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Young Stalin (2007)
by Simon Sebag Montefiore
No current Talk conversations about this book.
This is not the kind of book I normally read but it did give good insight into how Stalin went from a poor Georgian to a paranoid dictator.
One day, when I was outside eating lunch and reading this book, someone asked me who "Stay-lin" (rhymes with Palin) is, and told me that he looks like Johnny Depp. What else can I say?
The most remarkable thing about this fascinating biography, which essentially shows how "Soso" Djugashvili became Stalin, is the amazing use Montefiore makes of the incredibly rich resources of recently opened Soviet and especially Georgian and other Caucasian archives. From memoirs recorded(?) by Stalin's mother, to those of the friends of his childhood and his colleagues in his early days as a thug for Bolshevism, these documents reveal much about the young Stalin and his environment, and Montefiore weaves them into a history that reads almost like a novel.
From his earliest years, Stalin exhibited the kind of drive, cunning, contempt for others, sense of his own superiority, and willingness to commit violence, albeit on a smaller stage, that stood him is such bad stead when he came to power. He prided himself on his ability to sniff out spies (although, it turns out, he was often woefully wrong) and he was a master of saving his own skin and escaping from dangerous situations. The story of his childhood, with an ambitious (for him) mother abandoned by an alcoholic husband, and his "adoption" by other families who his mother felt could help him get ahead (specifically by going to a seminary for his education) is fascinating, as is his interest in revolutionary ideas and his affinity for thugs and crime. (While he was studying in the seminary, he read a lot and it was a little disconcerting to learn of his enthusiasm for books I also like, including Germinal and Toilers of the Sea.) For a while he helped finance Lenin's work through bank and other robberies in the Georgian region; he and members of other pre-revolutionary groups also basically extorted money from oil barons in the Caucasus to support their activities.
Another interesting aspect of this book was the insight into the effectiveness of the Okhrana, the Tsar's secret police. According to Montefiore, they were one of the best spy services of the era and had double agents very close to the top in the Bolshevik and other parties. Certainly, Stalin was arrested several times and sent into exile, from which he escaped every time except the last time, when he was sent to an extremely remote (and cold) area of Siberia. His experiences there, where he became friendly with some of the local tribespeople, are fascinating. It was at a dinner with fellow Bolshevik exiles in Siberia that Stalin, in a discussion of the greatest pleasures in life, said "My greatest pleasure is to choose one's victim, prepare one's plans minutely, slake an implacable vengeance, and then go to bed. There's nothing sweeter in the world." (p. 295) And Molotov said, "A little piece of Siberia remained lodged in Stalin for the rest of his life." (p. 301)
Stalin was quite the ladies man. While in Siberia, he impregnated (twice) a girl who was initially 13 years old, and he was involved with dozens of women and girls over the years and abandoned them all. Early on, he married, but his wife died soon thereafter, and he ignored their son who remained in Georgia. By the end of this volume, in 1917, he had gotten involved with Nadya Alleiluva, who would become his second wife.
Stalin recognized that Lenin was the key to the revolution and to power, and increasingly sought to stay close to him and help him. Lenin, Stalin's opposite in background, recognized in him a kindred hard-liner and somebody who, with his coterie of thugs, could make certain things happen that his more intellectual hangers-on could not. After the Bolsheviks took over the Winter Palace in October 1917, Stalin and Trotsky were the only people allowed to enter Lenin's office whenever they wanted. The book presents a strong picture of Lenin as well, and makes the case that Leninism and Stalinism were aligned, not that Stalinism was a perversion of Leninism. Lenin is quoted as responding to a proposal by Kamenev and Trotsky that capital punishment in the army be abolished by saying, "What nonsense! How can you have a revolution without shooting people?" (p. 350)
Montefiore also argues that Stalin
"could not have risen to power at any other time in history; it required the synchronicity of man and moment. His unlikely rise as a Georgian who could rule Russia was only made possible by the internationalist character of Marxism. His tyranny was made possible by the beleaguered circumstances of Soviet Russia, the utopian fanaticism of its quasi-religious ideology, the merciless Bolshevik machismo, the slaughterous spirit of the Great War, and Lenin's homicidal vision of a "dictatorship of the proletariat." Stalin would not have been possible if Lenin had not, in the first days of the regime, defeated Kamenev's milder way to create the machinery for so boundless and absolute a power. That was the forum for which Stalin was superbly equipped. Now Stalin could become Stalin." (p. 353)
Finally, a word from Montefiore about his sources.
I have been hugely fortunate in finding new sources, often unpublished or partly unpublished, and barely previously used by historians. Archival sources are more reliable than oral histories, but of course they too have their dangers and must be analysed carefully. But the anti-Stalinist histories often turn out to be just as unreliable.
Many of the archives used in this book, for example, were recorded by official Party historians . . . Therefore, one must be constantly aware that they were recorded under constant pressure to present Stalin in a good light. At all times, one has to be aware of the circumstances and try to penetrate the Bolshevik language to see what the witnesses are really trying to tell us.
Yet those recorded before the Terror in 1937 are often astonishingly frank, tactless, or derogatory about Stalin: a derogatory story about Stalin in an official memoir is almost certainly true. Many of the witnesses were so naive or honest that their memoirs were unusable at the time, or only usable in small sections. Such memoirs were not destroyed, but were simply preserved in the archives. Many were edited, then copied and sent to Stalin's Moscow archive, so there are differences between versions. But the originals usually survived in the local archive." (p. 385)
He goes on, but this gives a flavor of his approach. He also conducted many interviews with descendents of key people. The effort that went into telling this story is remarkable.
This is a compelling and chilling portrait, and I am eager to read Monefiore's sequel, [The Court of the Red Tsar (which he actually wrote first).
After hearing rave reviews of [Stalin: Court of the Red Tsar], I added it to the list, but decided to read his subsequent book [Young Stalin] first for a chronological view. When I saw a copy on a bookstore table, I was immediately drawn to the pictures. I have never seen so many photos of the young Stalin, and they are fascinating. Using material from newly opened archives in Moscow, Tbilisi, and Batumi, as well as those in 20 other cities in nine countries, Montefiore gives a look at the early years of Stalin that no one has been allowed to see. It took the author ten years to do the research, and it shows.
Yet despite being meticulously documented and footnoted, the book reads like a novel. The characters are so unusual and captivating and the setting so well evoked that I was drawn into a world I scarcely could imagine. Raffish young men racing through Tbilisi with swords drawn and handmade bombs exploding, robbing banks and sending the money to Lenin to fund the upcoming revolution. A Muslim highwayman smuggling printing presses through the rugged mountains on donkeys, so that the communists could continue to spread their message. Kamo, Stalin's childhood friend and devoted murderer, flamboyant and cocky, surviving intense and prolonged torture to return to Stalin's side, insane but useful. And Stalin, the most intelligent, secretive, and manipulative of them all: throwing himself in graves, escaping pursuit dressed in drag, organizing the most daring and wild plots, causing riots in the prisons whenever he was caught and escaping exile whenever Lenin called. But Stalin was also a published poet, passionate lover, voracious reader, and one-time seminarian. The author pieces together not only the true story of Stalin's actions up to the time he outmaneuvered Trotsky for power in 1917, but the type of boy and young man that Stalin was and the influences that made him that way.
One such influence was the deprivation and family life in which Stalin grew up. Prey to near-death illnesses and accidents, Soso (as his mother called him), was maimed and sickly as a child, and his mother babied him to the extreme. Yet Soso has also a handful, running children's street gangs, and so she also beat him. Stalin remained faithful to her, although she may not have always been faithful to her husband. Beso was so insecure about the rumors surrounding Soso's parentage, that alcoholism and violence turned him mad. Keke relied on the protection of powerful men such as the wealthy Koba Egnatashvili (whose first name Soso used for a while) and the Gori police chief, Damian Davrichewy, who did the young Stalin many favors. There were even rumors about Keke and the local priest who took an unusual interest in the boy's welfare. Montefiore takes all of this uncertainty, violence, and poverty surrounding Stalin's youth and creates a psychological profile of the boy and young man that brings the disparate accounts together and explains many of Stalin's later actions.
I could go on about Stalin's exploits, love affairs, betrayals, and political development, but I don't want to retell the book. I hope I have given you enough to whet your appetite and encourage you to pick up the book for yourself. It's the best book on Stalin that I have read, and I look forward to [Court of the Red Tsar].
In Young Stalin, Montefiore looks at Stalin's life from the 1880's to the 1920's – the story of which is picked up in his The Court of the Red Tsar. The story is involving and the portrait of society and the institutions of the time – the underground organizations, the tsarist secret police, the Okhrana, prisons and exiles – was well-drawn. Montefiore is usually clear about his sources and he makes use of some that were previously unknown or unpublished. He often examines the Stalin myths floating around – Stalin was an Okhrana agent, his father was someone else, his second wife, Nadya, was his daughter – and mostly debunks them. Sometimes Montefiore provides almost too much detail and he has a habit of referring to everyone by occasionally shifting nicknames. As in Red Tsar, the focus is on Stalin and his relationships so sometimes the political and historical background is rushed or only lightly covered.
