Have you noticed how often you hear the words "change the world"? It seems to be what everyone's trying to do, and it's become fashionable. Every start-up company...every university program...every charity...every church...every new idea... In fact, though, the world changes -- for better and for worse -- constantly. It always has, and it always will. No matter what we do, we're changing the world. Every action we take changes the world in some way.

Perhaps setting out to "change the world" is like trying to boil the ocean. It is unlikely that Steve Jobs set out to change the world when he developed the iPod. Rather, he probably decided to aggressively pursue an idea that he had. It is unlikely that Sergei Brin and Larry Page intended to change the world when they developed the Google search engine. Rather, they probably decided to aggressively pursue an idea they had.

You don't change the world by trying to change the world. You make it better it by doing the best you can within your sphere of influence.

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你曾经注意过多么人说“改变世界”? 好像这是大家的目的，而且变得流行。什么初创公司，什么大学节目，什么公益事业，什么教会，什么新的主意... 实际上，我们的世界不断地改变 -- 有时是好转，有时是坏转。一向都是这样，以及永远会这样。无论我们做什么，我们就在改变本世界。我们每一个动作的效果就是改变世界。

于是，定一个“我要改变世界”的目标可能像试着把海洋煮起来。当Steve Jobs开发了iPod时，他大概没有计划改变世界；他而是选择了积极地追逐他的主意。当Sergei Brin和Larry Page开发了Google的搜索殷勤是，他们大概没有打算改变世界；他们而是决定了积极地追逐他们的主意。

若你初发改变世界，你会达不到目标。你反而把努力专注于做到一件在你势力范围内的事情来改善世界，就会成功。

I just sat through a 40-min webinar presented by one of the world's largest independent software vendors. They were presenting on a break-through product that promises to simplify business and IT. But their solution came across as complex -- very wordy slides combined with very wordy narration.

System integrators are often like this, too. There's not much to differentiate them when it comes to, for example, ERP services. So how do you decide which one to choose as your partner?

You can ask the prospective partner "Why should I choose you?" or "What makes your approach better than the others'?" Ultimately, though, it probably comes down to how the prospective partner articulates their solution -- the way they present it suggests the way they'll deliver it.

• Are they wordy and is their presentation complex?
• Do they bring a bunch of people to the meeting with nebulous titles?
• Is there disagreement between their representatives on some points?

This may well indicate the way they'll approach a work-transition and the ultimate delivery.

• Are they succinct and do they lay out their solution with few words, presenting mainly with images and few slides?
• Are you able to process/grasp their solution as they present vs. telling yourself you'll have to sit down later and review the slides to "get it"?
• Does it make sense to you?

Chances are, then, that their approach is sufficiently well thought-out and simple to be effectively and successfully executed.

Simplicity is the ultimate elegance.

If your profession is sales, regardless of the type of product you sell, you're actually selling safety. That's what people want: to make a decision that will make them feel safe. Safe from being told by a superior that they paid too much for what they bought. Safe from spending too much money and not having enough left for other things. Safe from feeling, after the purchase, that they didn't do enough due diligence and could actually have bought something better.

Si vous êtes vendeur/commercial, peu importe votre produit, en fin de compte ce que vous vendez c'est la sécurité. C'est ça que les gens veulent: prendre une decision qui les permet de se sentir à l'aise. A l'aise par rapport à un chef qui insiste qu'ils ont trop payé pour ce qu'ils ont acheté. A l'aise par rapport à avoir dépensé trop d'argent au point de ne plus en avoir assez pour obtenir d'autres choses. A l'aise par rapport aux regrettes qui peuvent surgir, apres avoir fait un achat important, de ne pas avoir entrepris suffisament de diligence là-dessus et d'avoir pu acheter quelque chose de meilleur.

Si trabaja como vendedor, poco importa su producto, lo que Ud. vende es la seguridad. Pues es lo que más desea la gente: tomar una decision que les permita sentirse seguro. A salvo de las críticas de un jefe que se queje de que pagaron caro al comprar algo. A salvo de gastar demasiado dinero y luego no tener suficiente para obtener otras cosas. A salvo de sentir, después de hacer una compra importante, que no la evaluaron a fondo y que pudieran haber comprado algo mejor.

如果你的专业是推销员，无论你的产品哪一种，你推销的实际上就是安全性。这是一切买方都寻求的：做最会让他们感到安全的那种决定。如此，买重要的东西后能够不担心上级批评他们付的价格太贵；能够不担心花了太多钱而又无法买其他还需要的东西；能够不担心有关买到的产品没尽职做到足够的研究并应该买更好的。

This week's thought...

