Jun

Be Happy, Be Productive: Take a Dog to Work

by Sheron Long on June 20, 2013

Poodle fetching a file in a happy and productive office on Take Your Dog to Work Day

Overheard in a happy and productive office on Take Your Dog to Work Day:
“Fetch the Poodle file, will you, Sport?”
© Big Cheese Photo

Pooch Power in the Workplace

This Friday, offices around the globe will be the very vision of a happy and productive workplace. That’s because June 21, 2013, is Pet Sitters International’s Take Your Dog To Work Day^®.

Dog and worker at a desk in a happy and productive office, illustrating a possible scene on Take Your Dog to Work Day

A day at work is less stressful with a dog.
© Photodisc/RyanMcVay

Begun in 1999, Take Your Dog to Work Day is designed to showcase dogs as the great companions they are and to encourage adoptions.

The idea is that co-workers, who see the warm bond between canines and humans, will be inspired to adopt a best dog friend of their own.

The special day also offers employers the opportunity to support their local pet community.

Oh, I see the fun of this right away!

Any business can use more paws on deck, and we’ll be adding some highly specialized skills at least for a day.

I can just picture my office now, humming with pooch power, when all these breeds pad in.

Dog breeds, illustrating the variety of talents that dogs can being to a a happy and productive office on Take Your Do to Work Day

Any kind of dog can offer a helping paw on Take Your Dog to Work Day.
© iStockphoto

I boned up on their behaviors and talents and figured out some good assignments for the day.

Border Collies to the Conference Room!

Border Collies are the sports cars of the canine kingdom, built for speed and able to “hairpin turn” on a dime.

Border Collie herding sheep, a talent needed for meeting management in a happy and productive office

Nothing beats a Border Collie for meeting management!
©iStockphoto

Clocked at over 30 miles per hour, they also know how to keep both eyes on the ball. They are set to move across departments in dogged pursuit of the management team, nipping especially at the heels of the sales manager, who is perpetually late.

For once, our Friday morning meeting will start on time.

Border collies also have a hearty bark, good for meeting management when someone goes on too long. And, with just a hand signal from me, they’ll hop up and herd the managers out just as fast as they herded them in.

Ah, a meeting may end on time, too!

Puppies to R & D

The creative job of any Research and Development group requires play, with time to explore and dream, and it takes perseverance like you see, well, in a dog with a bone. It’s the perfect place for the special talents of puppies.

Four active puppies showing traits of workers in a happy and productive office

Active puppies fuel creativity in the R & D department.
© (top row) iStockphoto; (bottom row L to R) Fuse, Zoonar

Why puppies?

—Maybe it’s their freshness, the newness that comes when you haven’t yet learned the word “no.”

—Maybe it’s that they’re into everything, always “digging a little deeper.”

—Maybe it’s that they unleash the “aw factor,” in the creative staff, a group whose productivity rises when they feel good.

No matter, puppies and creative types are a good match.

Comfort Dogs to HR

The welcoming face of the Golden Retriever—how can anyone resist it?

Goldens (and other breeds), with red jackets saying simply “Pet Me!”, wander through airports in San Jose, Los Angeles, and Miami to lower passengers’ stress levels. Seems like that could work in our Human Resources department, too.

Golden Retriever in an easy chair at a happy and productive office, illustrating a possible scene on Take Your Dog to Work Day

The doctor is in!
© Fuse

When the stress of deadlines or disagreements with colleagues gets too great, it’s time to visit the company’s Golden Retriever. Never judgmental and always eager to please, the Golden gets it right—he listens, acknowledges, and lets you pet him until blood pressure and stress level go down.

Sniffer-in-Chief to IT

Dogs are all super sniffers, able to make surprising detections—diseased beehives, bed bugs, drugs, explosives, composition of whale poop, pirated DVDs, different kinds of cancers, and when a cow is in heat.