Stalin's mother, Ekaterina "Keke" Djugashvili was overbearing and sometimes violent but she always put her son first and had high ambitions for him. His father Vissarion, a cobbler, eventually became a violent drunkard who abandoned the family. They were poor but Keke made sure her son had a good education. She was able to get multiple wealthier or well-placed men to help them either through sympathy for the poor abandoned mother and her intelligent son or through relationships. Montefiore examines possible fathers for Stalin, and the evidence, but says most likely Vissarion was his biological father. Various influences are also suggested though not in a heavy-handed manner, one being the brawling culture of the Georgian town of Gori where Stalin grew up. In the seminary, Stalin devoured forbidden books and started dabbling in political movements. Even as an adolescent, he always had to be the leader of his groups and would undermine those who opposed him or weren't sufficiently enthusiastic. Dropping out of school, he disappointed Keke but started getting more seriously involved in the underground Georgian socialist groups. In this section, I did speculate several times – when his illnesses or accidents were described – what would happen if he had died, hadn't gone to the seminary, had become a cobbler or had his life changed in a major way.
Stalin led a peripatetic life – staying with friends, on the move to avoid the tsarist secret police, the Okhrana. After inciting arson at the Rothschilds' refinery and leading some violent strikes, Stalin became a wanted man and was arrested, imprisoned and exiled, just the first of many. Stalin escaped, as he would several times, and went back to the underground. He had amassed a number of followers and was in contact with a number of notable Bolsheviks including Lenin. He also met various people who would be his friends, family and in his administrations – the Alliluyevs, family of his second wife Nadya (there was a speculated affair between Stalin and Nadya's mother, though the rumor that Nadya was his daughter was clearly untrue), Abel Yenukidze, Sergo Ordzhonikidze, the Svanidzes – family of his first wife.
Montefiore provides a counter to Trotsky's assertion that Stalin spent 1905 scribbling uselessly – he was the leader of a Bolshevik faction that engaged in terrorist acts, protests and strikes and extortion for financing. Even with concessions by the tsar, he still promoted violence. Still, he was always writing articles, printing and distributing leaflets and participating in public debates between the Bolsheviks and Mensheviks. Stalin's group held the town of Chiatura, but Mensheviks prevailed in most of Georgian. The Menshevik-Bolshevik relationship would go back and forth - sometimes alliances were formed, sometimes deadly enmity prevailed. Stalin himself would often be more conciliatory than Lenin, suggesting that they join forces with other Marxist groups. He met Lenin in person for the first time at a Bolshevik conference, the start of a long relationship. Stalin and Lenin would clash on many points though he quickly became important to Lenin as someone who could raise money, was brutally effective and loyal and also, despite views to the contrary, had intellectual weight.
Stalin funneled money to Lenin – money his gang obtained through robberies. They hit banks, public institutions, ships. Even though Stalin organized these attacks (he didn't always participate) he had no actual military experience which Montefiore highlights several times – he was critical of Stalin and his amateurs during WWII in Red Tsar. One robbery in particular would trouble Stalin after his rise to prominence – in one of the conferences, robberies were banned and Stalin was denounced by members of the party in Georgia. Lenin was not bothered by this but Montefiore describes many things that Stalin did that could have been used against him. He often details whether these facts were known, were distorted, were rumored to be true or were discovered by the opposition or Stalin's henchmen and what happened after (for example, the fate of a Stalin publication that put his views closer to Mensheviks – the author details how Stalin sent his men to collect copies or execute those who had one).
Stalin eventually tried to distance himself from his illegal past and moved on to Bolshevik politicking. He traveled to conferences, around Europe, met with Lenin and other Bolsheviks and continued writing and agitating. Stalin wrote one of his important works on the question of nationalities though I don't think his thoughts were really summarized much. He spent the war in a long exile in Siberia. Stalin interacted with more of those close to Lenin, who would eventually become his victims – Trotsky, Kamenev and Zinoviev – as well his friends – Molotov and Voroshilov. Montefiore describes the Bolshevik seizure of power but makes it sound rather weak and pathetic (Lenin running around in a poor disguise, for example).
One of the most influential factors in shaping Stalin's personality and methods was the underground life of konspiratsia, where anyone could be a spy and double or triple crossing occurred regularly. The surveillance methods of the head teacher at seminary acted as an early education in paranoia for Stalin. In all his groups, he was overly concerned with traitors of all kinds. He eventually registered on the list of the Okhrana and they began following him around. Another of the more persistent rumors is that Stalin was a tsarist double agent. Montefiore points out aspects of Stalin's life that fueled that rumor but generally dismisses them. Stalin was frequently arrested. His stay in prison and exile was cushy compared to his own Gulag system. The exiles often seemed like reading holidays and boredom was one of the main concerns. Stalin would often accuse people in the Georgian party and while on occasion he was right, he also picked innocent people. A particularly significant double agent was Roman Malinovsky, who was close to Lenin and Stalin for a long time and even elected as a Bolshevik representative to the Duma. He regularly betrayed his friends to the Okhrana but surprisingly no one suspected him, even defending him from accusations of being a spy. Once he was in power, Stalin never stopped thinking with the mindset of konspiratsia.
Montefiore looks at Stalin's many affairs, engagements and marriages. In The Court of the Red Tsar, Stalin's relationships were positively tame compared to his cronies, some of whom were over-the-top womanizers or were perverse and debauched. However, in his early days he amassed a large number of ex-girlfriends, often his married landladies or the girlfriends of his fellow Bolsheviks. He also had several illegitimate children and a string of never-fulfilled engagements though in one case he seemed to want to marry but was transferred while in prison. Stalin was always on the run or in prison so he frequently abandoned relationships. His first marriage, to Kato Svanidze, was not always happy though he looked back on her with fondness. Montefiore, as well as Kato's family, blames Stalin for bringing Kato to the city of Baku and leaving her in poor and unhealthy conditions. She died soon after and Stalin neglected to see their son Yakov for years. Probably one of the worst relationships occurred during Stalin's longest exile in Siberia. He had an affair with a 13-year old girl, impregnated her twice and abandoned the second son who survived. However, that Siberian exile remained one of Stalin's fondest memories. He was friendly with the guard assigned to watch over him and bragged about his hunting and fishing exploits. Likely he was bored and wanted to be where the action was (this was during WWI) but Montefiore suggests that it was one of the happiest periods of his life. He describes why Stalin's dog, Tishka, was the perfect companion – "they provided selfless affection and passionate admiration yet never betrayed their masters (nor became pregnant by them), and yet they could be abandoned without guilt". Stalin ends married to Nadya Alliluyeva but Montefiore hints at problems to come.
A very informative look at the younger Stalin; if I hadn't already read The Court of the Red Tsar I would definitely want to after reading this one.
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Matthews tied for 70th at US Amateur
Monday did not go quite as well as Brandon Matthews would have liked.
The Pittston Area graduate competing in the U.S. Amateur Championship in Johns Creek, Georgia shot a 1-over par (73) in Monday's first round.
Matthews' first round score has him currently tied for 70th place among the field of 312. After today's second round, the golfers with the 64 lowest scores move on to the next round, which ultimately leads to the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship match.
Last year, Matthews was knocked out in the round of quarterfinals by Oliver Goss, who would ultimately finish as the Amateur's runner-up. Matthews in 2013 finished with a combined score of 141 (one-over par), which landed him tied for 20th place.
Matthews teed off from the Riverside Course at Atlanta Athletic Club at 9:35 a.m. Monday. Golfers on the Riverside Course on Monday played to an average of 74.9.
Matthews tallied five bogeys and four birdies, including a birdie on the first-hole — a par-five that is the Riverside Course's longest hole at 618 feet.
He is scheduled to tee off from the club's Highlands Course at 2:40 p.m. today. Golfers on the Highlands Course, which has hosted three PGA Championships, registered an average score of 74.6.
Matthews' first round has him placed fourth among 11 competitors from Pennsylvania, including Temple teammate Matt Teesdale, who shot a 2-over par.
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Brian Giles, always good for a colorful tale about the baseball life, recently passed along some flavorful memories from his Triple-A season in Buffalo 12 years ago.
"We had so much fun," he said while sitting on his clubhouse stool. "Probably my funnest year in baseball."
Beyond being a stacked team loaded with several elite prosepcts from Cleveland's farm system, the Bisons had several crusty veterans who fed off the young players' energy, Giles said. One of the former major leaguers, Bill Ripken, had a zany sense of humor that Giles appreciated.
"Billy wanted to create a photo album that showed the difference between life in the minor leagues and the major leagues, so whenever he saw something like that, he took a picture of it," Giles said.
As Giles remembered it, some of Ripken's best snapshots came at the visiting clubhouse in Nashville. If you have a weak stomach, you may want to stop reading here.
"It was a great clubhouse," Giles said, setting the hook. "They had a flystrip hanging over the food spread. Right above the food, you had all of these dead flies stuck to the strip. Isn't that great?"
It got better, Giles said, when one of the players returned to the clubhouse in the middle innings and happened upon a clubbie's creative food preparation.
"They were going to cook roast beef for the postgame spread," Giles said. "But the roast beef was still frozen. So the clubbie took the roast beef into the shower and ran hot water on it to thaw it out. One of the players saw him in the shower, holding the roast beef against the water spray."
Giles laughed. "Got to love that one," he said. Giles also remembered another clubhouse spread where "mold was growing on the tuna." Don't take his word for it, though. "Ripken's got a bunch of photographs," he said. "That's some great stuff."


