Kathleen Wall

Kathleen Wall:

“Don’t Ever Be Satisfied”

Edited and Arranged by:

Joseph W. Norman

One of the first things one notices about Kathleen Wall, Professor for the Jones School of Business at SUNY Geneseo, is her positive energy and vibrant personality. Kathleen was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and stayed local to study at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Her background has taken her from a planned career in archaeology, to work as a corporate librarian, an MBA in Operations Management, over two decades of production and operation management consulting work, and now arguably her favorite occupation, professor of business at Geneseo. She urges people to, “Never be satisfied,” a piece of advice she received in passing from an 85 year old woman who worked part time at a jewelry store.

VIP: How did you get to where you are now?

Kathleen Wall (KW): Oh my word, it is the most convoluted thing you’ve ever heard in your life. How many hours do you have? (Laughing)

I went to school to be an archaeologist at the University of Wisconsin. And then, one time when I was home (home being Milwaukee), I was looking at the want ads and I didn’t see too many for archaeologists. So, I thought, “Jeez.” Then, just happenstance, I had lunch with a woman at school who was majoring in Library Science. I said, “Librarians go to school?”

So, I got a degree in library science and I went to work for a company in Milwaukee that had a corporate library. You may or may not know that most good sized corporations have a private collection. Some of them are big enough that they hire librarians. I worked for Borg Warner. They are an OEM, tier one supplier to the automobile industry. They make transmissions and really exotic things like hub caps and wheels – anything that’s on the drive train of a car. Ford is their biggest customer.

At that time, Borg Warner was doing a lot of research about automating their factories. When the engineers were working on a project or needed information, they would come to the library and say, “We need information on this, or, what has been written on this?” So, we would do searches for them. I got really interested in automation and robotics, so I started to work on an MBA. Because I was working in a manufacturing company, I knew that if I wanted to advance, I had to get out of a service position and move into a line position - something that was a direct part of the business function - which was making motor parts.

So, I majored in Operations Management at DePaul in Chicago. When I got out of school I went to my boss and said, “Well, I got my MBA now, so where in the company can I go?” I told him I wanted to work in a factory. So what he did was he sent me to all of the dirtiest, lousiest factories that Borg Warner had so I could see how rotten it was to work in a factory. He said, “To start out in operations you either have to be a line supervisor or you can get into production and inventory control; do planning, scheduling, buying raw materials.” Then I began to realize they weren’t going to put a woman in charge of operations. Borg Warner was just too traditional.

I read an article in Business Week about a man named Dennis Wisniewski who was starting a business for factory automation, right there in Naperville, Illinois. This was right down the toll way from where I was then. It was 1985. So, I wrote Dennis a letter and said, “Guess what I can do for you?” (Laughs) I went and I worked for him and he built this business focused on factory automation, particularly in aerospace. And, he channeled me towards production and inventory control. I then became a consultant for a number of firms for about 20 to 25 years.

This is interesting, the reason Dennis hired me was because he said I had a very strong liberal arts background with the library science degree. And, he said he knew people with strong liberal arts backgrounds were good problem solvers. He said, “Those are the kind of people I need in my company.” And also, he said, “My wife is a librarian and she is one of the smartest people I have ever met.” So, talk about serendipitous. The guy gave me an offer within two weeks. I just went in and chatted with him a little bit.

I worked for him for five or seven years. Then I got a chance to work for another firm for five or seven years.

When I left DePaul University with my MBA, the head of the department was a man named Dr. Earl Young. He approached me and said, “Kathleen, you’d make a great role model,” because, women did not major in operations. Most women at that time getting an MBA majored in marketing, human resources, and maybe finance. So, he said, “Why don’t you come back and teach.” So for a number of years I taught part time at DePaul University and I just loved it. What I loved about it was I thought I was bringing reality into the classroom.

You guys are getting the long version.

So, then work got to be crazy and I stopped doing consulting. Fast forward to 1993, I was put on an assignment. I was the project manager on an assignment at Gunlock around here in Wayland. One of my fantasies was always to live on a lake. Lo and behold, we as a team rented a house on Canisius Lake and commuted to Wayland every day. The project lasted about six months. After that project I told my boss, “I’m staying.”

I was living in Chicago. There was no way I’d have an opportunity to buy a house on a lake in Chicago. I was 43 years old at the time and pretty well burned out. While I was project manager in Wayland, which was very demanding, I was reporting out of an office for a firm in Los Angeles. They wanted me to sell my condo in Chicago and move to the West Coast. I don’t like LA. It is a different culture. The core values are very different there. Being a Mid-Westerner, I felt like a fish out of water there.

