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Confidence Lost - (Or When Words No Longer Matter)
One of the first things one learns when they are in a position of leadership is this: Choose your words carefully, mean what you say, then do what you say you’ll do. If you find you were wrong – admit it, state the reasons why clearly, then articulate once again clearly eschewing as much obliqueness as humanly possible what your intents are going forward – then do them. Rinse, repeat.
The above comes via experience, not some text-book found on some dusty bookshelf within the hallowed halls of academia where theory and an overdrawn dissection of minutia allows one to feel empowered to “lead” others.
The attitude displayed for many who’ve partaken only in thought experiments is this: If they endured endless hours of discussion in classrooms, with noses buried in textbooks, listening to drawn-out oratory given by some professor (where they themselves more than likely never applied these principles in real life situations) and now bear some parchment stating they concluded the preceding, then by dint – they are now qualified to either “lead” or be “leaders.” It’s not only a misguided pretense – It’s a load of bunk.
No more is this phenom becoming more prevalent than in the political arena today. I don’t care if you’re on the Left, Right, or somewhere in between. This isn’t about which side you’re on, or the “your guy or gal” debate. I’m speaking directly about confidence in leadership and what happens when it’s lost.
Although the clearest current examples are what is taking place in the political, make no mistake – they are also happening within the business community at a similar breathtaking pace.
Currently politicians and others involved in policy making are clamoring up to any camera, microphone, or reporter to “clarify” what they stated clearly and emphatically previously.
The problem? More or less many are claiming they were either “taken out of context” or, “that’s not what they truly meant.” The real problem? They forgot about all the cameras, audio recordings, speeches, and more they made previously so there would be no confusion what they originally meant. Now it is they that stand confused.
It’s one thing to try as to clarify, or to make sure original intent is understood. However, when your clarification takes on the aura of an out right lie or revision to the exact opposite of what you said. No words are going to help going further. In actuality – they’ll only cause more outage.
Let me set the premise of this with a very simple example.
You can’t make the argument that you were “taken out of context,” or you now need to “clarify” what you said previously if let’s say you told everyone, “There would be a park filled with flowers, along with a pool, all paid for with new-found revenue sources, that everyone may enjoy to be built in the center of town.”
Then after the construction one finds themselves looking for the words to calm an angry group standing outside their office outraged for when they visited the site not only did they not find a field flowers – it was nothing more than a paved parking lot named “The Flowering Meadows Parking Lot” with meters to insert money into from carpool-ers.
There is no “explaining” or “clarification” or anything else that’s going to work here. It’s all too clear. The only confident thing one will take from any words going forward is the confidence, no matter what you say going forward – is untrustworthy.
You can make this example pertain directly to future earnings calls when the equivalent rational will be used when trying to explain why “earnings” missed because “buybacks” were no longer inevitable with QE no longer available. (availability subject to change I might add just to be “clear”)
When issues like these suddenly rear their ugly heads, textbooks and debate gymnastic skills are not going to provide the answers or resolutions they once believed. (and many will quiver in the realization that maybe – the only textbook answer that may refer to an example is from 18th century France. And we all remember how that worked out.)
The issue at hand that many gloss over, or worse, have no understanding of whatsoever is the undeniable fact as well as truth in the phenom: When people are both scared as well as mad; their memories of what one said are not only long, rather – they are mentally written in the equivalent form of set concrete.
What must also be added to this is the very fact most intellectuals never quite grasp (for their judgement is clouded via their own superiority complex) People may not know or understand the inner workings of X+Y=Z. However, if the resulting combination was told (especially if promised) by a leader that it would result in a monetary or security based payout – and it doesn’t? Katie barring the door as well as lifting the castle bridge won’t hinder the ensuing onslaught. Nor will any proceeding words as to help “clarify” work. It will all be nothing more than moot points shouted over the moat.
This is where that proverbial “fine line” once crossed instantaneously becomes the equivalent of “crossing the Rubicon” when trying to “walk back,” or “clarify” previous remarks.
Few are prepared for such an adventure. And the more one looks for answers in the “textbooks” the higher and brighter the flames rise from the masses as they proceed to burn those very books.
Here is where only action means anything. Words no longer matter. As a matter of fact words more often than not should be sheathed in such circumstances.
Only clear, decisive actions taken by the leader will make any sense as to possibly lay any form of sway to those who now feel disenchanted with either the leader, the organization, or both.
If you’re in the policy making arena there are no words, no statements, no clarifications, no nothing that will change both the perceptions as well as the ensuing anger when people scared of impending perils that may beseech them as in such things as healthcare or other personal issues.
