Definition from “Guide to the Scriptures is “To hear and obey the voice or teachings of the Lord.”
In my Teachings of the Book of Mormon class, I learned about a new study skill called “Cause and Effect”. I learned to identify if/then statements to help make the context more clear. I applied this while studying Doctrine and Covenants 103:44 ,”And that those who call themselves after my name might be achastened for a little season with a sore and grievous chastisement, because they did not bhearken altogether unto the precepts and commandments which I gave unto them.”
The marker or indicator there will a cause in this particular group is:
Marker: “Because they did”
Cause: Because they didn’t hearken unto the precepts and commandments
Effect: They will be chastened for a little season
This was an interesting scripture. It is a warning that members of the church, “those that call themselves after my name” are not perfect, and will not listen at times. If they don’t listen, the Lord will chasten, which could mean a call to repentance, or a natural consequence. This is meant to remind the members to PAY ATTENTION to the prophet and leaders counsel.
I believe I do have pride and think because I go to church and generally do good, I don’t need to listen to every little thing. It is not a big deal, and I have so many other things to worry about. This scripture hit hard, that I will be chastened if I don’t listen. The word chastened doesn’t have to be bad. I think about my own children, and I loving them enough to want to correct and remind them to save them from natural consequences. I feel the Lord loves me enough to want to do the same!
26 Wherefore, I, Moroni, am commanded to write these things that evil may be done away, and that the time may come that Satan may have ano power upon the hearts of the children of men, but that they may be bpersuaded to do good continually, that they may come unto the fountain of all crighteousness and be saved.
The list is what will come when and its purpose is to give us hope!
1.Evil will be done away with
2. Satan have no power over men.
3. Men will want to do good all of the time
4. Be righteous and be able to return to live with HF
I love this hopeful scripture that is telling us in the latter-days what WILL be, there is no conditions, this is part of the plan, and we need to not be evil because evil will end. I love this scripture.
Lehi’s dream about the plan of happiness is described in this scripture reference;
1 Nephi 15: 23-24
23 And they said unto me: What meaneth the arod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree?
24 And I said unto them that it was the aword of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would bhold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the ctemptations and the fiery ddarts of the eadversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.
The Tree of Life represents eternal life with God. The rod of iron represents the gospel we can follow to keep us on the straight and narrow path to return to Him. The cluster study skill helped define the word “rod” in a new way. In the Bible Dictionary Moses’ and Aaron’s rods represented authority. This instantly gives more weight to the word of “rod” ; is a physical representation of the Lord’s priesthood power and authority!
I felt this scripture is very relevant to what is happening today, right now, in the world. I needed to be reminded there is order in this chaos and the Lord is in charge. Even though there are thousands of bits of information bombarding me every day to distract me, the Lord offers a constant. If I follow the gospel and rely on the priesthood power, I can stay on the correct path throughout.
The survey results confirmed the many comments myself and my manager received after the trainings about how helpful the book was and the trainings to discuss. I asked a total of five questions. Two were regarding their comprehension of the definitions of what “in the box” meant. Two were about the application of the concepts by asking if they recognized how often they were in and out of the box. The final question asked if they felt learning these concepts helped increase their trust among the team.
Out of the seven respondents, all understood the concepts of “in or out of the box”, with 71% strongly agreeing and 29% agreeing. This made me feel confident they absorbed the content. The next question of how often they were aware they were in the box was also positive with 43% saying every day and 57% saying a few times each week.
The application question of how often they have applied the concept of getting out of the box wasn’t as strong as I had hoped. However, it was still encouraging with 85% reporting applying the concept a few times each week and 14% saying every day.
The final question asking if learning these concepts increased their trust among the team was still positive with 57% agreeing, and 28% strongly agreeing and 14% neither agree or disagree.
The conclusion of this project is I believe people answered honestly and sincerely in the survey. This is a measurable result I did help increase the trust among our team which accomplished my project goal! I have seen team members willing to share information, collaborate with each other on sales accounts and help others in the last 4 months. This proves our attitudes and feelings we have towards each other directly affect our behavior not only at home but also in the work environment.