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Online: Developing a Strong Leadership Team
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Milla Jovovich attends the premiere of 'The Exodus - Burnt By The Sun' Premiere at the Palais des Festivals during the 63rd Annual Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France in Louis Vuitton.
Case in point: It's like she felt her obligations ended by putting on a dress. Silly girl. Everything from the neck up looks like it took about 5 minutes to do. We wouldn't be a bit surprised if she had a scrunchie in her hair. The success of a red carpet look is based on two components: the wow factor of the dress and the detailing (hair, makeup, accessories). She always seems to forget about the detailing.
In addition, let's face it: that dress looks like a blanket. A strapless Snuggie. A cat-vomit-colored strapless Snuggie. We like the silhouette, we just hate that pukey pink and wrinkled bronze together. And it all looks so heavy. Milla darling, put a little more thought and effort in. Better yet, hire someone to do that for you. You don't have to be all fussy about it. Just sit back and let someone else make you pretty for you. You can read Dostoevsky or something while they're doing it, if that'll make you feel better.
[Photo Credit: wireimage.com/style.com]
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Labels: Cannes Watch, Cannes Watch 2010, In or Out, Red Carpet


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7 Futuristic Gadgets That Will Change Your Life In 2013
KickstarterIt's pretty standard by now – each year brings newer and more interesting developments in consumer technology.
Some are far more interesting than others, however.
Here's a brief look at 2013's more interesting offerings in the gadget world.
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Q&A With Senior Christina Nunes
Nov. 6, 2007
The UMass Media Relations department had time to sit down with senior midfielder Christina Nunes. She took some time out of her busy schedule to look back at her four years with the Minutewomen.
UMass: Looking back at your career at UMass, what is your favorite memory?
UM: If you could change one thing from your time here, what would it be?
UM: Could you talk about your goal this season against Vermont? What did it mean to you to get that goal as a senior?
UM: What is your major? Do you have any career goals?
UM: How do you spend your spare time?
UM: What made you want to play soccer?
UM: Especially being from Connecticut, can you talk about the feeling beating UConn last season?
UM: What is the best advice you have for a prospective Division I student-athlete?
UM: Do you have any pregame rituals?
UM: Ten years down the road, where do you see yourself?
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Marty in the Morning
Join the dawn chorus with Marty as he takes the chill out of your early mornings with music, news, weather and travel updates.
Join the dawn chorus with Marty as he takes the chill out of your early mornings with music, news, weather and travel updates.
6th June
Simple Chicken curry
1 large onion diced
2 gloves garlic crushed
2 tbsp mild curry powder
1tbsp plain Flour (can use gluten free)
1 small jar mango chutney (sharwoods brand)
1tbsp tomato puree
1 can chopped tomatoes
2 pints chicken stock
Gently cook onion and garlic with a tbsp of rapeseed oil in a saucepan for 5 minutes or until soft, stir in curry powder, flour and tomato puree and cook on a low heat until paste like for 5 minutes.
Slowly whisk in the warm chicken stock , chopped tomatoes and then add the jar of mango chutney and season to taste. Cook for 15-20minutes
Add cooked chicken or beef and serve with steamed rice.
Add a can of Thai gold coconut milk this makes it creamy and use Thai gold organic rice.
For vegetarians use vegetable stock and add fresh cooked vegetables such as green beans carrots, baby corn and broccoli.
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Live from Venice and Verona from 2015
Including clips from back stage at the Arena di Verona, comment from Irish audience members on tour with the Travel Department.ie & recordings from a beautiful vineyard near Verona!
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Rwanda Can Be Proud of Its Economic Progress
Since 2006, one million of the country's 11 million citizens have emerged from poverty.
A cover story in the Economist in May 2000 struck a dispiriting note. "Africa," the magazine declared with great authority (and more than a ring of truth), "the hopeless continent."
As Rwandans, however, we know a thing or two about the resiliency of hope. We have learned it can endure and thrive in the most difficult conditions imaginable.
While the world's attention has been gripped by the global financial crisis, another, more uplifting narrative has been taking hold in Africa. With fitting irony, it was the Economist who once again summed up this new zeitgeist when it revisited the continent for its December 2011 edition. This time the cover read, "Africa Rising."
There are few places that bear this out more vividly than Rwanda. Earlier this week, the remarkable story of my country's social and economic progress has come into renewed focus. On Tuesday, we released findings from the Household Living Conditions Survey conducted last year that revealed a reduction in the poverty rate to 45% from 57% since 2006. In other words, over just a five year period, 200,000 Rwandan families—or approximately one million of our 11 million citizens—have emerged from poverty.
During the same period, the proportion of Rwandans classified as living in conditions of "extreme poverty" dropped to 24% from 37%, one of the steepest declines witnessed by any nation since such records have been kept. It should also be noted that the poorest of our population benefited most from the poverty reduction. As measured by the Gini coefficient, inequality decreased to 0.49 from 0.52 in the same period.
The same report, endorsed by the United Nations and Oxfam, shows extraordinary progress against other benchmarks as well. Child and maternal mortality rates dropped by 41% and 35% respectively since 2006. The fertility rate has dropped to 4.6 from 6.1 largely as a result of the rapid and widespread adoption of modern contraceptive methods. Primary school enrolments stand at more than 90%, while the numbers attending secondary school have doubled.
All of this has taken place, it seems worth repeating, while the rest of the world has endured the deepest and most sustained economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Figures like these may explain why the word "miracle" is often applied to Rwanda's social and economic resurgence. It is not, however, a term you will hear from Rwandans.
We know full well that there is nothing supernatural about what we have achieved to date, and that it represents a mere fraction of the ambitions we hold for our country. We understand that our accomplishments are the result of unrelenting focus by our country's leaders and citizens on getting the fundamentals right: government accountability and transparency, policies that attract trade and investment, a healthy and educated population.
While Rwanda has implemented vital reforms across each of these areas, they alone would have amounted to little without the visionary cooperation of our development partners: the U.K., the World Bank, the European Union and the African Development Bank, among others. The channeling of most of their development assistance through budget support ensured attainment of superior results.
As we briefly take stock of progress to date before setting out toward the next horizon, it is only fair to note that the success so far of our economic development and poverty reduction strategy is owed to good policy both in Kigali and among our partners. We have been heartened, to say the least, by the courage displayed by our partners in their unwavering commitment to our country and continent during a period of great fiscal constraint.
For these reasons, whatever good news that can be gleaned from findings such as those released this week should be rightly considered yours as well as ours. After all, what is the price tag for a stable and prosperous Rwanda? What value can we place on a million lives that, in five short years, have shifted from deprivation to opportunity—or the millions more for whom that moment, yet to come, now seems within reach?
—Mr. Rwangombwa is Rwanda's minister of finance and economic planning.


