The Case of the Unhealthy Hospital Blake Memorial Hospital

The Case of the Unhealthy Hospital Anthony R. Kovner Harvard Business Review No. 91506 SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER 1991 HBR Anthony R. Kovner The Case of the Unhealthy Hospital Bruce Reid, Blake Memorial Hospital’s new CEO, rubbed his eyes and looked again at the 1992 budget worksheet. The more he played with the figures, the more pessimistic he became. Blake Memorial’s financial health was not good; it suffered from rising costs, static revenue, and declining quality of care. When the board hired Reid six months ago, the mandate had been clear: improve the quality of care and set the financial house in order. Reid had less than a week to finalize his $70 million budget for approval by the hospital’s board. As he considered his†¦show more content†¦And that was just scratching the surface. Without some of these investments, Blake’s ability to attract paying patients and top-grade doctors would deteriorate. As it was, the hospital’s location on the poorer, east side of Marksville was a strike against it. Blake had a high percentage of Medicaid patients, but the payments were never sufficient to cover costs. The res ult was an ever-rising annual operating loss. Reid was constantly reminded of the hospital’s uncompetitive position by his chief of surgery, Dr. Winston Lee. ‘‘If Blake wants more paying patients—and, for that matter, good department chiefs—it at least has to keep up with St. Barnabas,’’ Lee had warned Reid a few days ago. Lee complained that St. Barnabas, the only other acute-care hospital in Marksville, had both superior facilities and better technology. Its financial condition was better than Blake’s, in part because it was located on the west side of the city, in a more affluent neighborhood. St. Barnabas had also been more savvy in its business ventures: it owned a 50% share in an MRI unit operated by a private medical practice. The unit was reportedly generating revenue, and St. Barnabas had plans for other such investments, Lee had said. While Reid agreed that Blake needed moreShow MoreRelatedThe Unhealthy Hospital Case St udy1347 Words   |  6 PagesThe unhealthy hospital case is about a hospital named Blake Memorial that has been in a very bad shape, lacks in providing the best quality of care, is in debt, and financially imbalanced. It is important for a healthcare set up to maintain balance in the financial system so the stakeholders and customers who are the patients their interests are met. If the hospital is lacking in providing the best quality of care for its community and the community is in high needs of the care than the CEO’s ofRead MoreThe Case Of The Unhealthy Hospital1533 Words   |  7 Pages In the article, The Case of the Unhealthy Hospital, written by Anthony R. Kovner, a through description of a struggling hospital, Blake Memorial Hospital, is given. This paper is a SWOT analysis, and addresses the strengths and weaknesses within the hospital, as well as opportunities and threats outside of the hospital and in the surrounding community. Although limited in abundance, there are specific strengths of Blake Memorial Hospital, such as their new CEO, Bruce Reid, and the strong communityRead MoreBlake Memorial Hospital Is Located In The Poorest East1916 Words   |  8 PagesBlake Memorial Hospital is located in the poorest east area of Marksville (Rakish, Longest, Darr, 2010, p. 135). Blake Memorial Hospital is a non-profit organization, and its primary focus is to provide quality care to the poorest people of Marksville. Blake Memorial Hospital operates six off-site clinics and four in-house clinics, among them is the Lorris housing project clinic. Blake Memorial Hospital offers many services, one of which is the clinic program that is being considered for eliminationRead MoreEssay on Montego Bay767 Words   |  4 PagesLeadership Development Fall 2012 Abstract The Unhealthy Hospital case is a very interesting one as it is a hybrid between economical and the social issue of affordable healthcare. Bruce Reid, CEO of Blake Medical undoubting task of trying to balance the hospital budget while not negating the quality of care. This is a very hard task to achieve as seen in recent history locally with Jackson Memorial Hospital who has suffered the same troubles. The results of Jackson have not been that goodRead MoreFundamentals of Hrm263904 Words   |  1056 PagesRecession 21 Off Shoring 21 Mergers 22 A Look at Ethics 22 Summary 23 Demonstrating Comprehension: Questions for Review 24 Key Terms 24 HRM Workshop 25 Linking Concepts to Practice: Discussion Questions 25 Developing Diagnostic and Analytical Skills 25 Case 1: Work/Life Balance at Baxter 25 Working with a Team: Understanding Diversity Issues 25 Learning an HRM Skill: Guidelines for Acting Ethically 26 Enhancing Your Communication Skills 26 ETHICAL ISSUES IN HRM: Invasion of Privacy? 9 WORKPLACE ISSUES:Read More_x000C_Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis355457 Words   |  1422 Pagesand Data Analysis, Third Edition Roxy Peck, Chris Olsen, Jay Devore Acquisitions Editor: Carolyn Crockett Development Editor: Danielle Derbenti Assistant Editor: Beth Gershman Editorial Assistant: Ashley Summers Technology Project Manager: Colin Blake Marketing Manager: Joe Rogove Marketing Assistant: Jennifer Liang Marketing Communications Manager: Jessica Perry Project Manager, Editorial Production: Jennifer Risden Creative Director: Rob Hugel Art Director: Vernon Boes Print Buyer: Karen Hunt Read MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesUnderstanding and Appreciating Individual Differences Important Areas of Self-Awareness 61 Emotional Intelligence 62 Values 65 Ethical Decision Making and Values 72 Cognitive Style 74 Attitudes Toward Change 76 Core Self-Evaluation 79 SKILL ANALYSIS 84 Cases Involving Self-Awareness 84 Communist Prison Camp 84 Computerized Exam 85 Decision Dilemmas 86 SKILL PRACTICE 89 Exercises for Improving Self-Awareness Through Self-Disclosure 89 Through the Looking Glass 89 Diagnosing Managerial Characte ristics 90

