Viva Big Data

"All this technology for connection and what we really only know more about is how anonymous we are in the grand scheme of things" -Heather Donahue

Coming to you live from Las Vegas this week at EMC World. A gathering of over 10,000 people that have one thing in mind, data storage. This the premiere technology event of the year and its going to be another great one.

The articles this week are not going to be marketing introductions or specifications on data. What I want to bring to you is the human element of the conference. The connections people make, the interaction of different people from all around the world.

Here we have the chance to take all of this social media and actually connect face-to-face with each other. Scary for some, intriguing for others, but the great thing is making those connections to other people.

I will be offering small updates by means of Twitter and Facebook, so check me out on Twitter @jprimm or Facebook Joseph Primm.

So Viva Las Vegas from @EMCWorld, the world of big data and lots of fantastic people.

Hang tight, I think I just saw Elvis....

Your Journey

"Cross country skiing is great if you live in a small country." -Steven Wright

How you get to your destination in life can take many different forms. The road may be smooth or muddy. The wind might blow in your face or carry you in its arms. It is impossible to predict what type of journey it will be.

The point is to carry on with your journey. Make a choice to pursue your dreams, your visions, and your goals. How you get there is how you live your life. Know that you will never get there by allowing grass to grow long and tall around your feet.

So instead of standing still, I write this blog and books. Attitude in Words, Changed Lives, and Live the Journey were never meant to change the world. They were meant to energize my journey and help chart a course of advice for my children. The pleasant surprise became the impact my journey has had on other people.

The wake of our own life spreads to others far beyond what we would expect. That is what I find so amazing about our lives. The road we take to reach some destination is filled with all sorts of surprises. Some of those things will be (simply put) absolutely rotten. Other encounters will be truly delightful.

No matter what type of circumstances you encounter on your own journey, enjoy and learn from each of them. Holding regret and pain only keeps you in one place. It prevents you from moving forward to a new and better place for your life.

And while I am not the most inspirational or motivational person, I am a person that wants myself, my family, my friends and you to have a great life. It may not be the life you first envisioned, but it will be your best life.

Keep moving forward, whether it be in the old broken-down jalopy or cross country skiing across a very small country; your journey is and will be amazing.

Binary Choices

"Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself." -William Faulkner

In my profession we deal in the exacting nature of how computers work. This world of laptops, smartphones, digital watches and most everything else is based upon two digits. A one (positive) and a zero (negative) is where it all begins, traverses and ends.

If I add two zeroes, I get a zero. If I add a zero and a one, I get a one. If I add one and one, I get ten. Have I started to make your head spin slightly?

The reason I was thinking about this had to do with a quote I have heard frequently. Without going into details of where the quote has been used, folks have been saying, "two wrongs do not make a right." And in a binary sense they are correct.

Each of us make decisions each day that will result in either good or bad. You might say that those lines are blurred, but only if you let them. We can choose to correct a wrong or compound it with another wrong. We make these choices all day long. We let someone merge into the busy traffic flow, we fudge numbers on our taxes, we hold a door open for someone carrying packages; we make binary decisions.

And this is not a race to see who ends up with the most points. It is about moving your life forward in a positive way. It means creating a better you with each decision you make.

Choose to make the right decision with every opportunity. Choose to make yourself better then whom you were yesterday.

Amazing You

"You don't have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body." -C. S. Lewis

There is a wonderful National Geographic documentary regarding the human body. The shows takes you on a tour of what is both simple in elegance yet intricate in how it is achieved. Our body is quite amazing in how we are put together and operate.

Watching this show made me think of the resilience our body has to fight off infection, repair bones and recreate. The complexity of how we collect data (senses) and process it lightening quick can boggle the mind. And the mind itself is a wonder.

We take care of our bodies in order to keep it running well and as error free as we can. The body certainly has biological mechanisms inside that cause it to take care of itself. But the soul we have also wants to keep the body healthy and moving.

It is said that our bodies have a soul inside which provides guidance. I am of the belief that the soul has a body which gives it the ability to do great things. The word 'soul' was derived from the Greek word ψυχή, pronounced IPA. It is a verb "to cool, to blow" and would refer to the vital breath our bodies need.

I am not smart enough to debate the whole body, soul and spirit question. It is just a matter for us to consider all three of them. All have purpose and all three need to be taken care of. Our spirit gives purpose to the soul which in turn gives purpose to the body.

While our physical body ages, it takes more care and effort to keep it in good shape. Our soul gives us reason to do so but the soul needs to be refreshed and kept alive as well. And in the grand scheme of these things, never forget that you are an amazing person.

Maybe the subject is a little too deep for thought at this moment, but just know that you can do amazing things. Your body will keep doing its thing which will give your soul time to accomplish even greater things. Yes, you are amazing.