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Journal of the American Medical Association's Lead Article & Editorial Examine Medical Errors from a Sociological Perspective . . .
March 18, 2005
Ross Koppel et al.'s JAMA Article Makes Headlines
Ross Koppel, a sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania, was the lead author of JAMA's (Journal of the American Medical Association) lead article in the March 9, 2005, issue (vol. 293, pp. 1197-1203), which featured his research on the contribution of Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) systems to electronic prescription errors. Funded by the Agency for Health Care Quality, Koppel et al.'s research examined the human factors and the software interface and role of computerized information technology in medical errors. JAMA also published an editorial about the research in the same issue (Robert L. Wears & Marc Berg, "Computer Technology and Clinical Work: Still Waiting for Godot," pp. 1261-1263).
Koppel's study has received wide-ranging national press coverage including the front page of the March 9 New York Times Business section, and on March 8 on National Public Radio's All Things Considered, Reuters, Newsweek, Boston Globe (front page), Baltimore Sun, Philadelphia Inquirer, and in various other news media around the world.
For more information, see the American Medical Association (AMA) press release. The article's abstract and the extracts of the editorial can be found at jama.ama-assn.org/content/vol293/issue10/index.dtl. You can purchase the full text of the article, "Role of Computerized Physician Order Entry Systems in Facilitating Medication Errors," at the same AMA website.
About the American Sociological Association
The American Sociological Association (www.asanet.org), founded in 1905, is a non-profit membership association dedicated to serving sociologists in their work, advancing sociology as a science and profession, and promoting the contributions to and use of sociology by society.


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21 April 2011
Chelsea Girl is back...
23 comments
I love it the tunic, its so flowy! I like the photos, too! Theyre so prettyReplyDelete
I love this so much! :D You have great style!ReplyDelete
I really don't like Chelsea Girl, ever since they released it :(ReplyDelete
I think it's a bit too young. Quite American in my eyes.
You look amazing Suzi <3ReplyDelete
what a lovely outfit. xoxoReplyDelete
I LOVE it. I think you look really sexy with this outfit ;) is that weird? XDReplyDelete
oh i didn't know that about RI! thanks for sharing! Loving the top :)ReplyDelete
wow you look soo pretty!ReplyDelete
cute top! I thought it was a yukata ^^ Very kawaii Suzi! <3ReplyDelete
You look great Suzi! That top is girly and flowy, so pretty!ReplyDelete
it's got such a nice japanese floral feel :D def going to check this collection out! xReplyDelete
You look amazing in this dress!ReplyDelete
I never knew out chelsea girl. But you always have a good eye for fashion! It looks lovely on you! I'm going to try it on in the shops just to see how I can't get away with wearing it! You always looks lovely.ReplyDelete
beautiful! looks very kimono style, spesh in the 2nd picture xxReplyDelete
gorgeous photos!!! <3<3<3ReplyDelete
beautiful top! such a mori-girl feel. =)ReplyDelete
wow soo pretty^^ReplyDelete
loving th top^^
Amazing outfit!:)ReplyDelete
I got the same tunic and just blogged about it also at my blog www.thefashiontellersnotes.blogspot.com LOVE IT! Love how you have worn it-very pretty :) xxReplyDelete
i loove your hair. can u do a video update on your hair colour, hair products for volume, shampoo & conditioner, hair masks etc?ReplyDelete
Hi Suzi! I just found your youtube channel and blog and im absolutely smitten! Haha.. what's your hair colour now? is it still dyed liese's platinum beige? Please update us (: Thanks Suzi!ReplyDelete
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
Hi if you're thinking of selling this tunic, pls email me! I pay gd price for this! Reason being, they don't sell it here! :( firstname.lastname@example.com thx a million!ReplyDelete


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Call our certified SCUBA Instructors
Mon - Sat - 8AM - 6PM PST
See the top 20 most helpful scuba gear reviews
Average Customer Review: based on
1 reviews.
can i use for 80 Cubic Foot Aluminum Tank?!
That is what this valve is made for.
Hi, Most rental tanks and the two tanks I own (one bought new, one used) all seem to have sherwood 5000 PSI rated valves. Most valves I see online are only 3000 psi or 3300 psi. Why is this ?
Hello, most aluminum tanks operating psi are 3000 psi. High pressure tanks are 3442 Psi. No tanks are rated at 5000 psi.
Corporate Office: Scuba.com,
1752 Langley Avenue,


