Marketing Concept for Environmental Welfare

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR MARKETING CONCEPT FOR ENVIRONMENTAL WELFARE From a long time ago, manufacturers are competing with each other to provide a product that can fulfill the needs of consumers. One type of product can be produced by various manufacturers. With so many manufacturers who produce things that can fulfill the needs of consumers, other producers with low marketability will automatically be eliminated from the marketplace because it is not chosen by the consumer. One of the ways to attract consumers to buy a product is to use the societal marketing concept.Societal marketing concept is the highest evolution form of marketing concept, where in addition to get a profit, manufacturers are also trying to improve the life of the community (Crane, Andrew, Desmond, & John, 2002). One of the example is the anti-mosquito aerosol Force magic, where the manufacturer states that the compound used in anti-mosquito aerosol derived from natural substances that are not harmful to humans. For c ompetitors Force magic, such as Baygon and Hit, does not seem to use the same content with the Force magic.Some aerosols are using the contents injurious to consumers, but proved to be more powerful than the other content. There is even one of the brands of aerosol mosquito which was being pulled out from marketing because they contain ingredients that are dangerous to health. Anti-mosquito Force Magic uses natural ingredients that repel mosquitoes effectively but not harmful to humans. The natural materials can disappear in the air and can be neutralized by mammals.We can see from the advertisement, a manufacturer of Force Magic also emphasized that anti-mosquito aerosol is safe for children, where children's health is one thing that considered by consumers who have a family. Consumers are essentially buying and using a product to satisfy their needs. However, with the societal marketing concept, manufacturers are not only provide products to meet the consumer needs but also provid es effect or another impacts that are useful for the welfare of consumers and the environment (Crane, Andrew, Desmond, & John, 2002).Would the consumers be more interested in buying products that are marketed by sales strategy of societal marketing concept? Societal marketing concept is the highest evolution form of marketing concept. Starting from the production concept, which assumes that all consumers would be more interested to buy products at low prices. Furthermore, the product concept assumes that consumers will buy the product with the best quality. Then there is the selling concept, which is a growing assumption that consumers will not purchasing a product if they did not get a hard persuasion .Subsequently there is marketing concept which emphasizes the rational consumer and intends that all the sales should be able to meet the consumer needs. Finally, the concept of product sales in societal marketing concept is in addition to profit. Beside that, the manufacturers are al so trying to improve the life of the community. Societal marketing concept intended to meet the needs of the target market in a way to support the welfare of society in general, but still implement the main goals of the company (Schiffman & Kanuk, 2007).According to Maslow (Feist & Feist, 2007) humans have needs that stratified. Maslow's hierarchy of needs indicates the degree level of human needs. If the basic needs have not been fulfilled, the above needs can not be fulfilled. Maslow's hierarchy of needs starting from biological needs, followed by the need for love, and the need for security, the need for self-esteem, and the latter the need for self-actualization. Basically, consumers who have met the biological needs will try to meet next.If the urgent needs have been met, then the consumer will look for products with other things that could fulfill the higher needs. Therefore, consumers will be interested to choose a product, in this case the Force Magic, because it can eradica te mosquitoes and ensure the health of consumers and families. Consumers should feel happier and more motivated to buy the product because of the good impression posed by producers which helps the welfare of society.Logically, manufacturers will attract more interest of the consumer because by paying the same price to other products, consumers can get more profit. To apply the societal marketing concept, preferably all products must be in the category of desirable products. The manufacturers have to change the products they create in order to improve the life of customers in a short or long term. It requires many innovations and breakthroughs to make it.In the field of anti-mosquito aerosol, producers should do more research on ingredients which are effective to repel mosquitoes and harmless to human. Manufacturer must seek to emphasize the positive effects obtained from the use of the products and reduce the negative effects of these products. Therefore, manufacturers use societal marketing concept to sell their products. Beside the benefits from the sale, they also meet the needs of consumers and ensure their welfare. It is also the main attraction for consumers.Sales of products with the societal marketing concept can surely meet the needs of consumers directly and to guarantee the well-being of consumers in the future. Manufacturers have always wanted to get profit from the sale of its products. However, it should not make manufacturer forget about the customers. Manufacturers also have to consider the welfare of the consumer, which is the most important element in their sales. Manufacturers provide products that can fulfill customer needs and ensure the welfare of the community.Consumers will put a trust on the products and choose products that can guarantee their welfare. In that way, manufacturers can still achieve its main objective, which is to benefit, and ensuring the welfare of consumers. References Crane, Andrew & Desmond, John. (2002). Societal M arketing and Morality. European Journal of Marketing, 548-569 Feist, Jess & Feist, G. J. (2006). Theories of Personality 6th edition. Singapore: McGraw-Hill Schiffman, L. G. & Kanuk, L. L. (2000). Consumer Behavior 7th edition. USA: Prentice Hall International, Inc.

Computer Software Essay

Q1.What are the main types of software? What are the advantages of open-source software? Describe the decision making process of acquiring application software. Q2.â€Å"In the end, information system is recognized only as a foundation for human judgment, insight and inventiveness†. Discuss. What are different types of controls and audits required for an information system? Q3.What is computerized maintenance management? Explain the conceptual model through which the maintenance function can achieve its objectives on a sustained basis. Q4.â€Å"Excel is a versatile spreadsheet package. It can do wonder for accountants†. Explain. Q5. What do you understand by Artificial Intelligence? What are the factors that highlighted the need of developing AI? What are the goals of AI. Q1.What are the main types of software? What are the advantages of open-source software? Describe the decision making process of acquiring application software. Main Types of Software Programming Software: This is one of the most commonly known and popularly used types of computer software. These software come in the form of tools that assist a programmer in writing computer programs. Computer programs are sets of logical instructions that make a computer system perform certain tasks. The tools that help programmers in instructing a computer system include text editors, compilers and interpreters. Compilers translate source code written in a programming language into the language which a computer understands (mostly the binary form). System Software: It helps in running computer hardware and the computer system. System software refers to the operating systems; device drivers, servers, windowing systems and utilities. System software helps an application programmer in abstracting away from hardware, memory and other internal complexities of a computer. An operating system provides users with a platform to execute high-level programs. Firmware and BIOS provide the means to operate hardware. Application Software: It enables the end users to accomplish certain specific tasks. Business software, databases and educational software are some forms of application software. Different word processors, which are dedicated to specialized tasks to be performed by the user, are other examples of application software. Malware: Malware refers to any malicious software and is a broader category of software that are a threat to computer security. Adware, spyware, computer viruses, worms, trojan horses and scareware are malware. Computer viruses are malicious programs which replicate themselves and spread from one computer to another over the network or the Internet.. Adware: Adware is software with the means of which advertisements are played and downloaded to a computer. Programmers design adware as their tool to generate revenue. They do extract user information like the websites he visits frequently and the pages he likes. Advertisements that appear as pop-ups on your screen are the result of adware programs tracking you. But adware is not harmful to computer security or user privacy. The data it collects is only for the purpose of inviting user clicks on advertisements. Inventory Management Software: This type of software helps an organization in tracking its goods and materials on the basis of quality as well as quantity. Warehouse inventory management functions encompass the internal warehouse movements and storage. Inventory software helps a company in organizing inventory and optimizing the flow of goods in the organization, thus leading to improved customer service. Utility Software: Also known as service routine, utility software helps in the management of computer hardware and application software. It performs a small range of tasks. Disk defragmenters, systems utilities and virus scanners are some of the typical examples of utility software. Data Backup and Recovery Software: An ideal data backup and recovery software provides functionalities beyond simple copying of data files. This software often supports user needs of specifying what is to be backed up and when. Backup and recovery software preserve the original organization of files and allow an easy retrieval of the backed up data. Advantages of open source software Usually, the first perceived advantage of open source models is the fact that open source software is made available gratis or at a low cost. But this characteristic is not exclusive to open source software, and several proprietary software products are made available in similar ways (a prominent case could be Microsoft’s Internet Explorer). What really distinguishes open source software from software available without fee is the combination of effects due to the characteristics discussed in section 3.1. All of them combined produce a synergistic impact which is the cause of the real advantages of the open source model. Let us provide some more detail on how do these characteristics turn into advantages The right to redistribute modifications and improvements to the code, and to reuse other open source code, permits all the advantages due to the modifiability of the software to be shared by large communities. This is usually the point that differentiates open source software licences from â€Å"nearly free† ones. In substance, the fact that redistribution rights cannot be revoked, and that they are universal, is what attracts a substantial crowd of developers to work around open source software projects. The right to use the software in any way. This, combined with redistribution rights, ensures (if the software is useful enough), a large population of users, which helps in turn to build up a market for support and customization of the software, which can only attract more and more developers to work in the project. This in turn helps to improve the quality of the product, and to improve its functionality. Which, once more, will cause more and more users to give the product a try, and probably to use it regularly. The decision making process of acquiring Application Software Applications are made available in line with business requirements. This process covers the design of the applications, the proper inclusion of application controls and security requirements, and the development and configuration in line with standards. This allows organisations to properly support business operations with the correct automated applications. Control over the IT process of Acquire and maintain application software that satisfies the business requirement for IT of aligning available applications with business requirements, and doing so in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost by focusing on ensuring that there is a timely and cost-effective development process is achieved by: †¢ Translating business requirements into design specifications †¢ Adhering to development standards for all modifications †¢ Separating development, testing and operational activities and is measured by †¢ Number of production problems per application causing visible downtime †¢ Percent of users satisfied with the functionality delivered   | Q2.â€Å"In the end, information system is recognized only as a foundation for human judgment, insight and inventiveness†. Discuss. What are different types of controls and audits required for an information system? Information system, an integrated set of components for collecting, storing, processing, and communicating information. Business firms, other organizations, and individuals in contemporary society rely on information systems to manage their operations, compete in the marketplace, supply services, and augment personal lives. For instance, modern corporations rely on computerized information systems to process financial accounts and manage human resources; municipal governments rely on information systems to provide basic services to its citizens; and individuals use information systems to study, shop, bank, and invest. Information systems controls To ensure secure and efficient operation of information systems, an organization institutes a set of procedures and technological measures called controls. Information systems are safeguarded through a combination of general and application controls. General controls apply to information system activities throughout an organization. The most important general controls are the measures that control access to computer systems and the information stored there or transmitted over telecommunications networks. General controls include administrative measures that restrict employee access to only those processes directly relevant to their duties. As a result, these controls limit the damage that any individual employee or employee impersonator can do. Fault-tolerant computer systems installed in critical environments, such as in hospital information systems or securities marketplaces, are designed to control and isolate problems so that the system can continue to function. Application controls are specific to a given application and include such measures as validating input data, regularly archiving copies of various databases, and ensuring that information is disseminated only to authorized users. The effectiveness of an information system’s controls is evaluated through an information systems audit. It is a part of a more general financial audit that verifies an organization’s accounting records and financial statements. Information systems are designed so that every financial transaction can be traced. In other words, an audit trail must exist that can establish where each transaction originated and how it was processed. Aside from financial audits, operational audits are used to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of information systems operations. Q3.What is computerized maintenance management? Explain the conceptual model through which the maintenance function can achieve its objectives on a sustained basis. Computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is also known as enterprise asset management and computerized maintenance management information system (CMMIS). A CMMS software package maintains a computer database of information about an organization’s maintenance operations, i.e. CMMIS – computerized maintenance management information system. This information is intended to help maintenance workers do their jobs more effectively (for example, determining which machines require maintenance and which storerooms contain the spare parts they need) and to help management make informed decisions (for example, calculating the cost of machine breakdown repair versus preventive maintenance for each machine, possibly leading to better allocation of resources). CMMS data may also be used to verify regulatory compliance. CMMS packages may be used by any organization that must perform maintenance on equipment, assets and property. Some CMMS products focus on particular industry sectors (e.g. the maintenance of vehicle fleets or health care facilities). Other products aim to be more general. CMMS packages can produce status reports and documents giving details or summaries of maintenance activities. The more sophisticated the package, the more analysis facilities are available. Many CMMS packages can be either web-based, meaning they are hosted by the company selling the product on an outside server, or LAN based, meaning that the company buying the software hosts the product on their own server. The conceptual model through which the maintenance function can achieve its objectives on a sustained basis are used to manage simple or complex facilities, from a single building to a complete campus. They can also be used to manage the maintenance program for a grouping of equipment such as a fleet of vehicles. The systems are very versatile since most are in modular form for the various maintenance functions and can be customized to fit the particular application. Whatever system or set of modules are selected for use, careful consideration needs to be given to Functional Requirements and a sound deployment plan. The CMMS must meet the needs, constraints, and opportunities of the business and be implemented in a way that users will welcome the technology and have a vision for the benefits it brings. Proper configuration, testing, and training cannot be over emphasized when bringing a new CMMS or upgrading an existing system to an organization. Q4.â€Å"Excel is a versatile spreadsheet package. It can do wonder for accountants†. Explain. Excel spreadsheets are the most common and indispensable tool used by accountants, enabling them to analyse, report and share financial information. Much of this can be accomplished using only a fraction of the wealth of functions and options within the Excel program. Basic arithmetic, the SUM() function and some cell border formatting will let you produce useful models and perform some quite complex calculations. By expanding your knowledge with just a few other functions, Excel can become a much more versatile tool. Very occasionally Excel does not contain a function that you may expect, and it is necessary to combine other functions to perform tasks such as calculating weighted averages. Accountants have a professional responsibility to present accurate data. The IF() and TEXT() functions are essential for incorporating error checking messages to demonstrate that the spreadsheet models have been reconciled and are performing properly. A spreadsheet presentation gives reports a degree of unearned credibility. This is frequently ill-deserved and research shows that a high proportion of large models contain critical errors. Your spreadsheets must be well designed and thoroughly checked If you wish to be selective with your data and only perform calculations on items that meet certain criteria, both Database and Array functions are useful, but SUMPRODUCT() is the most versatile and wonderful alternative. It is able to extract all sorts of values from a table of data and can be used as an alternative to a great many functions. Graphs are a great way to present information, but keep them simple. Don’t get carried away with 3D formats which can make it difficult to read important axis values. If you update a chart on a regular basis, you are very likely to occasionally forget to manually alter any titles which contain period information. It is best to link chart titles to cell contents which can be automatically updated. A popular, modern Financial Management technique is that of balanced scorecards which often incorporate traffic light indicators. Conditional formatting for cell ranges is not only useful for highlighting exceptional or incorrect values but can be used to automatically colour cells to show good or bad performance. In order to report on tables of data with separate columns or rows for each accounting period, the OFFSET() function lets you select data for any single or cumulative period. There are numerous financial functions for performing interest and investment calculations. These can greatly simplify the long formulae previously required for things such as loan repayments – but always beware. The built in functions may perform differently to your own (textbook) formulas. They may invert the sign and show negative results where you expect positive; they may use a base period of p0 where you assume it is p1. Once you have tested the financial functions using a variety of situations and confirmed the results, they make tasks such as calculating the Net Present Value much easier. Finally, it is always helpful to make your models friendly to other users. Protecting or restricting the values that can be placed in cells will prevent unforeseen errors. Drop down boxes are a splendid way of getting values from users and hyperlinks can guide them around your models. By incorporating dates and filenames in default headers and footers, anyone can trace the source of your masterpiece. Q5. What do you understand by Artificial Intelligence? What are the factors that highlighted the need of developing AI? What are the goals of AI. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. While there are many different definitions, AI textbooks define the field as â€Å"the study and design of intelligent agents. where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its chances of success. John McCarthy, who coined the term in 1956 defines it as â€Å"the science and engineering of making intelligent machines. The field was founded on the claim that a central property of humans, intelligence—the sapience of Homo sapiens—can be so precisely described that it can be simulated by a machine. This raises philosophical issues about the nature of the mind and the ethics of creating artificial beings, issues which have been addressed by myth, fiction and philosophy since antiquity. Artificial intelligence has been the subject of optimism,[8] but has also suffered setbacks and, today, has become an essential part of the technology industry, providing the heavy lifting for many of the most difficult problems in computer science. AI research is highly technical and specialized, deeply divided into subfields that often fail in the task of communicating with each other Subfields have grown up around particular institutions, the work of individual researchers, and the solution of specific problems, resulting in longstanding differences of opinion about how AI should be done and the application of widely differing tools. The central problems of AI include such traits as reasoning, knowledge, planning, learning, communication, perception and the ability to move and manipulate objects. General intelligence (or â€Å"strong AI†) is still among the field’s long term goals. Goals of AI: The long-term goals of AI include finding out what the world is like, understanding it, and changing it, or, in other words, a.empirical study and modelling of existing intelligent systems (mainly human beings); b.theoretical analysis and exploration of possible intelligent systems and possible mechanisms and representations usable by such systems; and c.solving practical problems in the light of (a) and (b), namely: c.1.attempting to deal with problems of existing intelligent systems (e.g., problems of human learning or emotional difficulties) and c.2.designing useful new intelligent or semi intelligent machines. Some people restrict the term `artificial intelligence’ to a subset of this wide-ranging discipline. For example, those who think of it as essentially a branch of engineering restrict it to (c.2). This does not do justice to the full range of work done in the name of AI. In any case, it is folly to try to produce engineering solutions without either studying general underlying principles or investigating the existing intelligent systems on which the new machines are to be modelled or with which they will have to interact. Trying to build intelligent systems without trying to understand general principles would be like trying to build an aeroplane without understanding principles of mechanics or aerodynamics. Trying to build them without studying how people or other animals work would be like trying to build machines without ever studying the properties of any naturally occurring object. The need to study general principles of thought, and the ways in which human beings perceive, think, understand language, etc., means that AI work has to be done in close collaboration with work in psychology, linguistics, and even philosophy, the discipline that examines some of the most general presuppositions of our thought and language. The term `cognitive science’ can also be used to cover the full range of goals specified above, though it too is ambiguous, and some of its more narrow-minded practitioners tend to restrict it to (a) and (c.1).

