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Exclusive Interview: James Morrison, of 24

Actor James Morrison chats with BuddyTV as he explores his character on 24, his successful acting path and other endeavors, which keeps him preoccupied.

Morrison, a 52-year old native of Bountiful, Utah, is a talented filmmaker, poet, playwright and actor. He started his career in the entertainment industry as a clown for an animal circus, which he is greatly unashamed of.

Growing up, he aspired to become an actor. He eventually landed an apprenticeship with the Alaska Repertory Theatre and appeared on television shows like Frasier, The X-Files, JAG, The West Wing and Six Feet Under.

On 24, he plays the Director of the Counter Terrorist Unit, Bill Buchanan.

He started out as a guest star on the series mid-way through the fourth season of 2005 and eventually became part of the main cast in the fifth season in 2006.

His inclusion to 24 actually came as a surprise as he did not really anticipate that he would win the part, nor is he familiar with the action thriller series back then. And although he is immensely grateful he landed the part, he admits that being an actor has made him deal with difficult choices in life, especially when it comes to his family.

Nevertheless, he is overly pleased that he is part of 24. In fact, he wants to linger on the show for as long as he can. His inclusion on the series gives him the opportunity to play a character that is prudent in making decisions as a boss. Even though his character has a straight and uptight persona, he asserts that his character gives him enough challenge for him to further hone his performance. On the other hand, he doesn’t mind if he gets involved in a little action every now and then like Kiefer Sutherland’s character, Jack Bauer.

At present, he is working on a documentary film with his wife, Riad Gajayani, entitled Showing Up.

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How to Get Your Staff to Bend Over Backwards for You No Matter What

The constant struggle to get people to want to work for you is an enigma most business owners wrestle with. I have isolated successful methods through growing my multi-million dollar company from the ground up. In my experience it all comes down to how you want to be treated. I was raised in a lovey-dovey family where my parents wanted me to feel great about myself. Maybe it is because I was raised Jewish and all Jewish mothers think their children are superior – who knows… Whatever the reason, I grew up hearing and believing I could do anything.

That kind of confidence instilled in me led me to believe that I could instill that confidence in others. When I first started out I could not afford to hire expensive help and found the most successful type of personnel for my business were young, inexperienced adults in their late teens that had an abundance of willingness. And I do mean an abundance of it – in my viewpoint, there is no better commodity.

A Little Bit Goes a Long Way

My Senior Vice President over Operations and Quality Control who now manages six other executives and a colossal number of employees was only 19 years old when she started with me. Now she is 27. She had that willingness, but virtually no experience. I recall then that she wanted $10.00 per hour. I would only give her $9.00 but I gave her an incentive – to prove to me she was worth it before I consented to that kind of pay (which was a lot of money to me at the time). She did so well that I gave her $11.50 per hour within two weeks of her hire date.

That little bit extra that I did went a long way. She took notice and she consistently proved to me that she could do even more. That was the first time I noticed that rewarding your employees for hard work really paid off. Today, she makes a six-figure income and earns every penny.

I love to validate and reward the staff – it is a driving force of mine in my company. We have an “employee of the month” that gets company recognition and a designated parking space as well as an “employee of the year” that gets a three-day trip to the Big Apple, plus spending money. Not to mention the runner up gets no short shrift. And my employees work their tails off for those coveted prizes, but mainly for the pride they feel after doing so well. The stipulations are that they go above and beyond the call of duty and really set great examples for the rest of the group. I’ve never seen such stellar work from staff at other companies that don’t acknowledge and don’t reward – I know because I used to work at them.

More Freedom = More Responsibility

A major factor in increasing the responsibility level of the employees is giving them more freedom and responsibility. If you do, they will own their position. The best employees are those that really take ownership of their position and run it like it was their very own company. You may think that it is a bit precarious to let someone run their area like it was their own company because what if they took it way off course from what you had designed where that organization would go? Well, I found that the more freedom I gave my executives to do the job the way they thought it should be done based on their understanding of the company’s goals, they became even better at what they did. That really opened my eyes. It was like the circle of life – they would do better and better to warrant the responsibility I had given them.

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Maintaining your Road Bike. Some simple rules to follow.

As every one knows a bike that is kept clean and tidy will work much better than one that is dirty. However before your proceed to carry out any maintenance on your road bike you should ensure that it is clean, but this does not mean just giving it a quick wipe over with a cloth, rather you should spend time cleaning it correctly and there are a few essential items that you will need to carry out the work property. You may find yourself having to spend a little cash on getting some equipment that is specifically for your bike, but most of it will be found around the house (a good place to look is under the sink).

Certainly the first pieces of equipment that you will need are as follows:-

A work stand for your bike (or if not then a wall or a tree will do just as nicely for placing your bike against).

Secondly you will need an old rear hub or axle or a stick.

Then you need to get some degreaser (or if you want you can use diesel fuel instead, but be careful when using diesel to wear gloves or some form of protection as it can cause damage to your hands).

Plenty of hot water, washing up liquid, 2 buckets (one which contains soapy water and the other with just water), a paint brush (for getting into all those awkward places, and old water bottle and bottle brush, a soft scrubbing brush, two sponges and several cloths.