Roman Slavery - 1148 Words

Slavery is an institution of the common law of peoples by which a person is put into the ownership of somebody else, contrary to the natural order. Slavery was commonly practiced throughout all ancient history, but no other people in history owned so many slaves and depended on them so much as the Romans. Slavery was accepted as a part of life in ancient Rome by the slaves themselves and by the society. However, slavery was both beneficial and disastrous to ancient Rome. In Roman times, slaves were primarily prisoners of war. Indeed, war was good business because of the profits from slavery. Entire cities were captured and sold as slaves. Others became slaves when they couldn t pay their debts; sometimes the†¦show more content†¦Torture, degradation, and even killing a slave when he was old and sick, in the eyes of the law was justified. Slaves were property who could not legally hold property, make contracts, or marry. The death of a master did not in fact free the slave. If a slave escaped, he had to live a life of an outlaw, with organized bands of slave hunters on his tracks. A fugitive slave was a crime, for he had stolen himself. If he was caught, he was branded on the forehead with the letter F, for fugitives, and sometimes had a metal collar around his neck. One of these collars, preserved in Rome, says in Latin, â€Å"I have run away. Catch me. If you take me back to my master Zoninus, you’ll be rewarded† ( Mirza 42). Many factors such as military, social, economic, political and Roman dependency on slavery combined, resulted in the fall of the Roman civilization. It was estimated that an average wealthy Roman owned 400 slaves Kendrick Pg. 3 in his town house alone, some wealthy people owned from 10,000-20,000Show MoreRelatedroman slavery2257 Words   |  10 Pagesï » ¿ Roman slavery Slavery was an important part of the ancient world, and it was an integral piece of Roman daily life and the economy. Though slavery was practiced all over the Mediterranean, and was abundant in the east, its impact in other places was not felt nearly as much as it was in Rome and her Empire. As the Romans consolidated their position on the Italian peninsula and began the systematic conquest of the Mediterranean region, millions of slaves were incorporatedRead MoreSlavery in Roman Republic2798 Words   |  12 PagesDuring the Roman Republic, Ancient Rome was at its very beginnings and a civilization was just being created. Like any other civilization there were different levels of status between classes and several positions of power in which people could obtain. Subsequently, just as there were people of power and wealth, there were also people of little to no power and poverty. The Ancient Romans utilized the institution of slavery to help promote their civilization and became a major factor in the economyRead MoreThe Role of Slavery in Roman Comedy1654 Words   |  7 PagesThe Role of Slavery in Roman Comedy The theater of the Roman Empire was very similar to that of the Greek theater. Masks were worn by the actors to amplify their voices and to allow some actors to play two different roles, and women were not allowed to have roles in the theater. Roman playwrights such as Plautus and Terence borrowed comedic stories from the Greek theater, â€Å"Romanizing† them in the process. For instance, Terence wrote a play called Heauton Timorumenos or The Self-Tormentor. ARead MoreComparison of Roman and American slavery760 Words   |  3 PagesComparison of Roman and Western Slavery Slavery is one of the most common entities between the Roman s society and the Western society in the late 1800 s. Both civilizations have many differences and similarities between their views on slavery, treatments of the slaves, and economics of slavery. Such similarities include the imprisonment of slaves, the cruel treatments towards slaves, and the legal status of slaves as their owner s property. However, despite the many differences, slavery between polarRead MoreRoman Slavery And The Works Of Plautus1440 Words   |  6 PagesRoman Slavery as Seen in the Works of Plautus Slavery was extremely common in ancient Rome. In fact, 25% of the population was thought to be slaves. Prominent men in society could host up to five hundred slaves. Emperors would have almost twenty thousand slaves at their court. People could become slaves in many ways. The most common way to become a slave was through piracy. But a huge number of slaves became slaves as war captives as well. Other ways to become a slave were by being born into slaveryRead MoreThe Roles Of Ancient Roman Slavery In Ancient Rome886 Words   |  4 PagesAncient Roman slaves did numerous amount of jobs and helped Rome become prosperous. Slavery in Rome had benefited the Republic in various ways. Slaves increased the economy, fed the entire republic through agriculture, and they also upheld important roles and was the glue that held Ancient Rome together. Slaves played a huge roll in Ancient Rome and was the reason for the great economy and without the slaves Rome would not have been as powerful as it was. An estimate of the slave population inRead MoreIs The Film Pompeii An Accurate Representation Of Slavery During The Ancient Roman Era?1505 