Ethics and The City In The Sea - Poem by Edgar Allan Poe

The City in the Sea is a poem that discusses death and the lack of values. It is a mystical city that doesn't have motivation and lacks a certain compass. It is a place of discovery as though Poe is seeing a foreign land. It is a helpful poem that reminds us that people should have certain values and if they don't they lack a compass and dwell in a place that is dark and gloomy. The same idea can be applied to business ethics.

The City In The Sea - Poem by Edgar Allan Poe

Lo! Death has reared himself a throne
In a strange city lying alone
Far down within the dim West,

Where the good and the bad and the worst and the best
Have gone to their eternal rest.
There shrines and palaces and towers
(Time-eaten towers that tremble not!)
Resemble nothing that is ours.
Around, by lifting winds forgot,
Resignedly beneath the sky
The melancholy waters he.

No rays from the holy heaven come down
On the long night-time of that town;
But light from out the lurid sea
Streams up the turrets silently-
Gleams up the pinnacles far and free-
Up domes- up spires- up kingly halls-
Up fanes- up Babylon-like walls-
Up shadowy long-forgotten bowers
Of sculptured ivy and stone flowers-
Up many and many a marvellous shrine
Whose wreathed friezes intertwine
The viol, the violet, and the vine.
Resignedly beneath the sky
The melancholy waters lie.
So blend the turrets and shadows there
That all seem pendulous in air,
While from a proud tower in the town
Death looks gigantically down.

There open fanes and gaping graves
Yawn level with the luminous waves;
But not the riches there that lie
In each idol's diamond eye-
Not the gaily-jewelled dead
Tempt the waters from their bed;
For no ripples curl, alas!
Along that wilderness of glass-
No swellings tell that winds may be
Upon some far-off happier sea-
No heavings hint that winds have been
On seas less hideously serene.

But lo, a stir is in the air!
The wave- there is a movement there!
As if the towers had thrust aside,
In slightly sinking, the dull tide-
As if their tops had feebly given
A void within the filmy Heaven.
The waves have now a redder glow-
The hours are breathing faint and low-
And when, amid no earthly moans,
Down, down that town shall settle hence,
Hell, rising from a thousand thrones,
Shall do it reverence. 

How Shared Marketing Impacted San Diego's Economy

San Diego is a popular tourist destination. The San Diego Tourist Authority's 2017 Annual Report shows how pooling marketing money around certain themes can make a big difference on the economy. There is more that can be done here but lets first look at the impact.

 "These travelers spent almost $11 billion in San Diego last year and generated over $778 million in total tax revenues. San Diego’s tourism industry employs over 194,000 at 12,000 area businesses, from large multi-million dollar corporations to small independents."

These shared efforts by collaborating businesses increased tourism within the region and the amount of visitors staying and spending in the area.

 "Our sales teams continued to deliver over a million booked room nights for the destination and our sports sales team secured major sporting events to elevate San Diego’s international reputation."

Online visitors and people familiar with he area spread the word

"Marketing programs generated over 6 billion gross impressions and the San Diego brand story is now being told across multiple media platforms, channels, storytellers and influencers around the world."

It is important for regions to understand what there core offerings are and provide a collaborated approach to marketing. That doesn't mean that each doesn't have their own budget but there often is a wider benefit to companies creating a unified campaign.

The next step in marketing growth is to get these companies to include just a piece of the area branding concepts into their corporate marketing campaigns. With enough businesses engage in the process they can even further reach more people who may not only be interested in products/services but also become aware of the area. The theme should be influenced by those industries that have the biggest impact on all the other businesses within clusters.

 https://media.nbcnewyork.com/documents/SDTA+FY17AnnualReport-1.pdf

The Dangers to Companies That Use Layoffs as a Strategy

Sometimes companies get stale and lose market relevance. They need to rejuvenate themselves. Far too often executives use layoffs to balance their budgets without realizing the long term consequences of not considering other options first. Without creating more market relevance the overall outlook goes from difficult to dangerous.

Cutting capacity without building new revenue streams. While it may make sense to sometimes to cut expenses it will be useless in the long run without find new ways of making money. The irrelevancy of the organization as it currently stands is part of not having a viable market strategy.

There is also a "hit" to employee moral and retention. High quality employees move onto other companies, people feel insecure and limit their work, and the culture becomes self-consuming as people become afraid of losing their job.

The reputation also is punished in the market for about 3 years. The stock price suppressing thereby sucking needed capital for a turnaround and increasing the risk of future bankruptcy.

