Real Student Advice on College Interviews

Got a school talk with coming up yet not certain what's in store? s have you secured. Sourced from 60,000+ effective application records, our undergrads share their school talk with stories in detail, from regular inquiries posed to tone of discussion, perceive how the meeting affected their affirmations result. ajaxx513 College of Pennsylvania 20 My best meeting by a wide margin was my telephone meet. From the start, I totally feared having a meeting via telephone since I for one dont sound that eager or energized. I had no clue about how to sell myself without being there face to face. In any case, I wound up to be significantly progressively articulate in light of the fact that I wasnt sitting directly before them, so I didnt feel about as much weight. I sounded much increasingly loose and didnt get as anxious in light of the fact that I called from my room where I was agreeable. I really had much more to state about myself and my inclinations being loose via telephone than plunking down with my questioner. On the off chance that your questioner gives you the choice of a telephone meet, certainly do it on the off chance that you get apprehensive gathering new individuals face to face. Most regular inquiries posed in my meetings: 1. Enlighten me regarding yourself. 2. Why driven you to apply to X school? (Uniqueness!!) 3. What do you like to do in your available time? 4. What do you intend to contemplate? Why? 5. What started your enthusiasm for __? 6. What clubs/associations would you say you are right now in? 7. What clubs do you intend to join at X school? 8. What are you designs after student? 9. What makes you one of a kind? One final tip: Try to show that you have an energy, without really utilizing the word enthusiasm. Stanford2020 Stanford University 20 No inquiries truly found me napping in light of the fact that I had arranged generally what I would state to the standard inquiries like Tell me about yourself, Describe your greatest disappointment and what you realized, Why this school?, What might you bring to this school? and so forth. I would recommend doing likewise as a great deal of these come up. There are bunches of arrangements of basic inquiries on the web. I would likewise suggest acclimating yourself with current issues, which didnt come up in my meetings, however have come up in a portion of my companions. Tip top schools are searching for individuals who are mentally inquisitive and dont simply study to get passing marks, so it would look downright awful on the off chance that you had no clue about what was happening in your general surroundings. They were additionally substantially more conversational in nature than I expected - I would frequently just be posed a few inquiries in the entire hour since they would be intrigued by my answers and a characteristic discussion would create. Lmelcher Columbia University 20 Harvard, Yale, and Princeton: Amazing meetings. Each was around 40 minutes in length. There were no hardball inquiries in any of them. They would fundamentally ask me about myself and for what valid reason I needed to go to their school. Toward the end, every one of them said they would give a sparkling review.Advice: Research the school. Completely. Come equipped with names of divisions, educators, classes, lab offices, everything. Treat each school like its your top decision. No graduated class questioner needs to want to apply to their school was only a burden.Jpm13 College of Rochester ‘20 I met with 4 schools, which I portray the experience and inquiries they posed beneath. Recall that each meeting is extraordinary, and the most ideal approach to plan is to truly hear what youre saying. Be prepared to discuss your secondary school contribution in incredible detaildont burn through your time remembering news stories just in the event that they ask you new-related inquiries. By and large, dont fret a lot over the meeting. Its not huge. I have companions who had awful (like totally horrendous) talk with encounters yet at the same time got into their top schools. The schools I had great meeting encounters with (Harvard explicitly) I didnt get into. The most ideal approach to pro a meeting is to be set up to discuss yourself a great deal. Ask yourself what you need questioners to know. Dont be worried about being entertaining or excessively exhausting. Youre not going to be acknowledged/precluded on the grounds that from securing that. Offer your story and show authentic enthusiasm for the school. thefuzzhead1 College of Southern California 20 Continue understanding books! Not simply powerless anecdotal stories with no profundity (this incorporates Harry Potter generally, trust me). Attempt exemplary writing or even true to life, possibly follow the NY Times or some other stuff on it. Neglecting to escape your center school James Patterson-John Green-JK Rowling-Rick Riordan trench is awful. Practice the hard inquiries before the meeting. Inform me regarding yourself. For what reason would you like to go to ___? and so forth and so forth. You can practice (that is not the correct word; what you state ought not be the equivalent each time. Simply let if stream, dont have a careful content, yet have arguments, similar to a bulleted rundown or stream graph) before a mirror or with someone else. Or then again even a gathering - that wouldve assisted with my Jefferson Scholars meet.

How to Become an Effective Manager Essay

There is a great deal of difficult work and abilities that should be created to turn into a genuine director. Administrators have a few aptitudes and gifts they learn as they advance in the working environment, not every one of them will build up the extremely straightforward and fundamental capacity to be a viable chief. They need to do much something beyond oversee funds and give ventures. A chief needs to show individuals and demonstrate them in a manner to permit them to be as well as can be expected be, so later on they also can progress up through the organization on their own characteristics. So first thing to turning into a viable supervisor, you need to improve your own administration capacities and activities that are should have been an extraordinary business pioneer. I think one about the most fundamental things that anybody must do is show others how its done. We do this as guardians, and we are educated to do it as more established kin for our more youthful siblings and sisters. Such a large number of supervisors regularly live by â€Å"do as I state, however not as I do,† as a substitute of setting a model for their workers. In the event that a director needs difficult work, and collaboration from the representatives in their organization, I imagine that they themself should initially show that they can likewise buckle down, that they are trust commendable, and that they are the same amount of a cooperative person as their workers. You need to tune in to the individuals you work with. A ton of times workers have extraordinary proposals that get neglected. Continuously speak with them, and ensure they realize they can come to you that you have an open entryway approach. Successful administrators will consistently offer credit to a representative who does it. Demonstrating thankfulness not exclusively will give them they are required and acknowledged, yet in addition fabricate their certainty and make them generally need to improve. Regardless of whether it indicating them openly or with a little reward. At the point when individuals are valued, it will consistently persuade them to need to perform better. Confiding in your workers and giving them duty. On the off chance that you don’t ever permit them to spread their wings and learn new things, where is the development open door for those people? Appointing ought to be done so everybody gets a chance to show their latent capacity. Everybody needs to go up, and not be stuck as a section level representative for eternity. Trust in them, and give them a chance. Everybody has various qualities and shortcoming that can be utilized for various employments. One may type better; one may communicate in an alternate language. This is the place fruitful designation will used to dole out the correct representative with the correct undertaking. Genuine pioneers will show force and self-assurance. What's more, in the event that you can show these characteristics to your workers again it’s about showing others how its done. It will thus move trust in them too. You must have a genuine vision of what your objectives and expectations are, and an unequivocal arrangement with regards to how you will accomplish those objectives. Put everything into composing, and go over it with the entirety of your representatives during gatherings, or one on ones so they know about them. Converse with them about what they figure, they may have worries that should be tended to.

Quitting Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder

Quitting Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder BPD Treatment Print What to Do If You Want to Quit Going to Therapy for BPD By Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and associate professor of psychology at Eastern Connecticut State University. Learn about our editorial policy Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD Updated on September 27, 2019 Hill Street Studios / Getty Images More in BPD Treatment Diagnosis Living With BPD Related Conditions If you have  borderline personality disorder (BPD), its very common to feel like you want to quit therapy. In fact, it is quite natural to get frustrated with therapy or your therapist  or to feel like psychotherapy is not working anymore. But many people leave therapy before they have reached their treatment goalsâ€"research shows that about 47 percent of people with BPD leave treatment prematurely. Quitting therapy is a big decision, so think through your reasons and your treatment goals. Consider Your Reasons for Wanting to Quit BPD Therapy Before dropping out of therapy, think about your reasons for wanting to leave; you may find it helpful to write a list. Common causes include: You don’t feel like the therapy is workingYou don’t like your therapistYou don’t have time to attend sessionsYou think youve gotten better and are ready to go it aloneThe things you talk about in session are too ?emotional/intenseYou don’t think your therapist likes youYou will never get better no matter what you doYou believe your therapist is incompetentYou don’t have enough money to pay for sessions Talk to Your Therapist Now that you have a list of your reasons for wanting to quit therapy, put a star next to the biggest reasons so that you can discuss them with your therapist. Perhaps you are embarrassed to discuss dropping out with your therapist because you don’t want to disappoint or offend him. Or maybe you don’t trust her enough to discuss it with her. Whatever your reason, addressing your concerns about therapy with your counselor may help. For instance, if you want to quit because of money or because of your schedule, your therapist could perhaps work out a payment plan or agree to meet you after her main office hours. She can also give you a referral to another therapist if you feel like youre not clicking with her or making enough progress.   Dont be afraid to begin this discussion. Its highly unlikely that your therapist has not had a discussion such as this before. Therapy brings up many emotions, and its very common for people to want to give up or to feel that nothing will really help. Be as honest as you can be. Keep in mind that your therapist does what she does because she wants to help people. Is It the Disorder Talking? In some cases, the symptoms of BPD can convince you to quit therapy. If you experience splitting, you may view your therapist with suspicion or dislike which could cause you to drop out of therapy too early.  People with depression  as part of BPD can have periods of hopelessness and extremely low motivation, which can make them want to drop out of therapy as well.   In both of these cases, a therapist can help you think through what is in your best interest versus what your disorder is “telling you” to do. Pros and Cons of Quitting Therapy Another technique that can help you decide whether to drop out of therapy is called the pros and cons tool. This is a tool that is taught in dialectical  behavior therapy  and can be a great way of thinking through many different kinds of decisions. Once you complete the pros and cons tool, think more about what direction you want to head in. Does quitting therapy still seem like a good idea? Or, is it becoming clearer that another path might make more sense? If quitting therapy still seems like the right choice, does this mean quitting therapy outright, or just changing therapists or the type of therapy you are receiving? Think through all of your options to make the best decision for you. Get Support From the 9 Best Online Therapy Programs The Bottom Line The bottom line is that there are many reasons that people drop out of therapy and sometimes these are unavoidable. But sometimes people drop out of therapy prematurely without thinking it through and talking to their therapists about it. If you are sure that you need to drop out, consider other avenues of treatment. And, whether you choose to continue working with a therapist or not, continue to work on your skills for coping with borderline personality disorder. Finally, before leaving therapy, make sure you have a safety plan for BPD in place.

