Happy Huntinig

Hello all,

The annual whitetail deer hunt kicks off this Saturday. Good luck to all who will be in the woods, and stay safe.

As for school, I dropped Race, Ethnic, and Diversity Studies. I'm nearing completion of Managing for Quality and then there will be a few weeks off before the Spring Semester begins.

One piece of info I'd like to share from my Quality and Performance Excellence book. It was a statement made by Takeo Miura of Hitachi Corportation to a group of senior U.S. business executives.

"We are going to win and the industrial West is going to lose out; there's nothing much you can do about it, because the reasons for your failure are within yourselves...With your bosses doing the thinking while the workers wield the screwdrivers, you're convinced deep down that this is the right way to run a business. For you, the essence of management is getting the ideas our of the heads of the bosses and into the hands of labor. We are beyond the Taylor model: business, we know, is so complex and difficult that survival for firms...depends on the day-to-day mobilization of every ounce of intelligence."

I think I'd like to meet Mr. Miura. I desperately want to work for a company that employs strategies where a positive environment exists. Someday...................

Hello Again

Hi everyone,

Been awhile since my last post so there's a couple of updates to cover.

I did end up getting an A in Accouting for Professionals. I won't miss that one. I also got invited to join the honors society, Phi Theta Kappa. Pretty cool, I get inducted next Tuesday.

I am also currently in two new classes: Race, Ethnic, and Diversity Studies on Mondays, and Managin for Quality on Tuesdays. They're both interesting and fun, although the workload seems to be increasing with every new class. To be expected, I guess.

I anxiously await the post when I can say that I'm in my last class before graduation, but I guess that's what makes this a journey.

See you all later, and God's speed to all.

Masters Anyone?

So, I've been trying to decide what to do with my $250 paperweight that is my Accounting for Professionals textbook. While doing some research on e-bay, I found one for sale that had been used by the seller for his MBA studies. MBA!!!!! So, when I'm done with this class, I'll be well on my way to my master's, right? Wishful thinking, I know.

Anyway, still awaiting my final test grade to see if the A-train rolls on. I then have a presentation to do on the financial reporting of the Nestle corporation this Tuesday. That will wrap up my Accounting for Professionals class. Oh, how I will miss it.

On a couple other notes, my dad and my brother are somewhere in the Carolina's doing a bike ride to benefit the cancer that my neice is currently battling. Way to go guys, and win Anna!

Also, this post comes to you from the wonderful Wilderness resort in Wisconsin Dells. Wifey had a conference and her boss was nice enough to send us with her. Thanks Dr. Joe!

Finally, this Monday the chosen one will run onto the field to take on the Packers. I would recommend to all (yes, even you traildog) to get your popcorn ready, cuz I'm sure it's going to be a show.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Jonny K.

I hate accounting

Hello all,

I'm really struggling to keep my interest in this accounting course. For as much as I enjoy strict math and numbers, you wouldn't think it would be that different, but man it is.

I am managing an A so far, so that's good. We have one more test, a paper, and a presentation left, so I hope I can finish strong.

There was a really good quote in our $250.00 book that I would like to share. It comes from Brad Anderson, CEO and vice chairman of Best Buy.

Being a leader is not so much what you do, but what you facilitate from others...[Best Buy is committed to]...show respect, humility and integrity; learn from challenge and change; have funwhile being best and unleash the power of our people.

I especially like the part about unleashing the power of people. I believe that too often businesses and bosses do a much better job stifling their people instead of encouraging them to fulfill their potential.

Maybe I should work for Best Buy......................

Till next time.

The journey picks back up.......

Hello all, and welcome to the 2009-2010 school year. I can't tell you how hard it was to get the motivation to go back. Oh well, spring of 2011 is just around the corner.

My first class this fall is Accounting for Professionals. It took me 5 minutes to realize why I'm not going to be an accountant. Oh well.

I've actually completed week 2 of this 8 week course so for you math wizards out there, I'm 25% done. Maybe I'll be able to write a budget program for myself at the end of this class.

Anywho, have a good one.

See ya next week.

Jonny K.