Beagle at a computer in a happy and productive office, illustrating a possible scene on Take Your Dog to Work Day

The Beagle gets off task during
Take Your Dog to Work Day.
© iStockphoto

The Beagle, with 225 million scent receptors, is the Sniffer-in-Chief. Compare that to the human who has 5 million, and you get a sense of this dog’s talented nose.

The Beagle will be on special assignment to the IT Department this Friday to sniff out computer viruses.

I know he’ll be successful if he doesn’t get distracted, surfing the Web for other passions.

The Beagle will work an 8-hour day with a lunch break in the company kitchen, where he can sniff out the fridge for old lunches to trash.

Very smelly ground, that fridge.

Boston Terriers to Customer Service

Big ears, no bark—that’s what you need if you work in customer service.

Boston Terrier with large ear, illustrating the ability to listen well in a happy and productive office

The Boston Terrier’s big, upright ear is the best receptor for listening.
© iStockphoto

All dogs hear in dog decibels that detect a much greater range of sounds than humans can. Breeds with large ears that stand up have the best receptors for listening well when customers call.

Though breeds like Chihuahuas have the ears for the job, they may not have the temperament—too much barking and even biting.

But the Boston Terrier fills the bill:

—big ears

—polite

—sensitive to moods

There may need to be some professional development on the snorting, snuffling, wheezing, and snoring front, however.

Irresistible Dogs to Sales and Marketing

If I know Sales and Marketing, they will press into service the cutest, most adorable dogs who grace our office.

Puppies advertising a sale, illustrating how the Marketing department can put dogs to productive work on Take Your Dog to Work Day

Call me irresistible!
© iStockphoto

Ads with an irresistible dog make products irresistible, too. And, hey, how about this adorable poodle—maybe he can create a music video with a howling testimonial!

If video does not display, watch it here.

Should Every Day Be “Take Your Dog to Work Day”?

Despite the fun of matching dog talents to tasks, the real value of dogs in the workplace is that employees feel better and engage more with other colleagues.

A study conducted by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University and headed by Randolph Barker (no kidding about the name) compared stress levels in employees who did and did not take their dogs to work.

Stress levels went up during the workday in employees without dogs and stayed the same for employees with dogs. Employees with dogs also reported greater productivity.

Oh, I see (with apologies to Jonathan Swift):

Every day must have its dog.

And it will be a happy and productive day indeed!

If you want to work for a company that allows dogs in the workplace every day, check out DogFriendly.com’s database. See these tips for ensuring a successful experience for you and your co-workers.

Pet Sitters International (PSI) also knows it’s ok and often necessary to leave your pets at home whether working or vacationing. It provides guidelines on choosing a pet sitter and offers a database for locating certified pet sitters.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Sheron Long 1 Comment

Clever Ideas

Jun

Plastic Alternatives— Yep, They Grow on Trees!

by Janine Boylan on June 17, 2013

pile of Styrofoam outside the Tokyo Fish Market, showing the need for innovative ideas to create plastic alternatives

Pile of discarded polystyrene outside the Tokyo Fish Market
© Daniel Calonge

Innovative Ideas for Biodegradable Plastic

Our world has become dependent on plastic. It’s in my toothbrush, my shoes, my sunglasses, and even the keys I type on.

And it won’t go away.

For decades, plastic has been made from petroleum, and, once formed into a plastic cup, packing material, grocery bag, or toothbrush, the plastic is here to stay.

Lucky bits of plastic may get recycled into new products, but no matter its shape, petroleum-based plastic does not biodegrade. That means, in some form, that plastic will be on this planet long after every single one of us reading this post is gone.

In addition, according to the Technical Research Center of Finland, petroleum-based plastic annually consumes about 5% of the world’s oil. And of all the plastics used, about 40% of it goes into packaging.

Oh, I see—we can’t sustain this!

Thankfully, innovators are developing biodegradable plastic alternatives, and they are turning to some surprising sources.