I really liked it here (Geneseo). I was really comfortable here. So, to be brutally honest, I was having a lot of physical problems and I knew it was all stress. In both of your classes we talk about the effects of stress. I was managing the project here, living in Chicago, reporting to a guy in LA, and just pulling my hair out. I said, “Enough is enough.” I had just had it. I sold my condo in Chicago, so I had a bunch of money. Then, I said, “Screw it. I quit.” I retired at 43.

Friends of mine were looking for somebody to house sit for them while they took an extended vacation. They lived on Canisius Lake. Well, they were acquaintances at the time, but since then they have become very dear friends. I stayed in their house for six months, contemplated my navel, and tried to figure out what I was going to do for the rest of my life.

I thought back on the experience that I had teaching. Through APICS, I had a contact at RIT and U of R so I got enough adjunct work to keep me afloat for five years. Then, I ran into a fellow that runs a consulting firm at Mendon, so I worked for him for about five years. My husband retired and I could not get enough time off. Patrick was home sitting on the lake and I was getting up putting the pantyhose on. That was not working for me! Things kept coming up and I couldn’t get the time off of work to do it. So, I quit.

Patrick looked at me and said, “Well, you’re not going to totally quit right?” He said, “Why don’t you look at SUNY Geneseo?”

Here, again, serendipity plays a part. I sent a resume in just as the current operations management teacher quit to go to another school. I wrote them a letter which said, “Do you need some help teaching operations management?” It was literally about the same day. There again, it was an APICS connection. It was 2004. January of 2004. So, here I am!

VIP: How do you like it here?

KW: I love it here! I got a Golden Key award as an honorary member. Students nominated me. This year, the Business Advisory Council gave me an award for duty above and beyond my call of duty. I just love it here. Students are great. I love the subjects that I teach. The faculty is very supportive. We’ve got the best support staff. Kathy Ackerman is unbelievable. Mary Ellen (Zuckerman: Dean of the Jones School and VIP) is the best boss I’ve ever had.

I have had maybe one bad boss. Most bosses I have had have been terrific and she has got to be the best. The woman just knows how to manage people. You can learn a lot just by watching her. She’s always pushing the envelope, but not to the point of making you feel uncomfortable. She is a great networker, looks at everything as an opportunity, and with a positive attitude. Also, she is well respected by everybody here. She is quite the lady. I admire her.

So, what’s not to like?

VIP: What classes do you teach?

KW: Right now, I teach Organizational Behavior and Business and Society. In the academic year of 2005-2006, I worked here full time (four classes). Since then, I usually teach three classes. Administration doesn’t like adjunct faculty to teach more then two or three classes. Next year I’m going to be teaching the new business writing course. I think they’re calling it Business Communications. Mary Ellen and Barbara Howard asked me to do that, so I jumped at the chance. Writing and communication is one of my soap boxes.

VIP: If you could meet five people from any time period, who would they be?

KW: Harry Truman. He’s my hero. Margaret Mead because of her anthropology background. She was one of the first women to make a mark in that field. Elizabeth Hearst. Frank Sinatra. I’m a big Sinatra fan. Lee Iacocca. I admire him a lot. And, probably John Paul II because he was Polish and my father is Polish. I’m very proud of that heritage. And, I think he was truly a saint. It would be interesting to sit down and have a conversation with him. Leonardo da Vinci. Michelangelo. I read about them a lot when I was young.

VIP: What is your favorite Frank Sinatra song?

KW: Not, “My Way,” for sure. “Young at Heart” maybe. One of those. A long time ago he did an album called, “Some Things I’ve Missed.” I liked all the stuff he did there. So, that takes care of my mother. (Laughs)

VIP: If you could live in any time period, when would that be?

KW: I was born twenty years too late. My father’s generation.

VIP: Why would that be?

KW: I don’t know. I’ve just always had a great affinity for people in that age bracket. The music maybe. I just really have this thing for the World War II era.

VIP: Do you have any pets?

KW: No. That was part of our prenuptial. No living animals in the house. (Laughs)

VIP: Do you have any children?

KW: No, I don’t. My husband has two sons who are grown and both of them are fathers. So, through fate I have three granddaughters. I never had any children but I have three grandchildren.

VIP: It’s like skipping all of the bad…

KW: …and getting all of the good. We have a lot of fun with them.

VIP: Where do they all live?

KW: Ashley lives on Long Island. Selden. It’s very close to Port Jefferson. The other two girls are Michael’s children and they live right around here in Gates. They are five, four and three.

VIP: What motivates you to come to work everyday?

KW: You guys! Doing stuff like this. Being the APICS advisor. Everyday is new in the classroom. You could look at the job and say, “Oh, it’s the same material over and over again.” But, it’s different students every time. Sometimes you get a bunch of blank stares and you’re like, “Oh, I’m dying up here.” It is a challenge to see if I can keep you interested or not.