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Back when Jonathan Groff toplined a revival of Hair, he was notably the only cast member in the free-love musical who didn't have to take his clothes off. Still, don't get the wrong idea about him: Groff's not averse to going naked for a role, and in fact, images from his frontal nude scene in the film Twelve Thirty were all over the Internet last week.
November 9th, 2011 // Leave a Comment


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Wow that is awesome for Coach and the University that he was named the Head Coach of the women's USA basketball team. I would bet that that in itself would help in recruitment for the next couple of years.
Certainly can't hurt!
Great News ! I guess this is a reward / step-up from being assistant coaches for U18 and U19.
Here's a link:
I hope he doesn't let it go to his head like Gordon Bombay.
Originally Posted by MNCyGuy
I hope he doesn't let it go to his head like Gordon Bombay.
You should be ashamed of yourself.
Sweet. Congrats Coach Fennelly!
Heard this on the radio, and about had a heart attack when I heard "Bill Fenelly has been named the head coach....." then was fine when I heard "of team USA". Congratulations Bill, what an opportunity.
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I want to make white man spirituals. I want to give names to the ghosts, as a way of saying "we know who you are". I want to explore facets of our lives that are bestial, as well as ones that are angelic. i want to make guesses about who you are. I want to arrive slowly, and leave swiftly. I want to peer through the largest telescope, squint through the most powerful microscope, and see infinity stretch in both directions. I want to somehow recognize our significance in spite of this. That's a tough one. I want to turn stones and cringe. Not because it feels goods. It does not feel good, but it's the right thing to do. I should de-construct what was built while i was sleeping. I want to laugh at our position on the map. I want to stop obsessively searching for truth, and appreciate the ambiguity of living a human life.
Discover America's second full-length "future paths" comes out in early 2010!
Force of Proper Wind from "Future Paths" (lujo085) / Download


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The second largest and oldest island in the Las Cincos Muertes island chain, Isla Matanceros (from the Spanish matanza, "slaughter") is shaped roughly like a bent rectangle, with "flat" north and south shores, a generally convex western shore, and a concave eastern one. The island has no tall, mountainous remains from any of its three ancient, extinct volcanoes. However, sheer cliffs and a few steep, isolated mountains are scattered across the northern and central areas of the island.
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The ever-popular Granny Smith Apple has just gotten a nice little update to make it even better than ever before. In addition to the already standard 57 levels and awesome Granny ups, the latest update brings the addition of leaderboards and achievements through Google Play Game Services. This means that those of you out there will be able to have de facto competitions against friends and family or just see how good you really are (or aren't) in comparison to the masses out there in the world.
As usual, the game is available for all Gingerbread+ users— so if you're an owner of an Android 2.3 (or higher) device, hit the Play Store link today in order to get in on all the updated fun.


text: If you are interested in becoming more closely connected to the OFJ community, our all-volunteer staff could use your help! Volunteers also earn scrip to use towards entry to the Saturday workshops. You must be a member in order to volunteer. We could use help with setting up the tea service at the lecture and workshops, staffing the library on Saturdays, and completing Continuing Education forms at the Friday night lecture. (We need licensed social workers for the Continuing Education position.) If you are interested, contact us at firstname.lastname@example.com or look for her by the Gathering table at the Friday night lecture.


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I have one use that had repeating tasks in Outlook (using .pst file locally).
Since I used the pst import tool he keeps getting error emails on each send/receive about unable to sync some tasks. I've gone into his calendar and tasks and deleted these items but the errors won't go away.
Any idea how to purge these items?


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I apologize for the graininess of this video, but it's just too good for me not to share with you.
I remember seeing shirtless Brad Pitt begging for Pringles in this commercial from 1980s a while ago on the internet, but today it caught my eye again and brought me joy. This is really young Brad Pitt. We're talking before he caught everyone's eye in Thelma & Louise, back when he was just doing bit parts on TV shows like Growing Pains and 21 Jump Street.
But oh, his star power was evident even then.
If you'll notice, he is the only guy they actually focus on. This is a far cry from his new movie Fury, but we love it all. Check it out and prepare for a laugh! Pringles not included. (Side note: click on those 80s show links to see young Brad some more!)


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Hello all, I had a wonderful 4th in Orting,WA a small town with a traditional celebration.The wind was very light but got to fly my largest Rev Blast 4-8 and my newest Rev I patriotic w/my 2 wrap spars , thanks Ben. Had some tough times staying in the air but with encouragement from Penny Lingenfelter and the music blasting , things went quite well. Next weekend @ Longbeach, WA to teach my cousins to fly and fly with my wife. Fly with me , Steven T.
4th in Orting (PCKA event)
Started by St.Even, Jul 06 2006 02:49 AM
1 reply to this topic
Posted 06 July 2006 - 02:49 AM
Posted 06 July 2006 - 05:11 AM
You should think about popping up to Westport, WA, theres a festival/competition on all weekend. A bunch of us quad flyers will be there.
David Hathaway, Revisionist
-~ REVisions
-~ www.simian-studios.ca
-~ www.teamiquad.com
Postatem obscuri lateris nescitis!
-~ REVisions
-~ www.simian-studios.ca
-~ www.teamiquad.com
Postatem obscuri lateris nescitis!
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New law aimed at parking problems
(Page 3 of 3)
In May, Arthur Gianelli, president and CEO of the NuHealth System, wrote a letter to McKevitt in support of the bill. In response to its passage, Gianelli said, "The East Meadow community is to be congratulated for its grass-roots effort to secure legislation allowing residential permitted parking … This legislation should help manage longstanding parking challenges in the area around the hospital."
As for the next steps in the process, Hudes said that town officials were "moving expeditiously" to adopt an ordinance, and that a notice of a public hearing would be added to the town's calendar. Residents can attend the next board meeting, on Sept. 3, to voice their opinions.
East Meadow residents, Hudes added, "didn't deserve what they're dealing with. And at least there's a light on the horizon. It's just a matter of working out the details."
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In the Book of Mormon, in Omni, Mosiah king of the Nephites flees the land southward and heads for a new home. With him he brings the last stragglers who represent the descendants of Nephi, Sam, Zoram, Jacob and Joseph. These people arrive at a very different location near the river of Sidon. At this river they discover Zarahemla called the descendant of Mulek who had been a son of the last king of Judah.
From there on out these people are viewed as more Jewish people in the New world, they had lost their language, according to the Nephites and their culture. They needed to be saved from there fallen state and in the Nephite language were taught the gospel and converted.
The problem with this story, it is hard to imagine. The last king of Jerusalem, Zedekiah, was a puppet king who got a bit too full of himself and had been crushed by Nebuchadnezzar II. In the biblical story Zedekiah and his followers were captured fleeing Jerusalem and all of his sons were killed and he had his eyes burned out and was taken to live in Babylon until he died.
If one of his sons, Mulek, did escape as it has been contested. He might have done so with other family members, either before the seige at Jerusalem or during the flight, he would have to have gone north to the Phoenicians in Tyre or Sidon. The Phoenicians were closest civilization near Judah who might have given him aid and comfort, as these articles here and here argue.
The Phoenicians appear to escape the problems of Judah and Israel as staging ground for Egyptians and wars for everyone else. They make a reasonable candidate because they have the ship faring know how to take a group of people to a new land. There are ideas that they might have even traded with ancient South America at one time.
Others have argued that this explanation may be weak. That rather than the Mulekites coming from Jerusalem that may have been a Nephite misunderstanding or myth created to develop unity amongst two people who united. Some argue that the Mulekites are Jaredites survivors.
Those outside of the community which believe in the book of Mormon see the new limited geography description as covering for lack of evidence.
However, we know from biblical archaeology that much of what we thought about the size of the Kingdom of Israel and the history of the Jewish people is sometimes mixed with political realities. Which means some biblical text can be seen as redacted or framed by the later writers to fit their views. So too has the book of Mormon been redacted by Mormon and Moroni.
So therefore the story of the Mulekites or even the understanding of Moroni and Mormon of how the various parties grew together is effected by this information. Omni's description of the origins of the people seems to win the day for all the rest of the Book.
15 Behold, it came to pass that Mosiah discovered that the people of Zarahemla came out from Jerusalem at the time that Zedekiah, king of Judah, was carried away captive into Babylon.
16 And they journeyed in the wilderness, and were brought by the hand of the Lord across the great waters, into the land where Mosiah discovered them; and they had dwelt there from that time forth.
17 And at the time that Mosiah discovered them, they had become exceedingly numerous. Nevertheless, they had had many wars and serious contentions, and had fallen by the sword from time to time; and their language had become corrupted; and they had brought no records with them; and they denied the being of their Creator; and Mosiah, nor the people of Mosiah, could understand them.
So according to Omni they could not understand each other, he says because the Mulekites language was corrupted but if one looks at what Moroni describes of the language of the book it is obvious they are not the only ones.
Accepting Omni's word at face value. The Mulekites are descendants of Mulek a prince of Judah.
Yet one notes that Omni said they were very numerous. So that they were much larger than the Nephites. For them to immediately accept the Nephites means they very likely had a shift in leadership rather than a wholesale merger. This may be because Zarahemla is without sons or maybe because the Nephites and the technological advancements or reading had given them an advantage.
Unfortunately we do not understand all the political ramifications of the wholesale take over of the people of Zarahemla by the Nephites. So really one must ask if the idea of kinship bonds was forged by the Nephites to alleviate the political situation. Benjamin or possibly even Mosiah is married to some daughter of Zarahemla, instant monarch, just add offspring.
If we are to ever come to grips with the historical as well spiritual aspects of the book of Mormon then I believe we will have to allow people the right to create a legacy which might be different than what was on the ground. I think it is possible that the people of Zarahemla were not Mulekites or Jaredites, though a remnant could have been found in them. In fact one might suspect that these people were Amerindians who lived in the area and were convinced of a new ancient origin, from almost four hundred years previous, through the political unification and cultural integration of the Nephites.
Of course this idea of taking the Book of Mormon as literal history and not just an out of time spiritual record has been discussed, here, here and here and even here (if I can ever find it I will add it later… sorry).


