You need to realize the power of perceptions in your life, and use them to your advantage. Aim to control, shape and influence the perceptions that others have about you.
The document discusses various news items from the transportation industry. It describes a bus company transporting passengers in luggage compartments, which resulted in regulatory action from the DOT. It also discusses tips to prevent fuel card fraud for trucking companies and signs of a challenging supply and demand imbalance in the finished vehicle logistics industry due to a shortage of qualified drivers.
Women make up over half of new car buyers in the US and influence over 85% of car purchases. They control $80 billion in car spending and are increasingly confident in negotiating with dealers. Automakers are targeting women buyers through safety, fuel efficiency, and endorsements. However, women still feel misunderstood by marketers and studies show women and minorities often pay higher prices than men when buying cars.
MyCarIsWorthLess.com announces a new diminished value protection plan at the North American International AutoShow to help recoup the value of vehicles involved in not-at-fault accidents. The plan will reimburse owners up to $5,000 within 60 days of an accident. Every year, Canadians lose over $1.2 billion due to reduced vehicle value after accidents where they were not at fault. The new protection plan is designed to recover this diminished value from the at-fault party.
"There are costs and risks to a program of action, but they are far less than the long range risks and costs of inaction."
"In whatever area in life one may meet the challenges of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience - the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men - each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient - they can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul."
- President John Fitzgerald Kennedy
- Road crashes are the result of driver choices and behaviors, not accidents. A workshop for traffic offenders showed graphic photos of crash outcomes to emphasize this.
- Speakers from emergency services explained how crashes unfold and impact victims and their families. One survivor described being critically injured and undergoing extensive recovery from another driver's reckless actions.
- The workshop aims to promote safer driving through confronting attendees with the human costs of crashes. Upcoming sessions will focus on distracted, reckless, fatigued and impaired driving during Road Safety Week.
Damage to vehicles during transit is an unavoidable problem for fleet managers. The most common causes are weather events like hail storms and carelessness during transportation. While fleet managers have little control over transit damage, they can partner with reputable transport vendors and consider vehicle specifications to potentially reduce damage risks. When damage does occur, financial responsibility typically lies with the transit company, and fleet managers should know claim processes.
Best Foot Forward - Pedestrian Safety Campaign to Change Driver Yielding Beha...Best Foot Central Florida
This document discusses pedestrian safety issues in Central Florida and the Best Foot Forward program's efforts to address them. Central Florida cities rank among the most dangerous places to walk, with over 900 pedestrian crashes and injuries annually. The Best Foot Forward program aims to increase driver yielding at crosswalks through enforcement, education, and engineering improvements. It tracks driver yield rates at specific crosswalks over time, finding some sites have seen yield rates double from 13% to 58% since the program launched in 2012. The program partners with local groups and encourages community involvement to continue improving pedestrian safety.
The document discusses various news items from the transportation industry. It describes a bus company transporting passengers in luggage compartments, which resulted in regulatory action from the DOT. It also discusses tips to prevent fuel card fraud for trucking companies and signs of a challenging supply and demand imbalance in the finished vehicle logistics industry due to a shortage of qualified drivers.
Women make up over half of new car buyers in the US and influence over 85% of car purchases. They control $80 billion in car spending and are increasingly confident in negotiating with dealers. Automakers are targeting women buyers through safety, fuel efficiency, and endorsements. However, women still feel misunderstood by marketers and studies show women and minorities often pay higher prices than men when buying cars.
MyCarIsWorthLess.com announces a new diminished value protection plan at the North American International AutoShow to help recoup the value of vehicles involved in not-at-fault accidents. The plan will reimburse owners up to $5,000 within 60 days of an accident. Every year, Canadians lose over $1.2 billion due to reduced vehicle value after accidents where they were not at fault. The new protection plan is designed to recover this diminished value from the at-fault party.
"There are costs and risks to a program of action, but they are far less than the long range risks and costs of inaction."
"In whatever area in life one may meet the challenges of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience - the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men - each man must decide for himself the course he will follow. The stories of past courage can define that ingredient - they can teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul."
- President John Fitzgerald Kennedy
- Road crashes are the result of driver choices and behaviors, not accidents. A workshop for traffic offenders showed graphic photos of crash outcomes to emphasize this.
- Speakers from emergency services explained how crashes unfold and impact victims and their families. One survivor described being critically injured and undergoing extensive recovery from another driver's reckless actions.
- The workshop aims to promote safer driving through confronting attendees with the human costs of crashes. Upcoming sessions will focus on distracted, reckless, fatigued and impaired driving during Road Safety Week.
Damage to vehicles during transit is an unavoidable problem for fleet managers. The most common causes are weather events like hail storms and carelessness during transportation. While fleet managers have little control over transit damage, they can partner with reputable transport vendors and consider vehicle specifications to potentially reduce damage risks. When damage does occur, financial responsibility typically lies with the transit company, and fleet managers should know claim processes.