Discipline And Punish By Nietzsche, Structuralism And...

‘Discipline and Punish’ does not claim to be a structuralist interpretation of the prison, the book is in many ways an attempt to give a theoretical grounding to what Foucault had seen, to explain the conditions and structures of the places he visited in terms of the operation of power in society. Three influences are particularly important in Discipline and Punish: Nietzsche, structuralism and Foucault s political activism. None entirely explain his project, however. There has been a shift in types of punishment for criminals. Once these tended to focus on torture are dismemberment applied directly to bodies, but now the notion of punishment involves a public appearance in court, as well as much more â€Å"humane† sentences. This change involves distancing ourselves from spectacle, and is accompanied by a division of labor between courts and jails. Crucially, there is also an underlying technology of punishment, which changes from machines to do capital punishment to developing social machines to accomplish reform or conversion. There is also a shift from a notion of the body as a site of pain to one where a body simply loses rights. This is not an even historical process, and not a simple one. George Bernard Shaw, in Man and Superman (1903) said â€Å"Criminals do not die by the hands of the law. They die by the hands of other men.† KEY WORDS: Surveillance, punishment, crime, soul purification Punishment was always more than the punishment of specific crimes. It was a matter

Introduction of the Cut Throat Institutions of Western...

What many considered the modernization of China was actually China’s introduction to the cut throat institutions of western capitalism, foreign policy, and western imperialism. China for centuries had dealt with foreigners on its own understanding of foreign policy called the tribute system which maintain the idea that outside nations would be submissive to China authority as a sign of respect to the Emperor because China was seen as the most advance country in the world and in recognition of the heavenly mandate. The tribute system was mostly used between China and nomadic Asian tribes as a form of peace negotiations. Later when western influences came to China to trade, China developed the Canton system as a way to strictly control foreign trade with the western European nations (mostly England). In the 19th century the Qing dynasty experienced a decline. A series of peasant rebellions (Taiping rebellion 1851-1864 C.E, Miao rebellions), poor central administration, and a dra stic growth in population left the Qing government vulnerable to the European’s superior military power. England tired of the strict regulation of the Canton system, what they believed to be the Chinese undeserved entitled attitudes, and the need for new markets, used gun diplomacy to force China to accept unequal treaties and open its foreign trade. This was China’s introduction to ‘modernity’, but in truth it was the imperial nations craving up of China for their benefit and labeling it as bringingShow MoreRelatedStudent7526 Words   |  31 Pagesglobalization has had a major effect in developing countries because of brain drain. Globalization can therefore be said to have had a phenomenal impact on a developing economy like Kenya that is both positive and negative as explored in the paper. INTRODUCTION Globalization was defined by Giddens (1990) as the ‘intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring miles away and vice versa’. This definition embodiesRead MoreImpact of Hrm7495 Words   |  30 Pagesglobalization has had a major effect in developing countries because of brain drain. Globalization can therefore be said to have had a phenomenal impact on a developing economy like Kenya that is both positive and negative as explored in the paper. INTRODUCTION Globalization was defined by Giddens (1990) as the ‘intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring miles away and vice versa’. This definition embodiesRead MoreHealthcare Essay18323 Words   |  74 Pageshealth care To speculate on whether the era of socialized medicine has dawned in the United States â€Å"Where’s the market?† 81 26501_CH03_FINAL.indd 81 7/27/11 10:31:29 AM 82 CHAPTER 3 The Evolution of Health Services in the United States Introduction The health care delivery system of the United States evolved quite differently from the systems in Europe. American values and the social, political, and economic antecedents on which the US system is based have led to the formation of a uniqueRead MoreExploring Corporate Strategy - Case164366 Words   |  658 Pagesundertake additional reading from other sources and that their ‘practical’ work is supplemented by other material as mentioned above. ââ€"  ââ€"  ECS8C_C01.qxd 22/10/2007 11:54 Page 600 600 Guide to the main focus of cases in the book Introduction to strategy Business environment: general Five forces analysis Capability analysis Corporate governance Stakeholder expectations Social responsibility Culture Competitive strategy Strategic options: directions Corporate-level strategy InternationalRead MoreA Study on Customer Preference in Retail Store- Adani Store28361 Words   |  114 PagesSUMMARY |02 | |02 |PREFACE |03 | |03 |INTRODUCTION OF RETAILING |04 | |04 |INDUSTRIAL ANALYSIS |07 | |05 Read MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 PagesWriting to Convince Others................................................................................ 197 Writing with Precision and to Your Audience .............................................................................. 198 The Introduction............................................................................................................................. 200 The Middle ......................................................................................................

The Vs. Emission Testing - 1200 Words

In a modern society, people always face the dilemma to choose whether obey ethic standards or gain more profit. This problem is the much-debated one in that it affects everyone in their daily lives. Despite various responses, people may have on the topic that the Volkswagen engineer James Liang pleads guilty for his role in cheat U.S. emission test. Back to last year James Liang and his co-conspirators designed and implemented software for new â€Å"EA 189† diesel engine, to cheat the missions tests. They knew it was impossible to create a diesel engine that could meet the U.S. emission standard, so they developed a software â€Å"defeat device,† which could recognize the difference between using the dynamometer to measure the emission quality in†¦show more content†¦It is important to have an understanding of Maxim, Will, and Duty to better understand the Categorical Imperative theory. Maxim is a subjective principle of volition; Kant believed that when people were doing something, they always followed the general principle. For example, if one person needed to borrow some money from his friend, and he knows that he was not able to pay it back. However, he still borrowed that money from his friend. In this time, the general principle is that whenever I need money, I can borrow it from the others, even though I know that I would not give it back. So that people would follow this general principle under the same situation if they argue with it. Also, the will means what makes a good man good is the will to have a decision that is decided by universal moral law in some way. Besides, the last one is the duty, according to Kant’s theory; he believed that self-interest and motivation are different; how people act from the respect of the universal law would make a good will. In another word, the theory of duty is a person with the capacity to act morally to universal law. 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Quality Management Plan Business Quality Planning