Words   |  7 Pagesaccurate representation of slavery in the Ancient Roman era? The movie Pompeii produced in 2014, by Paul W.S Anderson, explores the idea of social hierarchy and the class distinctions along with giving a portrayal of the role of slaves within the Roman Empire. While the film does not go in depth on the many different forms of slavery, it does provide minor examples on certain slaves work, and the way they are treated. Slavery played an integral role in the Ancient Roman society, and without it,Read MoreSlavery in Ancient Roman Society1301 Words   |  5 Pagespeople now think of slavery, they think of the United States because that memory is relatively new and culturally relevant to Americans. However, slavery existed in many other cultures and times across the world. Understanding the nature of slavery is integral to an understanding of Western Civilization in general. Ancient Rome practiced slavery throughout much of the Empire, and especially under Emperor Augustus. It is likely that slavery was just as important for making the Roman Empir e strong, wealthyRead MoreComparison Of Greek And Roman Slavery1683 Words   |  7 Pages Comparable to some degree with the struggle of the early civilizations (i.e. Greek and Roman slavery) to break out their condition of being slaves, the classic animated movie A Bug s Life depicted in a similar way, but in different causes to bring the system down. In the mentioned movie, various societal form and structures of interest are exposed in this paper. The Capitalist Pyramid Strikes Again The government structure of the Ant Island is certainly a monarchy, where the Queen inherits theRead MoreSlavery During The Roman Empire And The New Testament2120 Words   |  9 PagesProfessor McFarland New Testament 9 November 2016 Slavery in the Roman Empire and the New Testament Slavery, a word described as the state of one bound in servitude as the property of a household. This description, along with sadness and disbelief gets brought into peoples’ minds as the chilling sensation of the explanations begins to be sought out. The New Testament brings us many different views on how we percept our personal beliefs upon Slavery, and different problems arising as aspects on this

Aristotle free essay sample

The virtuous person always exhibits an affectation in the appropriate amount. -for ex. Truthfulness: virtue regarding telling the truth about oneself? Defect: self-depreciating Excess: phony omnipotence- all power and unlimited power †¢Distinguish goods that are, according to Aristotle, valued for the sake of other things, valued for their own sake, and valued for their own sake and for the sake of other things you want some things that gets you other stuff. or example money so its a sake for other things. valued for own sake-having a yacht gives you pleasure but then enjoying it with more friends and travel the world and give you more pleasure. the one good. happiness is the one thing that every one wants and is valued for its own sake. That which is valued only for its own sake and for whose sake everything else is desired †¢That which is valued for its own sake and for the sake of other things †¢That which is valued only for the sake of other things Discuss why Aristotle rejects conventional views that identify happiness with pleasure, honor, and virtue, and what he thinks this tells us about the nature of happiness Aristotle rejects three common conceptions of happiness—pleasure, honor, and wealth. Happiness, he says, cannot be identified with any of these things (even though all three may be part of an overall happy life). Pleasure, he says, is found in satisfying desires—but whether or not we can satisfy our desires is as much up to chance as it is up to us. †¢The life of pleasure. Problem: the life fit for a pig †¢The life of honor. Problem: not under our control †¢The life of virtue. Problem: compatible with inaction †¢Distinguish between psychological, somatic, and external goods, explaining how they contribute to Aristotle’s conception of happiness External goods- attractiveness, wealth.. Psychological Goods- mental health.. Somatic goods- â€Å"Nonetheless, happiness evidently needs external goods to be added, as we said, since we cannot, or cannot easily, do fine actions if we lack the resources. For, first of all, in many actions we use friends, wealth, and political power just as we use instruments. Further, deprivation of certain things —for instance, good birth, good children, beauty— mars our blessedness. For we do not altogether have the character of happiness if we look utterly repulsive or are ill-born, solitary, or childless; and we have it even less, presumably, if our children or friends are totally bad, or were good but have died †¢Discuss the roles of habituation and right reason in Aristotle’s analysis of virtuous action function of human beings is knowledge and it what eparates from animals. virtuous action is what a rational person who acts for the right reason. but you also have to feel the correct emotions and feelings to do virtuous actions and be properly affected which means that you find the right things pleasant. and wants to do the right thing. so if you dont feel like you want to give money to homeless and still give it it do es not count as a virtous thing. the teachers ice cream technique- dont want to do it but do it for ice cream but over time the kids want to do it because it is the virtuous thing to do. Identify and describe Aristotle’s three requirements for friendship and his three different kinds of friendship Pleasure-friendships- Most common among theyoung, fades easily utility-friendships,- most common