Best Foot Forward - Pedestrian Safety Campaign to Change Driver Yielding Beha...Best Foot Central Florida
This document discusses pedestrian safety issues in Central Florida and the Best Foot Forward program's efforts to address them. Central Florida cities rank among the most dangerous places to walk, with over 900 pedestrian crashes and injuries annually. The Best Foot Forward program aims to increase driver yielding at crosswalks through enforcement, education, and engineering improvements. It tracks driver yield rates at specific crosswalks over time, finding some sites have seen yield rates double from 13% to 58% since the program launched in 2012. The program partners with local groups and encourages community involvement to continue improving pedestrian safety.
General Motors recalled over 800,000 vehicles worldwide in 2014 due to a faulty ignition switch that could shut off the engine and prevent airbag deployment. The defect had been known to GM for over a decade but was not disclosed until an attorney obtained documents showing GM's knowledge. Over 100 deaths were linked to the defect and GM faced billions in losses, lawsuits, and fines from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for its delayed response. The recall ultimately led to the departure of several GM executives.
The document provides web copy and brochure content for Designated Drivers, a service that transports patrons home in their own vehicles as a safe alternative to drunk driving. It includes three pieces of web copy targeting sports fans, college students, and an event with MADD to raise awareness of the dangers of drunk driving. The content educates about costs of a DUI and promotes Designated Drivers' services as a way to avoid these costs and risks.
Introduction eight steps to ethical decision makingaggiepride2012
The Eight Step Module provides a framework to make ethical decisions. It involves gathering facts, defining ethical issues, identifying affected parties, consequences, obligations, considering one's character, and thinking creatively about solutions. The document applies these steps to the Ford Pinto case from the 1970s, where Ford was accused of not recalling cars with faulty gas tanks that could rupture and cause fires in rear-end collisions, costing human lives. The summary examines Ford's decisions and obligations in this situation through the lens of the Eight Step Module.
2013 Jason's Law Safe Truck Parking and Focus Group PresentationJason's Law
This presentation organizes results shared by commercial truck drivers of the challenges they face daily in order to seek safe truck parking. "Jason’s Law", Section 1401 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Transportation Bill (MAP-21) is named for Jason Rivenburg. www.jhlrivenburg.com
2013 Jason's Law Safe Truck Parking and Focus Group PresentationTruck Driver
This presentation organizes results shared by commercial truck drivers of the challenges they face daily in order to seek safe truck parking. “Jason’s Law”, Section 1401 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Transportation Bill (MAP-21) is named for Jason Rivenburg. www.jhlrivenburg.com
Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly reduce car accidents, save lives, and impact society in major ways. They are estimated to eliminate over 90% of crashes caused by human error. While fully self-driving vehicles are still being developed and tested, within the next decade autonomous features are projected to be widespread, changing how people and goods are transported. Some predictions include mobility becoming a service, tech companies gaining more influence over transportation, and new uses for vehicles' interior spaces like work and entertainment as travel time is better utilized.
Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly impact lifestyle, business, and society by reducing accidents, saving lives, lowering costs and increasing productivity. Within a few years, vehicles capable of conditional automation (Level 3) and high automation (Level 4) will be available, with fully autonomous vehicles (Level 5) expected by the mid-2020s. Major disruptions will include new models for transportation as a service, tech companies gaining dominance, and transformative effects on real estate and urban infrastructure as personal vehicle ownership declines.
Steven Gursten Presents ‘End Distracted Driving’ to MS Mother’s Council (MSMC)Steven Gursten
Steven Gursten, auto attorney and safety advocate, will be speaking on “End Distracted Driving” at the January 18th, 2018 Mothers’ Council meeting. Texting while driving has become a safety crisis, but it is one that very few people know about. While it is not just a teen problem, reaching students and parents is vital to changing our culture of driving so that just like drunk driving, distracted driving will one day be socially unacceptable. The presentation will empower parents and students on how to end distracted driving.
Steven Gursten has helped to develop the distracted driving presentation through EndDD.org that has now been seen by nearly 400,000 teens across the U.S. and Canada, including over 7,500 students in Michigan. Steve has given this presentation at high schools throughout Michigan. This important safety presentation is an eye-opening challenge to engage and empower students and parents to decide if their driving behaviors need to change. Students gain the skills to speak up while in a car full of potentially dangerous distractions – including friends, siblings and technology – so the driver can concentrate on driving safely. Parents learn how our children model our own driving behaviors in the car. Rationalizations for why we drive distracted are challenged and specific strategies for safe driving, and for helping our own teen drivers drive without distraction, are developed.