Question: Describe about the Quality Management Plan for Business Quality Planning. Answer: Introduction The validation of the completion of the project deliverables with an acceptable quality level is the purpose of managing quality. The quality of the output of the project processes used to manage the deliverables and the creation of deliverables are assured by quality management. The level of quality is defined with the help of a quality management plan. Typically the level of quality is defined by the customers. The quality management plan describes how the project is taken and will ensure the quality level of the deliverables and the work processes. It is an integral part of any project management plan. It describes how the quality will be managed throughout the project lifecycle. It gives instructions as to how the project team will implement, communicate and support the project quality practices (Ahuja, 2012). It also clarifies the procedure and processes for conducting quality assurance, quality planning, quality control, and the process of continuous improvement. It is necessar y that every stakeholder is aware and familiar with the quality procedures. The outcome of the whole quality management plan will depend on the products produced and its quality. Here a quality management plan will be developed that will elaborate all the steps required for a successful quality management of products (Chen Wang, 2016). Steps of Quality Management Plan Purpose and Objectives The Quality Management Plan or QMP will authorize the procedures, processes, and activities for making sure of the quality product upon the projects conclusion. Under the purpose and objective heading it will document, a high level, the all-around approach for the management of quality for the project and it defines the plans purpose in delivering the quality product. The main purposes of QMP are to:- Ensure quality is planned Defining the management of quality Defining the quality assurance activities Defining the quality control activities Defining the standard quality that is accepted by all (Hanaysha, Abdullah, Ghani, 2016) Quality Management Scope The scope of the quality management activities will be defined in this section. If there are particular project areas where the application of quality standards is required, then those areas should be mentioned in the quality management scope. The activities of quality management are spread in the whole project lifecycle. From the staring that means from the initiation to the closure, the scope of quality management will appear in all the activities of the project phase (Kilgore, Radich, Harrison, 2011). For attaining success, a project has to meet the quality objectives by utilizing a unitary quality approach that defines the quality standards, measure it and continuously improve it. This step of QMP will be taken in the starting of the process by including stakeholders and quality assurance team members. This will allow the focus of the team on the items related to the quality of the product in the starting stages. This is done to incorporate specific quality activities and standard earlier in the project (Konidari Abernot, 2006). A weekly and monthly measurement report of the quality can be used as a tool to communicate the risks or issues that may arise in the quality. In the quality management scope step of the QMP following elements will be described and defined:- Quality Planning, assurance, and control Quality standards and activities relevant to the product Relevant quality measures and metrics for standards for project product functionality, management performance, deliverables, and documentation and testing. Quality assurance and control roles and responsibilities Software and tools required supporting quality management (Lau, Yam, Tang, 2011) Quality Planning The step of quality planning will be defining the requirements and standards of quality to be used for the project. This step should be performed along with the other planning processes of the project. For example, the changes proposed in the product to meet the described standards of the quality that may require schedule adjustment or cost, and a detailed analysis of risk that may impact the plan. The inputs that can be included in the quality planning includes the Scope Baseline (the work breakdown structure, the scope statement, and work breakdown structure dictionary), the organizational process assets, the stakeholder register, schedule baseline, cost performance baseline, risk register, organizational process assets, and enterprise environmental factors (Lyhne, Cashmore, Runhaar, van Laerhoven, 2015). Some tools and techniques which may come in use in this step for quality planning include quality management methodologies, statistical sampling, flow-charting, design experiments, benchmarking, control charts, the cost of quality, and cost-benefit analysis. Its output will include quality metrics, process improvement plans, quality checklists, quality management plan, and process document updates (O'Mahony Garavan, 2012). The quality planning requires the support of the senior project manager, team, sponsor, and other experienced and important seniors. Implementation and compliance with the quality planning with the QMP is a shared responsibility of all the project personnel. Quality planning includes following processes:- Establishing Quality Standards- the process of quality planning establishes the quality assurance and quality control standards, the project, procedures, standards, and descriptions that the project team may need. The quality process standards, description, and procedures applicable to the project phases will be defined and developed by the quality manager and senior project director in collaboration with the process owners and the team leaders (Wong, Tseng, Tan, 2013). Identify Quality Metrics- this part of the process identifies the metrics that the team may use. The quality manager and senior project director will work in collaboration with the team leaders, and process owners, who have developed and identified the quality metrics that may, needed to apply to the project. At different phases, the metrics which were based on project team established quality standards will be refined and documented in QMP. The quality metrics will be evaluating the goal achievement (Yang, 2011). Create Quality Checklists- the team will be using a quality checklist identified by the quality planning process. As an integral part, the project team will use the quality checklist on the process and product quality reviews. The application process of the quality checklist will be discussed in the process of quality assurance and product quality assurance sections. Problem Remediation- to determine the corrective actions and the improvements required for the process a discussion will take place in a meeting scheduled by the senior project manager separately. The outcome of the meeting will act on, wherever possible for improving the success of future project phases. It will be done by incorporating the experiences and lesson learned during the phase of planning activities. The quality of the project activities and the deliverables will increase through the incorporation of the quality management recommendation came into view from preceding review. This step will help in minimizing the issues at the end of the project and promotes a successful go-live (Gershon Rajashekharaiah, 2013). Quality Assurance Quality assurance is the section of QMP that explain the way to define and document the process of auditing the requirements for the quality and results that would be achieved from quality control measurements for quality standards compliance. It provides confidence that the quality requirements are getting fulfilled and helps in ensuring that the process of the project being used to deliver and manage the projects product is effective and applied properly (Huotari Havrdova, 2016). Throughout the projects life-cycle an iterative quality process will be used to ensure the quality. In quality assurance planning following actions need to be taken:- Determine the key processes need to be reviewed Determine the quality review standards Determine the expectations of stakeholders for effective business process Explain the quality assurance tools and activities Build measurement timelines and concluding actions (Indelicato, 2013) The techniques and tools that can be used for quality assurance process analysis, cause and effects diagrams, cause analysis, quality audits, control charts, quality control logs, and process flow mapping. The output of the quality assurance can be described with the help of organizational process assets updates, project management plan updates, change requests, and project document updates (Ip, 2009). Once all the activities of the quality assurance will be completed the senior project director will be scheduling a regular meeting for reviewing its findings. These reviews will include an agenda that will be a review of project processes, any error or variation, the findings of the audit coming from the quality manager, and the discussion on the initiatives taken or need to be taken on the process improvement. All the changes made will be documented, implemented and communicated to the members of the team regarding the process improvement efforts (Levin, 2014). Quality Control The method of defining and documenting the process to monitor and record the results of the executing the quality activities are known as quality control. This will be done to assess the performance and recommend the necessary changes. This is the part that apply on the product of the project. It includes the acceptable standards and the deliverable performance of the product and the method of measuring them (Li, Yang, Wu, 2008). The actions need to be completed as a part of quality control planning is as follows:- Determine the key deliverables need to be reviewed Determine the quality review standards Determine the correctness and completeness criteria suggested and defined by the customers Explain the quality control tools and activities Build measurement timelines and concluding actions Determine the owners of ongoing improvement and monitoring of project processes (Liang, 2010). Quality control inputs may include the quality metrics, work performance measurements, updated documentation deliverables, project management plan, quality checklists, approved change request, and organizational process assets. In quality control, the techniques and tools that can be used are control charts, cause and effect diagrams, flowcharting, Pareto charts, histograms, scatter diagrams, run charts, statistical sampling, approved change requests review, and inspection (Madadi Wong, 2014). The output can consist of quality control measurements, change requests, validated changes, organizational process assets updates, validated deliverables, project document updates, and project management plan updates. The steps that a quality control process involves are as follows:- Monitoring, validating, and verifying the work products to make sure that the requirements need to fulfilled for quality and scope of work are getting fulfilled or not. Inspection of documentation and deliverables and comparing them to a standard of quality that the stakeholders of the project have defined. To verify that the technical specification and the users requirements are met before as well as after the product gets approved and promoted to a stable production environment. To monitor the output of the workflow progress, detection of problems and defects, and allowing for taking corrective steps before the delivery of the services and products (Persic, Markic, Persic, 2016). Regular meetings will be scheduled by the senior project manager for the review of documents, management, and project. The agenda of the review will be revolving around the review of the products, any discrepancies or variation, and suggestion and discussion of product improvement initiatives (Prida And Grijalvo, 2008). Quality Management Roles and Responsibilities Quality management is the responsibility that has to be taken by all the members of the project team. This section of QMP will describe the primary roles and responsibilities that the project staff will handle in relation to the practice of the quality management for the project. All the role responsibilities and roles need to be clearly documented, defined and agreed upon between the project sponsor, senior project director, and quality manager (Rodrigues, 2007). As they all play a very important role in the quality management for the product. It is essential for a team that it makes sure that the work is completed as per the level which is the adequate quality level from individual work packages till the deliverables of the final project. For the project the quality roles and responsibilities required are as follows: Project Sponsor It the responsibility of the project sponsor to approve the quality standards for the project A project sponsor reviews the quality report and then provides assistance in the resolution of the escalated issues The final acceptances of the project deliverables are to be signed off by authority of the project sponsor (Sagiv Ladany, 2006). Senior Project Director Senior project director makes sure that all the processes, documentation, and tasks are in compliance with the plan and to do so he has to implement the quality management plan It is his responsibility to maintain quality management throughout the projects duration He should collaborate with the quality manager, specialists, and process owners to develop the quality metrics and standards according to the phases. He should ensure the compliance of team members with quality management processes (Starzyrska Hamrol, 2013) Supporting the quality manager in securing resources for performing the quality management Senior project director should participate in the review of quality management as required The quality standards need to be communicated to the project team and stakeholders (Steensen, 2010). Quality Manager A quality manager provides the overall leadership of quality management activities that includes the managing quality reviews and overseeing of the follow-on of the corrective actions He should develop and maintain the assurance plan of the project software quality He should generate and maintain the schedule of activities of software quality assurance He should collaborate with the quality specialist, senior project directors, and process owners for the development of quality metrics and standards (Taboada Coit, 2007). Raise the issues of non-compliance with the senior project director. He should keep the quality management plan updated and maintain the