Analysis Of Pepsico Vision Statement Business Essay

Analysis Of Pepsico Vision Statement Business Essay PepsiCo is a company which is most successful well-known brands in the world. Pepsi Company is nationally and globally to operating in non-alcoholic beverage industry, soft drink industry, and savoury snack industry. Besides that, PepsiCo offers the world’s largest portfolio of food and beverage brands included 22 different product lines. And the biggest competition from competitor is Coca-Cola in soft drink industry. Analysis of PepsiCo Vision Statement According to vision statement of PepsiCo, I had used seven components to analysis the vision such as directional, graphic, focus, flexible, feasible, desirable, and easy to understand. First of all, the directional component of PepsiCo is target to become a truly sustainable company by using focus on environmental stewardship, activities to benefit society, and a commitment to build shareholder value. From the case, PepsiCo has extensive statements on sustainability, the environment, health and wellness, and diversity. Pepsi Company is nationally and globally to operating in non-alcoholic beverage industry, soft drink industry, and savoury snack industry. PepsiCo is able to expansion market to serve new market segment by provides health and safety product to make consumer more confidence to purchase and become a sustainable company. Besides that, the graphic component of PepsiCo is not appearing in the current vision statement. From the current vision, it has no mention about company management is create and the market position the company is striving to stake out. Moreover, the focus component of PepsiCo is focus on environmental stewardship, activities to benefit society, and a commitment to build shareholder value. According to the PepsiCo case which said that PepsiCo are focusing in projects to increase to use of recycled materials and reduce material used in packaging. It will help PepsiCo build a good brand image, environment friendly and good reputation. When brand image is created, it will incre ase brand awareness of Pepsi and easy to launch new product to serve new market segment and achieve the commitment of shareholder value. However, once the commitment with shareholder is broken it will bring negative effect to the company such as poor reputation and decrease number of invertors. In addition, the flexible component of PepsiCo is creating a better tomorrow than today. From the statement, PepsiCo is wanted to improve all aspects of the world to create a better future. So, it may help increase more potential profitability due to better than previous year. And, it also assists PepsiCo a step forward to be truly sustainable company. Yet, it also some aspect is uncontrollable such as new competitor and economic downturn. Furthermore, the feasible component is about the reasonable expect to achieve in due time. From the case, PepsiCo is expecting continually to improve all the aspects of the world. PepsiCo is able to achieve this vision due to strong financial and also wide range of distribution network. It also has opportunities capture more market share around the world. However, it needs resources and times to achieve the goal. Additionally, the desirable component is about long term interest of stakeholders. In the vision of PepsiCo, it is commitment to build shareholder value. PepsiCo has long history of delivery strong financial growth for shareholders with the powerful brand and commitment to sustainability and top global talent. Conversely, it also face problem when shareholders may disagree with PepsiCo decision making and may occur conflict belong PepsiCo and shareholder.

British Entrepreneurship between 1870 and 1914 Essay

British Entrepreneurship between 1870 and 1914 - Essay Example These traits include a dismal failure to adapt to new technologies, a gross misunderstanding as to the relevance of science in industrial efficiency, an obstinacy to stick to low-yielding established industrial sectors, a dearth of relevant managerial and organizational skills, an inability to delegate responsibility to subordinates and to take advantage of talented people having complementary proficiencies and a general lack of trust and faith in the British entrepreneurial potential (Aldcroft 1981) . At some time during the late 19th century, Great Britain fell victim to an economic decline. Various Historians tend to facilitate diverse reasons as to this economic demise of the Victorian Britain. Some historians attribute this economic decline to the rampant alterations in the world economy, emanating from the proliferation of the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century. There is one other school of historians, who link the economic fall of Victorian Britain to the lacunas existing within the British economy. Many historians blatantly profess that this so-called economic decline of Britain in the late 19th century could be understood and analyzed only in a relative perspective. As per these historians, the economic meltdown in the late 19th century Britain stands to be plausible only when one compares the performance of the British economy to other major industrial economies like the US and Germany. According to Alford, "British enterprise, it will be argued, did not decline d uring this period: it remained remarkably constant and inflexible (1996)." On the contrary, the available statistical data also to some extent indicates that in fact the British GDP was on the rise in the period 1870-1890, irrespective of a sluggish annual rate of growth. Crouzet (1982) argues that the growth rate of Britain, which rested at 3.1 percent in the period 1811-1877, came down to 1.6 percent between 1877 and 1913.Historians also tend to differ, as far as the onset of this economic decline is concerned decline. A majority of the historians identify the year 1873 as the time when Britain slipped into a prolonged era of economic slowdown. Others argue that the UK experienced a remarkable economic growth in the period 1820-1830. Thus, Victoria's accession tends to be the chronological coordinate that ushered in an era of economic decline (Crouzet 1982). Realistically speaking, in consonance with the available statistical data, 1870 could be considered the point of genesis of Britain's economic decline. It was only in the period between 1870 and 1913, when Britain's share of the global industrial output, which rested at 31.8 percent, nosedived to a pathetic and alarming 14 percent (Crouzet 1982).There is no denying the fact that a majority of the historians hold that the late Victorians happened to be grave failures, as far as the realm of entrepreneurship was concerned. As far as the entrepreneurial acumen of late Victorians is concerned, the analysis of their failure tends

Renting versus Buying a Home Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Renting versus Buying a Home - Essay Example Before a person can go ahead to acquire a home, it is highly important for him to weigh the merits and demerits of the method he is intending to use i.e. either buying or renting, in order to avoid regretting later. For example, different persons have different tastes and preferences when it comes to colors or structural designs. This means that once a person acquires a house, he would want to modify the already existing designs to suit his tastes. Buying a house thereby becomes the best option as you thereby become the rightful owner, enabling you to do whatever you want with it, whether to repaint, change the doors, modify the roofing among other activities. In fact, you can go ahead to build other permanent structures on the compound such as parking lot, without necessarily having to request for approval from any other party. Renting a house denies you this opportunity as the decision to conduct such modifications is the prerogative of the landlord (Hanson, 2010). In fact, most la ndlords expect you as a tenant to maintain the existing standards of the house and if any repairs are needed, you have to contact them so that they can carry them out, a process which may end up inconveniencing you. Say for example there is leakage of water from the roof and the rain continues to fall, waiting for someone to rectify the problem at his or her own pleasure may turn out to be discomforting. Buying a home is recommendable as the current markets indicate that it facilitates capital appreciation

Brand Strategy Case Analysis Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Brand Strategy Analysis - Case Study Example The company also maintains threats that come directly from the consumer and their attitude regarding Starbucks’ quality and viability to fit their needs. Domestically, the success in consumer attitude or its previous ability to corner the market on unique coffee products met with higher capital growth for expansion into new market environments. However, the business has had to adjust its marketing strategies to include extension into the virtual environment, as only one example, because of this influence. Coupled with growth in competition know-how and product replication, Starbucks is unsure of whether its expansion from years prior will continue to serve its sustainability or growth objectives. The extension of other value-added products such as theater tickets or other branded merchandise is one contingency for revenue production that meets with short-term gains based on social or cultural trends. However, Starbucks seems to be able to recognize the appropriate short-term b randing partnerships and builds, at least, a short-run increase in sales growth. Starbucks’ hot spot music-related product focus is yet another example of its short-term focus in gaining higher revenues. Using reputable artists or other media to explore new technologies and sounds appealed to a buyer sentiment in the late 1990s at a time when there was little in terms of social media or other advertising formats. These strategies are now facing competition from major players in music downloads and kiosk formats such as Apple iTunes and multitudes of music downloading and access sites. This requires Starbucks to be always flexible regarding its strategic goals for gaining new market share or improving its capital position to be used in expansion or other business objectives related to outperforming other industry leaders or direct competitors. Success, Growth and the Global Brand They key successes are in environmental scanning to recognize opportunities in measurement to comp etition and buyer attitudes driven either by social factors, cultural factors or generic attitudes toward coffee and its innovations or convenience. Extension into non-food product offerings shows this flexibility and understanding of environmental forces that influence how the company manages its total product offering package. The company was able to build its positive brand based on quality by reinforcing through advertising and actual product that it was a best-in-class offering using only quality ingredients and development expertise. It was an engrained strategy used to appeal to mass market groups of varying demographics that never changed its positioning to create a portrait in the minds of consumers against competition. Starbucks’ growth strategy seemed a bit premature, extending itself into unknown markets too quickly without adequate knowledge of what their social trends included. Joint ventures and other partnerships provided the expertise and/or funding necessary to achieve this sudden growth, however only so much knowledge can be developed when most efforts are directed toward product innovation as a key goal or branding attribute. The partnerships with agencies such as Marriott were a practical and realistic method of introducing Starbucks into new environments where coffee consumption was typical. However, with high risks of cheapening the brand and allowing it to be leveraged and capitalized upon by knowledge leaders in the partner or joint

The Issues Of Medicating Kids Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Issues Of Medicating Kids - Essay Example Rob Gorski, the father to Gavin, says he cannot do without medicating his son with pills. Clozapine, one of the pills administered to Gavin, help him reduce the hallucinations and imaginary voices he hears. Lithium, on the other hand, is useful in stabilizing Gavin’s moods. Failure to take the drugs results in sleepless nights and uncontrolled impulses. Rob is not comfortable with the pill medication he administers to the son. In fact, he was reluctant at first and wrestled within before he started the medication. According to Rob, it is impossible for them to stay without administering the pills to the son. Rob argues that without the medication, their son’s quality of life of deteriorates. The above is an example of a genuine reason that justifies the use of pill medications because the child, Gavin, has an extreme condition (Park, 2011). Readings reveal an increase in the use of behavioral drugs by children. Most of the children, however, do not suffer from extreme health conditions. Intellectual disability and related behavioral disorders are some of the reasons that necessitate their uptake of pills. The trend is worrying, and experts warn that this is dangerous because there are instances where misdiagnosis appears. Children exposed to multiple drugs are susceptible to drug abuse as well as other side effects. Pavuluri, a doctor and pediatrics at the University of Illinois, cautions that drugs ought to be administered only in extreme cases where injury and hurt may result from such neglect. However, the medication is appropriate for children who have attained five years. Pavuluri further adds that people should visit pharmaceutical after behavioral therapies are done (Park, 2011).