All they will remember is: “If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor” to then find clearly – they can’t.
Or, “If you like your health-plan, you can keep your health-plan” to then receive a cancellation notice stating clearly – they can’t.
Add to this the other mantra, “Your premiums will decrease by as much as $2500.00? to then receive a bill stating clearly – they are going up by a minimum that amount.
There will be nothing one can say to “clarify” or state they were taken “out of context” or any other such revisionist request. People will not buy it – literally.
When times are good as in a raging economy, or a business that’s exploding in growth people as well as many leaders (whether in business or the political) for all intents and purposes tune out the minutia of most discussions and events.
Many will pay little if any attention to what might be seen in retrospect as a “costly set back” because the overwhelming mood or meme is, “things are going along pretty good, we can make up for it going forward.”
However, more often than not it is that exact reasoning that leads one into finding themselves up the river without a paddle just when a missed forecast or previous “unimaginable” tsunami hits.
Personally I only have a degree from the school hard knocks. However, I’ve been the one who received the phone-call or was asked to deal in a company more than once in both crisis management as well as a turnaround situation and have done it successfully. Again – more than once.
I know what it’s like to try to move a company forward picking up the pieces of the preceding “leader” or management where the only thing left behind seems to be distrust.
I’ve worked in both a union, non-union, as well as a mix of the two. What I’ve both learned as well as observed in both the implementation as well the resolution to a crisis is this: You only have one shot to say what you mean, then mean what you say articulated with decisive, immediate action. Other than that – no amount of words or oratory gymnastics will restore a molecule of confidence. Period.
The textbooks currently touted within the hallowed halls of academia all point to dealing with the masses or business interests based on “the state of the economy.”
In general it will be professed when the economy is going along well based on the capital markets, as well as the government reporting agencies (i.e. government reporting agencies reporting GDP is up, unemployment is down etc., etc.) that one can afford to do this, that, or the other thing with little too no concern of costs associated financially or politically. Fair enough one might say. What’s wrong with that?
I might tend to agree with that myself however like I said, I have had the privilege of gaining my education from “Hard Knocks U.” and have learned to be very leery and cautionary of what everyone else deems “conclusive evidence.”
Today we find the most egregious examples of policy makers backtracking, walking back, clarifying, restating, rewriting, you name it in an effort to vanquish the growing onslaught of outright anger festering within the populace.
And many are finding themselves with little time as to scratch their head let alone come up with the words to slow down the crowd as they try piling the living room furniture ever higher against the door in a hope this will allow for more time and find the “right words or message” that may quell the fury. It won’t, for this didn’t happen in a vacuum.
It happened because they believed the words of others that only parrot back what the policy makers wanted to both hear – as well as believe. Which people like myself and very few others have been pounding our desks and keyboards trying to get anyone to listen.
For it’s for these very reasons the interventionist monetary policies first implemented by the Federal Reserve and now being carried into the future in unison by other Central Banks are, and have been, so dangerous.
For they’ve been shielding policy makers as well as a great many of the business community from seeing or believing the true health and structure of the once best gauge of financial health and political stability – The capital markets.
Earlier during the dreaded days following the financial crisis of 2008 policy makers everywhere took to what was once known as the “business media.” Many were appearing more often on a “financial channel” than they were on CSPAN™.
Suddenly politicians and policy makers seemed to be (and currently still are) “the go to guests” crowding out the once coveted true “business leader.” Let alone any with an opposing viewpoint of true economics.
It became quite obvious any business leader (one that actually ran a company) that seemed indifferent to the “party line” that things were not all that they seemed, suddenly found themselves out of the on-air, rah, rah, “power rotation.”
What was not lost on some of us was when then House Leader back then was quick to state not only did they watch channels such as CNBC™ (which was where this interview was conducted) but that they were on in every office throughout Washington.
Is it any wonder why these leaders are suddenly finding themselves caught within the wrath of a political firestorm coming from all sides?
It would seem the only people still watching this channel (as per their reported ratings which are prima facie disastrous) are these very same leaders.
Words, numbers, earnings and more at one time had a believable meaning there also. But that was a very long time ago. So long – even the leaders of that network seems to have forgotten what the meaning of words like business, free markets, capitalism and others once meant.
Now it’s nothing but a televised version of crony styled capitalism cheerleaders rolled out one after another in such procession P.T.Barnum would be proud.
The problem is the more they talk – the more people tune out. For no amount of words stated matter any longer. Nor do the myriad of “charts” “reports” or so-called “facts” they hold up as evidence. No one is listening or watching. And what’s worse?