Fungus

College classmates Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre were fascinated with fungal mycelium, the network of tiny tube-like filaments from which mushrooms grow and get nutrients. They noticed how, when mycelium grows, it is so intertwined that it bonds things together.

mushrooms, illustrating a source of innovative ideas for plastic alternatives

Networks of mushroom filaments called mycelium help decompose plant materials.
© Thinkstock

Now several years later, their company, Ecovative Designs, develops packaging materials with mycelium.

mushroom packaging, illustrating innovative ideas for plastic alternatives

Mushroom packaging
© Ecovative

First they grind up local agricultural waste like stalks and husks.
Then they mix the ground material with water and mycelium and put it into forms, or molds, to shape it.
In five days, the mycelium grows around the waste in the shape of the mold.
Next, they dry out the newly-formed material so it no longer grows.
And then it’s ready for packing and shipping!

This alternative to polystyrene is not only strong and light, but it is fire retardant. And, once the materials have served their purpose, they can be easily composted.

This short documentary tells a bit more of their story.

If the video does not display, watch it here. Also, you can see Bayer give a longer TED talk here.

Chicken Feathers

People eat a lot of chicken. One by-product of this, whether we want to think about it or not, is billions of pounds of chicken feathers.

Chicken feathers are made of keratin, just like fingernails, hooves, and hair. And they are strong.

chicken feathers, illustrating an innovative idea for plastic alternatives

Chickens constantly shed their feathers, just like cats and dogs shed fur.
© Thinkstock

Walter Schmidt has spent decades thinking about how to use those feathers to make useful products.

And one product he’s been working on is an everyday biodegradable flowerpot.

How do feathers become flowerpots?

First the hard central quill shaft of the feather is separated from the softer fibers.
The fibers are ground into powder and combined with a naturally-occurring polymer.
The resulting combination is then formed into plastic pots.

The benefits are many! This chicken-feather plastic is light, can be heated and reshaped, and will not instantly dissolve in water. But it is also strong and biodegradable.

Best of all, the flowerpots can be planted into the ground where they will decompose and provide nutrients for the soil.

Schmidt notes, “Stuff floats around in the ocean [or] is mixed in landfills that stay there for generations. A far better solution is to make less mess in the first place and to have that material naturally recycle in a reasonable amount of time.”

chicken feather flowerpots, illustrating innovative ideas for plastic alternatives

Chemist Masud Huda (background), chemist Walter Schmidt (center),
and Marc Teffeau, (right), produce biodegradable flowerpots from chicken feathers.
Photo by Stephen Ausmus

Tree Resin

Chuanbing Tang is turning to the trees for his inspiration. He and his team are experimenting with evergreen tree resin to produce a plastic.

resin, illustrating an innovative idea for potential biodegradable plastic

When a conifer tree is wounded, it produces liquid resin that hardens and protects the damage.
© Thinkstock

Resin has been used for ages as a protective seal. Artifacts from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome have been found with resin-based finishes. Today, it is used in varnishes and adhesives. But using it to form plastic is a newer idea.

“Most plastics from non-renewable resources are generally not biodegradable,” Tang said. “With a polymer framework derived from renewable sources, we’re able to make materials that should break down more readily in the environment.”

Hope for the Future

Oh, I see. Plastic alternatives, created from mushrooms, feathers, and tree resin, will biodegrade, or break down, making these innovative ideas sustainable.

Sounds like my toothbrush doesn’t have to be around for my great grandchildren after all.

To hear scientist Paul Stamets discuss six ways mushrooms can save the world and to see a mycelium network, visit “Livin’ in a Mycelia World.”

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Janine Boylan 2 Comments

Innovations/Making a Difference/The World's Entrepreneurs

Jun

Creative Expression Counts In Search for “Coolest Dad”

by Meredith Mullins on June 13, 2013

Two girls celebrate summer vacation, creative expression by Jason Lee

What Makes A Good Dad?

Who is the world’s greatest dad?