What an awesome experience! I met with my team on Friday, December 4th for the final training of Leadership and Self-Deception; Getting Out of the Box. The last training on Part 3 – Getting Out of the Box was exciting. I was very happy the majority of my team attended and had read the material. We had great discussions with many personal insights shared.
When I was first read this final part, I thought it was an easy concept. To recognize when I was seeing others as objects instead of people meant I was instantly “out of the box” and my attitude towards them would change.
However, staying in that mind-set is more difficult because I can outwardly change my behavior without changing my attitude towards them. For example, forcing myself to say kind words, when I truly don’t feel like it. In the book, it describes things that don’t work while in the box.
All of these things seem like they would work, but if I still don’t see others as people, and resist their humanity, I am still in the box. I need to actively seek to always see others as people.
So now the question was how does this apply to my work environment? The first question asked in the book is, what is our purpose working together? The answer is to achieve results!
We discussed the examples given in the book about we may recognize our co-workers being in the box, but we can’t control other’s actions. We must concentrate on our own behavior. No one can put me “in the box” by their behavior.
It is truly our choice and that choice matters because it affects all of our team members. This quote sums up the entire book for me:
In conclusion we spoke about learning these concepts didn’t mean we had to be perfect. The summary from the book helped clarify the expectations:
Overall, I had several comments after the training from my team about how beneficial the training was. My goal with this training was to increase trust and healthy conflict among our team. Based on the comments and discussions following each training, I believe both trust and healthy conflict has been improved. However, I am sending a survey to gather more quantifiable data. Stay tuned for the results! Here is a link to the survey. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/56Z5H7Y
I am looking forward to presenting to my team on Friday, December 4th the final part – How to Get Out of the Box.
This was originally scheduled for the previous week, but the schedule had to be changed due to a software release. The next training is scheduled for this week, so I will have more to report after Friday. It was really interesting to have other people who aren’t in my department ask about the principles we are learning, and how they can also read the book. The principles found are so universal and the power to recognize how we can change is extremely inviting.
Even though my team training was delayed, I did have the opportunity to share the book with my family over the Thanksgiving holiday! I was preparing my PowerPoint, and my brother asked me what it was about. I got to explain to both him and my sister and my brother-in-law how we “self deceive” and get in the box and treat others like objects. We had great conversation of examples of when we have seen others be in the box, as well as times when we realize we are in the box.
I also found a great summary of Part 3 on YouTube by Lindy McKay I want to share with my team. She did a great job with the illustrations and clarified the principle of how we stay in box and how to get out!
I will have more to report after Friday and share my conclusion, including the results of the survey. Stay tuned!
This week’s team training was held on Friday, November 13th, which was an ominous date. However, I could feel a sense of anticipation and excitement from the team. The majority of the team had completed the reading assignment of Part Two and remarked how it changed their outlook. The second part of the book is titled, “How we get in the box” and it can be a bit confusing.
I captured this quote:
I had one team member share an experience at work when he found himself in the ‘box’. He explained he had received a request for help in the middle of a hectic morning, and he said he pushed back to the person saying process needs to be followed. He felt justified he refused and went on with his day feeling very satisfied and a bit smug in teaching that person a lesson. The following week, that person still needed help and the client was upset about the delay and it caused a lot of frustration. He shared he looks back and realized he had self-betrayal when he didn’t respond to the first request, and much more frustration happened later. I appreciated him being so candid and sharing this with the team.
We all agreed with this statement from the book, our success of our daily work, as well as success in our organization is dependent of individuals recognizing when they are in the box.
Collusion was a bit more difficult to understand for the team. I used the graphics from the Arbinger Institute to help explain:
When we are in the box, our behavior can affect others, forcing them into the box as well. This creates a perpetuating cycle of bad behavior towards each other. We then discussed Kate’s story with her teenage son again with help from a graph created by the Arbinger Institute:
I felt it was very impactful how Kate described she was disappointed her son kept curfew. This clarified for some on my team what collusion was and how we keep each other in the box!
For the next training, I asked my team to read Part Three – How to get out of the Box. Our next training will be held on December 4th. In addition, I also challenged the team to think about how they are reacting to others at work and in their personal lives:
The three weeks between this training and the next will include Thanksgiving and we discussed how this will be more difficult to practice on family than co-workers. I can’t wait to hear the results!