Nobody now cares.
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Don't listen to what they say - Look at what they do.
When people trust psychopathic greedy strangers to care for them....they get what they should expect...fucked.
The way out of the maze is independence. If they wont let you they are the enemy.
RIPS
Yup.
It's truly scary, and sad, how many of our "problems" would simply go away if people would simply exercise more self-reliance and more personal responsibility taking.
Listen.
Let me explain it another way. When you know that "SUGAR" daddy is always going to save you, you never fear the abyss.
Rally time! To the moon. USSA Confidence is infinite.
Well, um, the "scientists" at the IPCC used this excuse when the Climategate scandal broke out. Massaging data to fit models... that was taken out of context. It's a travesty there has been no warming since the 1990s... oh that's out of context too. Oh, you non-scientists reading these e-mails are too ignorant to know what we are saying, even though our discourse is in plain English.
Lost of confidence! That was the result of Climategate. More people than ever are "sceptical" of global warming, now.
It was the front and center issue of 2006, now it is close to dead last in the polls in less than a decade.
Crony capitalism is essentially a condition in which... public officials are giving favours to people in the private sector in payment of political favours.
Alan Greenspan
The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.
Ayn Rand
The trouble with lying and deceiving is that their efficiency depends entirely upon a clear notion of the truth that the liar and deceiver wishes to hide.
Hannah Arendt
The rulers of the state are the only persons who ought to have the privilege of lying, either at home or abroad; they may be allowed to lie for the good of the state.
Plato
I have always loved truth so passionately that I have often resorted to lying as a way of introducing it into the minds which were ignorant of its charms.
Giacomo Casanova
What's one more lie amongst so many?
This confirms what the above article is saying about MSM, no? Ask ten strangers what the IPCC is, what AR5 is, or what COP21 in Paris is and you'll get a lot of "um". Then ask them what "climategate" is. "mission accomplished". Mind you may need to ask more than ten people to get any response other than "um"LOL
"There is no pause" said Michell Jarruad, Sec/Gen of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO, co-sponsor of the IPCC) 31MAR14. Note that the thumbnail image for this youtube video is the MSM journalist John Parker from The Economist raising the "pause" issue. Here's the clip where the issue is raised and then addressed first by the WG2 lead author Chris Fields and then by Michell Jarruad.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZONwnqWFe8&feature=player_embedded#t=4672
if anyone cares to 'listen!' ; )
CNBC's objective is to make Bernanke-Yellen-Obama's policies look good, even if means a viewership of zero.
CNN's HARD-HITTING investigation: Republicans used Twitter to communicate!
http://tinyurl.com/ldvjknr
I tune in CNBC daily'
The talking heads say: 'shoo doot n shooby doo.'
Answered by: 'do be do be do'
And then a woman chimes in:'da do ron ron ron, da do ron ron'
Fleishman adds,'a wamp bom a lu-momp, a wamp bam boom
A pundit murmmers; 'oo, ee, oo ah-ah, ting, tang, walla walla bing bang."
Another adds,'dip-dip-dip-dip dip-dip-dip-dip, dum-dum-dum-dum dum-dum-dum-dum, sha-na naa-na, sha-na na-na naa-na.'
One paraphrases Yellen: 'the gilly gilly ossen feffer katzen ellen bogen by the sea'
Another quotes Bernake: 'twas brillig and all throughout the borogroves the mome rath outgabe
In conclusion, in unison they say: 'the rarshing tward did snarfel, like glomads in the sun, but when the dap was heifeled, the smarking was begun.'
I get it, and its always the same.
+ LOL!
Bravo!
Ahhh, wise words from a true seer...i love that style...
Madame DaFarge's knitting needles are starting to glow red from all the friction...
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-11-30/guest-post-lets-have-depression...
Thank God there's no corruption in America, otherwise we'd have a real problem.
/s (necessary?)
"Now it’s nothing but a televised version of crony styled capitalism cheerleaders rolled out one after another in such procession P.T.Barnum would be proud."
Bullshit...Barnum put on a good show, he would be laughing at this shit show not proud of it!
Well, the reason of life is... Well you just fake yourself through it and act more happy than your friends...
I thought the meaning of life was 42
18-35 ...after that, it's downhill
Only if your chromosomes are of the XX persuasion.
The head of the Cleveland Clinic, which has been running incessant commercials on CNBC in the Intermountain West (1,700 miles away) - claimed on "Meet the Press" that healthcare was more affordable now, premiums were going down, and care was better.
It was a panel of two liars and one half-truth teller, with Chuck Todd bobbing his head and not asking any tough questions.