quality standards of the overall project processes and products (Tomazevic, Tekavcic, Peljhan, 2015). Quality Specialist/ Team Leaders/ Managers A team leader has a responsibility to support and oversee the application of quality standards set for the project process He should collaborate with the other team members like the senior project director, process owners, and quality manager in developing the quality plan which includes the quality metrics and standards. As required the team leader should participate in the quality management reviews. He should conduct the inspection of the quality assurance and quality control as appropriate (Tsui, 2010) The tools and methodologies for tracking quality and standards will be recommended by the team leader to establish acceptable quality levels. He should create and maintain the logs of quality control and assurance throughout the project He should conduct the assessment of the process and products, as explained in the plan Metrics need to developed and maintained (Welikala And Sohal, 2008) Process Owners A project owner should oversee and support in the project process by implicating the quality standards on the assigned processes. Keeping collaboration with the other team members that includes the quality manager, quality specialists, and senior project director His participation should be there in the reviews of quality management (Wickramasinghe Perera, 2012) Quality Management Records and Reports The section of the quality management plan that will keep the general information about the types of records and report that gets created and retained as a projects quality activities part. The location of the retention and the report and data format will vary from project to project. By maintaining these records the objective evidence and traceability of the assessment performed can be provided throughout the projects lifecycle. Some examples of the records are the assessment reports of process and products, metrics, weekly and monthly status reports, and completed checklists. A shared document repository can be used by the team members as a part of the quality activities and reviews that will contain the reporting data and the reports produced. The maintenance of the records will be done through the implementation phase of the project (Yang, 2011). Quality Measurements Tools The section of quality measurements and tools will contain a sample or useable log or a table that can be used in taking quality measurements and then for doing the comparison of them against standards and requirements. There are various formats of these forms. To provide documentation of the finding is the most important aspect of this log. Some action needs to be taken if the actual measurements do not meet the requirements or standards. This can be done during the regularly scheduled meeting for the project status or if necessary throughout the life-cycle of the project. Work is going on in the development and designing of a standard project measurements and metrics plan that can be applicable to all the projects (Gershon Rajashekharaiah, 2013). The team can use different tools when activities are performed of quality management for the project (Huotari Havrdova, 2016). The tools that can be used are as follows:- Software Quality Tools Microsoft Office Tools like Excel, Power Point, Word, and Project Test management software Test Management Repository Defect Tracking Software and Defect Management Repository (Li, Yang, Wu, 2008). Project Management Tools Project Server Issues and risk management system Deliverables Repository Software Vendor Problem Reporting Schedule Management and Tracking software (Madadi Wong, 2014) Problems and Solutions Problems Problems that an organization may face while implementing the quality management standards are as follows:- Competitive Markets- the main force and a reason of many other obstacles to quality is the competitive markets. It is a mental barrier that occurs by misunderstanding the definition of the quality. Companies equate quality with high cost, but the actual definition is bringing quality in the product in every function of the company. If the functions of the company are poor then the result in the form of the product will also be poor (Persic, Markic, Persic, 2016). Abdication of responsibility- the poor management practices, competitive environment, and a general lack of higher expectations has inflated the unhealthy and unproductive attitudes. Such attitudes are expressed by saying "It's not my job." Employees are trained to follow management with closed eyes which foster the motivation and creativity of them. Lack of leadership for quality- many layers and levels of management often result in duplication of responsibility and duty. This makes the quality implementation a managements job. This lead to discrepancies in taking the responsibility of quality between employees and the management. Employees involved in production and has a responsibility to incorporate quality in the product do not feel attached with process and hence do not take the initiative to make quality checks as per the customer's demand (Chen Wang, 2016). Deficiency of Cultural Dynamism- every organization has its own work culture which is preferred to be followed by the people associated with it. They like to stick to its old culture, which is in need of change to give the customer the quality he wants from the product. Inadequate cultural dynamism makes it difficult to implement the quality control steps in the organization. Inadequate resources for implementing quality management standards-Most of companys strategic plans do not include the standards of quality management and little funds are being allotted to it. When bringing the new changes in the company to get the adequate quality outcome, requirement of resources increases which affects the budget of the company. Many companies find it as an unnecessary expense for the company (Starzyrska Hamrol, 2013). Lack of Customer focus- most of the organizations strategic plans are not customer driven. They are more profit-oriented objectives in given period. Little market research is done to find out what are the customers requirements and demands from the product related to its quality. Lack of effective measurement of improving quality- QMP focuses on customers demand and need to be fulfilled from the product related to its quality. It is based on the customers feedback in developing the standards of the quality in the product. Many companies lack the effective measurement tools which are necessary to measure the quality and the improvement required in the quality (O'Mahony Garavan, 2012). Poor Planning- when a sound strategy is absent from the planning then it contributes to the ineffective quality improvement. In the starting phase only the planning goes wrong which affects the whole process and the outcome of the quality of the product is not up to the mark. Lack of management commitment- announcing and taking initiative in the implementation of quality management plan are two different things. Just by setting up the steps and design of the quality management plan is not sufficient, implementation and running of is properly is also very important to get the desired outcome from the planning. It is the management duty to effectively implement the quality plan in the organization (Taboada Coit, 2007). Resistance of the work-force- sometimes the work-force employed by the organization becomes unwilling to take up the initiative to improve quality by implementing the quality management plan. The reason may the changes in the procedure that the organization will go through or the extra pressure and workload they will face due to it Lack of proper training- if changes are to be brought in the working of the organization, then training for the changes needs to be given to employees. This will familiarize them with the change. Many times this does not happen and the result is poor implementation of the management plan (Yang, 2011). Recommendations or Solutions For successful implementation of the Quality Management Plan to achieve the Quality Management Standards are as follows:- The purpose towards improvement of the product should be created consistently to bring competitiveness in business and provide jobs to people required to bring the quality management The dependency on mass inspection should be ceased and instead of that the statistical evidences should be considered around which quality is built on. Adopting new philosophy as per the requirement of the new age. Effective work-force, no mistake, best material, and no delays should be the focus of the company. Proper training to the employees regarding the expected changes will help them to become familiar with the new procedures and accept them easily. Still the company find it difficult to implement the quality management plan, and then a thorough search is required to find the exact problem and the factors behind the problem (Prida And Grijalvo, 2008). Conclusion Quality is an important factor that an organization tries to maintain with a lot of efforts. A plan of maintaining the quality of the product as per the demand and requirements of the customers need to be designed and this is done through the quality management plan. There are many steps that are needed to be followed to reach the quality maintenance throughout the projects life-cycle. This includes the quality assurance, control, and role and responsibilities of the people associated with the project and quality management plan. If properly followed, then all the barriers that may arise during the process can be overcome, and total quality can be found in the product. References Ahuja, I. (2012). Total quality management implementation for reducing percent process defects in a manufacturing organisation.International Journal Of Business Performance Management,13(1), 1. Baharum, Z., Nawawi, A., Saat, Z. (2009). Assessment of Property Management Service Quality of Purpose Built Office Buildings.International Business Research,2(1). Chen, Y. Wang, Y. (2016). Application and development of the people capability maturity model level of an organisation.Total Quality Management Business Excellence, 1-17. Gershon, M. Rajashekharaiah, J. (2013). How many steps to quality? From Deming cycle to DMAIC.International Journal Of Productivity And Quality Management,11(4), 475. Hanaysha, J., Abdullah, H., Ghani, N. (2016). Importance of product quality and service quality in developing brand equity.J. For Global Business Advancement,9(4), 390. Huotari, P. Havrdova, Z. (2016). Stakeholders roles and responsibilities regarding quality of care.International Journal Of Health Care Quality Assurance,29(8), 864-876. Indelicato, G. (2013). Total Quality Management for Project Management.Project Management Journal,44(4), e1-e1. Ip, B. (2009). Planning and controlling business succession planning using quality function deployment.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,20(4), 363-379. Kilgore, A., Radich, R., Harrison, G. (2011). The Relative Importance of Audit Quality Attributes.Australian Accounting Review,21(3), 253-265. Konidari, V. Abernot, Y. (2006). From TQM to learning organisation.International Journal Of Quality Reliability Management,23(1), 8-26 Levin, G. (2014). Project Quality Management: Why, What and How, Second Edition.Project Management Journal,45(5), e3-e3. Lau, A., Yam, R., Tang, E. (2011). The Impact of Product Modularity on New Product Performance: Mediation by Product Innovativeness.Journal Of Product Innovation Management,28(2), 270-284 Li, J., Yang, J., Wu, H. (2008). Improving service quality and organisation performance through human resource practices. A case study.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,19(9), 969-985. Liang, K. (2010). Aspects of Quality Tools on Total Quality Management.Modern Applied Science,4(9). Lyhne, I., Cashmore, M., Runhaar, H., van Laerhoven, F. (2015). Quality Control for Environmental Policy Appraisal Tools: An Empirical Investigation of Relations Between Quality, Quality Control and Effectiveness.Journal Of Environmental Policy Planning,18(1), 121-140. Madadi, N. Wong, K. (2014). A Multiobjective Fuzzy Aggregate Production Planning Model Considering Real Capacity and Quality of Products.Mathematical Problems In Engineering,2014, 1-15. O'Mahony, K. Garavan, T. (2012). Implementing a quality management framework in a higher education organisation.Quality Assurance In Education,20(2), 184-200. Persic, A., Markic, M., Persic, M. (2016). The impact of socially responsible management standards on the business success of an organisation.Total Quality Management Business Excellence, 1-13. Prida And, B. Grijalvo, M. (2008). The socio-technical approach to work organisation. An essential element in Quality Management Systems.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,19(4), 343-352. Rodrigues, C. (2007). The Quality Organization: A Conceptual Framework.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,18(7), 697-713. Sagiv, Y. Ladany, S. (2006). Developing Formulas for Setting an Improved Double Sampling Plan.Quality Technology Quantitative Management,3(2), 217-225. Starzyrska, B. Hamrol, A. (2013). Excellence toolbox: Decision support system for quality tools and techniques selection and application.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,24(5-6), 577-595. Steensen, E. (2010). Quality performance excellence: Management, organization and strategy.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,21(10), 1057-1057. Taboada, H. Coit, D. (2007). Data Clustering of Solutions for Multiple Objective System Reliability Optimization Problems.Quality Technology Quantitative Management,4(2), 191-210. Tomazevic, N., Tekavcic, M., Peljhan, D. (2015). Towards excellence in public administration: organisation theory-based performance management model.Total Quality Management Business Excellence, 1-22. Tsui, A. (2010). In Pursuit of High Quality Research.Management And Organization Review,6(01), 149-150. Welikala And, D. Sohal, A. (2008). Total Quality Management and employees' involvement: A case study of an Australian organisation.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,19(6), 627-642. Wickramasinghe, V. Perera, S. (2012). Effects of perceived organisation support, employee engagement and organisation citizenship behaviour on quality performance.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,25(11-12), 1280-1294. Wong, W., Tseng, M., Tan, K. (2013). A business process management capabilities perspective on organisation performance.Total Quality Management Business Excellence,25(5-6), 602-617. Yang, J. (2011). Turbocharger Production Organization and Quality Control.Advanced Materials Research,422, 420-423.