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Wilson-Johnson Tanya R Dr
Phone: (202) 387-5090
Address: 1700 17th Street
Washington, DC 20001
Practice: Dentists
One of the most essential decisions in healthcare is picking the right dental professional. Maintaining good health with your teeth and mouth is important and can affect your personal and professional life. The caliber of your smile makes a big first impression. Determing the best dentist in Washington is a very important step when it comes to preserving your teeth. In the following paragraphs we will focus on the best approaches to pick the best dentist.
The first thing you must do is decide what is important to you. What sort of service are you most enthusiastic about? Major services or just some simple cleanings? Would you like to get any cosmetic dentistry done? If you're simply looking for basic teeth cleaning treatments then you won't need to be as particular.
The second thing you must do is get an idea of your future dentists' experience and training. It is good to learn about the practice too. Which kind of practice is it? Is it one with customized attention or a factory that's wanting to get people in and out? If you're looking to have a exact procedure completed, it will be wise to find a dentist in Washington, DC who has a lot of experience in that particular procedure. Ask for pictures of preceding work done. This will give you a good idea of the quality of the work.
The final thing you want to do is look at the price. If the prices are suprisingly low, there's probably a reason. If dental offices wish to see a lot of patients rapidly, then they usually promote a low price. This is not a good thing if you'd like specialized treatment. By merely getting in touch with the office or doing research online you should be able to find a good idea of what sort of practice it is. Following the advice above is likely to make choosing the right dentist a much simpler process. when looking for a dentist in zip code 20001.
Have you went to Wilson-Johnson Tanya R Dr? If so please give a precise review.
Comments posted here may not reflect the views of this establishment.


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Know this Guy?
He has hit residences on 77th Street, 78th Street, 83rd Street, and Ovington Avenue. In each case, he has entered through a window.
The booty includes jewelry, laptops, credit cards, cameras, and electronic devices.
The suspect is a short-haired white male in his 30's, approximately 5'10" tall and 170 Lbs. He was caught on surveillance video getting into a blue Ford Taurus wagon.
The NYPD is asking tipsters to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
The article from WABC
Bay Ridge cat burglar in custody [New York Post.]
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Joe J Thomas, voice actor and creator of the blog Joe's Dump, recently proposed an awesome new system of measurement, The Rubber Chicken Standard. What with the Metric System failing to take off in the US and his opinion that the Imperial System isn't very intuitive, Joe argues that it's high time we all agreed on a new standard of measurement:
I've chosen the Archie McPhee Deluxe Rubber Chicken as a new standard of measurement. The reason is simple: every culture knows what a chicken is, and a rubber chicken is easier to use because it won't spoil.
One rubber chicken is the basic unit of measurement. (How many chickens tall are you?) But Joe goes on to propose the use of a "Kilo-Chicken" (kc) for measuring really large objects (It's the size of 1,000 Rubber Chickens):
And the "Micro-Chicken" (uc) for measuring really tiny things:
Click here to learn more about The Rubber Chicken Standard. We think it's brilliant.
Holy awesome opportunities Batman, the Archie McPhee store is hiring for a full-time retail customer service position!
Are you a fan of the weird and wonderful?
What about working with amazing customers...
...or dressing up in strange costumes?
If this sounds like you, then click here to check out the complete job description and then submit your resume.
You can also drop by the store and apply in person.
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I have an exchange account connected via IMAP in zimbra. After 0.92 update , it no longer receives mail. Status says just "error".
After looking in to the error log I found that it's because of synchronization problem with an IMAP folder. I have attached the error log in the file


text: I'm confused and hope someone can advise me. I'm looking to tidy up my old GT outpost, 1990's model. I'd like to get a new rear mech for it (mine is a little slack), but am not sure what type to get. I have what I assume is the original SunTour mech, which has no hanger, which confuses me. The hanger is built into the frame and mech bolts onto the frame. Let me kow if I am talking out of my rear end please :-). Anyone got any advice on what rear mech might work for me? A model or picture would be nice.


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Last year at CGI I met Dr. Sakena Yacoobi of the Afghan Institute of Learning. This year I was able to spend a few minutes with her and want to say a few words about her organization.
The Afghan Institute of Learning is managed by women, providing health and education services to Afghan women and children. From their brochure:
"We believe that educated people, especially educated women and girls, are the key to a peaceful and prosperous future for Afghanistan. With that in mind, we work to improve the education and health of women and children, to empower them with training and to foster self-reliance."
Please take a moment to visit their website and get to know what the organization is accomplishing for the Afghan people.


