Sharpening the Saw

From Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People:

Suppose you were to come upon someone in the woods working feverishly to saw down a tree.

“What are you doing?” you ask.

“Can’t you see?” comes the impatient reply. “I’m sawing down this tree.”

“You look exhausted!” you exclaim. “How long have you been at it?”

“Over five hours,” he returns, “and I’m beat! This is hard work.”

“Well, why don’t you take a break for a few minutes and sharpen that saw?” you inquire. “I’m sure it would go a lot faster.”

To my friends who have moved to eastern North Carolina in the past few years and may not have experienced a major hurricane:  do not take the approach of Hurricane Earl lightly.  That doesn’t mean you should panic — but don’t tune the news of the storm out if you live in coastal North Carolina.

As of 5 p.m. today, Earl’s sustained winds were 135 mph.  The storm’s minimum central barometric pressure, which is another measure of a hurricane’s intensity, is 940 MB, or 27.76 inches.

Pioneer Strategies, the public relations firm I founded in 2001, celebrates nine years in business this month.  The firm was founded in August 2001 and officially incorporated in September 2001.

Pioneer Strategies has continued to persevere and grow through several periods of economic uncertainty.  We look forward to continuing to provide businesses and other organizations with strategic communication counsel and services to help them achieve their goals in the years ahead.

If your organization is looking for a long-term strategic public relations partner, we would love to hear from you.

Unlike most of my posts, this one is not about politics.

James 4:14 (NASB) says, “Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.”

Sometimes, events happen which remind us of just how precious — and fleeting — life is.

Less than two weeks ago, a young woman whom I had known since I was a senior in high school was involved in a terrible car accident that ultimately claimed her life.

According to a poll published yesterday by Rasmussen Reports, only 27% of likely voters say the United States is heading in the right direction, while 67% say the country is headed in the wrong direction.  Rasmussen’s polls have shown that a consistently low percentage of voters feel the country is headed in the right direction — the figure was below 20% prior to President Obama’s inauguration.

The poll also reveals an ongoing disconnect between what Rasmussen calls the “political class” and the rest of us:  65% of the political class say the country is heading in the right direction, while 82% of mainstream voters say it’s going in the wrong direction.

RALEIGH, N.C. – Two recent reports by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which is the investigative arm of Congress, exposed several misuses of federal stimulus money in North Carolina.

According to the reports:

• The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools system spent $38,400 of ESEA Title I funds on a program that included some expenses that appeared to constitute entertainment (movie tickets, fast food and a water park trip); the report called these expenditures “a potentially unallowable use of these funds”.
• Two North Carolina school districts failed to obtain the required multiple bids or price quotes for stimulus procurements exceeding $5,000.

Yesterday I had the chance to facilitate a workshop at the N.C. Alliance for Public Charter Schools‘ inaugural conference in Raleigh.  The topic was public relations strategies and tools, so I was wearing my Pioneer Strategies hat.  I’ve posted a few pictures from the event on Facebook.

During the conference I had the chance to talk with people involved with charter schools throughout the state.  It was interesting to hear the perspectives of people from a variety of political persuasions and backgrounds who, in spite of their other differences, all support and believe in public charter schools.   I was glad to be able to support their cause by participating in the conference.