Many of EndDD.org speakers are trial lawyers, like Steve, who have seen first-hand the devastation left behind from distracted driving car crashes. In this safety presentation, Steve shares from cases he has personally worked on where lives have been lost from distracted driving, and his outreach work and scholarship with Bonnie Raffaele, whose 17year old daughter Kelsey was tragically killed while texting. Kelsey became the driving force behind Kelsey’s Law, the law in Michigan that bans all cell phone use by teen drivers.
Each and every one of us has the power to take lives if we make poor driving choices, but as parents we also have the power to save lives by becoming ambassadors for safe, distraction-free driving. For more information go to: www.EndDD.org
The document analyzes claim rates from over 20,000 vehicles covered by Endurance Vehicle Protection to determine the 5 most reliable vehicles and vehicle types. It finds that the Toyota Corolla had the lowest claim rate at 2.6%, while pickups had the lowest claim rate by vehicle type at 29%. Minivans were found to have the highest claim rate at 41%. It also lists the 5 most expensive U.S. states for car repair labor rates.
Data in cars can be creepy – Hacker Halted 2019 – Andrea AmicoEC-Council
THE $750 BILLION VEHICLE DATA GOLD RUSH – PIRATES AHOY!
Vehicle data may be worth $750b by 2030. Problem: vehicle security, privacy, and user awareness of risks are inadequate. Andrea Amico will share some exploits including his “CarsBlues” which exposes people’s personal data, affects 22 makes, and is still a 0-Day for tens of millions of vehicles.
Frequent flyer programs were introduced in 1981 by American Airlines to build brand loyalty. Over time, miles could be earned from an increasing number of "travel partners" like hotels and credit cards. For some, accumulating miles became an obsession, driving up costs for airlines. Airlines addressed this by selling miles to partners for profit and tightening rules around mileage redemption.
Digital distribution and online platforms are allowing for more independence and customization for both producers and audiences. The old rules of copyright and traditional models of content windows and territories are changing. While financing projects is difficult to obtain, online distribution allows content to be produced and distributed at a fraction of traditional costs. However, competition for audiences is intense across various online platforms and devices. Pioneers may face challenges but over time new business models and opportunities will likely emerge in this changing landscape.
African elephants are the largest land animals on the continent. They can be found throughout sub-Saharan Africa and are recognizable by their large size and long trunks. For more pictures of elephants and other African wildlife, visit www.wildlife-pictures-online.com.
You need to defend yourself against bullies and make sure they are not successful in their efforts. You are a valuable individual with special talents.
My presentation at the DMU-hosted seminar [held on 8 December 2011] on THE ASSAULT ON UNIVERSITIES: Privatisation, Secrecy and the Future of Higher Education.
The neighbor would see the man of the house drink beers quickly behind his garage when his daughter and son-in-law visited. This happened every few weeks and was the man's way of dealing with the stress of their visits. The passage discusses common ways people cope with stress, such as distraction, avoidance, isolation, or dissipating energy, but argues these don't resolve the underlying issues. It introduces the concept of "focusing" from Dr. Gendlin's research - accepting feelings instead of resisting stress, in order to remain conscious of problems and deal with them directly.
General Motors recalled over 800,000 vehicles worldwide in 2014 due to a faulty ignition switch that could shut off the engine and prevent airbag deployment. The defect had been known to GM for over a decade but was not disclosed until an attorney obtained documents showing GM's knowledge. Over 100 deaths were linked to the defect and GM faced billions in losses, lawsuits, and fines from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for its delayed response. The recall ultimately led to the departure of several GM executives.
The document provides web copy and brochure content for Designated Drivers, a service that transports patrons home in their own vehicles as a safe alternative to drunk driving. It includes three pieces of web copy targeting sports fans, college students, and an event with MADD to raise awareness of the dangers of drunk driving. The content educates about costs of a DUI and promotes Designated Drivers' services as a way to avoid these costs and risks.
Introduction eight steps to ethical decision makingaggiepride2012
The Eight Step Module provides a framework to make ethical decisions. It involves gathering facts, defining ethical issues, identifying affected parties, consequences, obligations, considering one's character, and thinking creatively about solutions. The document applies these steps to the Ford Pinto case from the 1970s, where Ford was accused of not recalling cars with faulty gas tanks that could rupture and cause fires in rear-end collisions, costing human lives. The summary examines Ford's decisions and obligations in this situation through the lens of the Eight Step Module.
2013 Jason's Law Safe Truck Parking and Focus Group PresentationJason's Law
This presentation organizes results shared by commercial truck drivers of the challenges they face daily in order to seek safe truck parking. "Jason’s Law", Section 1401 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Transportation Bill (MAP-21) is named for Jason Rivenburg. www.jhlrivenburg.com
2013 Jason's Law Safe Truck Parking and Focus Group PresentationTruck Driver
This presentation organizes results shared by commercial truck drivers of the challenges they face daily in order to seek safe truck parking. “Jason’s Law”, Section 1401 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Transportation Bill (MAP-21) is named for Jason Rivenburg. www.jhlrivenburg.com
Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly reduce car accidents, save lives, and impact society in major ways. They are estimated to eliminate over 90% of crashes caused by human error. While fully self-driving vehicles are still being developed and tested, within the next decade autonomous features are projected to be widespread, changing how people and goods are transported. Some predictions include mobility becoming a service, tech companies gaining more influence over transportation, and new uses for vehicles' interior spaces like work and entertainment as travel time is better utilized.