The students here are great. I never wanted children. I was never one of those women who was like, “Oh, my biological clock is ticking” and all that stuff. But, I enjoy the students here so much more than I ever thought I would enjoy younger people. I really do love it. You’re very challenging. That’s what I enjoy. You keep me on my toes.

VIP: On the other hand, what are things that irk you?

KW: Students who think that they are pulling the wool over my eyes. When I get to the point where I want to say, “What do you think I was born yesterday?” Students that try to take advantage of me. It has happened maybe once or twice since I’ve been here. But, for the most part, the students are great.

One thing that bothers me the most in professional life is when somebody tells me they are going to do something and then they don’t do it. That doesn’t happen here. But, when I was a consultant for example, they are paying you to come in to help them solve a problem. You tell them, this is what has to happen. And then you come in next time and hear excuses.

You just want to say, “Stop wasting your money and my time.” I did some consulting on my own when I was teaching those five years at RIT and U of R. I had some personal clients that I had to tell that. They are paying for my expertise and then they don’t listen.

VIP: Here is the Miss America question. Iif you could change anything about the world, what would it be? Or, if you could instill one bit of knowledge into people, what would it be?

KW: Whew. “If I ruled the world…” (Singing)

I had an eighty five year old woman tell me something one time in passing. I met her at a jewelry store. She worked part time there; eighty five years old. She was dressed to the nines and as sharp as the day is long. She said to me, “Honey. Don’t ever be satisfied. Always want.” That has always stuck with me. She’s right.

I would like to see every child have the opportunity to have a good education. A core value to me is education. I believe that if somebody is educated they cannot only do well for themselves but do good things for society. It is every person doing little things that make good things happen; like my friends with the foundation, I’m sure they never thought they would help so many people. That is just one little guy. One little entrepreneur that said, “I can do something to help.” And, he did it.

One person can make a powerful impact.

VIP: If you could create a business with unlimited resources, what would it be?

KW: You just touched a cord. I have a niece that has a relatively rare syndrome called Charcot-Marie- Tooth (CMT) syndrome. It’s a version of multiple sclerosis (MS). It’s a hereditary condition and as she grows she is losing the use of her hands. If I could change anything, I would want to see a cure for that because I don’t want to see her spend her life like that. That’s a very personal thing.

VIP: Where do you see yourself in five years?

KW: Traveling and planning the next trip. I figure we’ve got ten years because my husband is ten years older then I am (she’s 57). Most people that I talk to – I have an aunt and uncle who are very active and very adventuresome and have done some great traveling. They’re 76 or 77 and it’s getting difficult for them. They went to Ireland with us and did very well. But, when we would get back to the hotel, I would say, “Auntie, you don’t have to go to dinner with us.” She would say, “Just let me rest a little bit, and then we’ll go.” So I figure we’ve got ten years.

VIP: Where would you like to travel to?

KW: I promised my husband I would make a list. He thinks it’s going to be a finite list, but it’s not. (Laughs) I want to sail the Greek Islands. I want to see the monoliths on Easter Island. I have to do that. I want to see Bali. I don’t know why, but I want to. I want to go to Sicily and do some genealogy work on my mother’s family and go to Poland to do genealogy on my father’s family.

And, my neighbor is Indian, so I want to go to India with him. The way to go anywhere is with a native. And, really a good tour of the United States. I’ve seen a lot of it, but there is plenty more to see. I think those are some of the more exotic places. Patrick struggled with Thailand; he’s going to flip when he hears Easter Island. (Laughing)

I would like to see the Inca and the Mayan ruins in Mexico. I would like to sail in Belize.

I’m going to Kenya in January. Friends of ours live there. All of my husband’s friends are guys he went to grade school with. When they get together they talk about grade school. They have been friends since they were Boy Scouts together. They all grew up at Sacred Heart Cathedral in the 10^th ward in Rochester. All went to Aquinas.

One of the guys he grew up with started a foundation to run a school for orphan boys from the slums of Nairobi. He and his wife started this foundation and they go once a year to make sure everything is copasetic. Every year they go and I always say, “David, we’re going with you next year.” Well, this year we are going to do it. Some of the time is going to be at their project. And we’re going to see some other projects that the Catholic Church is doing for kids. Then we’re going to have three days on safari. These people know everybody in Kenya. I mean everybody who is worth knowing, so I am psyched.

VIP: It sounds like you travel quite a bit…

KW: Yeah, we try to. I always have to drag my husband along. We always hear people say, “Oh, wait until retirement.” But, the way I figure it is I always see people die. They retire and then they have a heart attack, or get cancer. So, I’m not waiting! My husband’s a little torn about taking this trip but I said, “Patrick, you don’t know what’s going to happen next year.” He usually ends up loving it.