BUSINESS LAW II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

BUSINESS LAW II - Essay Example In other words, if any financial institution fails, not the customers and taxpayers will bear the cost of such failed financial institutions but Wall Street. Additionally, bad debts will be dropped since banks among other financial institutions will be restrained from incurring unforeseen financial risks. This means that nearly all borrowers will be evaluated thoroughly to minimize obvious defaults. Notably, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 works with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that ensures that financial institutions have high financial standards that they uphold at all time of their operations (Berson and Berson, 2012). It is also worth noting that the retained percentage will also minimize the losses incurred by financial institutions in case of defaulters. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 and its components seems not to be favoring financial institution since it does not provide bail out for financial institutions during rough economy, rather, the government will shut down them down as they will be considered as failed

Environmental health job Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Environmental health job - Essay Example An occupational health and safety specialist would be useful in inspecting such workplaces and making recommendations to ensure the noise it produces does not cause adverse effects, such as hearing loss, to workers. 3. The current population of Nepal as given by its Ministry of Industry (2014) is about 26.49 million as retrieved from the 2011 population census. Nepal is an agricultural economy with the Central Intelligence Agency, CIA (2014) documenting 70% of its population as being dependant on agriculture for livelihood and more than a third of the country’s GDP attributed to agriculture. As such, even the minimal industrial activity taking place involves agricultural produce processing. 4. Being an agricultural economy, Nepal largely depends on agricultural residue as a source of energy, hence the significance of considering the issue of indoor air quality. World Health Organisation, WHO (2014) cautions on the risk of using such fuels at home noting that it could emit fine particles 100 times more than the acceptable level, a fact that contributes to the 4.3 million deaths reported every year, a majority being women and children. The article, â€Å"Biomass as a Source of Household Energy and Indoor Air Pollution in Nepal,† reviews the postulate of biomass, commonly used to supply household energy, as a source of indoor pollution with a focus on Nepal. The study indicates that 86.5% of households in Nepal use fuel wood as a source of household energy and some other 3.7% use agricultural residue for the same purpose. Lohani (2011) further indicates in this study that these energy sources contributed to the concentration of particulate matter, PM10, total suspended particle, TSP and concentration of carbon dioxide of 8,000 ÃŽ ¼g/m ³, 8,800 ÃŽ ¼g/m ³ and 21 ppm against the set national standards of 120 ÃŽ ¼g/m ³, 230 ÃŽ ¼g/m ³ and 9 ppm

Analyze this rhetorical situation using Aristotle and Bitzers ideas on Assignment

Analyze this rhetorical situation using Aristotle and Bitzers ideas on rhetoric to provide insight - Assignment Example The situation is rhetoric since instead of Brando acknowledging the award or going in person in front of the audience and rejects the award, he sends a second person who rejects the award on his behalf. In Brando’s proxy, godfather rejects the offer claiming that the Indians of that that time were mistreated. In contrast to this statement, Brando himself was selected in Oscars winning award as the best actor in that year (Sonneborn and Liz, pg. 322). To the audience who were there eagerly waiting to hear Brando’s speech, this speech delivered by Littlefeather came as a great shock. This is because in a typical Oscars award, the winner of any category gives a speech as little as thank you for showing appreciation. This shows at least a sense of acceptance and honor for receiving the award given. In Brando’s case, however, he miraculously decided to consider his godfather to deliver a speech that was contrary to the expectation of the audience. First, to the ceremony it was extremely relevant for Brando to give acceptance speech to the award. During that time, the Oscars award was celebrating the greatness in the film industry. In a show of opposition and contrast, Brando and his godfather were making a statement that was directly portraying the Native Americans in the films as being negative o the Indians of that time. Secondly, Brando used this great opportunity to catch the attention of the huge audience that was there waiting to listen to his acceptance speech. The Oscars are the world’s most publicized events that take place once every year. The event is usually aired live. It draws a huge number of people who come to listen and witness acceptance speeches of the great who have been chosen in every category. Unlike the ads of television that are prerecorded and annoy the viewers every time they are aired, Littlefeathers speech was only given once during the program. It drew the attention of several