Autonomous vehicles have the potential to significantly impact lifestyle, business, and society by reducing accidents, saving lives, lowering costs and increasing productivity. Within a few years, vehicles capable of conditional automation (Level 3) and high automation (Level 4) will be available, with fully autonomous vehicles (Level 5) expected by the mid-2020s. Major disruptions will include new models for transportation as a service, tech companies gaining dominance, and transformative effects on real estate and urban infrastructure as personal vehicle ownership declines.
Steven Gursten Presents ‘End Distracted Driving’ to MS Mother’s Council (MSMC)Steven Gursten
Steven Gursten, auto attorney and safety advocate, will be speaking on “End Distracted Driving” at the January 18th, 2018 Mothers’ Council meeting. Texting while driving has become a safety crisis, but it is one that very few people know about. While it is not just a teen problem, reaching students and parents is vital to changing our culture of driving so that just like drunk driving, distracted driving will one day be socially unacceptable. The presentation will empower parents and students on how to end distracted driving.
Steven Gursten has helped to develop the distracted driving presentation through EndDD.org that has now been seen by nearly 400,000 teens across the U.S. and Canada, including over 7,500 students in Michigan. Steve has given this presentation at high schools throughout Michigan. This important safety presentation is an eye-opening challenge to engage and empower students and parents to decide if their driving behaviors need to change. Students gain the skills to speak up while in a car full of potentially dangerous distractions – including friends, siblings and technology – so the driver can concentrate on driving safely. Parents learn how our children model our own driving behaviors in the car. Rationalizations for why we drive distracted are challenged and specific strategies for safe driving, and for helping our own teen drivers drive without distraction, are developed.
Many of EndDD.org speakers are trial lawyers, like Steve, who have seen first-hand the devastation left behind from distracted driving car crashes. In this safety presentation, Steve shares from cases he has personally worked on where lives have been lost from distracted driving, and his outreach work and scholarship with Bonnie Raffaele, whose 17year old daughter Kelsey was tragically killed while texting. Kelsey became the driving force behind Kelsey’s Law, the law in Michigan that bans all cell phone use by teen drivers.
Each and every one of us has the power to take lives if we make poor driving choices, but as parents we also have the power to save lives by becoming ambassadors for safe, distraction-free driving. For more information go to: www.EndDD.org
The document analyzes claim rates from over 20,000 vehicles covered by Endurance Vehicle Protection to determine the 5 most reliable vehicles and vehicle types. It finds that the Toyota Corolla had the lowest claim rate at 2.6%, while pickups had the lowest claim rate by vehicle type at 29%. Minivans were found to have the highest claim rate at 41%. It also lists the 5 most expensive U.S. states for car repair labor rates.
Data in cars can be creepy – Hacker Halted 2019 – Andrea AmicoEC-Council
THE $750 BILLION VEHICLE DATA GOLD RUSH – PIRATES AHOY!
Vehicle data may be worth $750b by 2030. Problem: vehicle security, privacy, and user awareness of risks are inadequate. Andrea Amico will share some exploits including his “CarsBlues” which exposes people’s personal data, affects 22 makes, and is still a 0-Day for tens of millions of vehicles.
Frequent flyer programs were introduced in 1981 by American Airlines to build brand loyalty. Over time, miles could be earned from an increasing number of "travel partners" like hotels and credit cards. For some, accumulating miles became an obsession, driving up costs for airlines. Airlines addressed this by selling miles to partners for profit and tightening rules around mileage redemption.
Digital distribution and online platforms are allowing for more independence and customization for both producers and audiences. The old rules of copyright and traditional models of content windows and territories are changing. While financing projects is difficult to obtain, online distribution allows content to be produced and distributed at a fraction of traditional costs. However, competition for audiences is intense across various online platforms and devices. Pioneers may face challenges but over time new business models and opportunities will likely emerge in this changing landscape.
African elephants are the largest land animals on the continent. They can be found throughout sub-Saharan Africa and are recognizable by their large size and long trunks. For more pictures of elephants and other African wildlife, visit www.wildlife-pictures-online.com.
You need to defend yourself against bullies and make sure they are not successful in their efforts. You are a valuable individual with special talents.
My presentation at the DMU-hosted seminar [held on 8 December 2011] on THE ASSAULT ON UNIVERSITIES: Privatisation, Secrecy and the Future of Higher Education.
