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Fans of Jimi Hendrix are sometimes astonished to learn that the popular Hendrix tune “All Along the Watchtower” is actually a cover tune of a song originally composed by Bob Dylan. For those not clear on what I mean by the term “cover,” periodically some artist or band will record a song that is a […]

Building Your Power of Expression Indomitable,  adj. Pronunciation: inˈdämədəb(ə)l Meaning: Impossible to subdue or defeat. Usage: Forget it; you cannot stop him for he is of an indomitable disposition. If we defeat last season’s champion, it is safe to say we will be, for all intents and purposes, indomitable. I’m not the least bit worried […]

In case you hadn’t noticed, we live in complex times. Possibly not as complex as will be the case in, say, the year 2047, but much more complex than was the case in 1847. Many people find it difficult to stay productive. Many people are spinning their wheels. Many people go through the motions in […]

I recently listened to an eye-opening and very disturbing speech by a man named Charles Stimson. Stimson is the deputy director of the Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies. Here are some of the eye-opening things I learned from Mr. Stimson. Roughly 90% of criminal cases in our country are handled by […]

There is a passage in the Hebrew Bible, located within what is referred to as the Wisdom Literature, that has always caught my attention. It’s found in the book of Proverbs, 23rd chapter, 7th verse. In the King James vernacular, it reads as follows: “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” It […]

Building Your Power of Expression Suffuse v. Pronunciation: səˈfyo͞oz Meaning: To gradually spread through or over. . . I often prefer to use this verb in the past tense. Usage: Her cheeks were suffused with color. The first half of the poem was suffused with idealism. The darkness suffused him, seized him, and enveloped him […]

To this day, one of my favorite rock band is The Who. Pete Townshend, the guitarist and primary composer (he wrote almost all of their songs) churned out an impressive body of work over the decades. Who can forget hits like Pinball Wizard, Baba O’Reilly, Slip Kid, or Join Together? But even some of his […]

National Public Radio was in the news this month. One of their senior editors, a man named Uri Berliner, who had been employed by NPR for 25 years, had seen some troubling things at the media outlet. Now, I should say that Uri Berliner is no Conservative. He’s been a Democrat-voting liberal all of his […]

Two issues ago, in Uncommon Sense #304, I wrote about the ethical issues surrounding the Biden Administration’s open border policy. One of the comments I made in that article read as follows: “In Denver, it has gotten so out of control that citizens of Denver are now being asked to open their homes to the […]

I recently posted something fairly innocuous on social media. I was commenting on the beauty and the virtue of a certain edifice of sacred significance, a place of profound meaning and enlightenment. There shouldn’t have been anything controversial about what I said. And yet, a certain small but deeply troubled demographic that lurks among us […]

Building Your Power of Expression Acrid adj. Pronunciation: ˈakrəd Meaning: Originally, acrid referred to anything having a repugnant taste or smell. It has come to be applied to anything that can be said to be angry or bitter. Usage: She posted many things with an acrid, near-hysterical shrillness that was very off-putting. Try to calm […]

I credit one of my very first mentors, a man named Donald W. Atkinson, for introducing me to success literature. This took place back in about 1978 or 1979. Don was a powerhouse speaker and it was he that introduced me to the National Speakers Association, which let to my becoming their youngest ever member […]

Life can be tough. Very tough. There is much human suffering that is brought about by what seem to be normal occurrences of life: disease, injuries, even the incapacitations that come from life-enhancing medical procedures such as surgeries, as the patient needs patience as she heals, slowly, burdened every day by immobility until the healing […]

It feels good to laugh. Laughter is a real “high” as endorphins are released into the bloodstream, providing an emotional sensation that is almost euphoric. Sometimes we get to laugh at ourselves, and it is good if we do so. We shouldn’t take ourselves too seriously. Other times we get to laugh with others (notice […]

Building Your Power of Expression Preen v. Pronunciation: prēn Meaning: While this word is often found in the field of ornithology (the study of birds – i.e., when a bird cleans its feathers with its beak, it is preening itself) the word also pertains to people who are busy making themselves look attractive and/or admiring […]