among the old and also fades easily. character-friendships- You love a person because of the good qualities she or he possesses. genuine friendship. †¢Explain what Aristotle means when he claims that friends are â€Å"second selves† â€Å"A friend is a second self, so that our consciousness of a friends existence makes us more fully conscious of our own existence. and Friendly relations with one’s neighbors, and the marks by which friendships are defined, seem to have proceeded from a man’s relation with himself. For men think a friend is one who wishes well and does what is good, or seems so, for the sake of his friend, or one who wishes his friend to exist and live, for his sake† †¢Explain why Aquinas thinks God’s existence is self-evident, why it nonetheless may not be evident to us, and how Aquinas thinks God’s existence can be made evident Not every human realizes the existence of god. †¢Examples of self-evident propositions: A pig is an animal; a bachelor is an unmarried male †¢Being self-evident in itself versus self-evident to us †¢Aquinas: â€Å"I maintain that God exists is self-evident in itself since its subject and predicate are identical†¦[but] the proposition is not self-evident to us† (197). †¢Question 02: can God’s existence be made evident? †¢Perhaps God’s existence is an article of faith, not of reason †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"There are two types of demonstration: those that argue from cause to effect†¦and those that argue from effect to cause† (198). †¢Hitting a pool ball, pressing the ‘on’ button, hand on the stove So, from what effects do we infer God’s existence? †¢God’s effects in the world, Mozart and his music †¢Understand Aquinas’ ‘unmoved mover’ and ‘teleological’ arguments for the existence of God and articulate at least one objection to each Argument one of five : the unmoved mover (200). Everything has a cause, but causes can’t go on infinitely. The first uncaused cause is God. Objections: why must it be God? Maybe time is infinite? Telos: the end toward which a thing strives. Everything in nature has a telos. If a thing is non-intelligent, some intelligence must give it its telos. Objection: nature is not telonic in this way †¢Discuss why the question ‘can God create a stone that God cannot lift? ’ is said to be paradoxical and how Aquinas tries to resolve the paradox †¢The paradox of omnipotence: can God create a stone he cannot lift? †¢If God can, there is something God cannot do, i. e. , lift the stone †¢If God cannot, there is something God cannot do, i. e. , create the stone †¢If there is something God cannot do, God is not omnipotent †¢Therefore, God is not omnipotent †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"So we conclude that God’s power extends to anything possible in itself and not implying contradiction. Clearly then God is called omnipotent because he can do everything possible in itself. † (p. 249). because if god cannot lift the the stone he created, he is not omintipitent and also if he cannot create that he cannot lift therefore he is not omnipotent so either way god is not omnipotent so aquinas says that god creates certain laws in the universe that he himself cannot break which is considered absolute possibility and relativee possibility is what he can change. †¢Explain what Aquinas means when he claims evil does not exist because evil does not exit because evil is absence of happiness Understand the weak and strong versions of the problem of evil and discuss Aquinas’ solution to the problem Strong version of the problem †¢If an omnipotent, omniscient, perfectly good God exists, then evil does not exist †¢Evil exists †¢ Therefore, an omnipotent, omniscient, perfectly good God does not exist Weak version of the problem †¢Evil exists †¢The non-existence of God is a more plausible explanation of evil than is the existence of an omnipotent, omniscient, perfectly good God †¢Therefore, it’s more plausible that God does not exist If an omnipotent, omniscient, perfectly good God exists, then evil does not exist Aquinas’ answer to the problem of evil †¢Why is there evil and sin in thet world? †¢Evil is the necessary result of freedom of the will †¢Thus, God does not command sin, God permits sin †¢Does God cause evil and sin? †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"God is responsible for sinful actions but not for sins† 296 †¢Distinguish Aquinas’ conceptions of eternal, natural, and human law †¢Human law †¢ Quoting Cicero: â€Å"laws start with what nature produces, then by use of reason certain things become customs, and finally things produced by nature and tested by custom are sanctified with†¦the weight of laws† (420). Eternal law †¢God as divine legislator: â€Å"Clearly†¦the entire community of the universe is governed by God’s reason† (417). †¢Divine providence: ordering of the universe toward good †¢Natural law †¢Non-moral sense: laws of nature. †¢Moral sense: guides the actions of animals †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"Since everything subjected to God’s providence is measured by the standards of his eternal law, as we have said, everything shares in some way in the eternal law, bearing its imprint in the form of a natural tendency to pursue the behavior and goals appropriate to it. Reasoning creatures are subject to God’s providence is a special, more profound way than others by themselves sharing in the planning† (418). Eternal law is identical to the mind of God as seen by God himself. It can be called law because God stands to the universe which he creates as a ruler does to a community which he rules. When Gods reason is considered as it is understood by God.