The neighbor would see the man of the house drink beers quickly behind his garage when his daughter and son-in-law visited. This happened every few weeks and was the man's way of dealing with the stress of their visits. The passage discusses common ways people cope with stress, such as distraction, avoidance, isolation, or dissipating energy, but argues these don't resolve the underlying issues. It introduces the concept of "focusing" from Dr. Gendlin's research - accepting feelings instead of resisting stress, in order to remain conscious of problems and deal with them directly.
Are You Motivated by Power, Relationships, or Achievement?Employment Crossing
The document discusses three different personality types that may emerge when someone sits in the restored classic cars that the author has spent decades restoring: power-oriented, relationship-oriented, and achievement-oriented. It provides examples of how each type would react and what questions they would ask when viewing the cars, noting their different motivations - power, relationships, and achievement respectively. The author stresses the importance of understanding one's own personality type and being in a career that allows one to thrive using their natural motivations.
To succeed in the terms you have set for yourself, you need to look out for, and operate in, an environment that is strong and very demanding from you in terms of work.
In life and in career, most people seek to improve, get traction and stay in the game. No one wishes to slip and fall and yet all, at some point or another do.
Be Someone Who is Engaged with Work, Not Someone Who Avoids WorkEmployment Crossing
The document discusses several instances the author witnessed of people avoiding work or being disengaged from their jobs, including:
1) Two airline stewardesses who spent their time during the flight clipping coupons and complaining about their jobs instead of serving passengers.
2) An airline executive who was upset about being expected to work during a flight instead of sleeping.
3) Pilots who were more interested in surfing the internet than flying the plane.
4) An airport shuttle driver who was not actually picking passengers up from the airport on schedule.
The author concludes that being engaged with and finding meaning in one's work is important for career satisfaction and success.
Garlic Olive Oil, Craigslist Massages-and Doing Your HomeworkEmployment Crossing
Do not plunge into something as important as a new job before investing enough time in researching and learning more about the work required, the people you will work with, and the environment.
You need to decide for yourself which method works best for you. An alternate to this exists as well; you can choose to let things remain the way they are.
It is important for every individual to realize that nobody else is going to be as concerned for your career as you yourself. Because of this reason, it becomes much more important to protect your ability to earn your living.
Paying attention to details is one of the most important things for success. Successful people have an extraordinary ability to focus on even small details and are often obsessed with intricate knowledge about details. Details are important in every profession from law and teaching to business and athletics. Those who focus on details like remembering customer preferences, following up after a job application, or working to improve small weaknesses will achieve better results than those who do not pay attention to the small things.
The document discusses a man who attended a wedding rehearsal dinner and sat next to a wealthy businessman. The businessman revealed that he prefers using prostitutes to relationships because it is cheaper and less troublesome. The narrator was shocked by this viewpoint, which treats people as commodities that can be bought and sold. The document argues that to succeed in business and career, one must form emotional connections with others and understand their goals and dreams, in order to be seen as more than just a replaceable commodity.
Parabolic antenna alignment system with Real-Time Angle Position FeedbackStevenPatrick17
Introduction
Parabolic antennas are a crucial component in many communication systems, including satellite communications, radio telescopes, and television broadcasting. Ensuring these antennas are properly aligned is vital for optimal performance and signal strength. A parabolic antenna alignment system, equipped with real-time angle position feedback and fault tracking, is designed to address this need. This document delves into the components, design, and implementation of such a system, highlighting its significance and applications.
Importance of Parabolic Antenna Alignment
The alignment of a parabolic antenna directly affects its performance. Even minor misalignments can lead to significant signal loss, which can degrade the quality of the received signal or cause communication failures. Proper alignment ensures that the antenna's focal point is accurately directed toward the signal source, maximizing the antenna's gain and efficiency. This precision is especially crucial in applications like satellite communications, where the antenna must track geostationary satellites with high accuracy.
Components of a Parabolic Antenna Alignment System
A parabolic antenna alignment system typically includes the following components:
Parabolic Dish: The primary reflector that collects and focuses incoming signals.
Feedhorn and Low Noise Block (LNB): Positioned at the dish's focal point to receive signals.
Stepper or Servo Motors: Adjust the azimuth (horizontal) and elevation (vertical) angles of the antenna.
Microcontroller (e.g., Arduino, Raspberry Pi): Processes sensor data and controls the motors.
Potentiometers: Provide feedback on the antenna's current angle positions.
Fault Detection Sensors: Monitor for potential faults such as cable discontinuities or LNB failures.
Control Software: Runs on the microcontroller, handling real-time processing and decision-making.
Real-Time Angle Position Feedback
Real-time feedback on the antenna's angle position is essential for maintaining precise alignment. This feedback is typically provided by potentiometers or rotary encoders, which continuously monitor the azimuth and elevation angles. The microcontroller reads this data and adjusts the motors accordingly to keep the antenna aligned with the signal source.