En la vida profesional, lo que deberíamos buscar a hacer no es ganar la más grande cantidad de dinero posible sino aplicar y aprovechar de nuestros talentos al máximo grado posible. Esto es, teniendo en cuenta mi propia experiencia, lo que más nos hace sentir satisfechos en el empleo a largo plazo.

Dans la vie professionelle, ce que l'on devrait chercher à faire n'est pas de gagner la plus grande quantité d'argent possible, sinon d'appliquer et profiter au maximum de ses propres talents. C'est ainsi que l'on peut jouir de la plus grande satisfaction dans son emploi à longue terme.

职业生活中，我们应该试图运用本身独特的才干，而不集中一切努力在赚最大笔钱的工作。长期而言，我们这样以来会得到最完善的成就感。

I recently spent a week taking care of my father while my mom took a well-deserved break from her responsibility of being his primary caregiver. Dad has Parkinson's disease, which slowly but surely robs you of your muscular functions. It's a cruel process; your whole life you've been able to move your arms and legs however and whenever you wanted, and then little by little you can't. Every day you wake up and can do less for yourself than the day before. You're increasingly dependent on others for eating, moving from place to place, using the bathroom, etc.

As a son, I found myself doing things for my dad that I'd never expected to be doing for him. Think of what you do to take care of a baby: all of that I was doing for my parent.

It brought to mind the words of Tim Rice and music of Elton John in The Lion King song "The Circle of Life." There really is a circle of life: you're helpless in the beginning, and most of us are helpless in the end. During all the time in between, surely we should be making the very most of our time on this earth.

Most every CIO I know is operating pedal-to-the-metal....maxed out....in endless meetings....more often than not in urgent mode. But does it have to be this way? Yes, technology is changing faster than ever. Yes, there are more demands on the C-suite's technology SPOC than ever. Yes, the tech-based threats to a company are more insidious than ever. Yes, "job security" is an oxymoron now more than ever.

One thing CIOs can do to start improving the situation: Lock onto a company that can be your trusted technology partner, then treat them like one. Jettison any master-slave attitude. Tap into the partner's ingenuity. Ask them "What would you do in this situation?" Throw them tough questions and watch how they respond. I work for such an SI and we love getting challenged by CIOs for new solutions, even when our suggestions aren't taken.

Opening up to and trusting an SI partner that is eager to delight and has a track record of doing so is a key way to work more strategically and enjoy greater success in the CIO role.

My 17-year-old son needed some community service hours for school, so he signed up to serve lunch and dinner at the Catholic Action Center downtown this past weekend, and I went with him. The food there is for anyone who chooses to come to the facility; about 40 percent of the people are homeless, the rest low-income, and there seems to be varying degrees of mental illness across the group.

Most people were very courteous and grateful for the food. Others seemed accustomed to the center being their main source of meals and appeared nonchalant about it. A couple of them were hostile, such as the man who got a piece of fried chicken that was smaller than he expected and started cursing and threatening to "turn this f***ing place upside down" (he ultimately calmed down and ate his chicken).

What I think left the most significant impression on me were the three people we worked with at the center. All three are volunteers.

- Gary. About 64. He was a jump-master in the Army for 25 years, teaching soldiers how to parachute out of aircraft (his son is now a three-star general who commands Fort Bragg in South Carolina). Despite having major surgeries over the years and a lot of metal put into his body (including 2 bullets in Vietnam) the effects of which now make it difficult for him to move around, he works at the center cooking and preparing well over a dozen meals each week. While volunteers like us serve meals, he sits near the serving line and keeps order, e.g. making sure no one cuts in line, snags extra food, etc. He told us that when he was growing up on a farm about ten miles away, he would never have come into the run-down part of town that the center is in. But now, he said, he's more than happy to do it because "most of these people just took a wrong turn in life or had something unfortunate happen to them, and it could happen to anyone."

- Bev. About 60. She works full time at the University of Kentucky in a clerical role. Then she comes and spends up to 20 hours a week working alongside Gary -- cooking, preparing, cleaning. She's the person who got cursed at for giving the wrong piece of chicken, but she seems to take it all in stride.

- [didn't get his name]. About 45. He cleans pots and cooking utensils, all the food-preparation surfaces, and the tables where the food is served and consumed and the areas around them. He is a very large man and formerly worked as a bouncer in local clubs. Not sure what he does now for work, but he comes to the center multiple times each week to give this service.

I expected that working at the center would be a good experience for my son, and I went there mainly to support him. But I left there very appreciative of being reminded that the 'have-nots' in our community can benefit so much from the willingness of the the 'haves' to share time and abilities. It was a great experience, and I fully plan to do it again soon.