It was beyond pitiful, it was full-bore propaganda, and it was infuriating to watch.
This type of debate has been going on my entire life.
When Melissa Francis- who earned her econ degree from Harvard btw- mentioned on CNBC that O'DummyCare numbers didn't add up she was told by CNBC management numerous times to STFU.
CNBS just responded to her 1st hand account:
CNBC spokesman: “That’s laughable, but we take notice, because as the fastest-growing network in prime time, we’re always on the lookout for high quality comedy writers and actresses.”
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2014/11/the-spike-obamacare-edition.php
Obama was out again recently and stated he just heard about this guy Gruber and what he said about Obamacare on the news. Never heard about it before, was never on Obama's staff. And, of course, Obama's now "mad as a hornet" and will get right on fixing this when he gets back to DC. Stop me if you've heard this one before somewhere.
When the top leadership position in the nation is occupied by a lying sack of shit who's an order of magnitude worse than Nixon ever was, what do you expect? If it's OK for the President to lie openly, blatantly, multiple times, over and over with malice aforethought, why is it not OK for everyone else to get in on the action?
I know it's popular around here to say that leadership doesn't matter, but my experience is that it does. It matters a lot.
Of course leadership matters, I just wish we had some......
Pelosi told the same lie, said she'd never heard of Gruber, but at a press conference in 2009 Pelosi specifically mentions Gruber: http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/justice-jeanine/index.html
(The Pelosi contradictory clips start at 5:19 - link opens in new window/tab)
knuckles is gonna be heartbroken...
I give Pelosi the benefit of the doubt since:
1) Gruber was not a megabucks donor. In which case she would have fawningly pretended to remember him even if she didn't in actuality.
2) Pelosi is old, old, old and was obviously not particularly intelligent even when all of her brain cells were fully operational.
3) Her doctor is using too long a needle for her botox treatments.
And I give President Handicap the benefit of the doubt because he always lies and therefore it would be illogical to expect anything else from him.
In conclusion, you are an obvious member of some sexist/racist cabal and should have your taxes audited immediately.
NO ONE has ever heard of Gruber !!
Yet they throw serious Munny to him!
there is no leadership
just a decision tree ... everything flows from:
is this good for wallstreet/MIC/Energy/Health/stock market?
if yes, then proceed
if no, then find out what is good for above
@ NoDebt:
Jello Biafra covered what you said 24 years ago at a Ministry concert, in regards to "If it's OK for the President to lie openly, blatantly, multiple times, over and over with malice aforethought, why is it not OK for everyone else to get in on the action?"
Here is his Pledge of Allegiance:
"with Chuck Todd bobbing his head and not asking any tough questions."
no doubt ... i pretty much gave up watching MTP after Russert ... gregory absolute joke ... on occassion when he would ask tough question ... allow guest to hem and haw a non answer ... then move on
not a big russert fan ... but at least he was a bit more dogged and would re-ask
on a side note .... used to watch Washington Journal on CSPAN ... they only would allow guests on who would take caller questions ... made for some great theatre (which is why the big kahunas would never/rarely participate) ... about they only big time pol who regularly showed (when i watched which was probably 10 yrs ago) was chuck grassley ... it was fun to see him get all prickly over pointed questions
Your not allowed to upset your sponsers, whether they be corporate or government but asking hard questions and telling the truth will get you kicked to the streets as Sharyl Attkisson recently demonstrated.
yep ... just about all mainstream media outlets are owned by big corps ... which at any given time have business in front of fedgov (looking for a tax break, license renewal, mergers, fedgov contracts up for grabs, etc) and will do nothing to upset the apple cart
"I don’t care if you’re on the Left, Right, or somewhere in between. This isn’t about which side you’re on, or the “your guy or gal” debate. I’m speaking directly about confidence in leadership and what happens when it’s lost."
Look what still passes for leadership. Obama, Pelosi, Boehner, Reid, McConnell. Nothing has really changed since November 3, 2014.
What this country needs is a real good dose of Irish Alzheimers.
Those guys have the same ears that Barry has. Are they related?
Only in the sense that their skull bones occupy three-quarters of the the volume of their heads.
leadership isn"t there an Iturd app for that yet ??
Gruber or Jewber (being a tribal member I fucking hate these pieces of shit whose ancestors should have been exterminated because they give the small number of us a bad name) should be tied to a board, a hole drilled into his skull and his brains vacuumed out. Then go kill his kids, relatives and his pet dog, whatever it is, kill it.