There Are Many Labels, Names And Categories That Essays

There are many labels, names and categories that have been assigned or given to lesbians. What is"lesbian"? Is it a certain type of woman? Does one lesbian have an identical feature or character as another lesbian? Does a lesbian have something extra or something missing from heterosexual women? This notion that we can classify a human being by their sexual preference is absolutely ludicrous and unsubstantiated! Women are just that, women. Sexual attraction to humans, be it the same sex or not, is not a concrete science that can allow society to label women. The choice of heterosexuality may not truly be a choice. In a recent survey of women, 57% stated that heterosexuality was not something that was considered and then chosen. For these women, there was no decision to be made regarding their sexual preference (Marrow, 1997). This is an interesting figure when you consider of those above women, some admitted to having sexual encounters with other women. I believe the choice is heavily tied to our culture, family values, and surroundings. If all of the fish are swimming upstream, why would you want to go against your group and swim downstream? Within the lesbian community, Ponse (1978) makes reference to two groups. There are many lesbians that claim to have been "born" lesbian. To expand on this subject, one would say these women never questioned their sexual attraction. From day one, they were attracted to other women. Although this is referred to as a primary lesbian, I don't believe it alleviates any of the stigmas or gives any more comfort or ease to the woman. The elective lesbian is seen as having "elected" to be lesbian. These are women who have experienced heterosexual relations and have decided that they prefer the same sex. This may appear as a choice, but it is far from that. The environment or family setting may have driven these women to repress their true desires out of fear of rejection. They may also simply be confused and needed to try one way to better understand the other way (Golden, 1999). Among lesbian relationships, we find the data to be similar to heterosexual women. This makes sense and gives more bearing to the thought that women are women. Lesbian couples, like their heterosexual couples, prefer monogamous relationships when in a deep and caring relationship. Lesbian couples appear to want and most importantly, expect the same things from a relationship as a heterosexual woman (Garnets, 2000). Commitment, support, and family values. There are those that will claim lesbian couples cannot possibly have or want family values since they are not themselves a true family. This is a comical statement to me when we consider it is men who have defined "family values" throughout the years. It is obvious that there are differing opinions regarding lesbians. Their life style, their beliefs and their choices have all been analyzed, scrutinized and classified, but to the result of what? Does a woman's sexual preference affect anyone but that person? Then why is our society so intent on labeling, understanding and discriminating against lesbians? Could it be that anger is a concealment of personal repressed sexual preferences? The time has come for humans to act like humans and treat our species the same, regardless of sexual preference. After all, sexual preference does not impact intellect levels, work ethics, or honesty in a person. I believe those traits are more important to understand then why a woman wants to be with another woman. References 1. Marrow, J. (1997), Changing Positions, Women Speak Out on Sex and Desire, Chp. 3, 59-99. 2. Ponse, B. (1978), Identities in the Lesbian World. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press. 3. Golden, C. (1999), Diversity and Variability in Women's Sexual Identities. Readings in the Psychology of Women, Reading 2, 179-189. 4. Garnets, L. (2000), Life as a Lesbian: What Does Gend

How to Make the Most of Facebook Advertising [PODCAST]

How to Make the Most of Facebook Advertising [PODCAST] Facebook: Nearly a quarter of the entire world’s population uses it, and over two-thirds of those users checks in every day. Chances are good that your customers are using the social media giant. Facebook advertising is a great opportunity for you to connect with your audience. Today we’re going to be chatting with ’s own inbound marketer, Rachel Wiinanen, about how to create high-converting ads, how to test your hypotheses, how to organize your behind-the-scenes processes, and how to measure your success. You won’t want to miss it! Information about and what Rachel does here as the inbound marketer. How Rachel approaches her advertising strategy on Facebook. How Rachel gets creative with both the visuals and the text on Facebook ads. Thoughts about A/B testing: how Rachel does it, why it’s important, and some surprises she’s encountered along the way. Key metrics to measure when evaluating the performance of your ads as well as some tools to use. How Rachel works within a budget for her Facebook ads. Rachel’s best tips on staying organized, planning, and keeping track of everything ad-related. Where a newbie to Facebook ads should start if they want to begin using the platform as part of their marketing strategy. Links: Previous episode with Rachel Kissmetrics Google Analytics If you liked today’s show, please subscribe on iTunes to The Actionable Content Marketing Podcast! The podcast is also available on SoundCloud, Stitcher, and Google Play. Quotes by Rachel: â€Å"Facebook is a huge opportunity that a lot of marketers aren’t necessarily taking advantage of to the level that they could.† â€Å"If you have that goal-first mentality, you are setting yourself up for more success. Really, budget shouldn’t be your limitation.† â€Å"With Facebook being such a social platform, it’s all about the individual. Focus on really hitting down who your target persona is. Start there.†