Consistent Philosophy of Life Essay Example for Free

Consistent Philosophy of Life Essay Abstract This paper focuses John Allison’s management style, what he finds to be the essential characteristics of a leader, and how he employs ethics and principles in this everyday life, in business, and as an educational leader. He is the former CEO of BBT and current leader of the CATO Institute. There is little distinction between Allison’s â€Å"leadership style† and his philosophy. His philosophy can be directly applied to any situation, challenge, or circumstance. Allison is purpose driven and mission oriented, and he applies a set of ten principles to achieve his mission. This paper will also look at how Allison defines a vision, mission, values and principles. Each of the ten principles are examined, and finally, the paper will look at some of the detractors of Allison’s philosophy. John Allison, Consistent Philosophy of Life, Effective Manager of Business, and Important Contributor to Society. John Allison lives by a clear philosophy that permeates every aspect of his life. He built a multi-billion dollar bank (BBT) on it, and managed to stay away from toxic investments that led to the downfall of many banks because of it. He is now taking this highly moral, completely integrated, and fully comprehensive philosophy to the rest of society by donating time and money to universities by explaining the morality of capitalism and rational thought. Most recently, he was appointed to lead the Cato Institute, a Libertarian think-tank. An effective manager instills purpose in themselves and their employees and lives by a set of values or principles that manifests purpose into reality. The purpose needs to be clear and the principles must be interconnected and consistent. Failure on one principle is failure on all principles; and thus, the vision, mission, and goals of an organization are jeopardized. This concept is consistent with six competencies detailed in Hellriegel, Jacosn, and Slocum’s text book, Managing, A Competency-Based Approach. For example, an organization determines that it must outsource a piece of their production (Strategic Action). Therefore, executive management must effectively work with operations professionals (Teamwork), who must develop and action plan (Planning Administration) and Communicate that plan to line managers. It is imperative that executive management carefully considered the cultural drivers of the country that they are entering (Multi-Cultural). Finally, whether this strategy is effective hinges upon whether all levels of employees have good Self-Management skills. Failure on any part of these competencies will lead to failure on the whole. Hellreigel’s six competencies pass John Allison’s integration test; however, John’s principles remove the organizational lens of the six competencies to make them more basic and universal. This paper looks at John Allison’s management style and how it is driven by his vision, mission, and principles. Success with these principles will lead to the success of the six competencies. Finally, this paper will spend some time with the detractors and misunderstandings of John’s philosophy. John Allison’s Management Style It is impossible to explain John Allison’s management style without getting into the details of his basic philosophy first. The Richard Craver of the Winston-Salem Journal interviewed Allison in July 2010, and he noted that, â€Å"the key lesson of Allisons success is that if you get the basics right, the details will follow, and you will run your business right. If you get the basics wrong, youll eventually make a fatal mistake in the details† (Craver 2011). Allison’s basics are a purpose driven life and organization that is achieved through principles. This philosophy is detailed in a 30 page employee handbook that all employees are expected to understand and has remained consistent at BBT for over 20 years. As a result, â€Å"[BBT] attracts employees who agree, and repels employees who disagree. After a quarter century, they have established a culture of great coherency, and in business, that is a great power† (Craver 2011). From a bigger picture perspe ctive, John Allison’s management style is utilitarian in its approach; however, this implies that BBT’s goal is to simply be profitable. However, profitability is a means to the overall vision of BBT, which is to make the world a better place to live in (Allison 2011). Allison explained in a lecture at Wake Forrest University that money is not the end game; instead profits are the means of the overall goal (Allison 2011). The utilitarian methodical approach may be considered amoral, at best; however, it becomes highly moral in the context of a moral vision and purpose. At the individual level, BBT does not simply manage employees, instead, they develop leaders. Allison explained that â€Å"Most business failures are due to leadership failures; most of those are the result of personal leadership failures† (Allison 2011). Therefore, each employee is not just given a handbook of BBT’s vision, mission and values, but they also attend a presentation given by Allison himself. In this presentation, Allison explains that there are two fundamental aspects to leadership. First, leaders must create a sense of purpose in themselves and their employees. Purpose creates passion. Second, leaders must live principles that turn purpose into reality (Allison 2011). Living these principles motivates average performers to perform at an above average level and prevents the Great from becoming average. Allison’s Clear philosophy: Allison’s philosophy can be summarized by a general vision that is manifested by a mission statement. The vision is â€Å"To make the world a place that you want to live in† (Allison 2011). The mission is to apply principles that improve the odds of staying alive, becoming successful, and ultimately being happy. The ten principles are further defined herein and are universally applied to individual and organizational missions. Allison’s personal vision and mission parallels BBT’s vision and mission statement, which is â€Å"To make the world a better place by: Helping our clients achieve economic success and financial security; creating a place where our employees can learn, grow and be fulfilled; making the communities in which we work better places to be; and thereby, optimizing the long-term return to our shareholders, while providing a safe and sound investment† (Handbook 5). With the Vision and Mission clearly defined, Allison’s ten prin ciples are: Principle 1 – Reality The reality principle is an Aristotelian concept that A=A. In an interview with New York Times, Allison said that, â€Å"Wishing something is so does not make it so† (Martin 2009). Although this concept seems very simple, there are plenty of examples in history where individuals, governments and businesses evaded reality. Allison projected that, â€Å"I guarantee that long before the rest of us knew, those geniuses at Lehman Brothers, knew that something was wrong, but they evaded it† (Martin 2009). Reality is independent of authority. For example, the ratings agencies had a level of authority in the market place; however, the ratings agencies evaded the reality that subprime lending was unsustainable. BBT avoided the subprime market by not evading reality and being responsible for evaluating authority and determining what was true (Allison 2011). Reality is also independent of popularity. For example Galileo bucked the popular idea that the earth revolved around the su n. Principle 2 – Reason / Objectivity Allison contends that mankind’s competitive advantage is that humans have the ability to think and develop concept formation. Allison avoids religion; however, this concept is not in conflict with a Christian’s perspective with some distinction. God created man in the image of God. Therefore, to reason is to approach God and to fulfill His intention for mankind. Allison applies Aristotle’s model of thought. First, base premises on facts; second, use inductive and deductive reasoning; third, integrate conclusions that are not contradictory; and forth, use conclusion to reach a higher level of thought (start the cycle again). Deductive reasoning is the concrete application of a general principle. Inductive reasoning is the taking a general principle and applying it to a specific application. BBT has been a highly strategic organization, which requires objective thought and facing reality. In the late 1980’s, laws were about to change that would allow banks t o enter other states. Realizing that North Carolina would soon be flooded with competition from larger banks, he began a series of intra-state acquisitions prior to the changing of the laws. This allowed them a head start on the out-of-state competition while giving BBT the experience to perfect the merger process well before the larger consolidation of the industry. Allison recognized the reality, used inductive and deductive reasoning to conclude that they would need to get bigger, be purchased, or struggle as a result of the changes in the law, and then was able to move on with a new premise of how to become bigger. Despite the popular opinion that BBT was paying too much for some of its acquisitions, the strategy paid off. BBT defended its role as acquirer of choice, and stressed the strategic nature of its acquisitions. It had developed a reputation as one of the most successful integrators of acquired banks in the industry. Darn few have been able to get away with a consolidation strategy, but one of the best is BBT, an SNL Securities analyst told the Business Journal Serving Charlotte and the Metropolitan Area (BBT.com). Allison also uses reason to implement a method of philanthropic activities in order to be more effective based on BBT’s core strengths. Allison explained in Philanthropic Magazine that, â€Å"The money that was being spent wasn’t going to promote the well-being of our company or our country. We needed to focus our contributions on something that will matter, and we think that presenting the concepts that undergird capitalism is essential for both BBT’s well-being and the well-being of the society in which we live† (Sparks 2011). Principle 3 – Individual Allison contends that all thought happens at the individual level. â€Å"Our brains are not physically connected† (Allison 2011). Teamwork is important principle, but new ideas are generated by the individual. A team can improve the idea or even give some the inspiration to develop a new idea, but the thought came from one’s mind. This principle also means that the individual is responsible for themself. â€Å"A manager cannot be responsible for their employees,† Allison explained in his lecture. A manager, parent, or leader can only guide people, but the individual must make choices and affix attitudes for herself/himself. Understanding this concept is very liberating not only for the individual employee, but also for the organization. At the employee level, ownership of their own role gives them a sense of importance. At the organizational level, businesses benefit by having limitless ideas that bubble up to management. In Craver’s interview with Allison, he noted that, â€Å"The decision not to write mortgage loans of the type that are now called toxic was made by a fairly low-level executive without even consulting Allison† (Craver 2011). Allison continues the concept of liberating the individual by saying, â€Å"Man has rational capacity, and a capitalist system allows him the greatest individual freedom to exercise that capacity for creativity and innovation—and to be rewarded accordingly. It is, in a very deep sense, a just system† (Sparks 2011). Principle 4 – Productivity Productivity is a measurable at the organizational level though output and profitability. A profitable business is a good thing. More fundamentally, productivity is the â€Å"gut-level commitment to get the job done† (Allison 2011). From a Christian’s perspective, production and productivity is a very spiritual concept; the idea that something tangible was formed from the intangible. This is especially spiritual when the idea was inspired through prayer and worship. There is a parallel between with the most miraculous event in history, when the spirit became flesh, and when someone’s idea becomes reality. The root word for sacrifice is â€Å"to approach† (Wigoder 873); therefore, when a person creates, she is performing a kind of sacrifice; not in the sense that something is given up, but instead, both the tangible world and the spiritual world are in agreement; â€Å"On earth as it is in heaven.† Allison’s professional trajectory certainly is one of productivity. He started at BBT, once known as the Branch Banking and Trust Company, in 1971 and became chief executive in 1989, when the bank had $4.7 billion in assets. By the time he retired as C.E.O. in December, he had overseen 60 bank and savings-institution acquisitions and turned BBT into the 11th-largest bank in the nation, with $152 billion in assets, according to the bank (Martin 2009). Allison commented on BBT’s Sterling Award winners (internal awards based on productivity). He noted that the same people won 25% of these awards, and that they all shared a commonality. All of them discussed what they were doing, and were not stuck on the obstacles. There is a basic belief in their ability to achieve (Allison 2011). Principle 5 – Honesty Without honesty, nothing else works, whether that is capitalism, a church, a business, or a government. Marilyn Fedak is a retired Investment Manager that works with John Allison on making the case for the free market at the university level. In a joint conference with Allison, she refers to the importance of honesty, At its best, the free market produces a â€Å"virtuous cycle,† but it has to be rooted in trust and the rule of law. Trust and predictability are everything. Capitalism is based upon the idea that, implicitly or explicitly, you’re making contracts with people all day long, and if you can’t trust that the laws in place will prevail and that the other person is going to fulfill their side of the bargain, well, then no transactions are going to take place. (Sparks 2011) Allison explains that being honest 100% of the time is a true test of integrity. For example, â€Å"You can be wrong and be honest. We are not omniscient.† Therefore, â€Å"We must mean what we say and know what we mean† (Allison 2011). This phrase encompasses two concepts. One, cumulative white lies lead to a black lie. For example, some managers are less than honest on performance reviews by sugarcoating or enabling underperformance. Then, the manager reaches a breaking point, or the poor performance leads to major mistake. The employee never gets the chance to correct their actions due to their manager not being honest. On the other hand, the manager may be wrong in his/her premise that the employee is the problem. The real problem may be a poorly designed system, which could have been addressed during the performance review. The concept of cumulative white lies is also evident in personal relationships. Allison gives an example of a married couple, â€Å"the husband gets mad at the wife for not hearing what he didn’t say† (Allison 2011). Two, it is up to the individual to take responsibility for their claim to knowledge. â€Å"Sometimes the best answer is, ‘I don’t know’† (Allison 2011). Principle 6 – Integrity Integrity is defined as the consistent application of moral principles. David Leoper is the CEO of Wealthcare Capital Management. He also subscribes to Allison’s objectivist philosophy. Leoper references Ayn Rand’s description of morality as the, â€Å"Judgment to distinguish right and wrong, vision to see the truth, courage to act upon it, dedication to that which is good, and integrity to stand by it at any price† (Geracoiti 2011). By this definition, integrity is akin to faith. One may not immediately understand the consequences of breaking a moral principle, but she or has faith that such actions will have an eventual consequence. A key example of Allison’s integrity was after the Supreme Court’s infamous Kelo decision. BBT was the only major bank not to provide financing for projects that used land seized through eminent domain for private purposes. â€Å"We thought that was a violation of a principle that is necessary for a free society,† Allison says. The bank’s decision, â€Å"turned out to be great economics, which doesn’t surprise me at all† (Sparks 2011). Later in 2011, Don Luskin moderated a conference with John Mackey of Wholefoods and John Allison. Mackey was highly criticized for his public stance against Obamacare and was nearly thrown out of his own organization. Mackey’s conclusion was that he will think again before making political comments. Allison, however, disagreed and explained, I’m a person that believes very strongly in my principles, and I can’t sacrifice them in my business, regardless of the consequences in the short-term. We took a strong position on eminent domain, after the Kelo decision. I couldn’t tell my customers and employees that we have principles, but in this case we’d turn a blind eye to people’s property being expropriated to be given to other private people. In our case, it was successful. We got thousands of people moving their accounts to BBT because of our position on eminent domain, because we acted on principle. That’s the same reason we refused to write loans to people who couldn’t afford them. I did it because I never want to have to tell someone that I did something that I thought was morally wrong. (Vegter 2011) Allison took a visible stance against the federal government once again in 2008 when he submitted a 14-point letter to Congress in which he objected to the bailout of the financial-services industry out of concern that it will hurt, â€Å"well-run financial institutions such as BBT (Craver 2011). His integrity was questioned when BBT accepted TARP monies shortly after the closed-door session with the nation’s political leaders. Shortly thereafter, Allison stepped down as the CEO so that he could start his education campaign. His work at the university level and at the CATO Institute is an effort to stop governmental force being exerted against independent businesses again. Principle 7 – Justice / Fairness According to Allison, â€Å"The good news is that we are all unique individuals† (Allison 2011). Managers that make the average above average and to keep the great from becoming average instill justice in the workplace. Allison believes that, â€Å"Egalitarianism is one of the most destructive ideas in our society† (Allison 2011). Managing equal outcomes not unequal input is truly unjust. Since individuals are not the same in their talents and abilities, a manager’s key function is to evaluate and judge others. This is a difficult function; therefore, Allison prescribes a three point method for judging others in order to stay fair. The person needs to be judged (1) as an individual, based on (2) the personal merits and based on (3) what matters in that specific circumstance. Therefore, â€Å"We reject collectivism and how they judge, which is based on their memberships groups, such as race, sex, nationalism, etc. [Collectivists] are always wrong because they are making an individual decision based on a group observation. An Individual cannot be a group† (Allison 2011). Principle 8 – Pride Aristotle described pride as the ultimate virtue because in order to have pride, all other virtues (justice, honesty, integrity, and rational independent thought) needed to be mastered. The pride described here is not arrogance or hubris, but instead, it is the reward to do good deeds and the reward for having done good deeds. Allison describes this as the â€Å"psychological rewards;† However, the rewards for Christianity are much more profound. The apostle Paul speaks of a healthy pride that one should have in oneself and others (2 Cor 5:12; 7:4; 8:24; Gal 6:4). Christianthinktank.com quoted the Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament that â€Å"Even Lexicons based on semantic domains have entries for ‘pride (legitimate)† (Chistianthinktank.com 2012). Allison equates pride with strong ethics. In a defiance allusion to Warren Buffet’s quote about ethics, Allison says, â€Å"The next time you face an ethical decision, ask yourself if you would be willing to tell the people that you love, care about, and judge to be of high-esteem the decision you made, not the newspaper.† Principle 9 – Self-Esteem / Self-Motivation Allison believes that this principle is the foundation of happiness. In his lecture, he states that, â€Å"You must believe at a very deep level that you are capable of being good and that you have the moral right to be happy.† He explained that this is, â€Å"The most important and controversial thought that I have to share with you today† (Allison 2011). On several occasions, Allison has made reference to the â€Å"sandbox example.† It is a story about a boy named Johnny that is playing with his toy truck in the sandbox. Fred then comes and takes Johnny’s toy truck because he wants to play with it. A fight then ensues, and Johnny’s mother comes over and says, â€Å"Johnny, be a good boy and share with Fred.† Allison asks, â€Å"What message does that give to Fred? More importantly, what message does that give to Johnny?† (Allison 2011). The heart of self-esteem is that a person can only control his or herself, not others. Therefore, the individual can only be in charge of their attitudes and their work; and thus, must be focused on them. Egalitarians are focused on others, and as a result, are adverse to others for being great. This is envy, which is the ultimate immoral pastime. Allison explains that, â€Å"you may be able to fool your boss, but you will never fool you. Do your best, and self-esteem increases. Do less than your best and self-esteem decreases† (Allison 2011). The trader principle fits with any of the other ten principles, but it particularly fits with self-esteem and self-motivation. The trader principle simply means that because people are self-interested, only win-win relationships are sustainable over the long term. All other relationships are either a lose-lose or eventually a lose-lose. Free-market capitalism is a highly moral system because it incentivizes good behavior and provides for a system for people to interact with others in search for win-win relationships. Allison explains this concept as the new leader of the CATO Institute: One of the things that I really want to do is make this a moral fight instead of a fight around the technical aspects of economics. The libertarian vision is a moral vision and we own the moral high ground. A free society is the only society in which people can think for themselves and pursue their rational self-interest. Freedom creates the ability, through creativity and incentive, to raise the quality of life for everyone. When I was CEO of BBT we saw the opportunity, on many occasions, to create products and services that would improve the quality of life of our clients but some government regulation prevented us from doing it. Unfortunately most business leaders are not really capitalists. They are crony capitalists looking for some way to use the government to give them a special advantage. Cato is a defender of real capitalism, real free markets (Benko 2012). Principle 10 – Teamwork In a philosophy that is built on the individual and self-motivation, teamwork may be overlooked as a key principle. However, teamwork is essential in an organization and a society. Teamwork allows much more to be produced. Craver noted in his interview with Allison that, â€Å"What makes Allison unusual among leaders is that his philosophy is one of realism — not phony idealism. Its all about excellent individuals making personal contributions to a joint effort — for the purpose of making profits, not saving the whales. Allison candidly says, in effect, a team is made up of people, each of whom is an I. We insist that you be an individual, and that if you want to be on the team, you have to voluntarily buy into the mission we have all chosen to share (Craver 2011). Detractors of Objectivism Forbes dubbed John Allison as the â€Å"Philosopher King;† however his philosophy is not easily accepted by many. The first and most relevant critique is that God is absent from this philosophy. This paper has included some allusions to how objectivist principles can mesh with Christian ideals; however, the architects of this philosophy, namely Ayn Rand, were atheists. The incongruities of this philosophy and Christianity largely lie in the concept of natural order (mother-nature) and the belief in God that is not visible (faith). As explained above, Christians cross this intellectual divide by substituting â€Å"natural order† or â€Å"mother nature† with God. There are also some differences in the idea of selfishness and self-sacrifice. More research is needed to find intellectual bridges; however, some of these conflicts are semantic in nature. Nonetheless, there is a logical case for God, and Christians knows that God reveals rational thought, purpose, creati vity, motivation, and reason through prayer. There is some confusion between being selfishness and self-destructive. Detractors of objectivism and capitalism contend this it is a â€Å"dog-eat-dog† system that takes advantage of others. Allison argues that taking advantage of others is truly self-destructive, not selfish. If a business takes advantage of a customer, then the customer will alert the market-place; and thus, the business will be harmed. Businesses take advantage of others through the political process, but that is not capitalism, and as Allison said, is not congruent with his philosophy. Finally, detractors find Allison’s philosophy lacks emotion. Allison disagrees and says that emotions can be a good thing. â€Å"Passion is an emotion, and you need passion in life† (Allison 2011). Allison believes that emotions are learned, not magical. This certainly seems to be true with some emotions, such as phobias; however, to the Christian, emotions can be divine inspiration. Allison warns leaders to check their premises when their emotions are at odds with reason. He further advises to always go with reason over emotion. Christians would disagree, at least in part. A Christian may always go with reason over emotion, but only after prayer and meditation and when reason and emotion are in-line. Certainly, a Christian should go to God in prayer to check their premises and motives. Life becomes easier to live, organizations are easier to lead, and employees are easier to manage if one has a clear philosophy and set of principles. With this in mind, BBT’s senior management style is written in its literature as being as â€Å"participatory, team oriented, fact-based, and rational† (BBT History 111). They define management concepts as, â€Å"obtaining and retaining excellent people, training employees well, give employees the appropriate level of authority and responsibility, expect a high level of achievement, and reward performance accordingly† (BBT History 112). All of these definitions and concepts line-up with Allison’s core philosophy. BBT’s website explained that, â€Å"Allisons management style stressed decentralization, striving for a community banking feel at the branch level† (BBT.com). The individual, self-esteem, productivity, and teamwork principles are the driving principles for this decision. Moral Clarity leads to better decision making, longevity, success, and happiness. This is good for all the stakeholders involved in the organization. This paper will conclude with scripture that encapsulates the role between managers and employees and consistent with most of Allison’s principles. Ephesians 6:5-9 says: Ephesians 6:5-9 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free. And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. References Allison, John (7/21/11), â€Å"Principled Leadership† Lecture at Wake Forest University Schools of Business. http://vimeo.com/27183721 BBT (1998), â€Å"The BBT Philosophy† Mission and Values guidebook. BBT (2012), Our Account, History of BBT 10th edition 2012. Benko, Ralph (7/2/12), â€Å"Who Is JohnAllison? A Randian, Libertarian Business Icon Takes Over the Cato Instituteâ€Å" http://www.forbes.com/sites/ralphbenko/2012/07/02/who-is-john-allison-a-randian-libertarian-business-icon-takes-over-the-cato-institute Craver, Richard (7/10/11), â€Å"My Interview on John Allison – Today’s John Galt,† Winston-Salem Journal http://www.iamjohngalt.com/2011/07/my-interview-on-john-allison-todays.html Geracioti, David (Apr. 12, 2011), â€Å"Cold Call: Wealth Manager Operates Firm on Rand’s Objectivism† Wealthmanagement.com, http://wealthmanagement.com/institutions/cold-call-wealth-manager-operates-firm-rand-s-objectivism Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament : Based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition.) (Vol. 1, Page 310). New York: United Bible societies.] Hellriegel, D, S. E. Jackson and J. W. Slocum, Jr. Management: a Competency-Based Approach. (2008). Cincinnati: Cengage. ISBN 0 32 4421400 Martin, Andrew (8/1/09), â€Å"Give BBT Liberty, but Not a Bailout,† New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/02/business/02bbt.html?_r=0 Perman, Matt (4/29/30), â€Å"A Christian View of Management in Ephesians 6:5-9.† What’s Best Next http://www.whatsbestnext.com/2011/04/a-christian-view-of-management-in-ephesians-65-9/ Sparks, Evan (2011), â€Å"Intellectual Capital†, Philanthropy Magazine, http://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/topic/excellence_in_philanthropy/intellectual_capital The Holy Bible. NIV forwards Charles F. Stanley and Andy Stanley Side by side bible NIV KJV. 2011 Biblica, Inc. Wigoder, Geoffrey; Paul, Shalom M.; Viviano, O.P., Benedict T. Stern, Ephraim (1986) Illustrated Dictionary Concordance of the Bible. G.G. The Jerusalem Publisying House ltd. Zigarelli, Michael (2003), â€Å"The Priorities and Practices of Christian Leaders,† Regent Business Review, http://www.cbn.com/finance/rbrchristianleaders.aspx