Oh hi ... looks like you're using The Secret Playbook of Internet Trolls
GW, you think I'm a fake, I've been posting here for almost a year and with a pretty consistent message,
Endeavor to persevere..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsL6mKxtOlQ
"You only have one shot to say what you mean, then mean what you say articulated with decisive, immediate action. Other than that – no amount of words or oratory gymnastics will restore a molecule of confidence. Period."
Didn't ECB's Draghi say again today, that he was going to do whatever it takes? Why is anyone still hanging on his every word? The market should have ignored him this morning. How long ago should Draghi's one shot been over?
You have to understand the context is taken to mean how HE comes out at the end. Whatever it takes to make HIM look good. Nothing past the end of his nose matters.
that's Jim Cramer and Steve Liesman right?
I would love to shove those two's cocks in each others' mouths (69 style) and sew them together like human centipede. Fucking bootlickers.
I'd rather just not watch CNBS. I don't even have cable/satelite, because it's a waste of time watching it.
Don't forget Pisani. For some reason he bugs the shit out of me.
Here we go again, people can't distinguish the difference between virtual world values and the real world. Bankers and companies know the difference and they make money that way.. I call it "The Grays'..
http://ducknetweb.blogspot.fr/2014/03/virtual-worlds-real-world-we-have....
Something else worth noting is that people don't work that way either and take the Bloomberg Big Gulp failed proof of concept model that failed and see how even if one is rich and has all kinds of power, you can still fall on your face as again people don't work that way and look at the wasted time and money he caused with all of that. Flawed models will fail and every proof of concept does not work in the real world.
http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/11/how-many-more-bloomberg-big-gulp-failed.html
Honest Quants will tell you all about virtual and real world values if you watch the Quant documentary, they are the master of all of this.
http://ducknetweb.blogspot.hk/2012/09/quants-alchemists-of-wall-street-video.html
That quote sounds very unscientific. You must believe in sky wizards and magickal thinking. Models are an excellent representation of the physical world. And, no, I didn't take you "out of context"!
/very sarc
Our Main Stream Media has gone lame and stupid, so the noises they make are crazy stuff that needs to be tuned out, and that impacts the whole political framework, means lame and stupid politicians fit in the best and get elected twice.
They are not stupid. It's much worse than that. They are blatantly willing to sell out their fellow Americans for what's in their own self-interest. The lowest of the low. Saying they're stupid lets them off the hook. Don't let them off the hook.
These parasites can continue to lose money with no viewers. Down the road all the MSM smugly expect taxpayer bailouts of about 30 billion per year to approved networks for manufactured news like the BBC in UK. Winners and losers to be determined by their compliance in broadcasting fake news. The truth is already a crime.
+100 for t he "manufactured news like the BBC--" Love It. You're probably right.
I agree with the article...except....for the implication that eventually people will develop "long memories" of what actually happened.
During my many years on the earth, the average person's memory has neither been long nor accurate. While it is true, folks tend to remember personal slights and really bad emotional events....their memory of events and what actually CAUSED those events is frequently wrong or missing all together. When it comes to people's memory of politicians, they tend to remember in 'memes'....that is they only remember what 'their guy' did right....and what 'the other guy' did wrong....thus allowing the side-show that is our two-party system to continue full steam.
We've had enough outright lies and failed policies happen over the last 30 years, that if the general population's ability to remember was working, the popular discussion would be different....but....they lurch from one issue to the next, mesmerized and dazzled by whatever distraction is offered. ....(one of the reasons I like coming to ZH, is the discussion tends to center more on what is going on)......
"Please check with your local MSM in case you are insecure on how you can truthfully render actual activities in the finance world"
Let's see: Orwell wrote "1984" as a warning and not as a user manual...
Thumbs up :-)
Forgive me for being so jaded but I find it interesting that ABC Good Morning America reported that this Philae lander hoax landing on comet 67P (hidden 11) that was 4, FOUR! billion miles away. When everyone else is repeating the tale of it being 300 million miles away. Not only is no one calling the repeater bimbet out on it, I'm guessing no one gives a shit after all. You have to sit through the first ABC News video to see the bimbet.
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/time-running-philae-lander-comet/story?...
PS - It's too late.
Well put .
Loss of Respect scuppers all .
See
https://www.academia.edu/9354151/The_Economics_of_Disrespect_
Or
http://andreswhy.blogspot.com/2014/11/economics-of-disrespect.html
No one is listening.
http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A2KIo9j2gWpUFQQAxVH7w8QF;_...
It is going to be sad when the msm financial network television gets a "bail in", because of low viewership and they are deemed significantly important institutions.