I chose the Toyota RAV4 ad because I loved the concept of adventure anywhere. I enjoy kayaking, and the man bursting out of the back of the vehicle caught my attention. I found this on “Ads of the World” https://www.adsoftheworld.com/media/print/toyota_adventure_anywhere . It was created by Saatchi & Saatchi and was published February 23, 2017.
Let’s examine the overall design.
Contrast
First, the overall concept is an example of contrast. Contrast by definition draws the eye to it. With the two very different elements of a city street and the whitewater with kayak, it immediately draws interest. The proximity of the tag line directly underneath helps me understand these images can be related to each other. The alignment of the text being left aligned gives a strong boundary or line of the overall image. The repetition of the “w” three times reinforces the message of anytime or anywhere adventure.
Color
The colors in the ad are very appropriate for the scene. For example, the pink ovals show the gray monotones of the pavement, car and water. The bright yellow kayak circled in blue contrasts with the monochromatic affect of the white, silver and dark gray and immediately it stands out. Even the additional color of red being a primary color along with yellow, makes this the focus of the ad. The red of the brick ties in the color so it is pleasing and not jarring to reader.
Typography
The main tag line of “Whatever. Wherever. Whenever.” is a bold, sans serif. This means the letters don’t have any serifs or marks on the ends of the letters. The width of the letter is consistent and doesn’t change thickness in the stroke. This is the most common for screen instead of print type. The bold white stands out against the black pavement. The smaller sans serif type is thinner weight so many words can be added. The “RAV4” is the same as the logo, and emphasizes the logo on the vehicle itself. I wish the would have shown the logo on the car.
Recreation
Design
I chose a stronger contrast to my redesign. Instead of a city street, the water coming out of the desert was a leap above. The water is very refreshing compared to the sand. The desolate landscape immediately makes the viewer think of dry, and the blue of the water stands out. I wanted the overall message to be adventure can be anywhere, even in an unlikely location. The proximity of the tagline to the vehicle helps explain what is happening.
Color
I chose the kayak image because of the blue of the water against the orange-tinted sand because they are complimentary colors. The blue is the main color to focus on and the orange is an accent being the background. The original image had a yellow kayak and a red life vest, and I liked this reversal on my image. Using the primary colors of yellow and red again draw attention to the action going on in the back of the vehicle.
Typography
I found a similar sans serif with the same weight and thickness of the original. I liked the small lettering in sans serif because despite the small type, it is easy to read. The “RAV4” typeface must be owned by Toyota because I couldn’t find anything close. I did chose a decorative font to match the logo. The logo I chose also had the red Toyota lettering to tie in the red of the kayak.
Conclusion
I feel my recreation of the original ad captures the theme of having an adventure anywhere. The incongruity of kayaking in a street or a desert catches the viewers attention quickly. I was able to replicate the same text, proximity, contrast, yet taking this a bit further with a desert view instead of street. I felt the complimentary colors of blue and orange were soothing and an improvement of the original.
This picture and the article appealed to me because I love waterfalls, and this magazine has many familiar places featured. The raw power of the waterfall is in contrast with the comfort I feel when I hear the roar and I like to learn and visit about all of the local falls.
Typography Identified
The headings on the first page, and the headings on the second page are in Sans Serif. Sans Serif is a font that means “without” the ends of the strokes. For example, a lowercase f would not have any bottom horizontal line. Sans Serif looks very clean without any extra flourishes and sends a strong message. It is direct. The typeface is always “monoweight” meaning all the strokes are even and have the same thickness from the top of the letter to the bottom. Although it is “monoweight”, a variety of weights from very bold to very thin and light. It is relatively new compared to Oldstyle.
The quotations in the columns are Oldstyle and is used for lots of text, especially is smaller size. Oldstyle is based on hand lettering and includes serif’s or a small stroke at the end of the main stroke. For example, the short angled stroke at the top of the lowercase f or they curved strokes called “bracketing” at the end of the s. It also has varying weight from thick to thin in the stroke itself. It is very easy to read despite the extra strokes.