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New Madison County Veterans Service Officer Named
MADISON - The current Stanton County Veterans Service Officer has been named to that post in Madison County. The Madison County Veterans Service Committee nominated Gregg Hanson to succeed Mike Smith, who is retiring on October 1st, and the Board of Commissioners this morning ratified that appointment. Smith, who has been the Madison County Service Officer for 24 years, says the number one job of a service officer is to help veterans access the benefits they have earned. Hanson will assume his new duties on October 9th.
On Air
Jeffrey Steffen
6am - 10am


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This IDC study provides a worldwide and regional view of IDC's forecast for the worldwide application performance management (APM) software market for 2013-2017. It includes an analysis of revenue contribution by IDC functional market and by operating environment. Historic information for 2008-2012 is provided for context.
"IDC estimates the worldwide application performance management software market will top $2.5 billion in 2013 and will total almost $4.0 billion by 2017. We estimate the five-year CAGR from 2012 to 2017 will be 12.4%," states Mary Johnston Turner, IDC research vice president, Enterprise Systems Management Software. "The worldwide APM software market is growing much more quickly than most system infrastructure software markets because of the impact of mobile applications, cloud, and SaaS delivery options."


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The Gustavus women's hockey team defeated St. Thomas 4-1 on Saturday night to take sole possession of first place in the conference standings. With the victory, the Gusties improve to 13-0-1 in league play, while the Tommies fall to 12-1-1 with the defeat. Sophomore defender Margaret Dorer led the team in scoring with one goal and two assists for three points.
The two teams, which were coming off an emotional 3-3 overtime tie in St. Peter on Friday night, played to a scoreless tie in the first period. The Gusties out-shot the Tommies 16-5 in the period and had four power play opportunities but could not get the puck past St. Thomas goaltender Katie Jetland.
St. Thomas took a 1-0 lead early in the second period when Ashley Reinhardt beat Gustavus goaltender Kitty Hurley at the 2:25 mark. Maggie Toft was credited with the assist. Midway through the period, Gustavus evened the score at 1-1 on a power play goal by Margaret Dorer (11:21) with an assist from Mari Gunderson. The Gusties gave the Tommies two power play chances late in the period, however just as it looked like the two teams were heading to the locker room in a 1-1 tie, Molly Doyle let fly with a slapshot from the blue line that found the net with just :06 remaining in the period. The goal was short-handed as the Gusties were killing a high stick penalty assessed to Andrea Peterson. The goal, which turned out to be the game-winner, drastically turned the momentum in favor of the Gusties. St. Thomas held a slim 8-6 edge in shots in the second period.
Six minutes into the third period, first year forward Christinie Wicker gave the Gusties some breathing room with an even strength goal at the 6:01 mark which increased the lead to 3-1. The assist was credited to Molly Doyle. It was Wicker's third goal of the year. Mari Gunderson sealed the important win for Gustavus with an even strength goal at 18:04 which increased the lead to 4-1. Sarah Heinbigner and Margaret were each credited with an assist. The Gusties, who held a 12-6 shot advantage in the third period, held a distinct 34-19 edge in shots in the game.
Kitty Hurley picked up the win in the nets for Gustavus as she turned away 18 shots, which included two key breakaway opportunities for St. Thomas in the third period. Hurley was spectacular in the nets for Gustavus in the two-game series with the Tommies. Katie Jetland recorded 30 saves for St. Thomas.
Gustavus, which picked up three points in the important MIAC series, entered the weekend ranked #4 in the USCHO.com Division III poll. St. Thomas entered the series ranked #5 in the same poll.