The Distance Between Me And My Readers - A Bob Mayer Interview

The Distance Between Me And My Readers - A Bob Mayer Interview â€Å"The distance between me and my readers is the internet† An interview with Bob Mayer How can indie authors use eBooks to their full advantage, creatively exploiting their potential to be adapted over time and linked to an author’s whole output?Bob Mayer is a New York Times Bestselling Author who is not afraid to explore the incredible new opportunities available to authors. With 60 books published - both traditionally published and indie-published - Bob has sold over four million books. He and is also a leadership speaker and consultant, coaching authors on many aspects of writing and publishing. He is also CEO of Cool Gus Publishing and his latest book Time Patrol has just come out. On top of all that, he is the only West Point Graduate and Former Green Beret we’ve ever had the pleasure of interviewing! We talk about his work as a hybrid author, his marketing techniques, and Italian book covers†¦ It’s really great to be interviewing Bob this afternoon - a New York Times bestselling author, writing coach, who also writes a lot about publishing and self-publishing. Firstly Bob, it’d be great to start with your writing course Write on the River, how is it going?I’ve been doing writing workshops for a number of years - I used to hold small intimate workshops and various bed and breakfasts. After my wife and I moved to the Tennessee River, we got a nice big house, so a couple of times a year we bring four writers into the weekend, working with them on their books. The weekend after this  I’ve got four people coming down.So you work with them on all sorts of things, structure and character development, that type of thing?I change it for every group because every group is a little different. I’ve had number one New York Times bestsellers here - usually it’s published authors with some experience, but occasionally I’ve had a new auth or. We usually spend a lot of time on the ‘idea and conflict lock’ and a lot of time talking about the business, because so many things are up in flux right now.Many authors - even established authors - are wondering right now, â€Å"should I become a hybrid author?†, â€Å"should I keep traditionally publishing?†, â€Å"should I self-publish?† One of our authors came down here for the weekend and she’s publishing with Cool Gus, so she’s become a hybrid author.You are a hybrid author who has published a number of different ways, could you tell us a bit more about that?I was published in New York for 42 books - Random House, St Martins - many big houses. Then I went self-publishing as I had a huge backlist to which I owned the rights and formed my own publishing company Cool Gus.I knew from the very beginning what I wanted was to sign with 47 North, Amazon’s Science Fiction imprint. The main reason I did that was because of their marketing capabilities. They have tremendous power to market you on their site. So I’ve got a book we’re going to publish May 5th. I’ve got a book coming back from 47 North that’s due out in August, so I alternate writing science-fiction for amazon and thrillers for my own company.What is it specifically about their marketing that interested you?They have reach: they call it ‘merchandising’. They really know who the readers are and have huge databases. They know everyone who has bought one of their previous books and send them an email. They also do pricing - in the UK they have a ‘book for a pound’ - they pick a number of titles and promote those. There is a huge difference sales-wise when you use any of these platforms - whether Amazon, Apple or Audible ACX - they give you some ‘merchandising’ and your sales can skyrocket.Yes, we’ve found with many authors that email lists are really helpful, because you ar e talking to an engaged audience, and that it’s worth slowly building them upYes, we don’t send many newsletters out because we feel many people are bombarded by them, but we are focusing on building our list this year. The other thing we have is a private Facebook group called ‘The A-team’: we’ve got about 30 people in there. These are people who really like my books. It’s a small intimate group where we chat about what I’m writing. If you can get a core of about 40-50 readers who talk about you and promote you, that’s huge. The book - Time Patrol (Area 51: The Nightstalkers Book 4) - just came out yesterday and I’ve already got a handful of reviews, mainly because of those types of people.I like the idea of nurturing a small but dedicated small fan group. They are the one’s you can have a personal connection to.The most important thing is readers. I’ve got a huge Twitter following, but I don’t reall y think it sells books; I don’t think a huge Facebook following sells books - although these things aren’t bad of course. The distance between me and my readers is the internet. I can communicate with them and respond to every email I get or every mention on Twitter. I think that’s key.There’s lot of resistance in the publishing industry to change - I think that’s