Who is to blame in The rucible Essay Example For Students

Who is to blame in The ?rucible? Essay The Crucible was first produced in 1953 in 1952 in the middle of the McCarthy political witch hunts. Miller was trying to convey the parallel between the witch-hunts in Salem and the witch hunts for communists. The hysteria in Salem can be blamed on the individuals or the whole society. Although many individuals contributed to the hysteria the social conditions the characters, the young girls in particular, had to endure is also to blame. There are a number of characters to which some degree of blame could be attributed. One of these characters is Abigail. Abigail is the character who really gets the whole thing started; Uncle, we did dance We will write a custom essay on Who is to blame in The ?rucible? specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now She first openly admits to dancing in the woods and when the pressure is put on her she says that it was to blame on witchcraft. She uses the situation to her advantage and manages to get back at Goody Proctor who has blackened her name in the village. Although she is very manipulative in some ways she is a victim. She is treated as a child even though she is no longer innocent and virginal; Sweated like a stallion Abigail is very forward and speaks and acts like she is much older than she is. She is a young adult but nobody will treat her like one. Abigail had a relationship with Proctor, but still he calls her a child. Abigail seems to want to break free of the stereotype and this is what leads to hysteria. Abigail did not plan for the situation to get out of hand or lead to the death of innocent people, but she could not really stop it once the ball had started rolling. The accusations led to the hysteria to spiral out of control as more and more people were blamed. Society really is to blame though when it comes to Abigail as society put great pressure on her, which led her to try and break free of her stereotype. Another character that contributes to the hysteria is Parris. The way Parris approached his ministry led to problems. His selfish attitude contributes to the reaction of the girls. The way he runs the church leads to resentment and bad blood in the village. He should be preaching about God but instead he preaches about money. He is always thinking about himself too much and does not consider others; I cannot offer one proposition, but there be a howling riot of argument He may have been able to solve the problems but he couldnt be bothered with the hassle of it and would rather deal with his own problems. He is selfish and only really thinks about money. He thinks he deserves luxuries because he is a minister; Dont a minister deserve a house to live in His selfish attitude contributed to the hysteria in Salem. In some ways it is society to blame  for creating the conditions in which man like Parris, who is quite obviously not a very holy man, can lord it over others simply because he has the title of priest. John Proctor also contributes to the hysteria in Salem. His inability to control his lust contributes to events. His lust for Abigail led Abigail to believe that there could be a proper relationship between them; Ill not be comin for you no more He does try to make it clear to Abigail but he has already led her on too much. When Proctor calls her child it makes Abigail want to prove herself to him and she shows him how powerful she can really be. .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a , .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .postImageUrl , .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a , .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:hover , .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:visited , .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:active { border:0!important; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:active , .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u71c581b5ce82a033e630a0f4bd5e2c4a:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Social and Historical Background to 'Great Expectations' EssayIt seems as though if he had come forward earlier then he could have stopped what was happening. He would not admit to adultery because he did not want his name blackened in the village. Society is really to blame because it condemned sexual impropriety and it made him feel that he could not confess because it is a sin. Putnam is another one of the characters that contributes to the hysteria. He is the prime example of the land owning citizen. He seems to be motivated to make the problem worse. He is very selfish about his land and possessions; You load one oak of mine and youll fight to drag it home He is always fighting and bickering with other people about what belongs to him. As a prominent citizen he could have stopped the hysteria rather than fuelling it. He, instead of dealing with the problems he would rather try and gain more land by getting his daughter to cry rape. Society really is to blame for creating a man like Putnam who is given power through possession of money and use that power for greed. In fact Proctor indicates how the village seems based on money not equality. There is also a collective blame. All the characters build up to create a society, which is prone to this type of situation. The land disputes add to the problems. No single character tries to whole heartedly to solve the crisis because of fear of damaging their own reputation. The way women and children are treated also contributes to the problem. Many of the young women are treated like children and want to demolish the stereotype. There are certain attitudes towards pleasure which means that many of the girls would have had a starved imagination and social life which would have made the witch hunts seem exciting and appealing. The girls were rarely made centre of attention so this sudden interest shown towards them would have also been appealing. It would have seemed ridiculous to them to remove themselves for the spotlight, which they rarely have upon them. Overall it was the whole of society to blame rather than the individual characters. As the village was in the middle of  nowhere there was no escape. This made the situation more intense because everyone was trapped. These external influences slightly contribute to the atmosphere. There are many parallels between the society in Salem and the communist witch hunts. Both conditions are similar; in both cases people are being persecuted without a proper trial or any evidence. Both societies have resentments and jealousies. Miller uses the book to create an absurd situation to mock the McCarthy witch-hunts. It is the individual characters that contribute to the chaos. All of the characters build up to create a society prone to this type of situation.

Ivy League MOOCs - Free Online Classes from the Ivies

Ivy League MOOCs - Free Online Classes from the Ivies Most of the eight ivy league universities are now offering some form of publicly available free online classes. MOOCs (massively open online classes) offer learners everywhere the opportunity to learn from ivy league instructors and interact with other students while completing their coursework. Some MOOCs even provide students the opportunity to earn a certificate that can be listed on a resume or used to demonstrate ongoing learning. See how you can take advantage of no-cost, instructor-led courses from Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, UPenn, or Yale. Keep in mind that free MOOCs are different from registering as a student at a university. If you would prefer to earn an official degree or graduate certificate from an ivy league online, check out the article on How to Earn an Online Degree from an Ivy League University. Brown Brown offers several no-cost MOOCs to the public through Coursera. Options include courses like â€Å"Coding the Matrix: Linear Algebra Through Computer Science Applications,† â€Å"Archeology’s Dirty Secrets† and â€Å"The Fiction of Relationship.† Columbia Also through Coursea, Columbia offers a number of instructor-led MOOCs. These online courses include â€Å"Economics of Money and Banking,† â€Å"How Viruses Cause Disease,† â€Å"Big Data in Education,† â€Å"Introduction to Sustainable Development,† and more. Cornell Cornell instructors offer MOOCs on a wide variety of subjects through CornellX - a part of edX. Courses include topics such as â€Å"The Ethics of Eating,† â€Å"Civic Ecology: Reclaiming Broken Places,† â€Å"American Capitalism: A History,† and â€Å"Relativity and Astrophysics.† Students can audit the courses for free or earn a verified certificate by paying a small fee. Dartmouth Dartmouth is still working on building its presence on edX. It currently offers a single course: â€Å"Introduction to Environmental Science.† The school also offers the Trustees of Dartmouth College seminar series, featuring livestream seminars for health care professionals every other Wednesday. Past seminars have included: â€Å"Behavioral Economics and Health,† â€Å"Letting Patients Help Heal Health Care: Extents and Limits of Patient Contributions,† and â€Å"Characteristics and Consequences of Hospital Closures.† Harvard Amongst the ivies, Harvard has led the way toward greater open learning. HarvardX, a part of edX, offers over fifty instructor-led MOOCs on a wide variety of subjects. Notable courses include: â€Å"Saving Schools: History, Politics, and Policy in U.S. Education,† â€Å"Poetry in America: Whitman,† â€Å"Copyright,† â€Å"The Einstein Revolution,† and â€Å"Introduction to Bioconductor.† Students may choose to audit courses or complete all coursework for a verified edX certificate. Harvard also provides a searchable database of their online courses, both current and archived. Finally, through their Open Learning Initiative, Harvard offers dozens of video lectures in Quicktime, Flash, and mp3 formats. These recorded lectures were created from actual Harvard courses. Although the recordings are not complete courses with assignments, many lecture series provide a semester’s worth of instruction. Video series include â€Å"Intensive Introduction to Computer Science,† â€Å"Abstract Algebra,† â€Å"Shakespeare After All: The Later Plays,† and more. Students can view or listen to the courses through the Open Learning Initiative site or subscribe through iTunes. Princeton Princeton provides a number of MOOCs through the Coursera platform. Options include â€Å"Analysis of Algorithms,† â€Å"Fog Networks and the Internet of Things,† â€Å"Imagining Other Earths,† and â€Å"Introduction to Sociology.† UPenn The University of Pennsylvania offers a few MOOCs via Coursera. Notable options include: â€Å"Design: Creation of Artifacts in Society,† â€Å"Principles of Microeconomics,† â€Å"Designing Cities,† and â€Å"Gamification.† UPenn also offers their own database of current and upcoming online courses, searchable by date. Yale Open Yale offers learners the opportunity to review video / audio lectures and assignments from previous Yale courses. As courses are not led by an instructor, students may access the material at any time. Currently available courses include subjects such as â€Å"Foundations of a Modern Social Theory,† â€Å"Roman Architecture,† â€Å"Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Faulkner,† and â€Å"Frontiers and Controversies in Astrophysics.† No discussion boards or opportunities for student interaction are provided. Jamie Littlefield is a writer and instructional designer. She can be reached on Twitter or through her educational coaching website: jamielittlefield.com.