Intercultural communication issue Essay Example for Free

Intercultural communication issue Essay Intercultural Communication Issue: Electronic Mail Meanings reside in people, not in words (Littlejohn, 2001, 39). This basic precept of language can be deemed a positive axiom for successful communication. Whenever possible, both parties should seek a common code and/or attempt to understand cultural differences in coding systems. Admittedly, it is difficult to arrive at a common code if a person and his communication partner speak different languages. The English language contains countless subcodes. Even nonverbal cues shift from culture to culture. Much like in the case of this electronic message sent by a hypothetical boss to a representative of a department flocked with Hongkong-based Chinese nationals: I wanted to welcome you ASAP to our little family here in the States. Its high time we shook hands in person and not just across the sea. Im pleased as punch about getting to know you all, and I for one will do my level best to sell you on America. The statement above is a blend of American vernacular and idiomatic expression. It appears to be a simple salutatory message that turns embedded in unnecessary verbosity. This communication style takes risks in seeking suitable interpretation on the part of the message recipients. The words or phrases ASAP, across the sea, punch, and sell for Americans are easy to understand and can even cause no outstanding remarks from them. But to use these words in a message meant for relatively new employees with a relatively different linguistic background, startling and even violent reactions might be elicited. In fairness to Hongkongers, they are officially bilingual between Chinese and English. After the transfer of sovereignty from the United Kingdom to the Peoples Republic of China in 1997, both Chinese and English remained the official language of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. English is the major working language in Hong Kong, and is widely used in commercial activities and legal matters (Flores, et al. , 1991, 246). However, this gift of bilingualism may likewise yield confusion, as British idioms are different from Americans’. Moreover, code-switching between Cantonese and English may not help them fathom best the message above. Some purist scholars consider Cantonese speakers who incorporate too much English are even dubbed language-handicapped (Flores, et al. , 1991, 245). And because the message was delivered through a virtual channel, the importance of nonverbal aspect of the communication is overlooked. This could have done the job of exhibiting the context most especially should the weight of the message comes to such portions as punch or sell you. The boss should have noted that communication is defined more by behavior than the communication event itself (Kale and Luke, 1991, 7). Nonverbal behaviors also shift from culture to culture and bilingualism may provide little help if the communicators had not developed code sensitivity toward the culture-specific message systems. With simplicity, neutrality and cordiality in mind, Hence, the message to be conveyed to the migrant employees should more or less look like this: â€Å"Good day! We welcome you once again to Will and Hung Company! May you find your new home over here in the United States as we are as earnest to make this company a place for you to work with satisfaction. † From this takes off a working atmosphere that encourages these new people to feed back in order for them to adjust their behavior to the relatively new environment. The boss must indeed shake their hands in person because it is indeed high time to use nonverbal actions as a way of inspiring them to respond to him in all honesty. He must think for a moment of all the positive attitudes and images he associates with smiling, head nodding, leaning forward, and laughing. ough these behaviors seem very Western, they often produce positive reactions in other cultures. Furthermore, interesting research findings suggest that communication changes encroach on how people relate to one another in organizations. Computer-mediated communications differ from face-to-face and telephone interactions in three important respects: there is a greater sense of anonymity; there is creation of new groups; and there is also susceptibility to computer addiction (Sullivan, 2003). Many executives become less social and less available for face-to-face conversations (Braun, 2002). Adjustment efforts must also manifest on the part of the host culture. Because much of the world speaks English, many of Americans have a tendency to assume we need not learn a foreign language. The very fact that others have made an attempt to learn our language should motivate us to reciprocate. There is more to language than vocabulary, syntax, and dialects. Language is more than a vehicle of communication; it teaches one a culture’s lifestyle, ways of thinking, and different patterns of interacting. References Braun, Patrice. (2002). â€Å"Digital Knowledge Networks: Linking Communities of Practice with Innovation.† Journal of Business Strategies. Flores, B. , Cousin, P. T. Diaz, E. (1991). Transforming Deficit Myths About Learning, Language, And Culture. Language Arts (pp. 245-246). Littlejohn, Stephen W. (2001). â€Å"Theories of Signs and Language. † Theories of Human Communication (p. 39). Wadsworth Publishing. Kale, J. Luke, A. (1991). Doing Things With Words: Early Language Socialization. The Literacy Agenda: Issues for the Nineties (p. 7). Victoria: Eleanor Curtain. Sullivan, Daniel. (2003). â€Å"International Business: An Emerging Vision. † Journal of International Business Studies.

Parents With Mental Illness Social Work Essay

Parents With Mental Illness Social Work Essay This paper explains the circumstances of a parent living with a mental illness and disclaims the assumption that this dilemma at all times results in abuse or neglect six articles are referenced for this paper, providing related research on the topic. Some authors provide examples of adults who live with a mental illness and the struggles to provide and nurture their family. Others support the notion that mental illness, although a difficult ailment, does not always result in an abusive or dysfunctional home. The author examines numerous claims that living with a mental illness puts a family at risk for neglect. The author maintains that this circumstance does not automatically equal abuse in a home, but rather, present hardships to overcome. Parents with Mental Illness: Arguments of an Abusive Home Many opinions conclude that mentally ill parents are not able to care for their children and often create the outcome of a neglectful home. There is a stigma out there that these children of adults with a mental illness are at risk for growing up in an abusive home. Although this may be true in certain instances, there is much research to counter this argument and provide support that a high percentage of mentally ill parents work very hard to overcome and handle their obstacles, and provide a loving and functional home. To further understand the background of the issue this topic should be looked into with great detail. The purpose of this paper is to do just that, by giving evidence for and against the topic, by looking into ways that some families adjust and how others dont. This paper looks into claims that go along with the assumption of abuse stemming from a home with mental illness and provides statistics against it, and in support of parents being able to deal with these kind s of difficulties. Much research has been done in the area of effects of mental illness in the family. One of which was an article by authors Swartz, Swanson, Hiday, Borum, Wagner, and Burns (1998) that suggests that the presence of a mental illness are often times associated with serious violent acts, according to the Violence and Severe Mental Illness article. It explains how adults with psychiatric problems often times self medicate with alcohol or other substances instead of regularly taking their prescribed medication. The medication noncompliance, substance abuse, and overall mental illnesses create a huge problem within a family. Individuals in this position cannot take care of themselves; much less keep a family healthy. With all the stress stated previously, often times a parent may become violent as a way of coping. It was found that alcohol or other drug abuse problems  combined with poor adherence to medication may signal a higher  risk of violent behavior among persons with severe ment al illness (Violence and Severe Mental Illness). Within this type of a situation children become withdrawn, scared, and depending on the age may begin acting out themselves. There has been other research, like this, that shows a correlation between violent and neglectful homes and parents with a mental illness. These tend to aim more towards the lack of proper medication and instead, the substitute of alcohol or other drugs by the parent. One such article by Danson , Gold, Barreira, and Fisher (2008) indicates that as unhealthy as the mentally ill parent is, the child is as equally effected, if not more so. Research by Danson et al. (2008) revealed that situations with severe substance  abuse by a parent,  there is a high recurrence of less frequent parent-child  contact. The more a parent turns to substances to self medicate, there is less and less contact with their children. This is where most people draw the conclusion that a parent with a mental illness, results in a negl ectful or abusive home. Studies have shown that this results in lifelong problems in kids, such as a feeling of isolation, separation anxiety, boundary issues, anger, and depression. Children need their parents to be present. Even if struggling with a mental illness, a child needs their parent involved in their lives. Although there is much research that views adults with mental illnesses as precursors to neglectful and abusive parents, there is a great deal of studies that argue against it. Rethink is a severe mental illness foundation, aiming to assist those suffering, family who are affected, as well as a goal of clearing up any misconceptions glued to this illness. Their overall conclusions are being a parent with mental illness can be both challenging and rewarding. People often stigmatize and assume that children born to people with mental illness will experience social and emotional difficulties, that they may be abused or neglected. But parents with mental illness can be good parents if they receive appropriate support (Parents with Mental Illness). This is where the argument comes in. The opposing views from earlier in the paper were accurate in the sense that it is difficult to deal with side effects of medications and many parents living with a mental illness self medicate instead. But this is not true in many instances. Numerous studies have shown that many parents dealing with this issue take the proper steps to mend themselves and their families. The main i dea of Rethink seemed to state that despite the stigma attached to psychological illnesses, these families are just as capable of having a functional relationship as those who are lucky enough not to face this obstacle. It was found that often times the family of a loved one dealing with a mental illness, is forgotten. Between all the chaos and stress of helping the hurting individual, the family takes a back seat. The family member with a mental illness is not always able to care for family and both parents tend to focus on fixing the one in pain. It is shown that many mentally ill parents are afraid to lose their children, and because of this work very hard to mend what was broken and create as peaceful of a life as they can. They are getting the help they need to be able to take care of their children. A high percentage are making their family lives thrive, not giving up and neglecting their children. There is support to show that a great number of mentally ill adults are reachin g out to appropriate support. Some of these summarized in the article included the many ways parents try to mend their family and the ways they reach out. Such as, education classes for parenting and support groups, it is important to receive help from outside support to improve the environment surrounding the family, as well as positive friendships and peer relationships. These tactics greatly contribute to helping an individual dealing with the chaos of a mental illness, become balanced again. Talking with others who understand the difficulties and reaching out to those who can help, give a parent peace of mind. And this sets them up for success. In addition to this article, Coping with Mental Illness summarizes the many outlets adults with a mental illness have to helping their children and affected family members succeed, once they are balanced themselves. Numerous instances prove that children of mentally ill parents as well as other family members in these situations do not al ways receive the care and nurturing they need. They may feel ashamed to talk about their situation with others and consequently may withdraw from relatives or friends who could help them or support them. Often unable to articulate their needs, even to themselves, these individuals frequently feel isolated and alone (Coping with Mental Illness in the Family). Its extremely difficult for a child to know exactly whats going on when their parent is breaking down, where to turn for help, or what to do to help the family. In these instances, families who have made it through and made the situation better, have reached out for help. Research shows that these families have discussions about understanding that a parent is mentally ill and acknowledge how this is going to affect the other members of the family. News ways of taking care of each individual are discussed and boundaries are drawn, so that certain people arent being taken advantage of or acting outside of their familial role. Lear ning a new way to deal with old unhealthy family patterns also gives family members a leg up. The cycle of harmful family habits can be broken and new communications started. From these two viewpoints, a conclusion must be drawn that whether or not a family is going to pull through a difficult time as this, it depends on the individuals and the amount of assistance they receive as well as the amount of effort they are willing to put into making their family function. It is clear that mentally ill parents have a tough burden to work through. Living with a mental illness is difficult, and many individuals have a tough time functioning and finding a balance. Because some have a hard time making it, their families suffer. Children may be abused and neglected by a parent who isnt in their right state of mind, but studies show that this is not the norm. Many parents have helpful resources in and outside the family. Many take on the challenge of finding the correct medication. And many work extremely hard to take care of themselves, so they can in turn take care of their family. Evidence shows, a high percentage of families with a mentally ill parent, get throug h life just fine.

Ben Carson with Cecil MurpheyGifted Hands The Ben Carson Story :: Essays Papers

Ben Carson with Cecil MurpheyGifted Hands The Ben Carson Story The book is about a kid who grew up in a harsh area, in other words a â€Å"ghetto†. The books starts out when Ben is in fifth grade when he is failing all his classes because he couldn’t see anything without glasses that his family couldn’t afford. But after Ben got glasses he became the smartest student in all his classes. He was a very smart and good student until he reached the beginning of high school. When he entered the ninth grade year he began to be embarrassed of his social standing because people would â€Å"cap† on him and also because he wore old clothes. He was in this period until the middle of the 10th grade when his mom and the ROTC straightened him out. After that he graduated high school and attended college at Yale. While at Yale he had money problems and barely had enough money to survive. He graduated and married his wife Cookie and became a neurosurgeon. He his known as one of the top neurosurgeons if not the top neu rosurgeon because he took difficult cases which all other neurosurgeons wouldn’t take the risk to do. The message of this book is basically never give up and always try to do your best no matter what the situation and you should remember that God is with one and he should be the priority in ones life. Well for different people the message of this book could be considered important or unimportant. The ideas of this book are of importance to certain people and these certain people should consider it. There are expressions of the author shown through certain incidents like when mid-terms came during a year at Yale he was unprepared because of his procrastinating studying techniques but the night before the exam while reviewing his notes he prayed for god to help him do good on the test and he had a dream about the test and the answers were in front of him, this expressed his philosophy of god helping one if they ask. The author never tried to convince me of a point of view but he gave different examples of situations and how he settled those situations. After reading this book I found some similarities of my daily life.

Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas Essay -- Film Movie Movies Films Las Ve

Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas The story begins abruptly, as we find our mock heroes out in the desert en route to the savvy resort of Las Vegas. The author uses a tense hitchhiker as a mode, or an excuse, for a flashback that exposes the plot. An uncertain character picked up in the middle of the desert who Raoul Duke, the main character, feels the need to explain things to, to help him rest easy. They had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half-full of cocaine, and a whole galaxy of multicolored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers....Also a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of Budweiser, a pint of raw either, and two dozen amyls. They were on assignment from a fashionable sporting magazine in New York, to cover the 4th Annual "Mint 400" dirt bike and dune buggy race. A savage journey to the heart of the American dream.Before one can review the motion picture "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", he must first research the full length novel of the same name. The book first appeared in 1971 in issues 95 and 96 of Rolling Stone magazine, published November 11th and 25th respectively. Although the two part series stated its author was someone called Raoul Duke, the story was copyrighted in 1971 by Hunter S. Thompson. Raoul Duke is actually the false name under which Hunter Thompson portrays himself as main character and narrator.The film was produced in the early goings of summer in 199...