In both my professional work, and as a college professor in the School of Business where I teach, I often help individuals and organizations get clarity around matters that pertain to culture. I help clients work on getting clear on things like their governing values, the personal or corporate mission statement, perhaps their vision statement, […]

It’s really no secret that the current administration decided to ignore immigration law and open up our southern borders.  Doing so could not possibly be an accident – as Republican Senator John Kennedy from Louisiana once stated, “No one is that incompetent.  It has to be by design.” Why would a President of the United […]

I recently (Issue #302) wrote about bullying in this column. I received a lot of feedback on that piece, and it got me thinking about bullying even further. It has since occurred to me that a less violent form of bullying often occurs in more professional settings by insecure individuals who wish to push their […]

Building Your Power of Expression Superimpose v. Pronunciation: ˌso͞op(ə)rəmˈpōz Meaning: To place or lay one thing over another, typically so that both are still evident. Usage: The number will appear on the screen, superimposed on a flashing button. She tried to superimpose her ideas of perfection onto the lazy habits of her children. I’m wondering, […]

When Elon Musk, the wealthiest man on planet earth, was once asked how it was possible that a businessman such as himself knew how to fire rockets into space, he replied, succinctly, “I read books.” Most forward-thinking people read books. But few do so effectively. What do I mean? They are somewhat passive. They are […]

Some of you more partisan types will mistakenly imagine this column is about vindicating Donald Trump. It is not. Trump may or may not be guilty of inflating the value of his properties, for which he is currently facing a trial in a court of law brought on by Fulton County (Atlanta) District Attorney Fani […]

I find the entire saga of the Fall of Adam and Eve utterly fascinating and thought provoking. While virtually all of the known Christian dogmas on this consequential occurrence view the Fall with regret, remorse, and disdain (often blaming Eve for succumbing to the temptations of Lucifer, who approached her through the medium of a […]

Building Your Power of Expression Jettison, v. Pronunciation: ˈjedəsən, ˈjedəzən Meaning: To abandon or discard something (or someone) that is no longer needed or wanted. Usage: We had one too many bulldozers on the project so we jettisoned one of them. Since we no longer need any of the temp workers, let’s jettison them – […]

So your resume attracted someone enough to grant you a job interview. Congratulations! You must have a reasonably good résumé to pull that off. Now you get to “audition” for the job. Will you be as dazzling as was your résumé? Time will tell. Many job interviews still take place over the phone or in […]

Originally posted on X (formerly Twitter) on February 10, 2024. https://twitter.com/BillAckman/status/1756477098313625644   I am sure all of us have had the experience of reading a story about a subject you know well and finding it replete with inaccuracies and falsehoods. One then turns the page and reads an article about a subject one knows less […]

I attended Junior High School in Los Altos, a posh little community located in Northern California, in a region today known as Silicon Valley. The school was called Egan Junior High School. It encompassed 7th and 8th grade. I didn’t care for the place, even though we had it pretty good. I remember feeling apprehensive […]

Building Your Power of Expression Farcical, adj. Pronunciation: ˈfärsək(ə)l Meaning: When something is described as farcical, it is being associated with being a farce, especially due to its ridiculous aspects or its absurd properties. Usage: The presentation was so odd and disjointed that it bordered on the farcical. His account of what happened revealed that […]

We are a nation of conformists. Something gets invented (the smart phone, the microwave oven, the seatbelt, the calculator, Velcro) and we behave like we have reached the pinnacle of possibilities with that invention. And we settle. We conform. We become complacent. Here’s a thought: You – yes you – can be an innovator. You […]

There were a number of incidents in the news this past week, all of them troubling, that raise a number of questions. Some of those questions touch on the issue of ethics. See where you land on these recent news episodes. Sonny Hostin of the popular gabfest The View has always maintained that black people […]

There is an old saying that’s been around for a while: “Be careful what you wish for.” There are times that we wish for things, and actually attain things, that may seem like a good idea at the time, but then we end up regretting the decision. That is because often times there are unintended […]