I dragged him to Thailand. We went to Ireland. That was easier because it is his home country. We went sailing in the Caribbean. After he goes, it’s “Oh, it was a trip of a lifetime. We did this and we did that…” But, to get him to go it’s like pulling the camel through the eye of a needle.

That’s my passion is to travel.

VIP: What other hobbies do you have other than traveling?

KW: We sail. We have a little day sailer on Canisius, but we don’t take that one out too much. In fact, we’re trying to sell it right now. $100. I want to sail the Greek islands. We have another set of friends that are big sailers, so we just have to convince Patrick that it is the right thing to do.

VIP: What is your favorite candy?

KW: Godiva chocolates.

VIP: What advice would you give someone coming out of college?

KW: Don’t get locked up in some traditional career. When you go to school, some people say, “Oh, I want to be a nurse, or a doctor, or a lawyer.” There are so many different things in life to do! Keep your mind open. Keep looking for opportunities.

I’ll use myself as an example. I was going to be a librarian. Well, then I liked manufacturing. Wherever the road led me; that was where I went.

If I were to put it in one sentence it would be, “Fight to be a generalist.” Avoid being a specialist because I think the world needs people who understand the broad picture. I don’t think the enrichment and the fulfillment is there. You don’t get enough exposure to things. If you fight to be a generalist, people will want to channel you forever.

Ben, Kathleen, & Joseph

Kathleen Wall

Adjunct Lecturer

SUNY Geneseo: Jones School of Business

Phone: 585.245.5366

Email: wall@geneseo.edu

Letter from the Editor

Life and Times of JWN

Leadership Is Service In the upcoming week, I have the pleasure of delivering my first keynote speech at the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) District Conference. It will be in front of a slew of high schoolers, faculty, and administration at Windsor High School, my alma mater. In addition to my speech, I am also putting on a workshop on leadership. This latter obligation has had me thinking in the past few weeks about what it means to be a leader. "So Joseph, what does it mean to be a leader?" Throughout the last 7 years of my life I have attended a variety of "leadership events." These include everything from the New York State Council on Leadership and Student Activities (NYSCLSA) camp, three NYSCLSA conferences, 10 to 15 one day leadership events, and Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society's National Leadership Conference in Austin, Texas last year. In addition, I'm currently participating in Leadership Livingston, the Livingston County Chamber of Commerce's ten month leadership development program. I have heard about forty different definitions of what it means to be a leader from these events. Of all of these definitions, however, one has stayed with me because it meshes the most with my personal value system. It is...(drum roll please)... Leadership is service. With the organizations I have led throughout the years and the ones I currently lead, this is the mantra I try to follow. It is consistent with my personal belief that you need to add value first in what you do. If you consistently give of yourself, expecting nothing in return, then you will find fulfillment beyond your wildest beliefs. We live in a society which is very "me" oriented. More often than not, you will hear people say, "Well, what do I get out of it?" or, "What's in it for me?" Thinking of leadership as service helps combat that ideal. Your role as a leader is to serve the people and the purpose. It is not about you or the notoriety you get from being "President" or "Chairperson" of a committee or group, it is about the value you can add to the people you lead and the cause you're committed to. A leader's role is often that of the visionary and motivator. He cannot fulfill the vision on his own, but rather he must inspire his team to carry it out and bring it to fruition. This brings to mind a few key terms in leadership: Delegation - This is sometimes thrown to the wayside in fledgling organizations because of the "me" attitude discussed before. But, it is essential to making a lasting impact. Its power lies in a simple rule of thumb, people will be true to what they help create. Get people involved and they will be bought in for the duration. Responsibility - A leader is responsible for the ultimate success or failure of the team or organization. They are not just responsible for the greater good the organization can achieve, but also to each individual that is part of the team. A leader must carry through on his promises and be true to all of the parties involved. Accountability - If the team is led poorly, it is ultimately the leader who needs to take accountability. Anything that happens under his watch is on his back - success or failure. Attitude - This is one of my favorite parts of leadership because if used well, it has the potential to make a tremendous impact. One of my personal values is to make a consistent positive influence and if leveraged in the right capacity - a leadership role - incredible change follows this type of attitude. These are a few lessons on leadership that I have learned throughout the years as I've developed as a "leader." When put in a capacity they are passionate about, leaders have a tremendous opportunity to facilitate great change if they keep in mind some of the ideas just presented. Have a great week and don't hesitate to respond with some of your thoughts on what it means to be a leader. You can reach me personally at Norms1523@gmail.com or 607.743.8569. Lead well or be led well. There's no other way to rock it as we all have our part in the leadership puzzle. Warmly yours, ~JWN

Jeremy Grace

Jeremy Grace:

It’s About Being Curious

Edited and Arranged by Joseph W. Norman

For more from Bigger Impact co-founder, Joseph Norman, visit www.normanized.com. 

Enjoy the read about...Jeremy Grace...below! Thanks for your readership!