Fault Tracking in Antenna Alignment Systems
Fault tracking is vital for the reliability and performance of the antenna system. Common faults include cable discontinuities, LNB malfunctions, and motor failures. Sensors integrated into the system can detect these faults and either notify the user or initiate corrective actions automatically.
Design and Implementation
1. Parabolic Dish and Feedhorn
The parabolic dish is designed to reflect incoming signals to a focal point where the feedhorn and LNB are located. The dish's size and shape depend on the specific application and frequency range.
2. Motors and Position Control
Stepper motors or servo motors are used to control the azimuth and elevation of
I am an accomplished and driven administrative management professional with a proven track record of supporting senior executives and managing administrative teams. I am skilled in strategic planning, project management, and organizational development, and have extensive experience in improving processes, enhancing productivity, and implementing solutions to support business objectives and growth.
2. In 1991 I Purchased A Four-Year Old Audi 5000 Automobile For $2,500. When the car was new, it had been listed at $40,000. It was really beautiful inside. It had all sorts of electronic controls, powered everything, and it drove incredibly well. In fact, I can honestly say that the Audi 5000 was one of the nicest cars I have ever owned. In the entire time I owned the car, I had very few problems with it. The car was very comfortable in all respects, and it cost me less than a much older, cheap compact car would have. As far as I was concerned, I had gotten the most fantastic deal imaginable. I drove the car for a decent amount of time, and was always a little upset that I sold it. The car was very well made, and one of the main reasons I was driving it was because I did not care what other people thought.
3. You May Be Asking Yourself How Anyone Could Purchase Such A Great Car… for such a cheap price. It made a lot of sense at the time, since no one wanted to own an Audi 5000, which was considered “unsafe” and extremely dangerous by “everyone” due to a 60 Minutes episode called “Out of Control” which aired in 1986. Since that episode of 60 Minutes was broadcast, almost overnight, the resale value of the Audi 5000 had been destroyed, and everyone was trying to unload them as quickly as they could. Anybody who wanted to could go out and purchase an Audi 5000 that was a few years old for pennies on the dollar. “ Out of Control” was all about complaints of “unintended acceleration” of the Audi 5000 car. The show featured a distraught mother, Kristi Bradosky, who had run over her six year old son when the car had allegedly lurched forward in her garage without warning.
4. Monday, December 18, 1989, the Wall Street Journal Ran A Story Concerning the Scare That… Had been generated by the 60 Minutes episode: If you’re the kind of driver who sometimes has trouble finding the brakes in your car, you should be driving an Audi. Last month, in 35mph crash tests of an airbag-equipped Audi 100, the mannequin in the driver’s seat suffered the lowest crash force ever recorded by the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration, NHTSA, in this kind of test. And yet, according to the Center for Auto Safety–a self styled public interest organization that sells its research to plaintiffs’ lawyers–the Audi 100’s predecessor, the Audi 5000, was as deadly as the Audi 100 is safe. It exhibited “sudden acceleration,” a fatal propensity to take off at full speed even as the terrified driver rammed the brake pedal to the floor.
5. CBS’s 60 Minutes ran a devastating exposé of the Audi 5000. Audi customers fled. Lawyers cashed in. The American public was saved, yet again, from the perils of technology gone awry. Only one little noticed footnote remains at the end: There was nothing wrong with the car.
6. The Audi Story Is By Now, Dismally Familiar. “ Sudden acceleration” accidents occurred when the transmission was shifted out of “park.” The driver always insisted he was standing on the brake, but after the crash the brakes always worked perfectly. A disproportionate number of accidents involved drivers new to the vehicle. When an idiot-proof shift was installed so that a driver could not shift out of park if his foot was on the accelerator, reports of sudden acceleration plummeted. But a story to the effect that cars accelerate when drivers step on the accelerator doesn’t boost television ratings or jury verdicts. And driver error is understandably hard to accept for a mother whose errant foot killed her six year old son. So with the help of such mothers, CAS and CBS knitted together a tissue of conjecture, insinuation, and calumny. The car’s cruise control was at fault. Or maybe the electronic idle. Or perhaps the transmission.
7. 60 Minutes, In One Of Journalism’s Most Shameful Hours… Gave air time in November 1986 to a self styled expert who drilled a hole in an Audi transmission and pumped in air at high pressure. Viewers didn’t see the drill or the pump—just the doctored car blasting off like a rocket. Junk science of this kind moves fast. Real science takes time to catch up with this kind of intellectual cockroach and squash it. Government agencies in Japan and Canada, as well as in the US, conducted painstaking studies. The Canadians who are franker about such things, called it “driver error.” In America, where we can’t attach blame to anyone whose name doesn’t end with Inc., it was called “pedal misapplication.” And unsurprisingly, it’s not just Audi drivers who commit it.
