One such person passed away this weekend: William P. Foster, whose obituary runs in today’s New York Times. Foster was a consummate outsider — an African-American clarinetist who aspired to become a symphony conductor, only to realize that his race prevented him from attaining that position.

So instead Foster decided to reinvent the marching band. He abandoned the staid, military-style, Sousa-centric, lockstep approach prevalent at most football half-times — and replaced it with “shows that infused black popular culture into his routines, blending contemporary music, often jazz or rock, with imaginative choreography, his green-and-orange uniformed band members carrying their instruments at a 45-degree angle, legs bent to the same angle.”

These action-packed, dynamic shows were huge crowd pleasers. Foster’s Florida A&M Marching 100 ended up performing for presidents and prime ministers. And along the way, he — like other innovators of his ilk — established not just a new standard, but a new vernacular for his profession. To get a small taste, check out the clip below. Then ponder how you can be more like the man students called “The Maestro.”

In other words, the Mets have spent about $816 million more than the Marlins to win five more games and one fewer title.”

(Source: NY Times, 25.08.2011)

Previous Sunday Telegraph columns:
July: Can you speak human at work?
June: Is Bob the Builder the ideal leadership role model?
May: Could ending sales commissions increase sales?

Not bad. It’s simple, clever, and no doubt effective. The only thing missing is a third peg that says “NO WAY.”

• One in five Americans believes our President is a Muslim. Equally scary, 25 percent of Americans believe that Muslims are not patriotic Americans.  Three cheers for the combo platter of ignorance and intolerance!  (Somebody please listen to what Colin Powell says at 4:40 of this video.)

• Nearly 20 percent of New York City’s public schools lack a certified teacher in even one of the arts disciplines, reports The New York Observer.  My guess is that other school districts around the country, especially in a time of tight budgets, aren’t much different. (Meanwhile, China is a taking a very different approach.)

• But it doesn’t seem that de-emphasizing art education is boosting other literacies. According to The Wall Street Journal, “fewer than 25% of 2010 graduates who took the ACT college-entrance exam possessed the academic skills necessary to pass entry-level courses.”

Sigh.

COPYRIGHT CAUTION: As you know, copyright protection of original intellectual property is a big deal, particularly to the content authors and publishers. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that unauthorized copying or sharing of files, passwords, or access is prohibited. Bluntly, this activity is illegal. As with most things in life, it’s best to just do the right thing.

PREVIOUS TIPS:
Tip #1 — Never get sick again
Tip #2 — The magic of earplugs
Tip #3 — Four road food rules of thumb
Tip #4 — The rule of HAHU
Tip #5 — More hygiene!
Tip #6 — Staying connected
Tip #7 — Zipping through security lines
Tip #8 — One thing you should never do in a hotel room
Tip #9 — The secret(s) to beating jet lag

Then I lay down a challenge: For the next seven days, don’t say anything to your boss, your staff, your teammate, your supplier or your customer that you wouldn’t say to your spouse or your friend.

Think you can do it?

Pink’s Travel Tips — Intro
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #1
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #2
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #3
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #4
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #5
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #6
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #7
Pink’s Travel Tips — Tip #8

“In China there has been widespread education reform to extinguish the drill-and-kill teaching style. Instead, Chinese schools are also adopting a problem-based learning approach.

“[Indiana University professor Jonathan] Plucker recently toured a number of such schools in Shanghai and Beijing. He was amazed by a boy who, for a class science project, rigged a tracking device for his moped with parts from a cell phone. When faculty of a major Chinese university asked Plucker to identify trends in American education, he described our focus on standardized curriculum, rote memorization, and nationalized testing. “After my answer was translated, they just started laughing out loud,” Plucker says. “They said, ‘You’re racing toward our old model. But we’re racing toward your model, as fast as we can.’”

(Full story)