Jeremy Grace is a Professor of International Relations at SUNY Geneseo, but the bulk of his work has been in the fields of democratization and refugee protection. He has traveled the globe working in multitudes of war torn countries to help facilitate their election process post conflict. Some of these countries include; Bosnia, Liberia, Uganda, Israel, the West Bank, Afghanistan, Kosovo, East Timor, the Balkans, Croatia, and many more. Known for his high energy persona and unique style, Jeremy Grace is a man that does more then just teach, he brings the subject to life with stories of his ongoing international experiences. What keeps him going? His curiosity for what he does and his desire to remain engaged in what he’s good at with the skill sets he has extensively developed.

VIP: Now, you started your education at Northern Arizona, correct?

JG: Well, I didn’t start there. I finished there. (Laughing) I was one of those struggling undergrads that needed a mission in life. I started at Boulder.

VIP: Is that where you grew up, in Colorado?

JG: I grew up in Singapore actually. At six weeks old my parents moved to Singapore. My dad was working with a little non-profit focused on social justice and peace building. He was a classic sixties, hippy, Quaker kind of guy.

We moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the mid-seventies when I was about eight or nine. I went to high school there and did all that kind of stuff and then for college, I decided that I liked to ski so Boulder made sense. Out there I went and ski I did at the expense of my academic pursuits. After two semesters I realized that it was a waste of time. It was a waste of my time and my parent’s resources. They helped communicate that message by cutting me off.

So then I had to goof around for a while working as a landscaper, a ski bum, and doing some other things just to stay afloat. Eventually I decided that wasn’t what I wanted to do with my life. It was at that point that I really became reconnected with my interests in the international world.

I went back to school in Northern Arizona. There I had a completely different mindset. I was on my own so every class I skipped was money out of my pocket. It really changed my approach to education. It applies a certain extent to my job here as an advisor to students. I have to be careful because I have a personal experience in my own background with not quite clicking at first. So, when I interact with students that are not quite clicking I have to balance between, “Well, this path worked for me but it might not work for other people.” It is difficult actually to operate in that environment.

So, back to Northern Arizona, I majored in Political Science. They didn’t have an International Relations degree, otherwise I would have picked IR, but within Political Science you can be an IR person basically. I finished up there and then went to graduate school in Washington D.C. at American University; specifically for a Masters in International Affairs. That is pretty much the educational background.

American was a great education. It’s a very good school and the program is a highly regarded one. It’s become better since I left. It’s one of those things where I get to rest on laurels that weren’t there when I was actually a part of it. But, the same is true with Geneseo now. People that graduated from here in the seventies can do the same.

For me, the experience at American was both the education and having some fabulous professors that really got me thinking about stuff. But, it was the internship and the contacts I built at American - I had two years to do that – that landed me my first, post M.A. job. That first job subsequently set me on a career trajectory in a way that I had never anticipated going. To the point where my professional consulting work now is all based on that one random fact of getting that internship. I can trace the whole chain of events right back to there.

VIP: What was the internship?

JG: It was with an outfit that isn’t even around anymore. It was a think tank called the Overseas Development Council which did foreign development policy; primarily economic growth studies. We contracted with governments and the U.S. Agency for international Development. The organization would get these big research grants from governments but also from the World Bank to explore interesting and novel questions on issues of economic development.

A Poster Hanging in Jeremy's office

I had gotten in there on a project because my interest was international trade politics, but in
particular I was interested in the relationship between global trade law and issues of environmental protection. I was looking at the convergence between multilateral environmental agreements and how the trading system operated. Not because I had an ideological commitment to any one point of view, but I was just curious about these two international regimes that were bumping into each other.

So, I started with them on a project looking at that, but when that project ended it was the same time I was finalizing a degree, so I got hired on to look at a post conflict project that was looking at how you do economic development in the aftermath of civil wars and state collapse.

From there, I got really interested in that question and then at the end of that project the woman I was working for had a number of contacts with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe which is an international governmental organization that was going to be in charge of post conflict democratization in Bosnia. This was in ’96, just after the peace agreement in ’95, so everybody was mobilizing and moving in to solidify the peace.

I went into Bosnia as an election observer. That was all it was. I was going to be there for two and a half weeks and look at stuff. They gave us these long check lists, which said that ballot has to go here and people have to be screened and nobody is shooting each other. But, I was so fascinated by that. So, when they sent everybody back home – there were about 2,000 of us that went over there to observe this election – I skipped the flight.

I just stayed in Sarajavo and went knocking on people’s doors because I was so curious about the contours of what caused this civil war, but also this enormous international machinery – which I had never seen before – that goes into these countries after there is some sort of peace agreement. And, what role this international machinery – both the governmental players and the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) – do they play in solidifying the peace. I got really interested in that.