Abraham Lincoln? Jim Henson? Brad Pitt? Barack Obama?

Hopefully, we all say that the world’s greatest dad is our own. We forgive the flaws and treasure the tender moments.

We honor him on Father’s Day with a “World’s Greatest Dad” mug, a colorful tie (that we hardly ever see him wear), or a handmade gift that makes him oddly silent because of that lump in his throat.

What makes a great dad? Someone who spends time with his kids and is interested in what they do and how they think, someone who teaches by word and example, and someone who is fun and filled with creative expression . . . and inspires those qualities in a child.

To honor Father’s Day this week-end, here are two dads whose children have much to be thankful for—their dads are really cool!

Multiple sandwich bags, creative expression from David Laferriere

The Sandwich-Bag Artist Dad

Meet David Laferriere, a graphic artist living in Massachusetts. About five years ago, he started creating a surprise each day in his kids’ lunches. Each sandwich had its own special wrapping. The sandwich bags were transformed into art.

The monster sandwich bag, creative expression by David Laferriere

Monsters. Dinosaurs. Mazes. Worms. Robots. Whatever subject inspired Dad for the day became an original sharpie-pen drawing on the sandwich bags.

His kids are the hit of the school lunchroom as they unveil the daily sandwich art to an appreciative crowd of friends.

A maze sandwich bag, creative expression by David Laferriere

Now, the collection has grown to more than 1000 different designs. The photographic proof resides on Dad’s Flickr site for posterity.

Has his art evolved over the years (and as his boys have grown older)? You bet.

A worm coming out of the sandwich bag, creative expression by David Laferriere

Now, he’s crossing time/space boundaries as he creates worms that seem to be coming out of the sandwich or a hole that exposes a rendering of the sandwich.

Let’s hope his kids eat many more sandwiches to come. There is still so much to be said in the world of sandwich-bag art.

Two girls drinking from a coffee machine, creative expression from Jason Lee

The Photographer Dad and His Wild and Crazy Daughters

Meet Jason Lee, a photographer living in the San Francisco Bay area, with his two daughters—Kristin and Kayla.

Seven years ago, he started a photo blog of his daughters to keep their grandmother entertained with their creative daily life.

Two girls reading dummy books, creative expression from Jason Lee

The ideas came mostly from the girls or from Dad overhearing the funny things they said or observing the imaginative way they invented their daily entertainment.

The result is one of the most creative photo journals in the blog world today—celebrating holidays and everyday events in the most extraordinary and ingenius ways.

A halloween celebration with two girls, creative expression from Jason Lee

Will Kristin and Kayla be embarrassed when Dad pulls out the album to show their prom dates? Not a chance. They were collaborators. And, who wouldn’t want to get to know a family that has this much fun.

Quality Time + Clever Ideas = Cool

The Oh, I see Father’s Day moment: Parents can spend quality time with their children in many ways. These two dads happen to be highly original in their creative expression . . . and, well, just plain cool.

Happy Father’s Day!

Other sites of interest on Father’s Day: National Center for Fathering and Parents.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins Comments

Clever Ideas/The World's Photography

World Views:

Topics

Be Happy, Be Productive: Take a Dog to Work

Pooch Power in the Workplace

Border Collies to the Conference Room!

Puppies to R & D

Comfort Dogs to HR

Sniffer-in-Chief to IT

Boston Terriers to Customer Service

Irresistible Dogs to Sales and Marketing

Should Every Day Be “Take Your Dog to Work Day”?

Plastic Alternatives— Yep, They Grow on Trees!

Innovative Ideas for Biodegradable Plastic

Fungus

Chicken Feathers

Tree Resin

Hope for the Future

Creative Expression Counts In Search for “Coolest Dad”

What Makes A Good Dad?

The Sandwich-Bag Artist Dad

The Photographer Dad and His Wild and Crazy Daughters

Quality Time + Clever Ideas = Cool