Insights Into Cultural Understanding

Considered by many to be the first father and leading prophet of the electronic age, Marshall McLuhan, a Canadian born in 1911 (Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, 1964.) The subject that would occupy most of McLuhan’s career was the task of understanding the effects of technology as it related to popular culture, and how this in turn affected human beings and their relations with one another in communities. McLuhan said many things that are still pertinent today. He has gained the status of a cult hero and “high priest of pop-culture”.

You can read about Mr. Muluhan, his work, and contributions on his website (though he died in 1980, his estate speaks on for him) and on a thousand places online. Click here for a substantive article I found by Todd A. Kappelman. Consider these prophetic sound bites and terms attributed to Mr. McLuhan, all of this done in the early 1960s at a time when television was still in its infancy, and the personal computer was almost twenty years into the future. The man was a “seer.”

• “The medium is the message”
• “Global villiage”
• “We become what we behold”

Viral marketing, a term coined by Harvard Business School professor, Jeffrey F. Rayport, is based on the premise that a “satisfied customer tells an average of three people about a product or service he/she likes, and eleven people about a product or service which he/she did not like.” Viral marketing is based on this natural human behaviour.

We see it in action with YouTube, political campaigns, marketing to specific audiences, the power of the blog….and yes, right here.

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This man is fashion! The Fall fashion books are out, fatter than ever. There’s a new silhouette, smaller and tighter on top, fem skirts or flared pants at the bottom, wide belts for a tiny look at the waist, sexy and glamorous, fine detailing even in ready to wear, black is the new black. (Not navy, not brown - professionals did you know that wearing a brown suit is supposed to decrease your sales?) The look is great for women who speak, train, communicate for a living like my colleagues and I. Plenty of room to work the stage, wear fabulous jewelry while we make our difference.

Back to Mr. Talley, I’ve read his articles since forever and will always read what he writes until he gets tired of writing. Witty, knowledgeable, and warm. One day, let’s do lunch Mr. Talley. Folks, check out his interview on The Charlie Rose Show 5/22/2003 or goggle him. Enjoy one of the great fashion influencers of our time.

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I just came back from one our of military bases teaching interpersonal skills critical to managers dealing with change. These men and women are managers of civilian employees. One of the participants has been in the service since she was 17 and is about to leave to join the civilian workforce. What a talented and smart person she is. It occurred to me that given the large numbers of Baby Boomers who will be leaving the workforce from among the the demographic behemoth total boomer population of 82,826,479, the men and women who will be “retiring” from our services make for a ready pool of skilled, dedicated and young employees. Do you agree?

From another training assignment, this one not on a military base but in a public training room where participants are expressive and open with their feelings, soldiers in attendance let loose and gave me a sense of the chaos and feelings that they had swirling inside. Not to divulge any confidentiality but suffice it to say that we must create safe havens and supportive workplaces for them when they return to us. Regardless of ones belief about where they are and why there are there, they are our sons and daughters. To do otherwise is to do a dis-service..

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I spotted the “Potty Parity” term researching the disparity between women’s salaries and that of men. Chart: 2005 Census Statistics show great income inequity between the sexes among all races. White males for example made 48% more than white females. 

This info doesn’t compare earnings of all women and all men. What’s included are full-time, year-round workers; not include are part-time workers, workers who work only part of the year, or the value of perquisites and benefits; only the money part of wages is included. If the calculations included part-time workers and perquisites, the gender gap in favor of men would be significantly increased.

It’s welcome news that women-owned businesess - Triad West among them - are growing at a fast rate. “Companies owned by women are growing at double the rate of all small businesses in the nation, spending $550 billion a year on payroll and benefits, according to figures released Tuesday by a research group….This year, women own a 50 percent or larger stake in 10.6 million privately held companies” the Center for Women’s Business Research said. This is almost 48 percent of the country’s privately held businesses. Companies owned by women have $2.46 trillion in sales and employ just over 19 million people nationwide, according to the latest data from the center.

Now about Potty Parity: “With technology and social change, more and more is feasible these days, according to the man who might claim ‘the father of potty parity’ as one of his many titles. Professor John Banzhaf III, of the George Washington University Law School, was a major force behind legislation around the country that increased the ratio of women’s toilets to men’s in public restrooms–to shorten the lines for women. On similar fronts, Banzhaf has pushed litigation to get equal pricing for men and women for haircuts and dry cleaning,”

Okay great, I’d give this up in a New York minute for income parity between women and men.

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