because so much of it doesn’t change: it’s always going to be about great content and writing. But, of course, things are changing: are there any new developments that are interesting to you?Subscription is big. A lot of people are complaining about Kindle Unlimited for sales dropping, but Kindle Unlimited occurred at the same time as the content flood hit the eBook market - there’s just so much content out there and that’s not going away.We don’t fight those things. Yesterday we got a cheque from Draft2Digital and the Scribd subscription service. We use those things; we use Kindle Unlimited. I broke one of my non-fiction books into 15 shorts, dedicated totally to Kindle Unlimited. I think writers waste a lot of time tilting at windmills they can’t change. They need to look at the publishing landscape and use everything out there to the best of their abilities.Yes, and I think they could anticipate change a lot more than they actually do.Ha! Yea, although I don’t think anyone could tell you where we’re going to be a year from now. It does always come back to good content though. The good thing is that I think if you write a good book, that’s a big part of it and then you do have to get out there and reach the readers. The readers have to know the book exists.You’ve said in the past that this is the moment in publishing you are most excited to be a part of because the author has control.Absolutely! What I’m doing right now didn’t exist ten years ago. Ten years ago I would hold the rig ht to 50 books and be able to do absolutely nothing with them. I wouldn’t be able to sell them to anybody - I couldn’t get them in the bookstore. Now, they are in virtual bookstores, I can sell them to readers. One of our saying is â€Å"If you haven’t read it, it’s not backlist†. I was reading my first book from 1991 and I realised to someone reading it now, it’s a brand new book.One of the interesting things right now is how publishing is relating to other media. People talk about how it is conflicting of complementing other media - cable TV, movies, games, etc - but do you think also that a lot of writers could learn about how they market these media?I see writers say â€Å"go kill your TV†, but my wife and I watch a lot of TV and the writing is fantastic. Marketing-wise, if you look at what Netflix did with the Kevin Spacey show, where they released it all on the same day, I think that’s something to think about.People want instant gratification now. It used to be that in traditional publishing, I have to give a book a year, but I had to write under three pen names because they would not allow me to publish more than a book a year. Now, you cannot publish fast enough, or write fast enough to keep up with demand from readers!Yes, maybe you could experiment publishing lots at once, gaining a core reader group, then change your strategy, slow down or create anticipation.Yes one thing we’re doing is we’re putting out a book every three months this year and what I’m doing personally is I’m racking my books together. I just had a book come out yesterday that loops back to my early Atlantic series, so what I’m doing is connecting the dots over 25 years of books.At the end of the book, I say â€Å"if you want to know more about this character, go to this series†, â€Å"if you want to know more about this world, go to this series†. I think that gives readers mor e options to go through the back story.Now your books are always out there - they don’t grow old, so you can create these links in ways which weren’t previously possible.One thing I often talk about in my business is that an eBook is not like a print book: it’s very, very different. It’s organic. It’s changing. We have so many titles that when we bring out a new one, we have to go into the back and change all the links in it, we have to change the metadata.Yesterday my new book came out and is called Time Patrol and I asked my business partner, â€Å"by the way, do these books have another subgenre on Amazon of ‘time travel’, because this is actually another best seller list!† and she’d already taken care of that. So it’s just constant change, and I think it’s caught traditional publishers a little by surprise, because they are used to the ‘fire and forget’ method. They published a book and itâ €™s out there, it’s never going to change. An eBook changes constantly. I’m not talking the content - although you can do that - I’m talking all the things around it: the cover the endman, the metadata, so it’s a constant churning of things.Have you experimented with changing covers?Oh yea! We’ve changed covers. Actually, you often have to change covers, like on Amazon, where there are certain promotional things you can’t get into if you have things like a gun on the cover. I totally understand, because people complain, but you have to change the image and remove the gun, simply to get in these marketing programs!I think it’s endlessly fascinating how in different countries, different covers just work and different ones just don’t work. I think you can learn a lot about individual countries by the book covers they like!I was in a book store in Italy where it was always a scantily-clad woman on the cover with an atomic blast in the background and there was no woman in a bikini in the book! They just stick it there because that’s what sells.So much of indie publishing seems to require a certain kind of author: entrepreneurial and someone who can effectively manage their own business. Do you think that may change? Do you think it could incorporate other types of writers who are perhaps not entrepreneurial, but who still want control and the best of indie-publishing?Well, that’s a little what we do at Cool Gus. A handful of authors we work with just want to write, yet they want the freedom, so we take care of all the things for them, but we give them final say. So they don’t have to get caught up in the actual doing of it, but we’ll say, â€Å"What do you want on your cover?