8. So, In The Long Run, The Truth Does Come Out. In the short run, the lawyers swoop in. Most soon recognized that they couldn’t prove any defect in the Audi’s engine or transmission. But our liability system today is a master of the bait and switch—the switch was to “pedal misdesign.” No doubt about it, the original Audi like other European cars, placed brake and accelerator pedals slightly closer together than is usual in many American designs. This allows the good driver to move faster between the pedals in a high-speed emergency. Perhaps it also makes it easier for the bad driver to mix up the pedals. Nobody, including NHTSA, is quite sure whether, overall, the old Audi pedal placement was marginally better or marginally worse. End of case? Hardly. With Audi shell-shocked and vulnerable from the earlier junk engineering claims, the pedal placement lawyers moved in.
9. Trial Judges In New Jersey and New York Have Overturned Bad Pedal Design Verdicts Against Audi. Last July a federal court in Pennsylvania issued a summary judgment for Audi. And that should have been the end of Audi’s legal troubles. Except that it wasn’t. An appellate court reinstated the original New Jersey verdict: an appeal is pending. The New York case was settled before retrial. A California jury returned a $3.5 million verdict against Audi on a pedal placement theory, after the plaintiff’s lawyers abandoned a sudden acceleration claim. Another appeal is pending. Today, Audi is reportedly defending itself in more than 140 different suits, and damage claims are in excess of $5 billion. Not that the aggregate claims have the slightest connection with reality, of course. At one point, a single plaintiff in New York filed identical $5 billion claims in both federal and state courts; both have since been thrown out.
10. How About the US Government Safety Report? In July, 1989, shortly after the report was released, Audi ran a hopeful advertisement titled “Case Closed.” “The case is not closed,” responded Robert Lisco, a Chicago plaintiffs’ attorney. “Those guys must be smoking something.” 60 Minutes never even acknowledged the final US findings, although it did grudgingly note identical conclusions of an earlier, blue-ribbon study, and then proceeded to rebroadcast inflammatory videos from the earlier segment. CAS denounced the government study, and cheerfully cranked up yet another sudden acceleration smear, this one against Cadillacs. Lawyers for the “Audi Victims Network” brazenly declared that the report strengthened their clients’ cases. They may be right. The largest suit now pending against Audi is an Illinois class action, ostensibly representing 300,000 or so Audi 5000 owners. The charge? That because of the sudden acceleration controversy, Audis have lost resale value.
11. Yes, sudden acceleration is real. A powerful engine kicks into gear without warning or reason, it crashes through a respected business, ruins the livelihood of hundreds of innocent dealers, and devalues the property of hundreds of thousands of bewildered car owners. The windfall goes to those who destroy, and then successfully blame others for the wreckage. For heaven’s sake, where are the brakes?
12. As A Consequence Of the 60 Minutes Story… Sales of Audis in the United States collapsed. According to one account: The show had an enormous impact in the marketplace. Sales of all Audi models in the US, which had peaked at 74,061 in 1985, plunged sharply after the 60 Minutes broadcasts. “It was a nightmare for the company,” says Thomas McDonald, former head of public relations at Audi’s parent, Volkswagen of America, Inc. “We lost billions of dollars in sales and revenues. Audi’s average annual sales of 14,000 cars from 1991 to 1995 were just 19 percent of its pre 60 Minutes peak.”
13. No One Was Ever Able To Duplicate the Alleged Occurrence Of Unintended Acceleration With the Car. Not a single person who filed a case against Audi ever won. Nevertheless, even to this day a perception still seems to linger in the marketplace that Audis are somehow dangerous and unsafe. What the Audi example teaches and has always taught me is that perceptions are one of the most important things to take note of. 60 Minutes , with all of its marketing might, was able to shape perceptions and the way people viewed Audi cars. Despite the fact that nothing was wrong with the car, 60 Minutes was able to change the way an entire generation of people perceived the automobiles manufactured by a particular company, and this almost destroyed the company in the process. One of the most powerful and important aspects of our careers and our lives is how we are perceived by others, and how we control our own perceptions of those around us.
14. People Can Use Perceptions To Their Advantage Or To Their Disadvantage. The most successful people are able to use perceptions to their advantage. After all, everything we may surmise about a person, a job, or any situation is based upon our perceptions. Often how something is perceived matters more than the facts surrounding it. For years I have opened the paper each week and seen various advertisements by American car companies, wherein they try and compare their cars with German or Japanese rivals. For example, the company may have a chart that shows that the American car stops in a five foot shorter distance, that the car accelerates a little faster that its Japanese counterpart and that its JD Power Initial Quality Survey score is higher.
