• 10 May 2012

    Quote on reasoning with the unreasonable and why character is critical

    Be it executives with their heads in the sand over security or know-it-all propeller heads who can't see the big picture of business risk, I've found that you just can't reason with the unreasonable. Here's something that Robert Schuller said that underscores the issue and helps us understand why being the bigger person is most important:"People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered. Love them anyway. If you do good, people will ...

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  • 03 May 2012
  • 23 Apr 2012

    How are you spending your time?

    Not long ago I had a conversation with a colleague of mine who's also a consultant. We were discussing the topic of how, even with today's shaky economy, people still goof off on the job as if they had nothing to lose.Are you seeing this too? I wrote about this phenomenon over three years ago. Funny how not much changes internally given all the external forces pressing down on us.Not ...

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  • 09 Apr 2012
  • 31 Mar 2012

    Video: Don’t worry about your title, focus on this instead

    My thoughts on why you need not worry about how people address you. [Hint: it's not about you.] There are bigger things to be concerned with....

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  • 31 Jan 2012

    Where’s your information security focus?

    You cannot change facts (i.e. the industry your business is in, the regulations it's up against, the type of sensitive information you're responsible for managing, etc.) but you can change problems (i.e. user behavior, wayward goals, management not on board with security, etc. ).As the philosopher James Burnham once said: "If there is no alternative, there is no problem." In the case of information security, there are tons of alternatives to ...

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  • 27 Jan 2012

    You cannot multiple security by dividing it – Infosec’s relationship with Socialism

    I'm not much into urban legends and the like but came across this bit the other day and it really made me think. What a great analogy that impacts all of us both personally and professionally with some interesting information security and compliance tie-ins that I see all the time:An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had never failed a single student before, but had ...

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  • 23 Jan 2012

    Are your high-tech devices enslaving you?

    The late Richard Carlson, author of Don't Sweat the Small Stuff, said:"It's important to see when your high-tech communication devices actually limit your freedom, enslaving you instead of providing new opportunities for growth."Wow...How true that is!Have you ever tried to not look at your emails or answer phone calls when you're out and about with  your family or taking some time to yourself? It's pretty darned difficult but it can ...

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  • 20 Jan 2012

    Executives could learn a lot from Supernanny

    We all have a lot to learn from Jo Frost, the Supernanny. In particular, when it comes to information security, IT management, employee computer usage and so on, business executives could benefit a ton. Here's how it'd go:Create a set of rules.Enforce your darned rules!...

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  • 09 Jan 2012

    New Year’s Resolutions merely create gym overcrowding

    Be it New Year's resolutions (I'm going to lose weight this year!), career resolutions (I'm going to get a different job this year!) or financial resolutions (I'm going to get out of debt this year!)....traditional resolutions just don't work.Just check out how your local gym parking lot transforms between now and next month. I can't wait until around mid-February when the crowds will predictably die down and I can get ...

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