Political science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 7

Political science - Essay Example Chief of staff identifies the leader of an intricate institution or body of individuals who is the coordinator of the endorsing or supporting staff. Chief of staff offers a buffer between the executive’s direct reporting team and the chief executive. The chief of staff has the duty to advice and confidante the chief executive. The roles of the chief of staff depend on the people involved and the actual position. Filibuster or talking out a bill can be defined as any obstructive techniques utilized to prevent a measure from being brought on the floor of the house for vote. The most familiar form of filibuster takes place when a senator tries to delay a vote on a crucial bill by extending the debate or discussion on the measure. The main intention of a filibuster is delaying or killing legislation from approval. Due to the fact, the senate carries out its activities based on unanimous consent; one person can establish a delay by opposing to the request. In some scenarios, such as considering resolution on the day the legislation is brought from the House, the delay could last the whole day. Since the delay is a legislative day, the majority of members can address it by adjourning the session. A bill refers to a proposed law under deliberation by lawmakers or legislatures. In order for a bill to become a policy or law, it must be passed by the lawmakers and consented by the executive. A bill is introduced in the House by the executive where the legislatures meet and discusses the requirement of the executive. They debate the authenticity of the bill and reach a consensus. In case, the legislatures disapprove it, it does not qualify to be a law but once they approve it, the executive signs it into law. Veto power is the power given to nations such as France, Russia, United States of America, Britain and China by the United Nation to unilaterally stop or endorse an official

WEEK 4 DQ 7 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

WEEK 4 DQ 7 - Assignment Example Legitimate, coercive and reward as forms of formal power. Personal power deals more with what other individuals see and regard of someone they respect or like, thus giving someone the ability to influence. Expert, information and referent power have been classified as personal power. An example of an unethical use of power was when I was instructed by my superior to perform a task that was supposed to be his. In this case, my superior exercised his formal power, and was able to influence me to do the work for him. My superior unethically used legitimate power over me, emphasizing that I should be the one following the orders. Such scenarios I believe are common in many organizations where the people in authority tend to abuse the power accompanied in the positions they fill in. Political behaviors are actions with which an individual or a group of individuals make to be able to influence others in the organization to get the result they want. The three dimensions of political behavior are: upward influence, downward influence and peer influence. Upward influence refers to the capability of the people at the lower level of the organization to influence the decisions of the people with authority in the organization. Downward influence is the capacity of a superior to influence those under his or her department, such as general managers influencing department managers and their subordinates. Peer influence is the most common and this usually occurs with people who are in the same level of the organization. In laymans term, this may also be seen as peer pressure. However, this kind of influence may be destructive if there is no common goal among the people involved. Individual and organizational antecedents greatly influence political behavior. Political skill, investment in organization, internal locus control and expectations of

Human resource Planning and Leadership roles

Human resource Planning and Leadership roles Human Resource Planning is the process by which an organization ensures that it has the right number and kind of people, at the right places, at the right time, capable of effectively and efficiently completing those tasks that will help the organization achieve its overall objectives (Decenzo and Robbins 2000). Vetter (1967) defined human resource planning as the process by which management determines how the organization should move from its current manpower position to its desired position. Through planning, management strives to have the right number and the right kinds of people, at the right places, at the right time, doing things which result in both the organization and the individual receiving maximum long-run benefits. Human resources planning should be a key component of nearly every  corporations strategic business planning. To ensure their  competitive advantage  in the marketplace, organizations must implement innovative strategies that are designed to enhance their employee retention rate and recruit fresh talent into their companies. In todays corporate environment, it is viewed as a valuable component for adding value to an organization. Both employees and the company will often realize many benefits of planning over the long-run. Contemporary human resource planning occurs within the broad context of organizational and strategic business planning. It involves forecasting the organizations future human resource needs and planning for how those needs will be met. It includes establishing objectives and then developing and implementing programs (staffing, appraising, compensating, and training) to ensure that people are available with the appropriate characteristics and skills when and where the organization needs them. It may also involve developing and implementing programs to improve employee performance or to increase employee satisfaction and involvement in order to boost organizational productivity, quality, or innovation (Mills, 1 985b). Finally, human resource planning includes gathering data that can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of ongoing programs and inform planners when revisions in their forecasts and programs are needed. Strategic collaboration between small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and the large businesses they partner can take many forms, such as locating a SMEs facility in close proximity to a buyers facility to enable just-in-time delivery of raw material, inputs and components; collaborating on research and development and product design to build organizational competencies and capabilities; collaborating on supply chain activities to manage costs and promote operational efficiency; or delivering outsourced human resource management activities (Doz and Hamel 1998). For large businesses, forming strategic alliances and collaborative partnerships can be critical to their ability to seize technological opportunities, to build critical resource strengths and competitive capabilities, to improve supply chain efficiencies and deliver value to their customers (Kaplan and Hurd 2002). Often these partners are small and medium sized enterprises, that are expected to perform as full partners (Ij ose, Olumide). However, there has been little to no attention paid to the role the strategic human resource management (SHRM) practices of SMEs play in their ability to be valued and trusted strategic partners in the value chain of big businesses. Like any other organization, the sophistication of their human resource management practices can lead to operational inefficiencies that can affect their ability to meet their obligations to corporate buyers (reference and relate sentence to big businesses where this has been proven). Factors that enable operating excellence include having a strong management team, recruiting and retaining talented employees, viewing training as a strategic activity, structuring the work effort in ways that promotes successful strategy execution, deploying an organizational structure that facilitates the proficient performance of strategy critical activities, instituting policies and procedures that facilitate good strategy execution, instilling a strategy supportive cult ure and tying rewards and incentives to individual and team performance outcomes that are strategically relevant (Higgins 2005). Human resource planning involves plans for future needs of personnel, their required skills, recruitment of employees, and development of personnel (Miller, Burack, Albrecht, 1980).   Human resource forecasting and human resource audit are the two most important components of this type of planning. Human resource forecasting refers to predicting an organizations future demand for number, type, and quality of various categories of employees. The assessment of future needs has to be based on analysis of present and future policies and growth trends. The techniques of forecasting include the formal expert survey, Delphi technique, statistical analysis, budget and planning analysis, and computer models. The human resource audit gives an account of the skills, abilities, and performance of all the employees of an organization (Werther Davis, 1982). Recruitment  refers to the process of attracting, screening, and selecting qualified people for a  job  at an  organization  or firm. For some components of the recruitment process, mid- and large-size organizations often retain  professional recruiters  or outsource some of the process to recruitment agencies. Types of recruitment are: 1. External Recruitment Methods Develop  relationships  with guidance and career counselors at colleges and universities and ask for help in recruiting for open positions. Reach out to professional organizations that are in line with the organizations mission, and ask to them to list open positions in their newsletters and emails to members. Organizations with financial resources should consider working with a recruitment firm, especially if the position is at a higher level or requires a specific skill or type of experience. 2. Internal Recruitment Methods Be clear about the skills and experience an applicant must possess. Post an open position internally first to assess whether there are qualified candidates within the organization. Consider interns, volunteers, temporary workers or consultants who may have been working in a similar capacity to the open position( managementstudyguide  [online]). A typical selection process consists of the following steps: completed job application, initial screening, testing, indepth selection interview, physical examination, and job offer (French, 1982). In general, extension organizations use a simple knowledge test and a brief interview to select extension personnel. An interview  is the most common form of selection as it is relatively cheap to undertake and is the chance for an employer to meet the applicant face to face and so obtain much more information on what the person is like and how suitable they are for the job. Examples of information that can only be learnt from interview and not on paper from a CV or application form are: Conversational ability-  often known as people skills Natural enthusiasm or manner of the applicant See how applicant reacts under pressure Queries on comments or details missing from CV or application form There are though other forms of selection tests that can be used in addition to an interview to help select the best applicant. The basic interview can be unreliable as applicants can perform well at interview but not have the qualities or skills needed for the job. Other selection tests can increase the chances of choosing the best applicant and so minimise the high costs of recruiting the wrong people. Examples of these tests are aptitude tests, intelligence tests and psychometric tests. Once the best candidate has been selected and agreed to take up the post, the new employee must be given an  employment contract. The training of personnel contributes directly to the development of human resources within organizations. Training programmes are directed towards maintaining and improving current job performance, while development programmes seek to develop skills for future jobs (Stoner Freeman, 1992, p. 388).   Training based on actual field experience should be emphasized.  Methods such as coaching, job rotation, training sessions, classroom instruction, and educational institute-sponsored development programmes are used to train managers. An important aspect of human resource management which needs special attention in organizations is the development of a reward system which will attract, retain, and motivate extension personnel, as well as provide training and promotional opportunities. Skinners reinforcement theory, Vrooms expectancy theory, Maslows need-hierarchy theory, Adams equity theory and Herzbergs two- factor theory are the five main approaches that have created the understanding of motivation. In 1943, Maslow gave a list of five types of needs of employees i.e.: ego, safety, physiological, self- actualizing and social. Maslow said that all type of needs of employees should be fulfilled in some priority levels, as the fulfillment of their needs would bring a great deal of motivation in the employees. Motivators and hygiene were the two categories in which Herzberg divided motivation in 1959. Job satisfaction is provided by recognition and achievements of employees which contribute to intrinsic factors and motivation. Job dissatisfaction is developed as a result of low pays and insecurity of jobs that contribute towards extrinsic factors or hygiene. Performance was the major area of relevance which contribute towards rewards and further increased performance according to Vroom in 1964. There may be positive or negative categories of rewards. The motivation of an employee depends upon the rewards as positive rewards motivate the employees and negative rewards demotivate them. According to Adams equity among workers plays a major role in motivating employees. Equity is achieved when the ratio of employee outcomes over inputs is equal to other employee outcomes over inputs (Adams, 1965). In 1953, Skinner mentioned that the positive behavior of the employees should be motivated to be repeated and negative behavior should be strictly dealt so that it shouldnt be repeated. Behavior of employees should be observed strictly by managers. Managers should be made liable to enforce the positive behavior of employees that lead to positive results and demotivate the negative behavior of employees that leads to negative outcomes. The importance of certain factors in motivating employees was studied by James R. Lindner in 1998, who was Research Associate at Ohio State University. Ten motivating factors were revealed by the study as following: (a) interesting work, (b) ) tactful discipline, (c) good wages, (d)job security, (e) feeling of being in on things, (f) sympathetic help with personal problems, (g) personal loyalty to employees, (h) full appreciation of work done (i) good working conditions, and (j) promotions and growth in the organization Some interesting factors into employee motivation were revealed by comparison of above results to Maslows need-hierarchy theory. Interesting work is a self-motivating factor which is considered rank one motivation factor. Good wages is a physiological motivation factor which is ranked two. High appreciation of work done is another major esteem factor which is ranked at number three. Job security known as the safety factor is another major motivation facto ranked at number four. In 1943, Maslow declared that interesting work, safety, esteem, physiological and social factors are the most important motivation factors that must be satisfied first. Good pay and increase in pays will be second most important factors that should be addressed by managers. Range of motivational factors suggested by Maslows study is challenged by the following study. This study doesnt confirm that Maslows conclusion of ascending order of motivational factors to be satisfied. Ken Shah and Prof. Param J. Shah re vealed the properties that a manager should have as following: Evaluate yourself-  In order to motivate, encourage and control your staffs behaviour, it is essential to understand, encourage and control your own behaviour as a manager. Be familiar with your staff-  The more and the better he knows his staff, the simpler it is to get them involved in the job as well as in achieving the team and organizational goals.   Provide the employees certain benefits-  Give them bonuses, pay them for overtime, and give them health and family insurance benefits. Make sure they get breaks from work.   Participate in new employees induction programme- Induction proceeds with recruitment advertising. At this point of time, the potential entrants start creating their own impressions and desires about the job and the organization. The manner in which the selection is conducted and the consequent recruitment process will either build or damage the impression about the job and organization. Provide feedback to the staff constantly Acknowledge your staff on their achievements Ensure effective time management Have stress management techniques in your organization Give the employees learning opportunities Listen effectively Develop and encourage creativity Adopt job enrichment-  Job enrichment implies giving room for a better quality of working life. It means facilitating people to achieve self-development, fame and success through a more challenging and interesting job which provides more promotional and advancement opportunities. Respect your team Set realistic goals : Set moderate goals. Setting too high a task creates a feeling of non-achievement, right from the beginning itself.   Think like a winner : A manager has to handle two situations, The Winning and The loosing. The crux is to think like a winner even when all the odds seem against you. It is necessary to equip yourself with all the tools of a winner. An executive must have the right leadership traits to influence motivation. Both an employee as well as manager must possess leadership and motivational traits. An effective leader must have a thorough knowledge of motivational factors for others. He must understand the basic needs of employees, peers and his superiors. Leadership is used as a means of motivating others. According to Keith Davis, Leadership is the ability to persuade others to seek defined objectives enthusiastically. It is the human factor which binds a group together and motivates it towards goals.( managementstudyguide  [online]) Characteristics of Leadership It is a inter-personal process in which a manager is into influencing and guiding workers towards attainment of goals. It denotes a few qualities to be present in a person which includes intelligence, maturity and personality. It is a group process. It involves two or more people interacting with each other. A leader is involved in shaping and moulding the behaviour of the group towards accomplishment of organizational goals. Leadership is situation bound. There is no best style of leadership. It all depends upon tackling with the situations. Leadership and management are the terms that are often considered synonymous. It is essential to understand that leadership is an essential part of effective management. As a crucial component of management, remarkable leadership behaviour stresses upon building an environment in which each and every employee develops and excels. A manager must have traits of a leader, i.e., he must possess leadership qualities. Leaders develop and begin strategies that build and sustain competitive advantage. Organizations require robust leadership and robust management for optimal organizational efficiency. (managementstudyguide  [online]) Differences between Leadership and Management Leadership differs from management in a sense that: While managers lay down the structure and delegates authority and responsibility, leaders provides direction by developing the organizational vision and communicating it to the employees and inspiring them to achieve it. While management includes focus on planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling; leadership is mainly a part of directing function of management. Leaders focus on listening, building relationships, teamwork, inspiring, motivating and persuading the followers. While a leader gets his authority from his followers, a manager gets his authority by virtue of his position in the organization. While managers follow the organizations policies and procedure, the leaders follow their own instinct. Management is more of science as the managers are exact, planned, standard, logical and more of mind. Leadership, on the other hand, is an art. In an organization, if the managers are required, then leaders are a must/essential. While management deals with the technical dimension in an organization or the job content; leadership deals with the people aspect in an organization. While management measures/evaluates people by their name, past records, present performance; leadership sees and evaluates individuals as having potential for things that cant be measured, i.e., it deals with future and the performance of people if their potential is fully extracted. If management is reactive, leadership is proactive. Management is based more on written communication, while leadership is based more on verbal communication.   The leadership style varies with the kind of people the leader interacts and deals with. A perfect/standard leadership style is one which assists a leader in getting the best out of the people who follow him. There are three main categories of leadership styles:  autocratic, paternalistic and democratic (tutor2u[online]) Autocratic  (or authoritarian) managers like to make all the important decisions and closely supervise and control workers. Managers do not trust workers and simply give orders (one-way communication) that they expect to be obeyed. This approach has limitations but it can be effective in certain situations. For example: When quick decisions are needed in a company (e.g. in a time of crises). Paternalistic  managers give more attention to the social needs and views of their workers. Managers are interested in how happy workers feel and in many ways they act as a father figure. They consult employees over issues and listen to their feedback or opinions. The manager will however make the actual decisions (in the best interests of the workers)   A  democratic  style of management will put trust in employees and encourage them to make decisions. They will delegate to them the authority to do this (empowerment) and listen to their advice. This requires good two-way communication and often involves democratic discussion groups, which can offer useful suggestions and ideas. Managers must be willing to encourage leadership skills in subordinates. Because the purpose of human resource planning is to ensure that the right people are in the right place at the right time, it must be linked with the plans of the total organization. Traditionally, there has been a weak one way linkage between business planning and human resource planning. Business plans, where they exist, have defined human resource needs, thereby making human resource planning a reactive exercise. Thus a final challenge in human resource planning is balancing current needs-of organizations and their employees-with those of the future. The criterion against which this balancing act is measured is whether employees are currently at the right place doing the right things but yet are ready to adapt appropriately to different activities. To ensure this, a harmonious relationship between employer and employee, and effective leadership style is essential.

