Today is the 50th anniversary of the death of President John F. Kennedy.
You will see lots of coverage today and the near future about the assassination, and people talking about where they were and what they remember.
Well, I wasn’t alive during the JFK admin, as I was born over a decade later.
But I am a presidential historian (amateur!) and especially enjoyed learning over the years about JFK.
I don’t dwell on the death too much (although I have my doubts about the goals and intellectual rigor of the Warren Commission), as I like to draw lessons from the lives of JFK, RFK, and their father Joe Sr.
Here are 3 key lessons JFK taught me that I’ll share with you today.
1. Carefully doubt the experts
Right after he took the reins as President in 1961, JFK was told that a mission in Cuba to start a revolution against Castro was bound to succeed, and military and CIA leaders just wanted him to sign off on it.
JFK pulled the trigger without doing a lot of “what if” analysis on it.
The resulting catastrophe was the Bay of Pigs, where the operation was put down quickly by Castro’s men. US military leaders were clamoring for his authorization for US personnel to get involved, but JFK told them no.
JFK’s lesson going forward (which helped him greatly during the Cuban Missile Crisis) was to listen to the experts, value their experience and advice, but always do an independent “what if” analysis.
I use this lesson in my business by always doing some independent checks of what I’m told, and always looking for better ways to do business, even though they may be different than frac sand testing “dogma.”
On to the next lesson…
2. Stop whining so much
JFK spent half of his childhood in a hospital bed, sick.
His brother RFK often joked that any mosquito taking Jack’s blood was bound to die.
JFK lost two siblings, and he was especially close to the sister he lost in a plane wreck.
He had excruciating back pain, and was nearly killed by a surgery to fix it.
He had a bunch of other health issues, including Addison’s disease, a problem with the endocrine system.
However, JFK didn’t let any of this affect his attitude and energy. He met the extreme demands of campaigns, including a presidential campaign, and led his teams in a flurry of activity.
I take this to heart when business is slow, or I’m having issues solving a problem for a client in the lab. Channeling JFK, I become more active with marketing, or contact the client, let them know the problem and what I’m doing to fix it.
Final lesson for the day…
3. Become a faster reader
JFK devoured a great deal of information each day, including several newspapers. He read classic books, history book, and bios. He would send books with powerful lessons to members of his team, and even once to officers on the front line of the Cold War in Germany.
I have discovered several speed reading techniques, which I try to use to get through reading faster. By reading faster, you can read more. Which is the point, right? To read more.
The first technique for speed reading I sometimes use is the “snake method.” With the snake, you read one line left to right, then scan the line below by moving your eyes right to left. You are able to understand what is written on that second line, even though you are moving right to left. Then, read the third line left to right, and continue the pattern.
An even better speed reading technique is “grouping.” You can group sets of words while reading, instead of reading each letter or word by itself. The eye can capture 3-4 words at one time, and then move your eye to the center of the next grouping.
The key behind all these speed reading techniques is to become more efficient with your eyes, to the point where you are reading fast, but still absorbing most of the content.
Try these methods out – let me know what you think!
I don’t claim to know everything about frac sand testing, but I am always learning. And I treat clients like team members (and leaders) as I work with them.
If you want to work with the laboratory with JFK style “vigah,” give us a shot at testing your sand or barite.
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