The journey takes a break

Hello all,

I'm sitting in the final class of Career Assessment. (It's break time) Tonight we did a mock interview with a partner as the final assignment for this course. My partner, Ryan, and I got good reviews so hopefully we'll end the year with another "A."

I have decided not to take any classes this summer, so I'm done until late August. It will be nice not to have to think about homework for awhile.

I'll post again when I get my grade, and periodically throughout the summer, so feel free to check back.

See you when I see you.

Baby, it's cold outside

Hello again all,

June 2 here in the 920. And it was 45 degrees last night on my way to work. What is going on?

By the by, I started on third shift last night. The third shift supervisor wanted to switch, so I get my weekends back. Third shift isn't the best, but I'm excited to plan things on Saturday's and Sunday's.

School is going well. I find it harder to focus now that summer is approaching (hopefully). I have two more weeks to go in Career Assessment. I am enjoying this class as the material is helpful in job searches.

I'm supposed to start Math with Business Applications next Monday, but I'm not sure if I'll take it or not with the shift change. I'll keep you updated.

Hope all is well.

Grades!

Well, the grades have been posted for my last two classes. Still on the A track.

I'm really enjoying my current class, Career Assessment. It interests me how different resumes and cover letters can be used to fit the job you're applying for. I just always used a template off of Word. What a fool I was!

On the last night of class, we pair up and do a mock interview. Proper attire for the "job" is required. I'm looking forward to doing that. Should be fun.

Also, Anna is responding well to the chemo so far. Praise God!

She is in the hospital again this week for another round. They're hoping to be home on Thursday. Thank you for all the prayers that have been sent skyward on her behalf.

Till next time.

Back to once a week!

Well, Monday night was my last class for Written Communications. With one paper and two business letters left to grade, I'm somewhere north of 100% so it looks like an "A" should be the order of the day.

I'm glad that I didn't drop the class, and that I have three more credits behind me.

Last night was my first class of "Career Assessment." I'm really looking forward to this class, as it revolves around putting yourself in the best position when applying for jobs--one of my favorite pastimes!

Good day to you all!

Home stretch

Hi again,

Just completed week 5 of Written Comm and week 6 of teambuilding and problemsolving.

Written Comm is moving very quickly, and there is a lot of work to do each week. I am still above the 93% (A) mark, so hopefully I can hang on for 3 more weeks.

We finished the text for team building and problem solving last night. We now move on to the power points that we as groups put on about a movie we watched. As you'll recall, ours was Lord of the Flies.

We also played a came called Cat-a-pault last night in class to demonstrate team building. For those of you with kids, I recommend buying it, it was fun.

On another note, we, as a family, also had the opportunity to go to Minneapolis to visit Anna this past weekend.
When we got there, she was in the ICU. She fought hard though, and by the time we left, she was smiling and laughing, and out of the ICU. It was really great to see. Easy to forget though, is that the cancer is still inside of her.

Keep those prayers going!

He will answer.

Jon

What would an A mean?

Hello again,

I got my first paper back last night in my Written Communications class. This is the class that everyone I talk to dreads. The one elective that everyone leaves until the last possible moment. The one that this very author was complaining about last post. Anyway.

Some of my fellow classmates were noticeably bothered with the results on their paper, which only made me more nervous. However, when my name was called, I noticed little corrections on my paper, and I am happy to report that I received a 99. It makes me very proud to see a 99 and positive comments from a college level instructor, who admittedly is a stickler for all things English. I enjoy the classes, and I enjoy being challenged and learning new things.

However, my kids have become increasingly annoyed with my leaving twice a week along with the hours of homework while I am home. I am struggling to focus on the positives of my schooling and I worry about not being home enough. I am trying to better the life and opportunities of my family, but at what cost? I hope I'm doing the right thing. In light of what my niece is going through, A's, better jobs, and better pay don't seem to mean nearly as much as I used to think they did. Maybe I should be happy with the family and job that God has blessed me with and not keep looking for more.

I don't know.

Till next time.

Please remember to say a prayer or a hundred for Anna.

Jon

We continue.

Well, things have been pretty busy lately.

A few udates on school, my Teambuilding class is going well. I do enjoy our class discussions and seeing other perspectives on things.