Analysis Of Ibsens A Dolls House Essay -- A Dolls House Essays

"A Doll House" A critical Analysis When Nora slammed the door shut in her doll's house in 1879, her message sent shockwaves around the world that persist to this day. "I must stand quite alone", Nora declared after finding out that her ideal of life was just a imagination of her and that all her life had been build up by others people's, specifically her husband and her dad ideas, opinions and tastes. Nora is the pampered wife of an aspiring bank manager Torvald Halmer. In a desperate attempt to saves her husband's life Nora once asked for a loan so she and her family could move somewhere where her husband could recover from his sickness. Giving the circumstances she, as a woman of that period, by herself and behind her husband forged her dad signature to receive the loan. Now, Nora's lender (Mr. Krogstad), despite her paying punctually, uses that fault as a fraud to pressure her so she could help him to keep his job in the Bank where her husband is going to be the manager. Nora finds out that Torvald would fire Mr. Krogstad at any cost. At learning this, Nora trembles for she knows Mr. Krogstad will tell everything to Torvald. She remains confident; however that Torvald will stand by her no matter what outcome. His reaction though is not what she expected and therefore here is when she realizes that she "must stand quite alone" and leaves her husband. From the time A Doll's House was performed for first time (1879) till now, there have been all sorts of interpretation and critics about its message. According to Mr. Mayer's files critics considered that the A Doll's House message was that "a marriage was not sacrosanct, that a man's authority in his home should not go unchallenged". Another similar critics' interpretat... ... Johnston, Brian. Text and Supertext in Ibsen's Drama. Pennsylvania : The Pennsylvania State University , 1932. 2. Templeton, Joan. Ibsen's Women. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1997. 3. Tennant, P.F.D. Ibsen's Dramatic Technique. New York : Hummanities Press Inc., 1948. 4. Meyer, Michael. Ibsen's on file. London and New York : Methuen London Ltd., 1985. 5. Ford, Karen. "Social contrains and painful growth in A Doll's House". Expanded Academic ASAP. Methodist College , Fayetteville , NC . 30 Octuber 2005 6. Hopkins, Anthony and Bloom Claire. A Doll's House video recording. Southgate Entertainment." 1989. 7. Rekdal, Anne Marie. " The female Jouissance An Analysis of Ibsen's Et dukkehjem. Expanded Academic ASAP. Methodist College , Fayetteville , NC . 30 Octuber 2005

