This January I Switched to Apple. What are You Tolerating in Your Life

This January I Switched to Apple. What are You Tolerating in Your Life I’d say it was a long time coming, given that I’ve had nothing but problems with my Dell PCs for the last †¦ oh †¦ 20 years? For the most recent 3 or so of those 20, several of my friends and colleagues have been begging and pleading with me to convert to Apple. Did I listen? No. Changing just seemed like way too much work. Then, in January, I hit a limit. My 1-year-old Windows 8 computer, whose operating system I had just reinstalled, was not working any better than it was before I reinstalled it. My programs were constantly going to â€Å"Not Responding.† Tech support could not fix the problem and was telling me I needed a more powerful computer with more RAM. Sales was telling me the 8 GB of RAM on my current computer should be plenty. I figured either sales was wrong or tech support was wrong, and Dell should either fix the problem or give me some amount of credit toward a new computer. They claimed to be unable to do either. It was decision time, and I was DONE with Dell. Perhaps you are celebrating, along with many of my friends, colleagues and even distant acquaintances, that I waltzed into an Apple store and bought a MacBook Pro. In the end, this change happened in an instant. It wasn’t easy getting up to speed on the MacBook. The delete button drives me crazy. The command button is located in the most inconvenient spot I can imagine. My files are all organized differently now. Outlook was downloading all my email repeatedly and I had to get tech support to get a duplicate deletion program. I needed a new way to access my accountant’s server so I could use my QuickBooks program. I had to call HP support to get my printer working wirelessly. I blew out two adaptors trying to connect the Mac to an external monitor. And there’s more. This is why I did not want to switch to a Mac. But get this: The computer doesn’t use battery power while it’s asleep. It wakes up immediately. I can leave my house carrying my laptop and no power cord and trust that the battery will last. The programs work and don’t slow down on me ever. And iCal integrates with Google Calendar without a 3rd party program! Most of the issues I faced were ramping up issues and are all resolved. And I get all the good stuff. I’m starting to be a proud Mac user. My question out of all of this is, â€Å"Why the heck did I wait so long?† You can ask any of my close friends and relatives and they will attest to the fact that I was spending hours upon hours with Dell tech support for years. I have never been happy with a Dell computer! And yet, I resisted change. Pure and simple. I kept choosing to upgrade to a â€Å"better† Dell, hoping it would solve my problems. It never did. People do this. Look at how many people stay in relationships that require hours of conversation to try to make them work. Look at how many of these people move in together, or get married, thinking that the â€Å"upgrade† will help. Or they have children in order to fix their relationship. Now that’s an upgrade! We so often avoid the risk of starting over with someone else because it would require an unknown amount of work – even if we have a strong inkling that ultimately the benefits would justify the investment. We resist change even if all our friends are telling us to â€Å"switch to Apple.† Many of us stay in jobs that are not a good fit. Even if we’re miserable, at least we’re dealing with a known quantity. I myself kept working for 10 years as a lawyer, because it was safe and provided a living wage, even though there was no amount of adjusting and mind talk that could make me enjoy that job. I even accepted a promotion (my â€Å"upgrade†) before reaching my breaking point and starting something new. The February issue of LeaderMag featured an article by Bruce Hodes, Five Ogres and an Angel, about the resistance to change in organizations. I love this quote which he shares: â€Å"Change is hard because people overestimate the value of what they have and underestimate the value of what they may gain by giving that up.† James Belasco and Ralph Stayer, Flight of the Buffalo (1994). Hodes asserts that two of the main elements blocking change are â€Å"comfort† and â€Å"drift.† Comfort is something we’re all familiar with. We humans like things to stay the same. We get attached to our routines like a warm blanket, even if they aren’t serving us. And drift, the pull of the current always in the same direction (toward the status quo), affects us whether in our homes or workplaces. Hodes’ advice: â€Å"Trust your intuition- be convinced that even in the face of resistance this is the way forward.† The payoff according to Hodes is Performance Improvement. I certainly got that with my MacBook Pro. My question to you is: Where in your life are you resisting change, falling victim to comfort and drift, when you really know it’s time to make a move? Where is there room for performance improvement in your life? Maybe it’s time to stop â€Å"upgrading† what you already have and to start something new.