I actually got a full time job with the agency that brought me, but more at the implementation side of things. It was long term work on building democratic institutions in Bosnia. So, I did that for about a year, and then after a year they sent me off to Croatia to work on reestablishing connections with Bosnian refugees there. So, I became their country representative in Croatia. Then I got really interested in this nexus between displacement and political rights.

That’s a human rights issue and it marries two specific international rights issues. One is civil rights, political rights, and the human rights system and how that all operates the right to democracy, freedom and fair elections – all the things we associate there – with a very different one which is the protection and care of refugees and internally displaced people.

The two got linked in the context that you could not rebuild political institutions in Bosnia that were participatory if you were going to exclude all of the displaced people from that process. What that would do is it would legitimate ethnic cleansing as a political and military tactic on the parts of warring parties. So, if you just said, “You people are no longer Bosnian citizens,” then you are sending a message to every militia group in the world that says, “If you want to establish political control over a territory, expel all of your enemies.” Ever since then, that is what I’ve been working on. It is that nexus between those two things.

I have been doing a series of projects in my consulting work where we’re providing assistance to the UN system - when they get called on to do these post conflict democratization projects - with national authorities when they are doing elections in the context of conflict and displacement.

Then, also at the global level we’re working in the human rights machinery in the UN in Geneva to try to establish a better recognition of the standards that are at play and making those standards cohere with what goes on in the human rights machinery.

So that is really what I’ve been doing. Even since ’99 when I came to work here, I retained work on these issues and continue to work on them up to now. So, that’s my story. And, sometimes when I get around to it I teach a class.

VIP: …I really like the idea of operating out of developing countries because there is so much opportunity and so much disparity. It is ridiculous how many people out there are just sitting in a hut right now.

JG: Yeah. It poses the questions, “How do you engage that kind of economy? “ Again, it comes back to the issue of curiosity. There are so many different reasons and explanations for why they’re sitting in that hut. But, each of those explanations that you develop for explaining that is going to have different policy implications for how you get them out of there and how you bring them into a global market. That really is where we are right now in development economics; a field of international relations that is addressing that issue.

But, again, it comes back to not having the ideological blinders. It comes to just being curious and figuring out exactly why those people are in that situation in order to figure out the appropriate role that power – which is ultimately what governments are, they are legitimated sources of power – can be used to push the process forward. For me that is what it is all about.

VIP: What motivates you to continue onward? Seeing that disparity in your world travels…what keeps the ball rolling for you?

JG: You have to remain engaged in life; for me anyway. This may not be true for everybody, but for me you have to remain engaged. It is one thing to be curious about the world and read about the world in all the great history books, the New York Times, and everything else, but it’s another thing to translate that into a sense that you have an obligation in the world to do something. Now, what that is…be a CD producer, be a documentarian, be a journalist, be a business person, whatever it is it doesn’t matter.

For me, it just worked out that this is what I do in the world and to stop doing it would be like death. What then? I was thinking about this the other day because the lottery a month ago was something like $400 million and I was at Wegman’s and I thought I should buy a lottery ticket. Then, I was like, “Well, yeah, but what would that mean? I could quit my job, buy a new swimming pool and buy new guitars, yadda yadda yadda. Do all the stuff I’ve always wanted to do.” And even then it doesn’t mean anything to me.

I couldn’t quit my job. I wouldn’t be happy. Of course in the end, I was like “I could give it away and I could do all this cool humanitarian stuff all over the world.” So, then I went ahead and bought the damn lottery ticket. (Laughs) But I had to rationalize it in that way.

I keep doing it because frankly, I’m curious about – well, almost anything can absorb my curiosity – but I have this thing where all of my intellectual thinking is about international politics. It’s about issues of war and peace. It’s about issues of human rights. And, I need to remain engaged in that. It is to the extent that I continue to do this work and it is very much focused on trying to identify situations where the unique skills that I have developed – and they are very limited and unique as very few people work in this particular field where democratization and refugee protection cross leaving only a handful of us that have this background and experience – I feel like we need to keep doing that.

In the context of the recent work we’ve been doing, we’ve been targeting specific country interventions. They sent me to Afghanistan. They sent me to Nepal. They sent me to Uganda. They sent me to Liberia. All of these places in the last couple years where you’re having some sort of transition out of civil war and towards peace, hopefully, and they don’t know how to deal with the problem I know how to deal with. I feel that if I’m not doing that then I’m not doing anything. I mean I’m still teaching, and teaching is important too, but…

VIP: What are some of your favorite places to travel to?

JG: All of them. My favorite country in the world is Slovenia in terms of its awesome geographic features. It’s like a miniature version of the Alps in Switzerland but it’s undisturbed and unspoiled. It’s like traveling in the Alps 200 years ago. My wife and I were there when I was working in the Balkans. We went up there for a two week vacation and I was just so blown away by the physical features.