Typography Contrasts
The larger text including the title of the series, “On the Road”, and the first and second page paragraph headers are Sans Serif and are large font size. The smaller lead sentence is also Sans Serif but has a much thinner weight and the spacing or kerning between the characters is slightly larger.
This contrasts with the quotations below in Oldstyle. It immediately tells me I have more text to read, so it is smaller and easier to digest. The amount of text has two columns on the first page, and three on the second. My eyes are drawn to the quotes with the familiar Oldstyle, but the name of the person giving the quote is in Sans Serif and is in all caps. The size of the text also contrasts, as I leave the top of the page with the most important text in large font, I am drawn down to read the rest of the columns. The user giving the quote is listed, but the importance is what they are saying, not so much who said it.
Photograph Analysis
The photographer uses the Rule of Thirds by having the waterfall itself take up the top two-thirds of the picture. The person standing in the middle horizontal grid, just slightly off-center adds perspective to the size of the waterfall. The falling water itself is the leading lines down to the person standing as well as the log the person is standing next to. The depth of field is focused on the red jacket on the man’s back which is sharp and clear and the waterfall itself is slightly out of focus.
Alternative Photos
Here are my three images that could be swapped in place.
Although I didn’t have a person standing in front of the Idaho Falls, I used the surrounding scenery to help give the perspective. For example, showing the water itself as a leading line with the stacked rocks still draws the eye from top to bottom. The depth of field in pictures has the focus on the waterfall itself with the foreground slightly out of focus for the first picture and for the second and third, the focus is on objects around the water. I also used the overhanging trees to frame the picture. Finally, the waterfall is in the top or bottom of the picture instead of centered.
Conclusion
Overall design of the magazine article pleasantly lead me throughout. When I saw this article for the first time, my eye was instantly drawn to the top left hand side of the spread. The bold white face of Sans Serif made the simple yet powerful statement that I would see things while traveling. My eyes then traveled down the water to see the person in the focus in front of the waterfall. This image was the clearest and I could identify being that person standing in front. The quotation bubble in green grabbed my attention and the next page was easy to follow again from top to bottom with the heavier weight Sans Serif typeface with the most important information down to the Oldstyle typeface of the quote, to the thin weight of the name of the person giving the quote. The simple design never distracted from the beauty of the waterfall picture.
Let’s look at this simple layout for five design elements including contrast, repetition, alignment, proximity and color that make it noticeable and pleasant to read. In this example, I chose “Strawberry”.
Contrast
The contrasting images from the clear mini wheat to the slightly blurry reflection draws the reader in.
Notice the contrast of the text used throughout the ad. The comic style bubble has hand-written text. The information about the product is more formal, yet the tag line is in a casual font. Each carries a distinct message. The comic bubble conveys humor, the product description clarity and the tag link is catchy.
Repetition
The overall color of pink gives the reader the idea of the flavor of mini wheat. In the overall campaign, each flavor has a different color; pink for strawberry, blue for blueberry, brown for cinnamon.
The use of the comic bubble with a humorous message for each color makes it fun to seek out every ad if in a magazine. It also ties in all the separate ads.
Alignment
The ad has a pleasing rule-of-thirds spacing generally used in photos. This brings the readers eye tot he center where the most important message is.
Down in the bottom third, the product description and tag line are flush right to the cereal box image.
Proximity
The mini wheat and the image are grouped together in close proximity. This organizes the actions in the images so the reader understands they belong and are part of the humor.
The text is close to the cereal box picture helps the reader understand this isn’t part of the humor above, rather explaining what the product is.
Color
The monochromatic color of pink clearly carries the message of the flavor. The light hues can be seen at the top of the page and become slightly darker.
The dark, solid hues of pink emphasis the mini wheat. The text is easy to read in the darker pink, but doesn’t overwhelm the center image.
Conclusion
Overall, each of the five elements compliment the others. The use of the monochromatic color repeating in the background, image and text is subtle and soft, yet the reader knows what flavor the cereal is. There is enough contrast to draw the eye to the different sections, and the proximity makes it easy to understand the differences of the cartoon theme and the product description. In this case, simple is clean, pleasing and still very distinct!
M's Musings 