This Fad?s Gotten Out of Control :: essays research papers fc

In America, 10,250 people died from skin cancer this past year, according to the American Cancer Society. Skin cancer, the most common of all cancers, accounts for nearly all cancers in the United States. Over one million cases are diagnosed in this country each year (Johnnie).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The reason for all of this? UV exposure. America’s value of life is very high, yet many people die just because they are not wise enough to keep out of the sun.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The greatest danger from this problem is faced by teenagers. Studies have shown that among artificial tanners, those who started at an early age are more likely to develop skin cancer. Out of high school-aged girls, 51 percent reported using a commercial tanning bed at least four times in the past year (Perron). The fact of the matter is younger people do not have the foresight to realize that being tan isn’t worth the sometimes fatal after-effects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The social desirability of a tan is a modern phenomenon, beginning in the 1920’s when the French designer Coco Chanel decreed it as a fashion look. The concept of obtaining a tan without going outdoors became increasingly attractive (Aldige). Today’s media influences everyone, but especially young people, to feel like they need to have that beautiful dark skin color to look good. Teenagers, caring more about their social status and appearance, are looking past the obvious risks of skin cancer. Teenagers ages 12 to 17 are visiting tanning salons in record numbers. This trend presents a huge level of concern, as studies have shown that the risk for skin cancer increases when tanning begins at a younger age. With this fad being so popular, teens are always finding themselves at the tanning salons, becoming nice and crispy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The best way to keep everyone from this fatal cancer is by completely not allowing teenagers below the age of 18 to ever go to a tanning bed. There have been several other health risks that have been legislated against, such as smoking, drinking, and using seat belts. Why not tanning? We need to make it completely illegal for kids with such delicate skin to go fake-baking. Before the age of 18, teenager’s brains are not mature enough to make wise decisions about something that could greatly affect their lives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some would argue that they can still go out in the sun and get skin cancer. Experts agree that sunburns are caused primarily by exposure to UVB rays; however, UVA rays do not burn, but actually may do more harm.