Culturally and in terms of interacting with people, my favorite place is anywhere in Africa. I just adore working in Africa. I can’t get enough of it and I will not ever turn down a mission to go to Africa. I loved my time in Liberia. I loved my time in Uganda. And I think it’s because the tragedies of the continent have not overcome optimism and an ability of the people to interact with each other with a sense of humor. And also, Africans are curious.

I worked in Afghanistan and I worked on the Iraqi elections. I didn’t actually go to Baghdad but I worked on them with members of the Iraqi Election Commission. And, I love the Middle East as well. I’ve worked in Jordan and the West Bank, but nothing compares to Africa. There’s this connection that I feel somehow with Africans. I think there is so much promise there that people ought to be paying more attention to but it’s been marginalized. So, I also see a duty in being engaged in a place that is being marginalized.

VIP: We’re actually traveling to Ghana at the end of the month through the Livingston County Chamber of Commerce…

JG: Ghana is one of the continent’s miracles in the last few years. It is one of the stable places. And, if Ghana can do it compared to where they were in the late seventies then anybody can do it in Africa. That is really exciting. I happen to know a lot of Ghanaians that work in the international system. They are major contributors to peace keeping operations, so I’ve interacted with them in the context of UN missions. And, their election commission is the most dynamic in the world. We actually brought members of the Ghanaian Election Commission to New Delhi to train the Iraqi Election Commission. That’s how good they are.

VIP: So, we heard you’re also in a band…how is that going?

JG: Well, we’re the usual band. We broke up. It was all about lawsuits and partying. You know the classic stuff. (Laughs) No, it wasn’t like that at all. It was a psychedelic polka band. That band is not really active anymore.

I do have a little jam group going now. We are in the process of putting together another band that won’t be psychedelic polka which seemed to have a limited market appeal. All of those Southern Tier hippies…they liked it. But, the real structural problem we had was we had an accordion and a harmonica.

VIP: What are the instruments you play?

JG: The guitar. The mandolin. I have a Hopi drum, but I can’t really call myself a percussionist. I goof around a little bit on the banjo too. String instruments primarily.

VIP: What is your prediction for the 2008 presidential election?

JG: Politically, despite my dad’s radical background, I was actually very middle of the road if anything. I mean in college I dabbled with protest politics and got maced at the CIA recruitment center or whatever, but after that point learned a lot in my work. In the Balkans and these war torn countries I learned about what’s practical and realistic in the world. I moved away from the American liberal, optimistic ideologies to a much more, “Ahh, things kind of suck and the world is full of trade offs,” attitude. It would be great if we could provide the social welfare programs in the United States that the Europeans provide their citizens, but there are costs to that. So, I became economically a little bit conservative. But, the Gingrich revolution really turned me off too. I’m really confused. I don’t know where I stand yet.

VIP: How do you define success?

JG: I don’t really have an operative definition. But, I’m curious because it’s an interesting ordeal. How do you define it within the context of each of your own lives? How do I define it for myself and am I living up to it? I don’t know. Your subjects are always going to be in a position where they say, “Well, I would have to define it in a way where it applies to me,” unless they’re really bummed out or sad.

I think I would have to say it has something to do with the idea that you’re successful when you position yourself in life in some way to satisfy your curiosity about whatever it is that you’re interested in. And, it doesn’t really matter what that is. I mean if you’re fascinated by the process of flipping burgers at McDonald’s, that’s success.

But, for me, successful people are people that are innately curious and spend the time and take the initiative to address their curiosity about things rather than come at the world from some sort of preconceived place. You know, like, “This is the way the world works and I operate in accordance with my world view and my logic and my theoretical disposition and I NEVER GET THE BLINDERS OFF. To me that’s what makes me madder than anything.

For me personally it is a constant challenge to try to formulate a world view and that requires a certain amount of curiosity. If you can get yourself in a position in life where you can do that and get paid for it, then obviously, that is the height of success. Even if you don’t get paid for it and have to flip the burgers, but outside of that context of what you are doing to earn a living you’re still going after the thing that makes you curious, than that is success.

But, for me, it’s not about money. It’s about the element of understanding the world that we live in.