We also have a group report on an assigned movie. Ours was "Lord of the Flies." Man, that movie was terrible. Just plain weird and terrible. Oh well.

My Written Communication class has reminded me how much I hate English. Dangling participles, subject-verb agreement, tense agreement, etc., they can all kiss my #%$.

And why, just because some guy made these rules, do we follow them? We're just a bunch conformists.

Whatever.

Also, I got an A on my Powerpoint class and Leadership Development. The "A" steak continues. That might come to an end after Written Comm.

We shall see.

Also, Anna is still in the hopstial going through tests. I urge you all to continue to keep her in your prayers. I know God has a plan for her, and He is doing this for the good of all. Keep fighting, little Anna. We love you.

For those of you who'd like to keep up with updates, my sister (Becky) has set up a caring bridge site at www.caringbridge.org/visit/annarogotzke

Thanks for your contined prayers.

See you when I see you all.

Jon

Scared

Hello,

This isn't one of my usual posting days. This isn't one of my usual subjects.

My 2 year old niece was flown to Children's Hospital in Minneapolis this past Saturday. After having stomach pains for awhile, they found what they suspect to be cancerous tumors in her belly. I can't even begin to describe how helpless and desperate I feel to want to help her. I can't imagine what her parents are going through.

I take comfort in the fact the I know everything that happens here on earth is under the watchful eye of God. I know she is in His hands, as we all are. And I know that Romans 8:28 says all things work for the good of those who love Him.

But man, this is hard.

I ask those of you who read this to keep Anna and her family in your prayers during this most difficult time.

Thanks.

Things are getting busy

Hello all,

Sorry for the extended layoff, but we had spring break last week.

But we'll make up for that as I now have two classes per week. I started Written Communications this past Monday. It was weird having an Andy-less class. New teachers name is Gary Heeler. He seems like a nice guy, and he made the class interesting. Let me know if any of you out there are English majors and are interested in proofreading my papers.

We also had week 2 of Teambuilding and problemsolving. We went through the inputs, throughputs, and outputs of teams. We also teamed up to review a movie and talk about the teams and leaders that develop in the movie. Our movie: Lord of the Flies. I haven't seen it yet so it should be interesting.

Till next time.

Jon

Leadership Development in the books

Hello again,

Last week we put the finishing touches on Leadership Development.

Everyone did their presentations on their leaders (ours was General Patton), and we had the traditional last class eat day.

We then watched a video from a series of videos put on by Stanford. Keynote speakers discussing leadership. The speaker talked about how we do not retain information given to us in numbers and bits and pieces, but how well we remember things when they are told to us in story form. Very true when you think about it.

It looks like I'll get an A for this class, and I start the next one tomorrow.

I'd also like to leave you with another poem called "Retirement" that our text ended with, written by James Autry.

It is early-6:30. The building is quiet.
Soon the place will come to life as it always
does with the rush of people working.
These days, though, it's the smaller, slower things I notice;
the droning of fans and compressors keeping us warm or cool,
the buzz of flourescent lights, the burble of the big percolator and
the smell of coffee.
As the time here grows shorter, I find myself thinking of other
times when I could not wait for the day or the week to be over-
The times I strained for Christmas or vacation; I think of
meetings that would never end, of hours stuck on a taxi-way,
airliners lined up as far as I could see;
of those eternal minutes right before someone was to come into my
office to be fired.
I understand now why every writer who ever lived wrote about time
and its paradoxes, and everything they ever said about
how fast time passes is true.
But, they never told us how many slow days we would have
to endure before we realized
how fast they had gone.

See ya next week.

Almost there........

Hello all,

We've finished up the final 6 chapters in the current book. Our final paperwork is all due next Tuesday. Our group presentation is the next week and that will close the book on Leadership Development.

I then start 2 classes so I'll be going to LTC twice a week. Should keep me busy.

I also finished up my Powerpoint class this past week. All I have to do is take the final test in the computer lab at school.

I'll let you know how it all goes.

Till then...

2 weeks rolled into one

It just occured to me that I never posted last week so we'll have to cover the last two weeks.

Two weeks ago our assignments and conversations centered around communication and top down companies versus bottom up companies.

