfully, Larry Woodfin

[rskrause]

In my case, paperwork has proiferated in response to the demands of the Government and quasi-governmental ageencies as well as the need to protect myself from litigation. Takes a lot of the fun out of it.

Richard

[David Redszus]

Larry
Your observations are spot on. It is a trend that has been in place for the last twenty years.
The problem has been studied at the university level and has resulted in many papers on the topic.

The problem seems to stem from inadequate communication; not a lack of communication but rather an excess of communication. Given the multitude of electronic devices now in existence, each producing massive amounts of informaton, each demanding attention, we are now in a state of information overload.

We no longer have time to read and fully understand the information that is thrown at us each day. We resort to the sound bite, the computer byte, the billboard, the text message, etc. We no longer take the time to read a real book or to listen to what others are saying to us. And of course, others do the same to us.

Since humans have a finite limit as to how much information they can process, excess information simply slows down the communication process. At some point it actually comes to a standstill.

We have become victims of our own information clutter.

[BLACK BART]

Hi Larry, here a few things to think about.

Typically, as people get older, the number of responsibilities they have will grow.

The statement above is especially true for a person that owns a growing business. Also, as a business owner, you may not be delegating jobs like you should on a day to day basis. This may be because you are a one man show or just plain don't like to give an employee the opportunity to screw something up. Could also be because you are just plain stubborn and think that's the way it's always been done, so that's the way I'll always do it.

Not trying to take a jab at you, but if you are near retirement (I don't know how old you are?), you may be looking to slow down and rest on your accomplishments of the previous years when in reality you need to be working harder than ever. In the past I've seen people getting ready to retire that have an attitude of complacency because they feel they have earned it. In reality, you've only earned it when you can retire, not a day before.

As David mentioned above, we're all on information overload now a days. I think this is a huge problem for those that don't keep up with the times and technology like they should to be competitive.

In today's economy, I believe profit margins have shrank and things are much more competitive than they used to be thanks to technology like the Internet. This means volume is king. That in turn means you will work harder to make the same buck you made in years gone by.

Just some of my ideas for you to think about.

CJ

[Dragsinger]

Thanks for the above comments, I appreciate the thoughts.

My age is 63, and I have been self-employed for 38 years. For about 12 of those years I ran the shop alone then began adding employees, now have 5 employees.

I posted this question on several boards to get a wide scope of feedback. Some comments were easily dismissed, but some were very enlightening and thought provoking. Also, the comments from this board are among the best.

The basic tones that have surfaced are:

* We have more information than time to deal with said information
*Any pre-conceived notion of life getting easier is unrealistic, certainly we can live better lives, but it is not a given, it requires planning, hard work, and good decision making.
*generally speaking, many people are "doing just enough to get by" Excellent personal service, going out - of - your way to serve, it not the norm, it is the exception.

More thoughts soon.

Woodfin

[Barbapapa]

It's ironic that we're here typing about the increased information load!

I've thought of the same thing too. Before the internet I was still able to connect with certain people but looking back I have no idea how I managed that without the 'net. The fact is we could all lose our computers and we would still find a way to talk to everyone we needed to by way of phone, magazines,newspapers and word of mouth.

[robert1]

I gotta tell you when the doctor looked at me and said you have caner, well that kinda upped my life pressures. And then says you'll be seeing a lot of dr.s for the next 6 months. I have to go everyday. Try seeing how that fits into your schedule. But to the point I think people read these message boards and get a little info and then try to make a pro stock engine out of their 2 bolt main 350. I just finished going over a bill at the shop that does my machine work because the guy tells me we are at $5,000. Then when I add some more parts I've bought I'm at 7 G's. I'm telling him I guess I'll have to eat something because I can't charge $7,000 plus for a freshen up. We got the bill sorted out to eachs satisfaction but it still takes time. I do see where people take some things to the extreme here if they actully do what thet say. Then I wonder how they could possibly charge enough for the time they spent.

[Whitewater Racer]

A couple of thoughts / observations-
“We” have become “Microwave People”. We expect things almost instantaneously, and even worse, we are willing to accept the results of that same haste. After about 20 seconds of microwaving a hotdog we will start hollering at that same inanimate microwave oven, “C’mon, hurry it up-I ain’t got all day you know”. Then we gulp down that same barely warmed nuke dog in seconds. Instead of building a fire, cutting a stick and cooking a dog over a fire and then enjoying the wait, knowing it will be worth it when we get to savor that same fire-roasted dog we just spent some effort to acquire. We are willing to run into a convenience store and grab 3 for a dollar hotdogs, some chips and a Coke in a paper throwaway cup, just so we can get back in our vehicle and gulp it down while driving mindlessly among a group of folks, that are just in our way, in their vehicles, instead of enjoying a plate of pot roast, with some horseradish on the side, and a glass (made out of glass) of your favorite beverage while sitting quietly at a table enjoying a few minutes of conversation with people we care about. We are willing to settle for mediocre because of quicker gratification-in almost everything we do. Being gratified and being fulfilled are NOT the same thing. We attempt to assuage the lonely, neglected inner being with "things".