When times get tough companies should first consider methods of rejuvenating their business position and then move toward layoffs as part of the strategy to hire those skills which will help them implement those new strategies. Before going down the road of excessive cost cutting companies must consider the fallout from not finding better ways of doing business.

Early Morning on the Docks

Waking up early on the docks is an experience that only a few hope to have. The first smell of the ocean is fantastic in the morning. Chances are it will be nippy and cool so your heater will be on. A little "wake up" blast of cool air never hurt anyone.

As you turn on your coffee pot it will cut through the morning fog. The smell of coffee on a quiet and hazy ocean is a beacon that the day will be fantastic.

Not a soul awake in the early morning. A few fishing boats heading out for the daily catch but most sailors are sleeping in.

The animals are awake. They confiscate the docks until the morning when people start walking back and forth. Heron, cranes, cormorant, ducks and an occasional parrot may be waiting to great you.

As you walk down the docks you hear little creatures jumping in the water, squawking and getting out of your way. Your footprints in the dew mark your walk to the shore. In a few hours everything will be to life again.

Why Marketing is the Success or Failure is in Business?

Create Your Brand: Know what your company stands for and what it believes. Think about the themes you will carry through your different advertising pieces and how that relates to your customers interests and needs. 

Marketing is a core aspect of competing in business. Without customers you have nothing. When you start a new business you will need to ensure that your marketing program is strong. Much of your time will be spent marketing to customers in order to raise your customer base and make sales. Because budgets are limited there will be considerable "hands on" work you will need to compete.


Research and Define your Potential Customers: No business is everything to everyone. If you desire to earn the most money possible you should know who your customers are and what times of services, activities, products and services appeal to them.

Select the "Right" Marketing Channels: If you want to earn the highest return on your items then you will need to find those channels most used by your potential customers. Make sure that you understand what channels customers use to interact with the world.

Get Busy: Continue to advertise your business wherever you are. Make sure that you put it out on social media, talk to friends, pass out cards, attend events, etc...

Fertilizing Creativity and a Learning Culture in Your Organization

Organizations must change or die! As organizations move toward the top it is necessary for them to create a nimble learning culture that helps them overcome market challenges. Often managers become set in their ways and are more concerned with how to keep people working toward an objective that may not make sense then to actually groom them or implement new ways of doing things that have higher returns.

I have found over the years the best way to create innovation is to tap into people's natural motivation and their need to find meaning within the organization.

How does this happen?

When working with employees you should consider their ideas in the development of the company. Ask them about their ideas and to bring them forward for discussion. Your job as a manager is to weed which one's employees can spend some time on and which not.

Getting employees involved ties them to the organization. They will fell as though they are building something.

When someone passes an idea to you that seems to make sense have them put together a short 1-page proposal of what they would like to do and how it will help the company.

If this proposal makes sense you can consider giving them a little time to work on it and put some better numbers together. Have them conduct a preliminary investigation and determine the resources, time and benefits to the organization.

As you develop a full picture and the resources needed you can move into more project management orientation and develop your teams to actually make these projects work. You will need to be picky because time and money are limited resources. However, each rejected and improve project contributes to organizational innovation, employee development, culture, and revenue.

Shrimp Fajita Recipe-A cheap way to do it!

I have been to lots of different restaurants and paid $17 for a single shrimp fajita meal. Two people and that is around $40 not including the two glasses of wine that also cost $10 a piece. If you want to add a tip your are looking at $70. Not bad but you might be able to make a something that event tastes better in your home.

For under $22 you can get yourself a bottle of wine and make shrimp fajitas that feeds 4 people. They turned out fabulous. Just as a side note I got the uncooked large shrimp from Sprouts. They made for a tastier meal.

Simple Shrimp Fajita Recipe

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided1 green bell pepper, sliced1 red bell pepper, sliced1 pound medium shrimp - peeled and deveined1 cup (1 small) chopped onion

1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix 3 tablespoons water, or as needed

Two avocados for slicing.

Spicy salsa.

Sour Cream

6 (10 inch) flour tortillas, warmed

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the red and green bell peppers, and onion. Cook, stirring frequently until peppers are hot, but still slightly crisp, about 5 minutes. Set aside.

Pour the remaining  oil into the skillet, and add the shrimp. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pink. Reduce heat to low, and return the peppers and onion to the skillet. Stir in taco seasoning and water. Simmer until peppers are heated.

Serve in warm tortillas.

Per Serving: 400 calories, 18.8 g protein