8 things
Thank you Moises for tagging me. Here’s the eight things you don’t know about me. I was also tagged similarly a long time ago by Steven from Collegerecruiter.com, but like a bad social networker never posted it. So this hopefully honors my debt of Guanxi there as well.
1. I have a degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It’s a “Master’s equivalent” degree from Northwestern Health Sciences University in Bloomington, MN. I practiced acupuncture and herbal medicine for a few years until it became painfully apparent that I had no idea how to handle the business side of being in practice. Complicating my business ineptitude was the newness of Oriental Medicine to main street, U.S.A. After a few years of struggling, and working long hours for little pay, I had to change direction in my career. I learned a tremendous amount about people, health, and an the value of different paradigms. More than that I learned a lot about communicating a complicated and completely foreign systems of concepts (chinese medicine) to surgeons, M.D.s, and patients. The best part of this failure is I can still apply the concepts behind Chinese Medicine to the work I do now. This will require another post to explain.
2. My mother was a nun. When I ask my mom about the 60’s she says “I don’t remember that, I was in the convent.” Granted, she was smoking behind the furnace in the convent boiler room, but nonetheless insulated from outside society. She’s now doing massage at a local spot in Eagan, MN. Interesting twist, she’s now married to a guy who was in the seminary (my dad is agnostic). Also, her twin sister, who was also in the convent, also married a guy who was in the seminary. They are still married, have two grown children and several grandchildren, and about as far from monastic life as you can get. Great people.
3. I’m a U2 fanatic. At one point was probably in need of talking to someone about it, but am recovered a bit. I still think they are a phenomenal band, and still want to buy Bono and the lads a beer at some point in my life, but have broadened my horizon’s musically.
4. Outside of my family, my next greatest love is golf. If I was independently wealthy, I would golf alot, everyday, twice a day, or more. I have saved countless dollars, and hours on psychotherapy, by instead going to the driving range, or chipping in my yard. My boys both have hit real golf balls since they were in diapers, and hopefully will grow to enjoy golf along with my daughter. My wife used to play in high school and has a great swing. I look forward to playing St. Andrews with my kids some day.
5. I am an Aikidoka. Wha? It means I practice the Japanese martial art of Aikido. I started in College at the University of Minnesota Duluth. It, along with Traditional Chinese Medicine has been one of the biggest philosophical influences in my life.
6. My wife is also in sourcing/recruiting. She works for a small IT consulting firm locally. She isn’t as active in social media as I am, but she is an absolute rock star when it comes to sourcing and search.
7. My dad has no TV or cell phone. Not too many people out there who have neither of these by choice. He still has only a dial-up connection. Amazing since my dad is essentially a portfolio manager in practice for himself. He works on the stock portfolio’s of a small group of friends and their referrals. He’s made a go of it since being laid off from Control Data almost 20 years ago. My dad is a serious intellectual and reader and has influenced me through his ability to think clearly and always encourage me to find the answer, as opposed to telling me the answer.
8. I have a friend who was injured in the I-35W bridge collapse a few weeks ago. She works at Best Buy for Accenture. Her fiance is a good friend who used to work here in staffing as well. Jake and Mercedes are great people, huge music fanatics (Jake is also an award-winning local DJ) whose lives have been turned upside down since the collapse. Go here to read their story, Mercedes is still one of only 7 left in the hospital, and will be for another 2.5 weeks at least. Her injuries are consistent with someone having jumped out of an airplane with no parachute. She’s alive and will likely walk again, but has a long road to get there.
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Chinese Medicine, Aikido, golf, U2, 8 things, sourcing, recruiting