The Twilight Saga 5: Midnight Sun 5. Invitations

High school. Purgatory no longer, it was now purely hell. Torment and fire†¦yes, I had both. I was doing everything correctly now. Every â€Å"i† dotted, every â€Å"t† crossed. No one could complain that I was shirking my responsibilities. To please Esme and protect the others, I stayed in Forks. I returned to my old schedule. I hunted no more than the rest of them. Everyday, I attended high school and played human. Everyday, I listened carefully for anything new about the Cullens – there never was anything new. The girl did not speak one word of her suspicions. She just repeated the same story again and again – I'd been standing with her and then pulled her out of the way – till her eager listeners got bored and stopped looking for more details. There was no danger. My hasty action had hurt no one. No one but myself. I was determined to change the future. Not the easiest task to set for oneself, but there was no other choice that I could live with. Alice said that I would not be strong enough to stay away from the girl. I would prove her wrong. I'd thought the first day would be the hardest. By the end of it, I'd been sure that was the case. I'd been wrong, though. It had rankled, knowing that I would hurt the girl. I'd comforted myself with the fact that her pain would be nothing more than a pinprick – just a tiny sting of rejection – compared to mine. Bella was human, and she knew that I was something else, something wrong, something frightening. She would probably be more relieved than wounded when I turned my face away from her and pretended that she didn't exist. â€Å"Hello, Edward,† she'd greeted me, that first day back in biology. Her voice had been pleasant, friendly, one hundred and eighty degrees from the last time I'd spoken with her. Why? What did the change mean? Had she forgotten? Decided she had imagined the whole episode? Could she possibly have forgiven me for not following through on my promise? The questions had burned like the thirst that attacked me every time I breathed. Just one moment to look in her eyes. Just to see if I could read the answers there†¦ No. I could not allow myself even that. Not if I was going to change the future. I'd moved my chin an inch in her direction without looking away from the front of the room. I'd nodded once, and then turned my face straight forward. She did not speak to me again. That afternoon, as soon as school was finished, my role played, I ran to Seattle as I had the day before. It seemed that I could handle the aching just slightly better when I was flying over the ground, turning everything around me into a green blur. This run became my daily habit. Did I love her? I did not think so. Not yet. Alice's glimpses of that future had stuck with me, though, and I could see how easy it would be to fall into loving Bella. It would be exactly like falling: effortless. Not letting myself love her was the opposite of falling – it was pulling myself up a cliff-face, hand over hand, the task as grueling as if I had no more than mortal strength. More than a month passed, and every day it got harder. That made no sense to me – I kept waiting to get over it, to have it get easier. This must be what Alice had meant when she'd predicted that I would not be able to stay away from the girl. She had seen the escalation of the pain. But I could handle pain. I would not destroy Bella's future. If I was destined to love her, then wasn't avoiding her the very least I could do? Avoiding her was about the limit of what I could bear, though. I could pretend to ignore her, and never look her way. I could pretend that she was of no interest to me. But that was the extent, just pretense and not reality. I still hung on every breath she took, every word she said. I lumped my torments into four categories. The first two were familiar. Her scent and her silence. Or, rather – to take the responsibility on myself where it belonged – my thirst and my curiosity. The thirst was the most primal of my torments. It was my habit now to simply not breathe at all in Biology. Of course, there were always the exceptions – when I had to answer a question or something of the sort, and I would need my breath to speak. Each time I tasted the air around the girl, it was the same as the first day – fire and need and brutal violence desperate to break free. It was hard to cling even slightly to reason or restraint in those moments. And, just like that first day, the monster in me would roar, so close to the surface†¦ The curiosity was the most constant of my torments. The question was never out of my mind: What is she thinking now? When I heard her quietly sigh. When she twisted a lock of hair absently around her finger. When she threw her books down with more force than usual. When she rushed to class late. When she tapped her foot impatiently against the floor. Each movement caught in my peripheral vision was a maddening mystery. When she spoke to the other human students, I analyzed her every word and tone. Was she speaking her thoughts, or what she thought she should say? It often sounded to me like she was trying to say what her audience expected, and this reminded me of my family and our daily life of illusion – we were better at it than she was. Unless I wrong about that, just imagining things. Why would she have to play a role? She was one of them – a human teenager. Mike Newton was the most surprising of my torments. Who would have ever dreamed that such a generic, boring mortal could be so infuriating? To be fair, I should have felt some gratitude to the annoying boy; more than the others, he kept the girl talking. I learned so much about her through these conversations – I was still compiling my list – but, contrarily, Mike's assistance with this project only aggravated me more. I didn't want Mike to be the one that unlocked her secrets. I wanted to do that. It helped that he never noticed her small revelations, her little slips. He knew nothing about her. He'd created a Bella in his head that didn't exist – a girl just as generic as he was. He hadn't observed the unselfishness and bravery that set her apart from other humans, he didn't hear the abnormal maturity of her spoken thoughts. He didn't perceive that when she spoke of her mother, she sounded like a parent speaking of a child rather than the other way around – loving, indulgent, slightly amused, and fiercely protective. He didn't hear the patience in her voice when she feigned interest in his rambling stories, and didn't guess at the kindness behind that patience. Through her conversations with Mike, I was able to add the most important quality to my list, the most revealing of them all, as simple as it was rare. Bella was good. All the other things added up to that whole – kind and self-effacing and unselfish and loving and brave – she was good through and through. These helpful discoveries did not warm me to the boy, however. The possessive way he viewed Bella – as if she were an acquisition to be made – provoked me almost as much as his crude fantasies about her. He was becoming more confident of her, too, as the time passed, for she seemed to prefer him over those he considered his rivals – Tyler Crowley, Eric Yorkie, and even, sporadically, myself. He would routinely sit on her side of our table before class began, chattering at her, encouraged by her smiles. Just polite smiles, I told myself. All the same, I frequently amused myself by imagining backhanding him across the room and into the far wall†¦ It probably wouldn't injure him fatally†¦ Mike didn't often think of me as a rival. After the accident, he'd worried that Bella and I would bond from the shared experience, but obviously the opposite had resulted. Back then, he had still been bothered that I'd singled Bella out over her peers for attention. But now I ignored her just as thoroughly as the others, and he grew complacent. What was she thinking now? Did she welcome his attention? And, finally, the last of my torments, the most painful: Bella's indifference. As I ignored her, she ignored me. She never tried to speak to me again. For all I knew, she never thought about me at all. This might have driven me mad – or even broken my resolution to change the future – except that she sometimes stared at me like she had before. I didn't see it for myself, as I could not allow myself to look at her, but Alice always warned us when she was about to stare; the others were still wary of the girl's problematic knowledge. It eased some of the pain that she gazed at me from across a distance, every now and then. Of course, she could just be wondering what kind of a freak I was. â€Å"Bella's going to stare at Edward in a minute. Look normal,† Alice said one Tuesday in March, and the others were careful to fidget and shift their weight like humans; absolute stillness was a marker of our kind. I paid attention to how often she looked my direction. It pleased me, though it should not, that the frequency did not decline as the time passed. I didn't know what it meant, but it made me feel better. Alice sighed. I wish†¦ â€Å"Stay out of it, Alice,† I said under my breath. â€Å"It's not going to happen.† She pouted. Alice was anxious to form her envisioned friendship with Bella. In a strange way, she missed the girl she didn't know. I'll admit, you're better than I thought. You've got the future all snarled up and senseless again. I hope you're happy. â€Å"It makes plenty of sense to me.† She snorted delicately. I tried to shut her out, too impatient for conversation. I wasn't in a very good mood – tenser than I let any of them see. Only Jasper was aware of how tightly wound I was, feeling the stress emanate out of me with his unique ability to both sense and influence the moods of others. He didn't understand the reasons behind the moods, though, and – since I was constantly in a foul mood these days – he disregarded it. Today would be a hard one. Harder than the day before, as was the pattern. Mike Newton, the odious boy whom I could not allow myself to rival, was going to ask Bella on a date. A girl's choice dance was on the near horizon, and he'd been hoping very much that Bella would ask him. That she had not done so had rattled his confidence. Now he was in an uncomfortable bind – I enjoyed his discomfort more than I should – because Jessica Stanley had just asked him to the dance. He didn't want to say â€Å"yes,† still hopeful that Bella would choose him (and prove him the victor over his rivals), but he didn't want to say â€Å"no† and end up missing the dance altogether. Jessica, hurt by his hesitation and guessing the reason behind it, was thinking daggers at Bella. Again, I had the instinct to place myself between Jessica's angry thoughts and Bella. I understood the instinct better now, but that only made it more frustrating when I could not act on it. To think it had come to this! I was utterly fixated on the petty high school dramas that I'd once held so in contempt. Mike was working up his nerve as he walked Bella to biology. I listened to his struggles as I waited for them to arrive. The boy was weak. He had waited for this dance purposely, afraid to make his infatuation known before she had shown a marked preference for him. He didn't want to make himself vulnerable to rejection, preferring that she make that leap first. Coward. He sat down on our table again, comfortable with long familiarity, and I imagined the sound it would make if his body hit the opposite wall with enough force to break most of his bones. â€Å"So,† he said to the girl, his eyes on the floor. â€Å"Jessica asked me to the spring dance.† â€Å"That's great,† Bella answered immediately and with enthusiasm. It was hard not to smile as her tone sunk in to Mike's awareness. He'd been hoping for dismay. â€Å"You'll have a lot of fun with Jessica.† He scrambled for the right response. â€Å"Well†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he hesitated, and almost chickened out. Then he rallied. â€Å"I told her I had to think about it.† â€Å"Why would you do that?† she demanded. Her tone was one of disapproval, but there was the faintest hint of relief there as well. What did that mean? An unexpected, intense fury made my hands clench into fists. Mike did not hear the relief. His face was red with blood – fierce as I suddenly felt, this seemed like an invitation – and he looked at the floor again as he spoke. â€Å"I was wondering if†¦well, if you might be planning to ask me.† Bella hesitated. In that moment of her hesitation, I saw the future more clearly than Alice ever had. The girl might say yes to Mike's unspoken question now, and she might not, but either way, someday soon, she would say yes to someone. She was lovely and intriguing, and human males were not oblivious to this fact. Whether she would settle for someone in this lackluster crowd, or wait until she was free from Forks, the day would come that she would say yes. I saw her life as I had before – college, career†¦love, marriage. I saw her on her father's arm again, dressed in gauzy white, her face flushed with happiness as she moved to the sound of Wagner's march. The pain was more than anything I'd felt before. A human would have to be on the point of death to feel this pain – a human would not live through it. And not just pain, but outright rage. The fury ached for some kind of physical outlet. Though this insignificant, undeserving boy might not be the one that Bella would say yes to, I yearned to crush his skull in my hand, to let him stand as a representative for whoever it would be. I didn't understand this emotion – it was such a tangle of pain and rage and desire and despair. I had never felt it before; I couldn't put a name to it. â€Å"Mike, I think you should tell her yes,† Bella said in a gentle voice. Mike's hopes plummeted. I would have enjoyed that under other circumstances, but I was lost in the aftershock of the pain – and the remorse for what the pain and rage had done to me. Alice was right. I was not strong enough. Right now, Alice would be watching the future spin and twist, become mangled again. Would this please her? â€Å"Did you already ask someone?† Mike asked sullenly. He glanced at me, suspicious for the first time in many weeks. I realized I had betrayed my interest; my head was inclined in Bella's direction. The wild envy in his thoughts – envy for whoever this girl preferred to him – suddenly put a name to my unnamed emotion. I was jealous. â€Å"No,† the girl said with a trace of humor in her voice. â€Å"I'm not going to the dance at all.† Through all the remorse and anger, I felt relief at her words. Suddenly, I was considering my rivals. â€Å"Why not?† Mike asked, his tone almost rude. It offended me that he used this tone with her. I bit back a growl. â€Å"I'm going to Seattle that Saturday,† she answered. The curiosity was not as vicious as it would have been before – now that I was fully intending to find out the answers to everything. I would know the wheres and whys of this new revelation soon enough. Mike's tone turned unpleasantly wheedling. â€Å"Can't you go some other weekend?† â€Å"Sorry, no.† Bella was brusquer now. â€Å"So you shouldn't make Jess wait any longer – it's rude.† Her concern for Jessica's feelings fanned the flames of my jealousy. This Seattle trip was clearly an excuse to say no – did she refuse purely out of loyalty to her friend? She was more than selfless enough for that. Did she actually wish she could say yes? Or were both guesses wrong? Was she interested in someone else? â€Å"Yeah, you're right,† Mike mumbled, so demoralized that I almost felt pity for him. Almost. He dropped his eyes from the girl, cutting off my view of her face in his thoughts. I wasn't going to tolerate that. I turned to read her face myself, for the first time in more than a month. It was a sharp relief to allow myself this, like a gasp of air to long-submerged human lungs. Her eyes were closed, and her hands pressed against the sides of her face. Her shoulders curved inward defensively. She shook her head ever so slightly, as if she were trying to push some thought from her mind. Frustrating. Fascinating. Mr. Banner's voice pulled her from her reverie, and her eyes slowly opened. She looked at me immediately, perhaps sensing my gaze. She stared up into my eyes with the same bewildered expression that had haunted me for so long. I didn't feel the remorse or the guilt or the rage in that second. I knew they would come again, and come soon, but for this one moment I rode a strange, jittery high. As if I had triumphed, rather than lost. She didn't look away, though I stared with inappropriate intensity, trying vainly to read her thoughts through her liquid brown eyes. They were full of questions, rather than answers. I could see the reflection of my own eyes, and I saw that they were black with thirst. It had been nearly two weeks since my last hunting trip; this was not the safest day for my will to crumble. But the blackness did not seem to frighten her. She still did not look away, and a soft, devastatingly appealing pink began to color her skin. What was she thinking now? I almost asked the question aloud, but at that moment Mr. Banner called my name. I picked the correct answer out of his head while I glanced briefly in his direction. I sucked in a quick breath. â€Å"The Krebs Cycle.† Thirst scorched down my throat – tightening my muscles and filling my mouth with venom – and I closed my eyes, trying to concentrate through the desire for her blood that raged inside me. The monster was stronger than before. The monster was rejoicing. He embraced this dual future that gave him an even, fifty-fifty chance at what he craved so viciously. The third, shaky future I'd tried to construct through willpower alone had crumbled – destroyed by common jealously, of all things – and he was so much closer to his goal. The remorse and the guilt burned with the thirst, and, if I'd had the ability to produce tears, they would have filled my eyes now. What had I done? Knowing the battle was already lost, there seemed to be no reason to resist what I wanted; I turned to stare at the girl again. She had hidden in her hair, but I could see through a parting in the tresses that her cheek was deep crimson now. The monster liked that. She did not meet my gaze again, but she twisted a strand of her dark hair nervously between her fingers. Her delicate fingers, her fragile wrist – they were so breakable, looking for all the world like just my breath could snap them. No, no, no. I could not do this. She was too breakable, too good, too precious to deserve this fate. I couldn't allow my life to collide with hers, to destroy it. But I couldn't stay away from her either. Alice was right about that. The monster inside me hissed with frustration as I wavered, leaning first one way, then the other. My brief hour with her passed all too quickly, as I vacillated between the rock and the hard place. The bell rang, and she started collecting her things without looking at me. This disappointed me, but I could hardly expect otherwise. The way I had treated her since the accident was inexcusable. â€Å"Bella?† I said, unable to stop myself. My willpower already lay in shreds. She hesitated before looking at me; when she turned, her expression was guarded, distrustful. I reminded myself that she had every right to distrust me. That she should. She waited for me to continue, but I just stared at her, reading her face. I pulled in shallow mouthfuls of air at regular intervals, fighting my thirst. â€Å"What?† she finally said. â€Å"Are you speaking to me again?† There was an edge of resentment to her tone that was, like her anger, endearing. It made me want to smile. I wasn't sure how to answer her question. Was I speaking to her again, in the sense that she meant? No. Not if I could help it. I would try to help it. â€Å"No, not really,† I told her. She closed her eyes, which frustrated me. It cut off my best avenue of access to her feelings. She took a long, slow breath without opening her eyes. Her jaw was locked. Eyes still closed, she spoke. Surely this was not a normal human way to converse. Why did she do it? â€Å"Then what do you want, Edward?† The sound of my name on her lips did strange things to my body. If I'd had a heartbeat, it would have quickened. But how to answer her? With the truth, I decided. I would be as truthful as I could with her from now on. I didn't want to deserve her distrust, even if earning her trust was impossible. â€Å"I'm sorry,† I told her. That was truer than she would ever know. Unfortunately, I could only safely apologize for the trivial. â€Å"I'm being very rude, I know. But it's better this way, really.† I would be better for her if I could keep it up, continue to be rude. Could I? Her eyes opened, their expression still wary. â€Å"I don't know what you mean.† I tried to get as much of a warning through to her as was allowed. â€Å"It's better if we're not friends.† Surely, she could sense that much. She was a bright girl. â€Å"Trust me.† Her eyes tightened, and I remembered that I had said those words to her before – just before breaking a promise. I winced when her teeth clenched together – she clearly remembered, too. â€Å"It's too bad you didn't figure that out earlier,† she said angrily. â€Å"You could have saved yourself all this regret.† I stared at her in shock. What did she know of my regrets? â€Å"Regret? Regret for what?† I demanded. â€Å"For not just letting that stupid van squish me!† she snapped. I froze, stunned. How could she be thinking that? Saving her life was the one acceptable thing I'd done since I met her. The one thing that I was not ashamed of. The one and only thing that made me glad I existed at all. I'd been fighting to keep her alive since the first moment I'd caught her scent. How could she think this of me? How dare she question my one good deed in all this mess? â€Å"You think I regret saving your life?† â€Å"I know you do,† she retorted. Her estimation of my intentions left me seething. â€Å"You don't know anything.† How confusing and incomprehensible the workings of her mind were! She must not think in the same way as other humans at all. That must be the explanation behind her mental silence. She was entirely other. She jerked her face away, gritting her teeth again. Her cheeks were flushed, with anger this time. She slammed her books together in a pile, yanked them up into her arms, and marched toward the door without meeting my stare. Even irritated as I was, it was impossible not to find her anger a bit entertaining. She walked stiffly, without looking where she was going, and her foot caught on the lip of the doorway. She stumbled, and her things all crashed to the ground. Instead of bending to get them, she stood rigidly straight, not even looking down, as if she were not sure the books were worth retrieving. I managed not to laugh. No one was here to watch me; I flitted to her side, and had her books put in order before she looked down. She bent halfway, saw me, and then froze. I handed her books back to her, making sure that my icy skin never touched hers. â€Å"Thank you,† she said in a cold, severe voice. Her tone brought back my irritation. â€Å"You're welcome,† I said just as coldly. She wrenched herself upright and stomped away to her next class. I watched until I could no longer see her angry figure. Spanish passed in a blur. Mrs. Goff never questioned my abstraction – she knew my Spanish was superior to hers, and she gave me a great deal of latitude – leaving me free to think. So, I couldn't ignore the girl. That much was obvious. But did it mean I had no choice but to destroy her? That could not be the only available future. There had to be some other choice, some delicate balance. I tried to think of a way†¦ I didn't pay much attention to Emmett until the hour was nearly up. He was curious – Emmett was not overly intuitive about the shades in other's moods, but he could see the obvious change in me. He wondered what had happened to remove the unrelenting glower from my face. He struggled to define the change, and finally decided that I looked hopeful. Hopeful? Is that what it looked like from the outside? I pondered the idea of hope as we walked to the Volvo, wondering what exactly I should be hoping for. But I didn't have long to ponder. Sensitive as I always was to thoughts about the girl, the sound of Bella's name in the heads of†¦of my rivals, I suppose I had to admit, caught my attention. Eric and Tyler, having heard – with much satisfaction – of Mike's failure, were preparing to make their moves. Eric was already in place, positioned against her truck where she could not avoid him. Tyler's class was being held late to receive an assignment, and he was in a desperate hurry to catch her before she escaped. This I had to see. â€Å"Wait for the others here, all right?