Joseph Norman, Jeremy Grace, Ben DeGeorge, Tom Soeller

P.S. Fresh content at www.normanized.com. Check it out! <<<--- i="i">

Jeremy Grace

Professor of International Relations

SUNY Geneseo

Office: Welles 3F

Phone: 585.245.5455

Email: grace@geneseo.edu

Letter from the Editor

Life and Times of JWN

Good Friends This weekend was homecoming at SUNY Geneseo. You may be wondering, "What does that mean Joseph?" Well, the school's publications might mention sporting events, special programs for family and students, and other festivities, but in my book, it means reunion time. For us at the cross country and track house at 69 Second Street, we always put up at least five alumni on our incredible couches and random guest mattress during this weekend. A unique new energy is always brought into the house. Travelers start trickling in on Thursday evening and their stay usually lasts until late Sunday. The featured event of the weekend for us runners is the Geneseo Invitiational at Letchworth State Park in Mount Morris. Celebrity guest all stars from all over make their appearance to see their alma mater team, the Geneseo Blue Knights, compete against a highly touted field of athletes. (Click here for this year's results). Although the race is the featured event, it is just one small part of a great weekend of story telling and catching up with old friends. Good food, good times, and great company are inevitable during these reunion weekends. There is something about this camaraderie that gets me going because it creates an incredible feeling of comfort, positive energy, and belonging. I love that feeling. I am fortunate enough to be able to say I live with seven good friends and have many more who live throughout the country that are always there for me. It is wonderful when many of us get together to enjoy each other's company. "So what are you getting at Joe?" The experience of this weekend reminded me of a few key concepts of life that I have thought quite a bit about, the significance of good friends and taking "vacation." In respect to the friendships, I surround myself with the most positive, witty, and hilarious people I know. When we get together you can imagine the result. Laughter. Quite simply we laugh all the time. It is so important to have people you can laugh with because that is truly what life is all about, having fun. The next concept is my version of taking "vacation." My good friend Josh, who was in town this weekend, explained this idea to me some time ago. While we deliberated over some of life's intricacies, he said when you're on vacation you've got to be able to shut it down and wash all the stresses away for a set period of time. This weekend "we were on vacation." NORMAN NOTABLE: My friends and I are cool like that. Our conversations cover a range of topics from pointless to the meaning of life. Some think we're crazy, but I wouldn't have it any other way. ACTION PLAN: 1) Keep your good friends close and make time to get together as a group on a periodic basis. Build those relationships on positive influence, intellectual stimulation, empathy, and most importantly, laughter. 2) When you take vacation, don't be afraid to shut it all down and freshen up the mind with a complete getaway. Once you learn how to truly "get away," life becomes much more manageable. For a final life lesson, here is a favorite quote of mine from the movie Van Wilder: "Don't take life too seriously, you'll never make it out alive." - Van Wilder Although many see me as intense and ambitious, this quote keeps me grounded in the fact that you always need to enjoy the ride. NOTABLE: I may not have run 92 miles last week, but my 5'9" 153 lb. frame is not as soft as Ben might attest. Love the journey, ~JWN

Letter from the Editor

Life and Times of JWN

Dear Quote Lovers This week I'm dedicating the Life and Times to all of the people like me that plaster inspirational words or phrases all over their desks, offices, bedrooms, refrigerators, computers, and other ridiculous places. I think I speak for this breed of language lover when I say, "I wouldn't have it any other way." Here are some favorites I keep in front of me. Enjoy! "Words are, in my opinion, the most powerful tools and assets we as humans have, because words affect our minds, and our minds create our reality on the world." -- Robert Kiyosaki "Neither this world nor the world to come is for him who does not sacrifice." -- Bhagavad Gita "It's not about how much you make, but how much you keep, how hard it works for you, and how many generations you keep it for." -- Robert Kiyosaki "Our words and out actions will always do two things, build people up or tear people down." "People give money to people, not causes." -- Gary Mervis (VIP Profile) "The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things." -- Ronald Reagan "Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson "Before you can inspire with emotion, you must be swamped with it yourself. Before you can move their tears, your own must flow. To convince them, you must first believe." -- Winston Churchill "To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe." -- Anatole France "Running is an addiction. It's a peace when the world seems overwhelming. It's a harmonious effort between your mind, body, and spirit to find rhythm in the world. You drive your body through hell to feel so close to heaven. It's the chance each person possesses to do the impossible; not the impossible for someone else, but for themselves. The opportunity to break down the barriers people set in their minds that limit their potential; not only as a runner, but as a human being. It's honest. You get from it what you put into it. It's the rawest and most animalistic of all competitions because it is you verse yourself. There is nothing to hide from that competitor." -- JWN "You got a dream. You gotta protect it. People can't do something, so they wanna tell you that you can't do it. You want something, go get it. Period." Will Smith as Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness "What's my goal today?" "Ganas" -- "desire" in Spanish "Every man I meet is my superior in some way. In that, I learn of him." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson "We can disagree without being disagreeable." -- Dr. Richard Hatheway (VIP Profile) "Do what you say you're going to do -- what you say to others, and what you say to yourself. Offer value. Cultivate relationships. Do it even when you don't need anything in return." -- Jeffrey Gitomer I hope these quotes move you in some way similar to the way they inspire me. Have a great week and... Smile! It looks good on you, ~JWN