Presidential Retirement Benefits

Presidential Retirement Benefits Presidential retirement benefits were non-existent until the enactment of the Former Presidents Act (FPA) in 1958. Since then, presidential retirement benefits have included a lifetime annual pension, staff and office allowances, travel expenses, Secret Service protection, and more. The FPA was inspired by former President Harry Trumans life of modest means after leaving office. Though Truman lived well more than a decade after the acts passage, it didnt apply him. Former President Dwight D. Eisenhower became its first beneficiary. Pension Former presidents are offered a taxable lifetime pension equal to the annual rate of basic pay for the heads of executive branch departments, like the Cabinet Secretaries. This amount is set annually by Congress and is currently  $210,700  per year. The pension starts the minute the president officially leaves office at noon on Inauguration Day. Widows of former presidents are provided with a $20,000 annual lifetime pension and mailing privileges  unless they choose to waive their right to the pension. In 1974, the Justice Department ruled that presidents who resign from office before their official terms of office expire are entitled to the same lifetime pension and benefits extended to other former presidents. However, presidents who are removed from office due to impeachment forfeit all benefits. Transition Expenses For the first seven months, beginning one month before the January 20 inauguration, former presidents get transition funding to help them transition back into private life. Granted under the Presidential Transition Act, the funds can be used for office space, staff compensation, communications services, and printing and postage associated with the transition. The amount provided is determined by Congress. Staff and Office Allowances Six months after a president leaves office, they get funds for an office staff. During the first 30 months after leaving office, the former president gets a maximum of $150,000 per year for this purpose. Thereafter, the Former Presidents Act stipulates that the aggregate rates of staff compensation for a former president cannot exceed $96,000 annually. Any additional staff costs must be paid for personally by the former president. Former presidents are compensated for office space and office supplies at any location in the United States. Funds for former presidents office space and equipment are authorized annually by Congress as part of the budget for the General Services Administration (GSA). Travel Expenses Under a law enacted in 1968, the GSA makes funds available to former presidents and no more than two of their staff members for travel and related expenses. To be compensated, the travel must be related to the former presidents status as an official representative of the United States government. Travel for pleasure is not compensated. The GSA determines all appropriate costs for travel. Secret Service Protection With the enactment of the Former Presidents Protection Act of 2012 (H.R. 6620), on Jan. 10, 2013, former presidents and their spouses receive Secret Service protection for their lifetimes. Under the Act, protection for the spouses of former presidents terminates in the event of remarriage. Children of former presidents receive protection until they reach age 16. The Former Presidents Protection Act of 2012 reversed a law enacted in 1994 that terminated Secret Service protection for former presidents 10 years after they left office. Richard Nixon is the only former president to have given up his Secret Service protection. He did so in 1985 and paid for his own security, saying his reason was to save the government money. (The savings were estimated to be about $3 million a year.) Medical Expenses Former presidents and their spouses, widows, and minor children are entitled to treatment in military hospitals. Former presidents and their dependents also have the option of enrolling in private health insurance plans at their own expense. State Funerals Former presidents are traditionally granted state funerals with military honors. Details of the funeral are based on the wishes of the former presidents family. Failed Attempt to Cut Retirement In April 2015, Congress passed a bill titled The Presidential Allowance Modernization Act, which would have capped the pensions of all former and future former presidents at $200,000 and removed the current provision in the Former Presidents Act linking presidential pensions to the annual salaries of cabinet secretaries. The bill would have also reduced the other allowances paid to former presidents. Annual pensions and allowances would have been limited to a total of no more than $400,000. But on July 22, 2016, President Barack Obama vetoed the bill stating it â€Å"would impose onerous and unreasonable burdens on the offices of former presidents.† In a press release, the White House added that Obama also objected to provisions of the bill that would â€Å"immediately terminate salaries and all benefits to staffers carrying out the official duties of former presidents- leaving no time or mechanism for them to transition to another payroll.†Ã¢â‚¬â€¹