Most folks demand their wants fulfilled NOW, by someone, without any personal responsibility or culpability in the results. An example-it used to be in the building trades that you went out and worked all day and then dealt with the phone calls and questions at the end of the day-when you got back to where there even was a phone- by then many of the questions had kind of taken care of themselves or someone had actually made a personal decision and dealt with the whatever. Now everyone is paralyzed to act without involving someone else and making them tell you what to do-get on the cell and start making calls. What used to just get handled now involves 8 phone calls with all the attendant time and heartburn. Hardly anyone wants to be responsibile or to be invested in the results. We are willing to take credit, but want no part of any ramifications. These elements contribute to the adversarial nature of too many of our interactions. Reminds me of the stories of drowned seammen. Their shoulders had boot prints on the tops-the results of someone trying to save themselves by standing on the shoulders of another..........driving them deeper into oblivion.

I have heard “it” (the increasing complex and complicated that we now accept) phrased-“We are caught up in the thick of thin things”.

[Dragsinger]

Whitewater Racer,

Thanks for your comments, I enjoyed.

Larry Woodfin

[robert1]

I wanted a hot dog!

[Mike Rogers]

I think whitewater pretty much nailed it as i was sitting here eating a hot dog reading this.

[Engguy]

Another problem that is new to the mid fortys and into the sixtys generation nowadays, is the problem with adult children,( hmm that is a misnomer too) that do not know how to GROW UP. Some are just lazy give me everything on a silver plate bums. I know this first hand my wifes son is just such a person, but then she is more in love with him than me, so what can I say.
To the mothers that support this kind of crap, these worthless little darlings can do no wrong. They don't have to try to grow up, they don't have to do anything they don't want to, yes even at the age of 28 or so, why grow up when you have such a nice loving mommy to do everything for you. Pay your bills, pay for parts to fix your car, put on a teary eyed show to force someone to fix your car, and on and on it goes. This is new, it never happpened when I was younger, I would have never caused my parents or parent to take on all my burdens. It evil, its childish, and especially when some of these bums refer to themselves as Christians it makes it even more sinister.
So some can say its the economy etc. but really if someone can't or doesn't want to work and take ownership of thier own lives, why does that make thier problem mine or thier parents problem? Most of these bums are male, and can't find a woman that wants them, hmmm I wonder why? I know not suppose to be a rant, but this is a problem that never faced the middle aged folks in the past.

[David Redszus]

Harry
Your observations regarding our current pop culture and narcissistic lifestyle is right on. It goes completely against what we were taught and have come to value. Obviously our values are not shared by everyone else; so we wind up talking among ourselves since no one else will listen.

My attempt at a rationalization of current cultural values goes something like this.
We are all a product of our accumulated knowledge and experiences that typically do not exceed our lifetimes. Events in the distant past have no relevance to us in the here and now. But civilization is not constant nor linear; it goes in cycles and in leaps and bounds, and then comes back. What goes around ,comes around.... eventually. But we lack the patience and lifespan to wait for its return.

We were taught that saving, avoiding excessive debt and funding your own objectives was proper.
The excessive inflation of the early 80s suggested otherwise. Savings were depleted by inflation, debt was paid off with inflated dollars, and it was easy to borrow investment capital for the most stupid business plans imaginable. And so a new, go-go, lifestyle and culture evolved; where superficiality, shallowness, myopic thinking became normal. And if you did not buy into that, you were obviously out to lunch or just a little slow.

As I write this I am sitting on the veranda of a villa in Costa Rica, overlooking a blue and calm Pacific Ocean. But the country is busy working at capitalism. There is a hard working, low paid class of educated citizens that are determined to obtain the better things in life through their own hard work. This, and the support (can you believe it?) of the government has attracted substantial foreign investment to fuel expansion and growth.

Hard for some to imagine, but that is what the US was all about once upon a time.

[pdq67]

He, He!!

As my big "Mic" buddy Murph at work that has a ChE degree and his hobby is Econ, he say's that "We are eating our kids!!"....

And I have to agree.

BOTH parties WANT this HC grab AND NEVER FORGET IT!!

I had a link to an article of a study done sometime before 2001 by someone that documented and time-lined the GOV's working w/ BC/BS to get us where we were at up to that time and so NOW this is the final culination of the continuation of that back then.

pdq67