15. I Have Seen These Advertisements And Their Corresponding Charts For 25+ Years… And every single year American manufacturers have sold fewer and fewer cars in the United States. At the same time, the Japanese have continued to sell more cars each year. I think that what is going on here is that people simply have different perceptions. The Japanese cars are perceived as better. The advertisers can throw around all of the facts and figures they want. People simply tend to have a better perception of Japanese cars. Perceptions matter more than facts.
16. A Couple Of Years Ago My Assistant Was Out Purchasing Me A Little Television For My Bedroom. She called me from the store and gave me two options. One was a brand of television I had never heard of, LG, and the other was a Sony. She told me the LG one was bigger, had a nicer picture, and was a lot cheaper. I did not care. I told her to buy the Sony television. This was all because of my perception of the Sony brand. I had a much better perception of Sony than I had of LG, and consequently there were no facts that could change my mind–not even the fact that the LG model may have indeed had a bigger and better picture; and it definitely did cost less than the Sony model.
17. Many People Feel That Their Job Search And The Quality Of the Job They Get… Is a battle of their résumé, and that their entire future depends on what is visible on their résumé. For example, people who go to the best colleges often assume they will get a much better job than those who go to lesser colleges. People who have the best work experience believe they will generally get the best job. There is a tremendous amount of truth to this reasoning; however, more important than any of this is how we are perceived . Perceptions matter far more than facts.
18. When I Was Recruiting Full Time I Remember That I Did Not Care As Much About… what was on someone’s résumé as who they were, and how they were perceived. My greatest love in recruiting was managing how an employer perceived someone. Managing a perception, instead of just the black and white characteristics surrounding a person, was probably the most important thing I could do. I remember I met a girl once who was losing her job at a highly prestigious law firm in Los Angeles. I sat down with her and learned that she had grown up on a hippie colony with her parents, and that her father had some extreme beliefs about growing his own food and so forth.
19. She Had Been Rebelling Against This Lifestyle Over the Course Of Her Entire Life… And consequently she had become incredibly disciplined and motivated to succeed as a lawyer. This material made for incredibly interesting reading for the law firms that interviewed her, and I remember that her being perceived as someone who was “rebelling against the antiestablishment” went over very well. I remember writing a 15-page letter to the law firms about this aspect of this woman’s personality.
20. What Most Recruiters Would Have Done With This Girl Is… Send her around to law firms and so forth without managing her presentation–and therefore the perceptions of those that might hire her. She would have simply been presented as someone seeking a position at a new firm, a girl who had had a job at a good law firm and who had attended a decent law school. This would not have done her too much good, however. What the best recruiters do, and what really changes everything around for the job seeker, is conscientiously and properly shape the perceptions of the employers about the prospective employee.
21. There Is A Very Good Documentary On HBO About the Disgraced Evangelical Minister Ted Haggard. Haggard was a well known Evangelical leader who was the former president of the National Evangelical Association, representing 30 million Christians. He was also the Founder of the 14,000-member New Life Church. In 2006, Haggard resigned after a male prostitute claimed that Haggard had hired him numerous times for gay sex and used crystal meth with him. The fascinating documentary follows Haggard after being expelled from the Church as he moves from town to town looking for work. Unable to get a job, Haggard eventually gets a job as a traveling insurance salesman. Seeing Haggard go from a powerful man who is on top of the world and lecturing tens of thousands of people, meeting with American presidents, and being interviewed on major news programs–to someone whose entire range of possessions now fits in the back of a U-Haul truck was incredible.
22. What Makes the Haggard Story So Interesting Is That It Shows, Like the Audi Example… That everything is about perceptions. The public perception of Haggard was changed overnight when it came out that he did not represent what he stood for, having engaged in behavior that was considered immoral. The public perception of Audi was changed overnight when people started to believe the car was incredibly dangerous, because of a news program. Ultimately, the truth was that the Audi 5000 was among the top cars in terms of safety on the road. You need to realize the power of perceptions in your life, and to use them to your advantage. Aim to control, shape and influence the perceptions that others have about you. Consciously work to create the image you will project to those around you.
23. One Of the Most Fascinating Things To Me About Recruiting Has Always Been… What happens when a given law firm gets a bad reputation. The law firm may have earned a bad reputation due to a partner going to prison, or due to consistent layoffs, or something else along these lines. In most cases, the reputation is confined to only one aspect of the law firm. For example, out of 10 practice groups in the law firm there may be a problem with only one practice group–not every practice group. What ends up happening, however, is that people often do not go beneath this skin to recognize that the true problems within the law firm are really confined to only 10% of the entire organization. What this means is that there are less applicants and therefore more opportunities available for people to get jobs at this firm, who might not otherwise get jobs there. This is all due to a poor perception about the firm that is not well founded.
24. Perceptions are often far more important than facts. You will get a better job due to how you are perceived over and above how good your résumé is. You manage how you are perceived by the people you know, how you present yourself to the world and how your reputation will grow. The most important thing you can do in your life and career is make perceptions work for you.