How to Read People

Your neighbor buys a brand new BMW -- the same one you eyed in a catalog last week -- and you burn with envy. Your coworker purchases a new house and invites you to a housewarming party. You debate whether to turn down the invitation only because you're angry that you haven't found a home for yourself after a frustrating two-year search.  There will always be things others possess that we wish we could own, too.  But comparing yourself to others and always trying to keep up with the Joneses is the wrong approach. If you want something badly, work hard to acquire it -- whether that means saving money for years, cutting vacations for a while, or angling for a promotion.  Once you have it in your possession, take pride in the fact that you accomplished a huge goal by virtue of your hard work -- that you rewarded yourself with something you truly deserved.  In other words, what you achieve should revolve solely around you -- not what others do o...

The word of the day is phalanx. It sounds like something that would be related to sphinxes, pyramids, and other things you'd find in, say, Egypt. I first heard the word used in the movie "Night at the Museum," which came out in 2006. Ben Stiller's character, a nightguard at the Museum of Natural History in New York, mentions that Attila the Hun -- ruler of the Hunnic Empire from 434 until 453, "surrounded himself with a phalanx of sorcerers and magicians." Per Dictionary.com, phalanx could mean the following: (1) any body of troops in close array (2) a number of individuals, especially person's united for a common purpose (3) a compact or closely massed body of persons, animals, or things In other words, it's a unique way of saying: - group -collection -myriad -throng -flock -horde I don't see phalanx being adopted in the corporate world anytime soon, but it's still a funky word nonetheless. Next time someone asks w...

It does, but only to a certain degree. Surely, one must put themselves out there in order to be noticed. A partner won't magically fall in your lap, and being holed up in your room all day greatly diminishes your prospects. But you don't want to overdo it either. A girl I used to work with treated virtually every guy she met in the workplace as a possible love interest. Vetting every man or woman you come across does come off as desperate. That's why, in the world of dating, it's better to work smarter, not harder. Go to places where people with whom you share a certain hobby are likely to be. If you want to date a bookworm, head to the library. If dancing is your thing, you might want to sign up for salsa lessons. If a partner with a great physique is atop your list, you ought to be spending time at the gym. You get the idea. You want to frequent places where you're bound to find people whose interests mirror or at least complement yours. In other words...

If people laugh at you because you're different, laugh right back at them for being all the same. I've written several posts on the importance of embracing one's uniqueness -- and disregarding what people say we should and shouldn't do -- because I think far too many of us fall victim to the herd mentality that has become so pervasive in society. On Thanksgiving night, my brother-in-law put me on the spot for not drinking. He still can't wrap his head around the fact that I don't drink. Then, two days later at my niece's afternoon birthday party, I returned the favor by asking him, "No alcohol for lunch today?" That made him a little defensive -- he pointed out how he only drinks two or three times a week -- and hopefully it conveyed that it's time to put the issue to rest. Peer pressure is even less effective on me when it comes from someone I hardly come into contact with throughout the year, like him. Here's another example: ...

On September 20, 1881, Chester Arthur was inaugurated, making him the third person to serve as president that year . The year 1881 commenced with Republican Rutherford B. Hayes in office. He served out his first and only term and officially handed the reins of government to his friend James A. Garfield in March. Just four months into his term, on July 2, Garfield was shot by a deranged assassin named Charles Guiteau, who claimed to have killed Garfield because he failed to grant him a a political appointment. Garfield sustained wounds to his abdomen and back and struggled to recover that summer. Though it seemed he'd pull through in early September, the autopsy report showed that the internal bullet wound contributed to an aneurysm that ultimately killed Garfield on September 19. The next day, Vice President Chester Arthur was sworn in as president. Garfield’s assassin wrote to the new president from jail, taking credit for propelling Arthur into the White House. Arthur ser...