† - and they get the final say on that, cover copy, everything! So I think that’s a different business model.And so that they have a team to help themYes, I think it’s really hard to do it all well. There are people that do it, but it’s much easier to send someone an email and say â€Å"Please take care of this†.Where do you think agents may fit in the future?I think agents are evolving. Kristen Nelson who works with Hugh Howey is an example of an agent that’s really changed the way she looks at things. And I actually think traditional publishing is not going to die: it’s evolving and they are learning, changing and adapting. I’m querying agents right now because I need help with foreign rights. I can’t really travel to the London Book Fair, for example, so I need an agent to take care of those things for me.I think the reason publishing is so interesting is because it is a very complex industry and there are so many different things to be doing. What are you thinking about experimenting with in the next couple of years?It’s more about the creative part. I’ve been doing it so long, that what I realise is that I can produce better books faster and the market is there for it. I have so many series going, and at the same time I put a few experimental things out there. And I don’t have to sit there and worry, will my agent like it, will my editor like it, will my publisher like it, will the sales force think they can sell it? All I’ve got to care about is ‘will the readers like it?’ I don’t think that’s going to change: that I like. I can directly reach my readers and either they can hit that buy button or not, and that tells me if it’s working or not.That’s a really great message to send to our readers. Thanks so much for your time Bob!Follow @Bob_Mayer and @ReedsyHQ on TwitterDo you think too many authors waste time fighting things they can’t change? Where do you see agents fitting in in the future? Leave us your thoughts, or any question you have for Bob, in the comments below!

Determinism verus Free Will Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Determinism verus Free Will - Essay Example This was not only an accepted conceptual position, it was also a computational fact of life with all of the then-existing sex-role orientation measures. However, Constantinople's (1973) conceptual reorganization allowed for the possibility of two independent dimensions: masculinity and femininity. From this new vantage point, one is not forced to deny one set of characteristics in order to assert possession of high levels of the other. Now, people can be different combinations (conceptually and computationally): high on both masculinity and femininity (androgynous); high on one and low on the other (stereotypically masculine or stereotypically feminine); or low on both dimensions (undifferentiated). It was this simple, conceptual reformulation that appeared to spark the present revolution in sex-role research. Might a similar reformulation of the free will-determinism question stimulate new solutions to an antinomy that has perplexed thinkers for more than 25 centuries Before sketching a re-conceptualization of the free will versus determinism issue, this article will offer a working scientist's or a counseling practitioner's specification of the issues--not a philosopher's reformulation of this seemingly everlasting controversy. ... , in so defining these terms, it becomes unclear exactly what the implications of these conceptual moves (and research findings) might be for philosophical debate on the issues of agency, mechanistic determinism, self-determination, and free will. There have been many different construals of free will (van Inwagen, 1983) over the last two and a half millennia. Some of these construals (e.g., free will results from the absence of any physical constraint upon the agent) clearly do not square with the arguments and research summarized herein. Whenever an agent makes a choice (and then acts for the sake of that choice), however, one might see it as a free choice (and act) if indeed the agent might have chosen to do otherwise ceteris paribus (i.e., all other things being equal). The notion of free will entertained herein is seen in Robert Frost's (1951) poem "The Road Not Taken." Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. If Frost's (1951) traveller had also been able to choose "the road more [italics added] traveled by" but instead opted for "the road less [italics added] traveled by," one might assert that he or she had made a free choice. But since the time of Heraclitus (with his point that one can never step in the same river twice), philosophers and scientists recognized the virtual impossibility of meeting the demands of the ceteris paribus condition in such cases. Fortunately, new experimental methodologies now allow for the testing of the causal force of free choice in studies that do fully meet the requirements of the ceteris paribus assumption (see Howard & Myers, 1989). Like free will, the meaning of determinism has changed over time. "Determinism" was until the mid-nineteenth century a theory