Did you all know that some of the most successful companies are the ones that listen to the "people"? This did not come to me as a surprise at all. Unfortunately, not enough CEO's and presidents subscribe to this belief.

Then last night, the topic centered around types of leaders, and what can be done to motivate others.

Andy asked what we do on a daily basis to motivate others in our family and in the workplace. It really hit home with me, because I don't feel I do enough of that. It is one of my immediate goals (along with getting out of the cellar in Biggest Loser, Kallies edition) to improve on that.

Here's to hopin'

Also, I am now a class rep. for our "cycle". What does this mean? It means I get to meet with people from the school and people from local businesses to discuss the program. I am very excited about this, as I think it's a great networking opportunity to meet all these different people. You never know what tomorrow will bring. I sure am thankful to God that he has blessed me with these opportunities.

One more thing, I'd like to post a poem that was in our textbook that I thought was really cool. It's called "The Cold Within" by Alexander Pope. It was on the chapter about working with a diverse workforce. Here it goes:

Six human beings were trapped one day
In black and bitter cold.
Each one possessed a stick of wood
Or so the story's told.

With dying fire in need of logs,
The first one held hers back;
For of the faces around the fire,
She noticed one was black.

The next one looking across the way
Saw one not of his church,
And couldn't bring himself to give
The fire his stick of birch.

The third one sat in tattered clothes;
He gave his coat a hitch.
Why should he give wood to use
To warm the idle rich?

The richest man sat back and thought
Of the gold he had in store,
And how to keep what he had earned
From the lazy, shiftless poor.

The black man's face bespoke revenge
As the fire passed from his sight;
For all he saw in his stick of wood
Was a chance to spite the white.

And the last man of the forlorn group
Did naught except for gain.
Giving only to those who gave
Was how he played the game.

The logs held tight in death's still hands
Was proof of human sin.
They didn't die from the cold without;
They died from the cold within.

As Andy would say, "Scary, isn't it?"

Rate your employer

Last night we covered chapters 6-11. Let me start off by saying I've now read 3 1/2 textbooks cover to cover. Pretty impressive for someone who generally despises reading if it doesn't involve sports. Or dogs. Anyhow.

We had to do some exercises on rating our employer. Since I am rather new at my current job, I try to rate them and my previous. It's interesting to see what I think are the differences between the two.

We also covered what it means to be a good leader and the different styles of leadership. Using some more exercises, I fall into a more people-oriented than task-oriented leader. Hopefully, my direct reports will feel the same way about me.

Chapters 12-17 for next week.

Till then!

Week #2

Hello all,

I know, you're impressed that I'm posting only one day after class, what can I say?

We had 2 people in class last night that weren't there in week 1. So we began class by reviewing last week for those two.

We then covered Chapters 2-5, discussing different leadership qualities, styles, and situations. I find we're getting a bit more in depth with discussions as we move along in the program. Andy always does a good job of keeping the mood light though, which I appreciate.

We have some more papers for this class and also a group power point on a leader of our choice covering the qualities of said leader, characteristics of the followers, and an overview of the situation. There is 5 people in my group, and we're doing Martin Luther King, Jr. Should be fun.

I also talked to Andy last night about moving on for my bachelor's after LTC, and he really suggests Silver Lake in Mantiowoc. They run their classes pretty similar to Andy from what he tells me, so I'll have to start looking in to it.

Anywho, hope this finds you all well.

Jon

Back to work!

Well, I'm still not totally back in the swing of things as evidenced by the fact it's taken me a week to post about our first class back.

The two weeks off went by way too fast.

Anyway, my new class is Leadership Developement. Andy is once again teaching this class. Last week, we went over the class, what we'll cover, and what to expect. Chapters 1-5 were assigned for tonight, and I finished them this morning.

We also got our grades from the previous course. Out of 1,000 points, I got 977. For those of you who lack in the math arena, thats 97.7%. That's right, an A. Hopefully more of those to come in semester #2.

On a side note, my family has started a biggest loser competition which I entered. I figure I could stand to lose 30-40 pounds which would put me in the 16% range for total percentage lost.

Since my brothers tip the scales just south of 3 bills, I'll need some help to win this thing. But seriously, good luck to all of you who entered, and let's get healthy!

Till next time.

Jon