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How Lawyers Engage Every Client Every Time
Everybody wants to make more money as a lawyer.
Few lawyers master the skills necessary to attract more clients and even fewer can close the deal once the client is sitting across from them.
Today I have a special treat for you.
The interview posted below (on the podcast player and via a downloadable link) is with Anne Miller an author, speaking coach and sales expert.
In this interview, Anne helps us discover the power of stories as sales tools for lawyers.
So if you are one of the people wondering how to make more money as a lawyer, you must listen to this entire interview.
Here is the link to How to Engage Every Client Every Time. Right click on it and save it to your desktop or electronic device.
If you want to listen to it now, just click the play button on the player below.
Our Attorneys Marketing Mantra: Never Be Needy
The attorneys marketing with Rainmaker Lawyer Consulting come from many different backgrounds and practice in many different areas but they all agree on one thing: Never appear needy.
Here's what I mean:
All of us have, at various times in our business careers, needed to close a deal. Maybe we needed money and the client sitting across the desk from us was the last chance for us to make our rent payment on time. Or maybe we wanted to purchase something and the person on the phone was willing to retain us and we gave in to a weak attempt at negotiation in order to "get his money in the door."
Sometimes we do things we regret because we need money. These things include; taking bad clients, negotiating fees without negotiating value, or saying something ridiculously desperate to curry favor with a prospective client.
What many attorneys marketing their services don't realize is that prospective clients can smell the stink on neediness on you. This stench, like a rotting corpse in your office, repels clients and their money.
Nobody works with a needy lawyer. Even through we've all needed to "close the next deal" at some time, neediness is not attractive.
So listen up all you attorneys studying marketing…Rainmaker Lawyer students are not only confident in their legal prowess but they also never give off the appearance of being needy.
What Did You Sell Today?
I have a profitable little habit I want to share with you.
It's a habit I picked up out of necessity. You know – the need to eat – the need to feed my kids.
Every day I make it my mission to sell something to someone.
I am in the business of helping lawyers make a great living and live a great life, which means I usually have to sell something to a lawyer.
Each day I must come to an agreement with someone to help them in exchange for legal tender.
Most days this is easy. People call on the phone with a problem, question, concern or need. Together we come to an agreement on whether or not I can help them. That's selling.
Some days nobody calls. On those days I reach out to past clients, referral sources or influential people in the community. I ask them to introduce me to a lawyer (or lawyers) who may need my services. Sometimes I ask them to help me get in touch with people who put attorney conventions together or edit articles in law firm trade magazines. That is also selling.
Now you may be thinking that this doesn't apply to you. After all, you are a lawyer. You are a professional. And professionals – particularly lawyers – don't sell.
In spite of what some of folks will tell you, a sale is made every time you interact with a potential client or referral source. Either you sell them on why you should be their lawyer or they sell themselves on why you shouldn't.
Think about that for a minute.
Every time you meet with a potential client, speak with a potential client on the phone, meet with a referral source, have lunch with another lawyer or talk to someone who could refer you business, you are selling.
If you make the sale, you'll get the client. If not, the other person has sold himself on why you are NOT going to get his case or his referral.
Still think lawyers don't sell?
Have you ever argued a case in front of a jury? Made an argument to a court or magistrate? Ever tried to get your wife to agree to go see that new action adventure flick? Ever try to get your kid to clean his room? Ever try to get your mother-in-law to go away, on vacation, for a lengthy period of time?
A sale is made in each of these examples.
You sell. I sell. Everyone sells. Every day.
You can choose to become adept at it. You can choose to make it a habit. You can choose to live well.
Or you can choose to bury your head in the sand and continue to believe that lawyers don't sell and that selling is evil.
As for me, I have a couple of calls to make. I like helping people. The way I help people is by sharing my knowledge and expertise with them.
What did you sell today?
Here are some resources to help you with your client acquisition strategy:
Everything you do with your law firm marketing should be focused on getting your audience to take action. This requires telling them what to do. This is a call to action. This article outlines several different types of calls to action.
Do you know who you must convince before you convince the client? Does it make a difference to a jury if you believe in your client's case? The answers to those questions can help you with law firm marketing. This article reveals how.
If you hate rejection as much as most normal people, you probably hate selling. This article will help you feel better about selling as a lawyer even if you hate selling.
Law Firm Marketing: What to Do vs. How to Do It
The other day I met with an attorney who has been practicing for over 20 years. We were meeting to determine if I could help him. Under his arm he had a file full of my weekly emails (he is a subscriber to The Rainmaker Minute). The conversation started like this:
Attorney: "I don't know how much more you can do for me. I am doing everything you talk about in The Rainmaker Minute".
Me: "You're probably right. I probably cannot help you. But just for fun, tell me about one of the things you did."
Attorney: "The hand written notes."
Me: "What about them?"
Attorney: "I sent them out and I didn't get any clients."
Me: "How many notes did you send out, to whom, and over how many months?"
Attorney: "Uh…last Tuesday I sent three handwritten notes to past clients."
Me: "Just one time, on one day?"
Attorney: "Yeah. And it took 20 minutes and I got noting from it."
Obviously this guy did not follow the process as I designed it. Sending a hand written note is supposed to be the beginning of an on-going follow-up system in which you build a relationship with your prospective client or referral source. This is a long term strategy. Relationships take time to build. Apparently, this guy missed that point.
Nevertheless, that was a real conversation with a real attorney. And it is not atypical. I hear that sort of thing often. People think because they know WHAT to do, they know HOW to do it.
Back in my early years I went to culinary school. There I learned how to cook. I know WHAT to do in order to make a meal. However, unless you want to be deathly ill, you do not want me to make you something to eat…ever. I am not good at it because I do not know HOW to cook.
Here is the moral of this story: When it comes to anything, especially law firm marketing, just because you know what to do, that doesn't mean you know how to do it correctly.
I often compare law firm marketing to sex. Everybody knows what to do but few people take the time to do it properly.
Here some other mandatory resources for you:
Why do most attorneys fail? Because they fail to take action. This is a rant I sent to several of my clients and subscribers encouraging them to get going.
What Should You Look For In a Law Firm Marketing Consultant?
Many people ask this question and few have the answer. This article gives you some insight into the skills and knowledge necessary to be a great law firm marketing consultant.
Five Factors To Develop Your Strategic Thinking
Attorney Marketing for the Solo: The Basics Are Still Missing
Last week I had the pleasure of speaking at the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Attorney's third annual law firm practice management workshop. It was a terrific event organized by F.A.C.D. L. President Brian Tannebaum.
This event was a huge success because of the engagement level of the participants. Almost every attorney in attendance was hanging on the words of every speaker. Several successful attorneys disclosed their methods for everything from greeting a client to managing attorney client privilege with the parents of defendants.
My presentation covered the basics of attorney marketing and business strategy. I challenged the criminal attorneys to focus on developing relationships with referral sources rather than spending large sums of money on direct-to-consumer marketing initiatives. I challenged them to have enough confidence in their legal ability to always charge a consultation fee. I challenged them to spend more time on business strategy and marketing than they currently have allocated. And I gave them a couple of specific things they could implement on Monday back in their law firms.
Overall I think the presentation was well received. There were lots of questions afterward (which is always a good sign). But there was a noticeable disconnect. It was almost like 30% of the room was speaking a different language.
The most telling moment of the event for me was when one of the speakers asked the audience how many of them had a blog. About a dozen of the 150 lawyers in the room raised their hands. The rest of the group just seemed confused by the reference. Blogs have been around for the better part of 10 years but lawyers have yet to embrace them as a mainstream marketing tool.
But that is not my point. Forget about technology, I could not even find 10 lawyers who took a referral source to lunch once a week. Or sent a hand-written note to a colleague after he passed them a referral. Or thought about the return on investment before spending money on an advertising gimmick.
The point I am trying to make is that attorney marketing basics are not being taught anywhere.
Brian Tannebaum's event was fantastic in that it gets attorneys interested in investing time on marketing and business strategy.
At lunch, in his keynote speech, the great Roy Black actually said that lawyers should stop reading trial guides and should start reading business books. He then went on to say that lawyers needed to become salespeople and he told them to "get over it" if they thought that selling was beneath them.
The criminal defense attorneys who were at the F.A.C.D.L. event now have an idea of what it takes to build a successful law firm. The question remains: Where will they go to find the foundational attorney marketing skills necessary to build the law firms they each deserve?


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Indications that compliance and productivity issues reign over information technology (IT) budgets at pharma companies were verified in the 2005 Pharmaceutical Executive/Life Science Insights Information Technology Survey of nearly 850 US pharma companies. More than 70 percent of respondents named compliance and government regulations as important drivers of new IT purchases by their organizations. Interestingly, attitudes about compliance vary by company size and by function: A slightly higher percentage of small companies (100 to 499 employees) and very large companies (10,000+ employees) categorize compliance as important. Also, IT and corporate management see compliance as significant, more than sales and marketing respondents do. Companies are increasing IT investments related to compliance to preserve data integrity and standardize processes across organizations.
The majority of respondents say they spend an average of five to 10 percent of their IT budget on compliance-related issues, and they expect that spending to increase by more than five percent over the next two to three years. This expected increase has huge implications for spending on IT across large and small pharmaceutical organizations, causing many executives to wonder whether the compliance implementation backlog will dig into discretionary spending in the near term.In addition to compliance considerations as a driver for IT spending, respondents rank the need for productivity increases as the most critical criterion when considering the adoption of a new technology. This is especially true for the sales and marketing functions, which are expected to do more with shrinking staffs.
METHODOLOGY The 2005 Information Technology Survey provides an in-depth view of demand-side expectations regarding IT spending behavior, implementation plans, and acceptance of new technologies across major functional areas—R&D, clinical development, manufacturing/supply chain, sales, marketing, IT and corporate management.
The survey was conducted online in April 2005 and has a respondent base of 839 Pharmaceutical Executive subscribers. The sample is stratified by company size and respondents' functional areas. Respondents who participated in this research were screened to ensure that they have knowledge of, and decision-making roles in, IT investments and implementations made within their respective organizations.
FINDINGS BY FUNCTIONAL AREA R&D Adoption of biomarkers and bioinformatics is expected to increase more than the adoption of proteomics and genomics over the next two years—with biomarkers and bioinformatics cited by 25 percent and 20 percent of respondents, respectively, as the most important technology initiatives.


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Interested in finding a great thriller to read? Look no further then the Suspense and Thriller group on Shelfari. This month they have been busy discussing The Dollmaker with author Amanda Stevens. Readers describe the book as:
"The Dollmaker is satisfyingly creepy." --Cheryl Kaye Tardif
"Amanda Stevens led a group discussion about her book, THE DOLLMAKER, at the Suspense & Thrillers group and what a book it was...For me, it was hard to put this book down and I couldn't read it fast enough. Some members felt the book ended too abruptly. I can see it. I thought the whole thing was perfect. Hands down, this book gets a five star rating." --J. Kaye
"This is an amazing thriller, which I found out after I got over the creepy cover." --iyamvixenbooks
Check out the discussion or view the book trailer.
Happy Reading,