You will also need oil (for the chain, the cogs and around the wheels and their axles).

If you want to give your bike an extra bit of shine then don’t forget the spray polish (but keep it away from the chain area).

However, one of the most important things you should remember when cleaning your bike is to be aware of anything that may need repairing or fixing and which can be carried out later (this is the way a mechanic will do it who works for a professional team, and don’t forget he can have up to 10 bikes to look after) so it is certainly a lot easier for you as you only have the one to worry about.

So where do you begin?

The best place to start when cleaning your bike is the wheels, remember the old water bottle in the list above, well cut the top off of that and pour in some degreaser. You could if you want use a spray degreaser, but the problem with this type is a lot get wasted. Using the paint brush work the degreaser into the bikes sprockets (make sure that you do not put too much on to the bearings), then leave for a little while (allowing the degreaser a chance to work its magic) and then with some hot water with washing up liquid scrub the sprockets clean and then after that scrub the rims of the tyres (making sure that you remove any old brake block residue that you see, you can use some degreaser on this if it helps, but ensure that you do not get it near the tyres).

The next task is to clean the tyres themselves using a soft scrubbing brush, whilst you are doing this you can check them to see if there are any cuts in the tread that may result in a puncture later on. Also it is a good idea to inspect the tyre rims for any damage or if they are just wearing thin. Then with a soap sponge clean the spokes of the wheels and rinse them off using clean water and allow them dry, but do not place them in direct sunlight.

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How to Become a Motivational Speaker

Quite simply, the only way to become a motivational speaker is to train with someone. To begin with you have to decide what market you want to target. You must choose from a field that includes but is not limited to finance, real estate, investing, religion, teen speakers, sales techniques and many more subjects of interest to companies and groups of people around the globe.

Pick your area of expertise or at least the subject you would like to speak to others about. Then seek out and pursue the best motivational speakers in that arena. Go and hear what they have to say and how they go about getting their message across. Are they keynote speakers or just the warm up guys beforehand? You won’t start out as a keynote speaker until you have some sort of following, some type of record behind you. But if you are gifted and you study and work heard, learn the basics, you have a chance to go to the top as quickly as anybody else does.

Leading motivational speakers often offer classes as well as books and other teaching aides to create new motivational speakers. This may sound strange. Why would a person at the top of his profession offer instruction on how to be a competitor? For the simple reason that the more people who are out there in the world, speaking about his teaching methods and using his motivational speaker training techniques, the more you work the more in demand he will become as a keynote speaker. You have to start somewhere and taking your training as a student of the guys at the top is the quickest way to get yourself hired to speak at someone’s convention.

When a simple seminar or evening of lectures is not enough to achieve desired results, some companies hire extreme motivational speakers to come in and deliver a heavier blow. These people concentrate on one thing and one thing only – making businesses more profitable from the minute the speaker is done speaking. Like all motivational speakers, the extreme speakers also offer extreme motivational speaker training designed to make you one of the foot soldiers who can go out and espouse his methods of generating more sales, or collecting those receivables, or capturing a bigger market share or whatever his particular slant is, to a number of businesses. The market is almost limitless for extreme motivational speakers, the more the merrier, and a good student always help to make a teacher look even better.

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Age does not matter

As the old and overly utilized cliché goes; “Age does not matter.” This statement would pertain not merely to the daily facets of everyday living but it would also be an appropriate statement for laws abhorring discrimination on the basis of age.

Age has been one of the primordial considerations when it comes to employment discrimination cases. Even the Employment Act which was ordained into law in 1967 provides the ample protection afforded to individuals subjected to age discrimination. Not only would this cover employees but even those applying for a prospective position as well. The code explicitly provides that it shall be unlawful to discriminate against any person on the sole account of his/her age with respect to any term, condition, or privilege of employment. This consequently includes: hiring, firing, promotion, lay-off, compensation, training, benefits, and job assignments. Congruently, even supplementary acts like retaliating against an individual for conveying an opposition against employment practices that revolves on an age discrimination issue, like filing a complaint, participating in any investigation to that effect, testifying, or proceeding with litigation are also prohibited under the law.

Job advertisement can also be construed as a primary source of discrimination on account of age. Age limits explicitly included on job notices can only be considered as valid if it can be vividly proven that it is an occupational qualification done in good faith, and that said requirement is reasonably necessary in the businesses ordinary course. If these two conditions have not been complied with, then it is repugnant to existing legislations which prohibit age preferences or specifications included on advertisements and job notices.

A prerogative is given to the employer to inquire into an applicant’s age or date of birth. But despite this right, if said query would operate to deter older yet, otherwise qualified workers from venturing into said work then discrimination on the basis of age is already prevalent.

Governing is the rule that workers performing the same task without regard to their age must be given the same privileges and benefits without any favour whatsoever. Denial of benefits to older employees is proscribed if the older employee can perform the same task, with the same cost of benefits afforded to younger employees. In simpler terms, in ceteris paribus, when everything is held constant, then no undue privileges must be given on account of age of the industry’s employees.