† I murmured to Emmett. He eyed me suspiciously, but then shrugged and nodded. Kid's lost his mind, he thought, amused by my odd request. I saw Bella on her way out of the gym, and I waited where she would not see me for her to pass. As she got closer to Eric's ambush, I strode forward, setting my pace so that I would walk by at the right moment. I watched her body stiffen when she caught sight of the boy waiting for her. She froze for a moment, then relaxed and moved forward. â€Å"Hi, Eric,† I heard her call in a friendly voice. I was abruptly and unexpectedly anxious. What if this gangly teen with his unhealthy skin was somehow pleasing to her? Eric swallowed loudly, his Adam's apple bobbing. â€Å"Hi, Bella.† She seemed unconscious of his nervousness. â€Å"What's up?† she asked, unlocking her truck without looking at his frightened expression. â€Å"Uh, I was just wondering†¦if you would go to the spring dance with me?† His voice broke. She finally looked up. Was she taken aback, or pleased? Eric couldn't meet her gaze, so I couldn't see her face in his mind. â€Å"I thought it was girl's choice,† she said, sounding flustered. â€Å"Well, yeah,† he agreed wretchedly. This pitiable boy did not irritate me as much as Mike Newton did, but I couldn't find it in myself to feel sympathy for his angst until after Bella had answered him in a gentle voice. â€Å"Thank you for asking me, but I'm going to be in Seattle that day.† He'd already heard this; still, it was a disappointment. â€Å"Oh,† he mumbled, barely daring to raise his eyes to the level of her nose. â€Å"Maybe next time.† â€Å"Sure,† she agreed. Then she bit down on her lip, as if she regretted leaving him a loophole. I liked that. Eric slumped forward and walked away, headed in the wrong direction from his car, his only thought escape. I passed her in that moment, and heard her sigh of relief. I laughed. She whirled at the sound, but I stared straight ahead, trying to keep my lips from twitching in amusement. Tyler was behind me, almost running in his hurry to catch her before she could drive away. He was bolder and more confident than the other two; he'd only waited to approach Bella this long because he'd respected Mike's prior claim. I wanted him to succeed in catching her for two reasons. If – as I was beginning to suspect – all this attention was annoying to Bella, I wanted to enjoy watching her reaction. But, if it was not – if Tyler's invitation was the one she'd been hoping for – then I wanted to know that, too. I measured Tyler Crowley as a rival, knowing it was wrong to do so. He seemed tediously average and unremarkable to me, but what did I know of Bella's preferences? Maybe she liked average boys†¦ I winced at that thought. I could never be an average boy. How foolish it was to set myself up as a rival for her affections. How could she ever care for someone who was, by any estimation, a monster? She was too good for a monster. I ought to have let her escape, but my inexcusable curiosity kept me from doing what was right. Again. But what if Tyler missed his chance now, only to contact her later when I would have no way of knowing the outcome? I pulled my Volvo out into the narrow lane, blocking her exit. Emmett and the others were on their way, but he'd described my strange behavior to them, and they were walking slowly, watching me, trying to decipher what I was doing. I watched the girl in my rearview mirror. She glowered toward the back of my car without meeting my gaze, looking as if she wished she were driving a tank rather than a rusted Chevy. Tyler hurried to his car and got in line behind her, grateful for my inexplicable behavior. He waved at her, trying to catch her attention, but she didn't notice. He waited a moment, and then left his car, sauntering up to her passenger side window. He tapped on the glass. She jumped, and then stared at him in confusion. After a second, she rolled the window down manually, seeming to have some trouble with it. â€Å"I'm sorry, Tyler,† she said, her voice irritated. â€Å"I'm stuck behind Cullen.† She said my surname in a hard voice – she was still angry with me. â€Å"Oh, I know,† Tyler said, undeterred by her mood. â€Å"I just wanted to ask you something while we're trapped here.† His grin was cocky. I was gratified by the way she blanched at his obvious intent. â€Å"Will you ask me to the spring dance?† he asked, no thought of defeat in his head. â€Å"I'm not going to be in town, Tyler,† she told him, irritation still plain in her voice. â€Å"Yeah, Mike said that.† â€Å"Then why – ?† she stared to ask. He shrugged. â€Å"I was hoping you were just letting him down easy.† Her eyes flashed, then cooled. â€Å"Sorry, Tyler,† she said, not sounding sorry at all. â€Å"I really am going to be out of town.† He accepted that excuse, his self-assurance untouched. â€Å"That's cool. We still have prom.† He strutted back to his car. I was right to have waited for this. The horrified expression on her face was priceless. It told me what I should not so desperately need to know – that she had no feelings for any of these human males who wished to court her. Also, her expression was possibly the funniest thing I'd ever seen. My family arrived then, confused by the fact that I was, for a change, rocking with laughter rather than scowling murderously at everything in sight. What's so funny? Emmett wanted to know. I just shook my head while I also shook with fresh laughter as Bella revved her noisy engine angrily. She looked like she was wishing for a tank again. â€Å"Let's go!† Rosalie hissed impatiently. â€Å"Stop being an idiot. If you can.† Her words didn't annoy me – I was too entertained. But I did as she asked. No one spoke to me on the way home. I continued to chuckle every now and again, thinking of Bella's face. As I turned on to the drive – speeding up now that there were no witnesses – Alice ruined my mood. â€Å"So do I get to talk to Bella now?† she asked suddenly, without considering the words first, thus giving me no warning. â€Å"No,† I snapped. â€Å"Not fair! What am I waiting for?† â€Å"I haven't decided anything, Alice.† â€Å"Whatever, Edward.† In her head, Bella's two destinies were clear again. â€Å"What's the point in getting to know her?† I mumbled, suddenly morose. â€Å"If I'm just going to kill her?† Alice hesitated for a second. â€Å"You have a point,† she admitted. I took the final hairpin turn at ninety miles an hour, and then screeched to a stop an inch from the back garage wall. â€Å"Enjoy your run,† Rosalie said smugly as I threw myself out of the car. But I didn't go running today. Instead, I went hunting. The others were scheduled to hunt tomorrow, but I couldn't afford to be thirsty now. I overdid it, drinking more than necessary, glutting myself again – a small grouping of elk and one black bear I was lucky to stumble across this early in the year. I was so full it was uncomfortable. Why couldn't that be enough? Why did her scent have to be so much stronger than anything else? I had hunted in preparation for the next day, but, when I could hunt no more and the sun was still hours and hours from rising, I knew that the next day was not soon enough. The jittery high swept through me again when I realized that I was going to go find the girl. I argued with myself all the way back to Forks, but my less noble side won the argument, and I went ahead with my indefensible plan. The monster was restless but well-fettered. I knew I would keep a safe distance from her. I only wanted to know where she was. I just wanted to see her face. It was past midnight, and Bella's house was dark and quiet. Her truck was parked against the curb, her father's police cruiser in the driveway. There were no conscious thoughts anywhere in the neighborhood. I watched the house for a moment from the blackness of the forest that bordered it on the east. The front door would probably be locked – not a problem, except that I didn't want to leave a broken door as evidence behind me. I decided to try the upstairs window first. Not many people would bother installing a lock there. I crossed the open yard and scaled the face of the house in half a second. Dangling from the eave above the window by one hand, I looked through the glass, and my breath stopped. It was her room. I could see her in the one small bed, her covers on the floor and her sheets twisted around her legs. As I watched, she twitched restlessly and threw one arm over her head. She did not sleep soundly, at least not this night. Did she sense the danger near her? I was repulsed by myself as I watched her toss again. How was I any better than some sick peeping tom? I wasn't any better. I was much, much worse. I relaxed my fingertips, about to let myself drop. But first I allowed myself one long look at her face. It was not peaceful. The little furrow was there between her eyebrows, the corners of her lips turned down. Her lips trembled, and then parted. â€Å"Okay, Mom,† she muttered. Bella talked in her sleep. Curiosity flared, overpowering self-disgust. The lure of those unprotected, unconsciously spoken thoughts was impossibly tempting. I tried the window, and it was not locked, though it stuck due to long disuse. I slid it slowly aside, cringing at each faint groan of the metal frame. I would have to find some oil for next time†¦ Next time? I shook my head, disgusted again. I eased myself silently through the half-opened window. Her room was small – disorganized but not unclean. There were books piled on the floor beside her bed, their spines facing away from me, and CDs scattered by her inexpensive CD player – the one on top was just a clear jewel case. Stacks of papers surrounded a computer that looked like it belonged in a museum dedicated to obsolete technologies. Shoes dotted the wooden floor. I wanted very much to go read the titles of her books and CDs, but I'd promised myself that I would keep my distance; instead, I went to sit the old rocking chair in the far corner of the room. Had I really once thought her average-looking? I thought of that first day, and my disgust for the boys who were so immediately intrigued with her. But when I remembered her face in their minds now, I could not understand why I had not found her beautiful immediately. It seemed an obvious thing. Right now – with her dark hair tangled and wild around her pale face, wearing a threadbare t-shirt full of holes with tatty sweatpants, her features relaxed in unconsciousness, her full lips slightly parted – she took my breath away. Or would have, I thought wryly, if I were breathing. She did not speak. Perhaps her dream had ended. I stared at her face and tried to think of some way to make the future bearable. Hurting her was not bearable. Did that mean my only choice was to try to leave again? The others could not argue with me now. My absence would not put anyone in danger. There would be no suspicion, nothing to link anyone's thoughts back to the accident. I wavered as I had this afternoon, and nothing seemed possible. I could not hope to rival the human boys, whether these specific boys appealed to her or not. I was a monster. How could she see me as anything else? If she knew the truth about me, it would frighten and repulse her. Like the intended victim in a horror movie, she would run away, shrieking in terror. I remembered her first day in biology†¦and knew that this was exactly the right reaction for her to have. It was foolishness to imagine that if had I been the one to ask her to the silly dance, she would have cancelled her hastily-made plans and agreed to go with me. I was not the one she was destined to say yes to. It was someone else, someone human and warm. And I could not even let myself – someday, when that yes was said – hunt him down and kill him, because she deserved him, whoever he was. She deserved happiness and love with whomever she chose. I owed it to her to do the right thing now; I could no longer pretend that I was only in danger of loving this girl. After all, it really didn't matter if I left, because Bella could never see me the way I wished she would. Never see me as someone worthy of love. Never. Could a dead, frozen heart break? It felt like mine would. â€Å"Edward,† Bella said. I froze, staring at her unopened eyes. Had she woken, caught me here? She looked asleep, yet her voice had been so clear†¦ She sighed a quiet sigh, and then moved restlessly again, rolling to her side – still fast asleep and dreaming. â€Å"Edward,† she mumbled softly. She was dreaming of me. Could a dead, frozen heart beat again? It felt like mine was about to. â€Å"Stay,† she sighed. â€Å"Don't go. Please†¦don't go.† She was dreaming of me, and it wasn't even a nightmare. She wanted me to stay with her, there in her dream. I struggled to find words to name the feelings that flooded through me, but I had no words strong enough to hold them. For a long moment, I drowned in them. When I surfaced, I was not the same man I had been. My life was an unending, unchanging midnight. It must, by necessity, always be midnight for me. So how was it possible that the sun was rising now, in the middle of my midnight? At the time that I had become a vampire, trading my soul and my mortality for immortality in the searing pain of transformation, I had truly been frozen. My body had turned into something more like rock than flesh, enduring and unchanging. My self, also, had frozen as it was – my personality, my likes and my dislikes, my moods and my desires; all were fixed in place. It was the same for the rest of them. We were all frozen. Living stone. When change came for one of us, it was a rare and permanent thing. I had seen it happen with Carlisle, and then a decade later with Rosalie. Love had changed them in an eternal way, a way that never faded. More than eighty years had passed since Carlisle had found Esme, and yet he still looked at her with the incredulous eyes of first love. It would always be that way for them. It would always be that way for me, too. I would always love this fragile human girl, for the rest of my limitless existence. I gazed at her unconscious face, feeling this love for her settle into every portion of my stone body. She slept more peacefully now, a slight smile on her lips. Always watching her, I began to plot. I loved her, and so I would try to be strong enough to leave her. I knew I wasn't that strong now. I would work on that one. But perhaps I was strong enough to circumvent the future in another way. Alice had seen only two futures for Bella, and now I understood them both. Loving her would not keep me from killing her, if I let myself make mistakes. Yet I could not feel the monster now, could not find him anywhere in me. Perhaps love had silenced him forever. If I killed her now, it would not be intentional, only a horrible accident. I would have to be inordinately careful. I would never, ever be able to let my guard down. I would have to control my every breath. I would have to keep an always cautious distance. I would not make mistakes. I finally understood that second future. I'd been baffled by that vision – what could possibly happen to result in Bella becoming a prisoner to this immortal half-life? Now – devastated by longing for the girl – I could understand how I might, in unforgivable selfishness, ask my father for that favor. Ask him to take away her life and her soul so that I could keep her forever. She deserved better. But I saw one more future, one thin wire that I might be able to walk, if I could keep my balance. Could I do it? Be with her and leave her human? Deliberately, I took a deep breath, and then another, letting her scent rip through me like wildfire. The room was thick with her perfume; her fragrance was layered on every surface. My head swam, but I fought the spinning. I would have to get used to this, if I were going to attempt any kind of relationship with her. I took another deep, burning breath. I watched her sleeping until the sun rose behind the eastern clouds, plotting and breathing. I got home just after the others had left for school. I changed quickly, avoiding Esme's questioning eyes. She saw the feverish light in my face, and she felt both worry and relief. My long melancholy had pained her, and she was glad it seemed to be over. I ran to school, arriving a few seconds after my siblings did. They did not turn, though Alice at least must have known that I stood here in the thick woods that bordered the pavement. I waited until no one was looking, and then I strolled casually from between the trees into the lot full of parked cars. I heard Bella's truck rumbling around the corner, and I paused behind a Suburban, where I could watch without being seen. She drove into the lot, glaring at my Volvo for a long moment before she parked in one of the most distant spaces, a frown on her face. It was strange to remember that she was probably still angry with me, and with good reason. I wanted to laugh at myself – or kick myself. All my plotting and planning was entirely moot if she didn't care for me, too, wasn't it? Her dream could have been about something completely random. I was such an arrogant fool. Well, it was so much the better for her if she didn't care for me. That wouldn't stop me from pursuing her, but I would give her fair warning as I pursued. I owed her that. I walked silently forward, wondering how best to approach her. She made it easy. Her truck key slipped through her fingers as she got out, and fell into a deep puddle. She reached down, but I got to it first, retrieving it before she had to put her fingers in the cold water. I leaned back against her truck as she started and then straightened up. â€Å"How do you do that?† she demanded. Yes, she was still angry. I offered her the key. â€Å"Do what?† She held her hand out, and I dropped the key in her palm. I took a deep breath, pulling in her scent. â€Å"Appear out of thin air,† she clarified. â€Å"Bella, it's not my fault if you are exceptionally unobservant.† The words were wry, almost a joke. Was there anything she didn't see? Did she hear how my voice wrapped around her name like a caress? She glared at me, not appreciating my humor. Her heartbeat sped – from anger? From fear? After a moment, she looked down. â€Å"Why the traffic jam last night?† she asked without meeting my eyes. â€Å"I thought you were supposed to be pretending I don't exist, not irritating me to death.† Still very angry. It was going to take some effort to make things right with her. I remembered my resolve to be truthful with her†¦ â€Å"That was for Tyler's sake, not mine. I had to give him his chance.† And then I laughed. I couldn't help it, thinking of her expression yesterday. â€Å"You – † she gasped, and then broke off, appearing to be too furious to finish. There it was – that same expression. I choked back another laugh. She was mad enough already. â€Å"And I'm not pretending you don't exist,† I finished. It was right to keep this casual, teasing. She would not understand if I let her see how I really felt. I would frighten her. I had to keep my feelings in check, keep things light†¦ â€Å"So you are trying to irritate me to death? Since Tyler's van didn't do the job?† A quick flash of anger pulsed through me. Could she honestly believe that? It was irrational for me to be so affronted – she didn't know of the transformation that had happened in the night. But I was angry all the same. â€Å"Bella, you are utterly absurd,† I snapped. Her face flushed, and she turned her back on me. She began to walk away. Remorse. I had no right to my anger. â€Å"Wait,† I pleaded. She did not stop, so I followed after her. â€Å"I'm sorry, that was rude. I'm not saying it isn't true† – it was absurd to imagine that I wanted her harmed in any way – â€Å"but it was rude to say it, anyway.† â€Å"Why won't you leave me alone?† Believe me, I wanted to say. I've tried. Oh, and also, I'm wretchedly in love with you. Keep it light. â€Å"I wanted to ask you something, but you sidetracked me.† A course of action had just occurred to me, and I laughed. â€Å"Do you have a multiple personality disorder?† she asked. It must seem that way. My mood was erratic, so many new emotions coursing through me. â€Å"You're doing it again,† I pointed out. She sighed. â€Å"Fine then. What do you want to ask?† â€Å"I was wondering if, a week from Saturday†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I watched the shock cross her face, and choked back another laugh. â€Å"You know, the day of the spring dance – â€Å" She cut me off, finally returning her eyes to mine. â€Å"Are you trying to be funny?† Yes. â€Å"Will you let me finish?† She waited in silence, her teeth pressing into her soft lower lip. That sight distracted me for a second. Strange, unfamiliar reactions stirred deep in my forgotten human core. I tried to shake them off so I could play my role. â€Å"I heard you say that you were going to Seattle that day, and I was wondering if you wanted a ride?† I offered. I'd realized that, better than just questioning her about her plans, I might share them. She stared at me blankly. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Do you want a ride to Seattle?† Alone in a car with her – my throat burned at the thought. I took a deep breath. Get used to it. â€Å"With who?† she asked, her eyes wide and bewildered again. â€Å"Myself, obviously,† I said slowly. â€Å"Why?† Was it really such as shock that I would want her company? She must have applied the worst possible meaning to my past behavior. â€Å"Well,† I said as casually as possible, â€Å"I was planning to go to Seattle in the next few weeks, and, to be honest, I'm not sure if your truck can make it.† It seemed safer to tease her than to allow myself to be serious. â€Å"My truck works just fine, thank you very much for your concern,† she said in the same surprised voice. She started walking again. I kept pace with her. She hadn't really said no, so I pressed that advantage. Would she say no? What would I do if she did? â€Å"But can your truck make it there on one tank of gas?† â€Å"I don't see how that is any of your business,† she grumbled. That still wasn't a no. And her heart was beating faster again, her breath coming more quickly. â€Å"The wasting of finite resources is everyone's business.† â€Å"Honestly, Edward, I can't keep up with you. I thought you didn't want to be my friend.† A thrill shot through me when she spoke my name. How to keep it light and yet be honest at the same time? Well, it was more important to be honest. Especially on this point. â€Å"I said it would be better if we weren't friends, not that I didn't want to be.† â€Å"Oh, thanks, now that's all cleared up,† she said sarcastically. She paused, under the edge of the cafeteria's roof, and met my gaze again. Her heartbeats stuttered. Was she afraid? I chose my words carefully. No, I could not leave her, but maybe she would be smart enough to leave me, before it was too late. â€Å"It would be more†¦prudent for you not to be my friend.† Staring into the melted chocolate depths of her eyes, I lost my hold on light. â€Å"But I'm tired of trying to stay away from you, Bella.† The words burned with much too much fervor. Her breathing stopped and, in the second it took for it to restart, that worried me. How much had I scared her? Well, I would find out. â€Å"Will you go to Seattle with me?† I demanded, point blank. She nodded, her heart drumming loudly. Yes. She'd said yes to me. And then my conscious smote me. What would this cost her? â€Å"You really should stay away from me,† I warned her. Did she hear me? Would she escape the future I was threatening her with? Couldn't I do anything to save her from me? Keep it light, I shouted at myself. â€Å"I'll see you in class.† I had to concentrate to stop myself from running as I fled.