Stefan’s Diaries: The Craving Chapter 8

I found Damon dancing with Hilda, ushering her around the dance floor with the lightest touch. Wherever his fingers touched she bent, curling into him a trifle more than was acceptable and falling against him more than was necessary. Other girls looked on enviously, clearly hoping to dance with him next. He pretended to devote all his attention to the poor girl, but glanced up just long enough to shoot me a dazzling smile. I waited impatiently for the dance to end, wishing I could compel the musicians to stop. But whatever Damon's powers of compulsion, mine were severely lacking thanks to my meager diet. As soon as the last beat was played, I marched up to my brother. â€Å"Oh, I'm sorry, did you want to†¦ ?† he asked, innocently, indicating Hilda. â€Å"Because I'm sure she will. If you'd like her to.† Hilda studied her dance card, the picture of confusion. â€Å"Let's go get a drink,† I said, taking him by the elbow. â€Å"Exactly what I was thinking,† he agreed, mock-seriously. He snapped his fingers, as if at a dog. â€Å"Hilda†¦ ?† â€Å"Leave her alone,† I ordered. Damon rolled his eyes. â€Å"Fine. A waiter will do just as well.† But he allowed me to place an iron grip on his arm and guide him through the crowd, past the refreshment room, through a library and into a poorly lit study. â€Å"What the hell are you doing here?† I demanded the moment we were alone. â€Å"Trying to enjoy myself,† Damon said, throwing his hands up in mock exasperation. He dropped his accent immediately. â€Å"Did you see the spread? The salmon's from Scotland. And Adelina Patti is here, too – Father would have just died. Oh wait.† He snapped his fingers. â€Å"He did die. You murdered him, in fact.† â€Å"Only after he tried to kill us,† I pointed out, clenching my fists. â€Å"Correction: after he succeeded in shooting both of us. We're dead, brother.† Damon grinned at me. He was circling me. Casually, as if he didn't mean to, as if he was just walking around idly, making conversation while admiring the decor. It reminded me of how he'd paced the ring at the circus back in New Orleans, when Gallagher had forced him to fight the mountain lion. Damon picked up a small statuette and turned it over in his hands, but his eyes stayed locked on mine. I squared my shoulders, feeling the predator's response as he challenged my personal space. â€Å"I'm asking you again, Damon: What are you doing here?† â€Å"Same thing as you, brother. Starting a new life, far from home, and war, and tragedy, and all of those other things immigrants like us are escaping. New York is where the action is. I figured if it's good enough for my brother, it's good enough for me, too.† â€Å"So you did follow me,† I said. â€Å"How?† â€Å"You stink,† Damon said. â€Å"Don't act surprised! It's not just you. Everyone stinks. We're hunters, Stefan. About halfway up the coast, it wasn't hard to figure out where you decided to go after New Orleans. I just made sure I got here first. There isn't a train yet that can beat me on a horse. Well, several horses. A couple of them died of exhaustion. Like your poor, poor Mezzanotte.† â€Å"Why, Damon?† I said, ignoring his casual cruelty. â€Å"Why follow me here?† Damon's eyes narrowed and a flash of rage shot through them, exploding from the hidden depths of his soul. â€Å"I told you I was going to torment you for the eternity you blessed me with, Stefan. Did you think I would break my promise so quickly?† I was used to Damon's fits of pique. His anger had always been like a summer storm, quick and violent, causing damage to anyone or anything nearby – and then it was over and he was buying a round at the tavern. But this fury was new, and it was all because of me. I averted my eyes so he couldn't see the pain and guilt written there. â€Å"What do you want with Lydia? What does she have to do with anything?† â€Å"Ah, Lydia,† Damon sighed, infusing his voice with pretend longing. â€Å"Charming, isn't she? Definitely the best catch of the three sisters. Not that Margaret doesn't have her own charms, of course, but she's a bit sarcastic for my tastes, and, well, married.† He shook his head. â€Å"But then there's Bridget. Such a lively girl! Such verve!† â€Å"†¦ anyone seen Stefan?† As if on cue, we could both pick out her whining, childish soprano from four rooms away. â€Å"†¦ and such an irritating voice,† Damon finished, wincing. â€Å"First thing I would do, brother, is compel her to silence. You'd be doing the world a favor.† I clenched my jaw. â€Å"You were obviously involved with the Sutherlands long before we crossed paths here.† â€Å"Oh was I?† Damon asked. He put down the small statue he had been holding and turned it this way and that on the desk, as if deciding which way it looked best. â€Å"Poor girl was getting soaked – did she tell you the story? She loves it. For all of her pretending to be hard-nosed, she's a weak-kneed romantic as bad as the rest of them. A sudden storm out of nowhere, a dry cab for Lydia†¦ rich, rich Lydia†¦ with a sheltered upbringing and open, welcoming family.† â€Å"Oh, you are a master of subtlety. Controlling men's fates,† I said, rolling my eyes at Damon's preening. â€Å"I am a master. Who do you think left Bridget for you to find?† he demanded. He stuck his face toward my own so that our noses almost touched. â€Å"Who do you think wounded her – just enough – for poor, old, predictable Stefan to find? Stefan, who's sworn off drinking from humans, who I just knew would rescue the damsel in distress rather than finish her off.† A cold chill crept up my spine. â€Å"And then of course I compelled the entire family to welcome you and take you in,† he finished with a careless wave of his hand, as if it had been nothing. A sense of resignation and understanding flooded my body. Of course he had compelled the family. The Sutherlands' easy acceptance of me into their home had rankled me, and I should have realized earlier that something was hugely amiss. How did a man of Winfield's stature let a stranger, a vagrant, into his home, and never ask anything about his family or acquaintances? A man of his kind of wealth had to be careful about whom he allowed to get close. And Mrs. Sutherland – she was such a cautious mother, yet she allowed me to escort her and her daughter on a walk in the park. Though this was hardly the time, I couldn't help but wonder if her seeming affection for me had been true, or if it all had been due to Damon's Power. â€Å"What do you want, Damon?† I asked again. Here we were, back in the thick of it, but this time I understood just how dangerous my brother was and just how far he'd go to get revenge on me. â€Å"Nothing terrible, Stefan!† he said, grinning and stepping back, throwing his hands in the air. â€Å"But think of it! Me with Lydia wrapped around my finger. You with the adoring Bridget†¦. We'll marry the sisters and, just as you always hoped, we'll be brothers again for eternity – or at least as long as they live.† â€Å"I'm not marrying Bridget,† I blurted out. â€Å"Yes, you are,† Damon said. â€Å"No, I'm not,† I repeated. â€Å"I'm leaving New York. Tonight.† â€Å"You are staying here and marrying Bridget,† Damon said, coming to within an inch of my face, â€Å"or I will start to kill all the people in this place, one by one.† He was deadly serious, all traces of cavalier, joking, devil-may-care Damon gone. The smoldering anger was back. â€Å"You can't do that,† I growled. â€Å"Even you aren't strong enough to take down an entire ballroom.† â€Å"Oh really?† He snapped his fingers over his shoulder. A maid appeared from the next room, as if waiting for his signal. She already had a kerchief tied around her neck from where he had fed on her previously. He gestured with his chin at the window, and she gamely went over and began to unbolt the latches. â€Å"I can compel Bridget and her entire stupid entourage in there to go jump off a balcony,† Damon growled. â€Å"I don't believe you,† I said as calmly as I could. Only Lexi seemed able to control more than one person at once. And Damon wasn't nearly as old as she. â€Å"Or I can stalk them one by one and rip their throats out,† he offered instead. â€Å"It makes no difference to me.† The maid stepped up onto the sill and began to climb onto the rail. â€Å"Bastard,† I murmured, rushing over to grab the poor girl before she killed herself. â€Å"Get out of here,† I growled at her, unsure if I was compelling her or not. Suddenly she looked confused and scared, the spell broken. She bolted out of the room, sniffling. â€Å"Why?† I demanded when she had gone. â€Å"Why do you want to marry Lydia? Why is it so important that I marry her sister?† â€Å"If I have to live forever, I might as well do it in style,† Damon said, shrugging. â€Å"I'm sick of living from person to person, meal to meal, having no place to call home. When I marry Lydia, I'll be rich. A houseful of servants to attend to my every whim†¦ to feed my every need,† he leered. I wasn't sure he was just talking about blood. â€Å"Or, I could just take the money and run. Either way, I'll be a lot better off than I am now. Winfield is swimming in money.† â€Å"Why involve me?† I asked, feeling weary. â€Å"Why not just go off and do whatever it is you need to do, ruining people's lives?† â€Å"Let's just say I have my reasons.† Damon flashed me a harlequin's grin. I shook my head in exasperation. Just past the door of the study, a couple walked arm in arm through the library, in search of a quiet place to talk. Beyond them were the happy noises of the dancing throng, laughing conversations, the tap of heels on the floor. I watched distractedly, picking out Winfield's booming voice as he lectured someone on the basic tenets of capitalism. â€Å"What will you do with them?† I asked. With Damon as son-in-law, Winfield Sutherland's life expectancy had just been drastically reduced – and Lydia's as well. â€Å"Once I have their money? Pfff. I don't know,† Damon said, throwing his hand up in the air. â€Å"I hear San Francisco is fairly exciting – or maybe I'll just go and take that grand tour in Europe you'd always dreamed of.† â€Å"Damon – † I began. â€Å"Or I could just live here, like the king I do so want to be,† he continued, cutting me off. â€Å"Enjoying myself†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I had a horrible image of Damon satisfying his every carnal desire in the Sutherland household. â€Å"I won't let you do this,† I said urgently. â€Å"Why do you care?† Damon asked. â€Å"I mean, it wasn't me tearing through New Orleans†¦. What was your body count toward the end there, brother?† â€Å"I've changed,† I pointed out, looking him in the eye. â€Å"Yes, of course,† he said. â€Å"Just like that. Whatever could have†¦ oh!† He grinned. â€Å"It's Lydia, isn't it? Once again following in my footsteps, brother. Everything I have you just want. Like Katherine.† â€Å"I never loved Katherine. Not the way you did.† I was attracted to her, of course – who wouldn't have been? She was beautiful, charming, and a terrible flirt. Damon hadn't minded her dark side, and in fact seemed to appreciate it. But when I was with her under her heady spell, I just wanted to ignore her vampire side. And when the vervain cleared my thoughts I was repelled by what she was. All of my feelings, deep feelings, for her, had been the stuff of glamour. For Damon, it was all real. â€Å"And I don't love Lydia,† I said. â€Å"But that doesn't mean I want to see her – or anyone – hurt.† â€Å"Then you do exactly as I say, brother, and everyone will be fine. But if you step out of line, even once†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Damon dragged a finger across his throat. â€Å"Then their blood will be on your hands.† For a long moment, all was silent as Damon and I glared at each other. I had vowed to never harm a human again, to never allow a human to come to harm because of me. I was trapped as neatly and as permanently as if I were still a sideshow vampire at a circus, tied with vervain ropes – and Damon knew it. I heaved a sigh. â€Å"What do you want me to do?†