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How to Negotiate Like A Pro In Long-term Negotiations.

Ever notice that negotiations usually go much better when there is a history of trust from previous successful negotiations? That is no accident. The good will that is built up over the years allows the other party to accept your positions at face value. However those negotiations can get flat and you might want to try something new as well. Here are some tips to build on that long term relationships during negotiations.

Look To The Past For Inspiration.
Usually I say look to the future, and that the past is called the past for a reason. That is because the usual negotiations are unsuccessful and the past may be a source of frustration and pain. However, when there is a history of successful negotiations, the negotiations themselves are a source for study. Try to analyze what has worked and what might need improvement. Even if you are pleased with the results, what could make the negotiations better? For example, you could ask questions like the following:
1. Was I prepared enough?
2. Did I give in too soon?
3. Were any mistakes made?
4. What worked and would I use that technique again?
5. What did not work and how can I improve?

Look To The Past for Pitfalls or Drawbacks

Even though successful negotiations predict further successful negotiations, negotiations with the same parties for several years do have some drawbacks or pitfalls. The negotiations can be predictable and even boring and the parties can become complacent. The parties anticipate what the other side is going to do so that there is no element of surprise. When it is time to close the deal, they are more likely just to split the difference. Negotiations repeated over the years can go flat. As they say, familiarity can breed contempt. If the parties know each other’s moves, they can predict where the negotiations are going. Sometimes the negotiators just go through the motions and don’t put much thought into the process. Each person has a role and they just go back and forth as they always have. Sometimes the expectations are fairly low and that can affect the bottom line

Try Something New
You might want to assign some different people to the negotiating team or pick a new chief negotiator to shake things up. You might want to add a new formula for the payment of fees. You might try to ask for something new this year, something you really want. You might start in a different order. Start with the important items if you have been starting with the easy items. Maybe you want to start all over again and start from scratch and build a new contract. This is fairly drastic but might be worth a try. If you are happy with last year’s contract, then you might want to think of some brand new provisions. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

Be Prudent

Even though you may want to try something new, be prudent on how you implement it. Don’t risk everything just for the sake of trying something new. Experiment by trying one or two minor changes and see how it works. Don’t allow years of successful negotiations to be jeopardized for the sake of innovation. You will need to assess the situation to see if the tried and true is still working or whether the parties have become complacent and need some new strategies at the negotiation table.

In conclusion, a long term negotiations are usually built on mutual trust and will likely predict good future negotiations. However, it will up to you to decide whether the parties are complacent and caught up in a routine or are already at their peak performance. You may have to try something new to put some new zest in the negotiations. Or you may want to continue the techniques that have worked in the past. The point is that there should be a review to determine the strategies for future negotiations.

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The Best Way to Organize Your Day

Many people use a to-do list to help organize their day. While it is true that any to-do list is better than having none, there is a “best way” to use to-do lists to maximize your productivity.

Most people either put too little on their to-do list or they put too much. If you put too little then you are not really organizing yourself and the list will be of little help. If you put too much then that can have two potential problems; either you have so much that you haven’t really provided any organizing structure or you have so much that just looking at it over whelms you.

The solution to this problem is to use the Six Key Activities System. This concept of working to a list of six key activities was first developed around one hundred years ago and has be refined since then into a highly efficient system.

The story goes that Charles Schwab, the president of the largest steel company in the world at that time, was approached by a man with the original six key activities system. He told Schwab to write day the six most important objectives for his day, then prioritize them, and then focus on achieving those six goals. Any that he did not achieve in the day he was to move to top priority on the next day’s list of six.

This man suggested that Schwab try this system for 30 days and then pay him what he thought the advice had been worth. Schwab did this and at the end of the 30 days paid the man $25,000. At this time in history most workers were earning less than $1,000 per year so $25,000 was a fortune. If the president of one of the largest companies in the world thinks this simple system was so valuable to him then perhaps you should be using it too.

In the hundred years that has past since then we have learned a lot about how the human mind works and as a result have further refined this brilliant system. Here is how it is used today.

Always prepare your list at the end of the day before. Science has discovered that the subconscious mind spends approximately half of your sleeping time in digesting the day’s events and organizing them into patterns that will determine how you operate in life. If you prepare your list at the end of the day then that list will become a part of the subconscious organizing and will therefore be easier to accomplish the next day.

Here’s the way to do it.

Step 1: You start by reviewing the just completed day and ask yourself what you achieved and whether or not those achievements took you a step closer to your goal.

Step 2: Brainstorm everything that you have to do the next day and make sure that you include actions toward your major goals.

Step 3: Read your list and see how many of those things you can delegate to someone else.

Step 4: Select the six most important items and place them in order of priority on your Six Key Actions list.

Step 5: Start each day by reading over your Six Key Action list that you prepared the day before.

Step 6: Focus on achieving those six key items during the day. As you complete each task mark it off and jot down a brief result of your actions.

Step 7: Start the process again at the end of the day. If you have any items left on your list make sure that they are the top priority on your next day list.

If you make a habit of following this simple seven step process then you will discover why Charles Schwab happily paid ten times the average wage for this valuable productivity system.

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