The Sole Proprietorship And Partnership Forms Business Essay

The Sole Proprietorship And Partnership Forms Business Essay When I doing this assignment I know that Business environment is that which surrounds a business. It affects a business. It is dynamic in the sense it keeps changing. Since it is composed of many factors, it is important for a company to study and monitor its environment carefully. This is so that the business does not go wrong in its planning process for its current and future plans. The changes in the environment may be good or bad for a particular business. They can affect the business in a positive or a negative way. It becomes essential to monitor the environment, especially the external, uncontrollable part of the environment. Since there are innumerable components that make up the total environment, a careful understanding of each and the implications of the changes of each factor need to be done. This facilitates the strategic planning process. Just as a human being take decisions based on his or his surrounding environment, example: parent, siblings, peer group, teachers, ro le models, health, attitude, socio-economic status. Other than that, when I doing this assignment I understand that Sole Proprietorship and Partnership. I also know that A business owned by a single owner is referred to as a sole proprietorship. The owner of a sole proprietorship is called a sole proprietor. A sole proprietor may obtain loans from creditors to help finance the firms operations, but these loans do not represent ownership. The sole proprietor is obligated to cover any payments resulting from the loans but does not need to share the business profits with creditors. Typical examples of sole proprietorships include a local restaurant, a local construction firm, a barber shop, a laundry service, and a local clothing store. About 70 percent of all firms in the United States are sole proprietorship. But because these firms are relatively small, they generate less than 10 percent of all business revenue. The earnings generated by a sole proprietorship are considered to be personal income received by the proprietor and are subj ect to personal income taxes collected by the Internal Revenue Service. Introduction of Business When I study this subject, I understand the importance of business. I know that, business can be defined as a person, partnership, or cooperation that seeks to provide goods and services to others at a profit. Besides that, this course can have a major impact on your career direction and future success regardless of whether you major in business, the sciences, or the liberal arts. Whatever you major may be, you are likely to end up pursuing a career in a business setting. For example, if you major in science, you may work for a biotechnology firm and can benefit from an understanding of business concepts such as managing an organization, working with employees, and managing employees. If you select journalism as a major, you may work for a media or publishing firm and, therefore, can benefit from an understanding of business concepts such as providing a product desired by consumers. Business concepts such as creating ideas, leadership, teamwork, and quality control are relevant to al most everyone, no matter what career is chosen. An Introduction to Business course provides the foundation of business knowledge that can enable you to utilize your talents in the business world. It also provides you with an overview of many different business worlds. It also provides you with an overview of many different business topics, allowing you to determine the specific field of business. Introduction of Business Environment Business environment is that which surrounds a business. It affects a business. It is dynamic in the sense it keeps changing. Since it is composed of many factors, it is important for a company to study and monitor its environment carefully. This is so that the business does not go wrong in its planning process for its current and future plans. The changes in the environment may be good or bad for a particular business. They can affect the business in a positive or a negative way. It becomes essential to monitor the environment, especially the external, uncontrollable part of the environment. Since there are innumerable components that make up the total environment, a careful understanding of each and the implications of the changes of each factor need to be done. This facilitates the strategic planning process. Just as a human being take decisions based on his or his surrounding environment, example: parent, siblings, peer group, teachers, role models, health, attitude, socio-econom ic status. 1.2 The Economic and Legal Environment People are willing to start new businesses if they believe that the risk of losing their money isnt too great. Part of that risk involves the economic system and how government works with or against businesses. Government can do a lot to lessen the risk of starting businesses and thus increase entrepreneurship and wealth. For example, a government can keep taxes and regulations to a minimum. Another way for government to actively promote entrepreneurship is to allow private ownership of businesses. In some countries, the government owns most businesses, and theres little incentive for people to work hard or create profit. All around the world today, however, governments are selling those businesses to private individual to create more wealth. One of the best things the governments of developing countries can do is to minimize interference with the free exchange of goods and services. 1.3 The Technological Environment Technological factors sometimes pose serious problems. A firm that unable to cope with technological changes may not be survived. Further, the differing technological environment of different markets or countries may be called for product modifications. Besides that, Technology also is the most important elements of the macro environment. Furthermore Technology is the human being innovation and it literally wonder Technology helps to human being go to the moon, travelling the spaceships, other side of the globe with few hours. Advances in the technologies have facilitated product improvements and introduction of new products and have considerably improved the marketability of the products. The fast changes in technologies also create problems for enterprises as that render. Plants and product obsolete. Today adopt changers in technology to achieve successful in business and industry. Internet and telecom system also is the important part of technological development in the world. These things today changed whole world. It changes people and business operation. It leads to many new business opportunities apart from the many existing systems. Technological environment characteristics are outlined: The find of technological change Opportunities are arising out of technological developments. Risk and uncertain is the major feature of the technological developments. Research and development role to country Technology and business activities are to be highly considerable, interrelated and interdependent. Technology output/fruits available to society through business activities in this way improve the quality of life in the society. Therefore, technology nurtured by business. 1.4 The Social Environment Demography is the statistical study of the human population with regard to its size, density, and other characteristics such as age, race, gender, and income. The particularly interested in the demographic trends that most affect business and career choices. Managing Diversity has come to mean much more than recruiting and keeping minorities and women. Many more groups are now included in diversity efforts. For example, the list of 26 diversity groups identified by Federated Department Stores includes seniors, the disable, homosexuals, atheists, extroverts, introverts, married people, singles, and the devout. 1.5 The Global Environment The global environment may affect all firms directly or indirectly. Some firm rely on foreign countries for some of their supplies or sell their products in various countries. They may even establish subsidiaries in foreign countries where they can products and sell to them. Even if a firm is not planning to sell its products in foreign countries, it must be aware of the global environment because it may face foreign competition when it sells its product locally. Furthermore, global economic conditions can affect local economic conditions. It economic condition weaken in foreign countries, the foreign demand for U.S. products will decrease. Consequently, sales by U.S. firms will decrease, and this may result in some layoffs. The general income level in the United state will decline, and U.S. consumers will have less money to spend. The demand for all products will decline, even those that are sold only in the United States. Thus, even firms that have no international business can be affected by the global environment. 1.5.1 How Global Changes Affect You As businesses expand to serve global markets, new jobs will be created in both manufacturing and service industries. U.S. exports are expected to continue to increase under new trade agreements that will lead to expansion of the job market both in the United States and globally. Global trade also means global competition. The students who will prosper are those who are prepared for the markets of tomorrow. That means that you must prepare yourself now to compete in a rapidly changing worldwide environment. Conclusion Introduction of Ownerships When entrepreneurs establish a business, they must decide on the form of business ownership. There are three basic forms of business ownership: sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation. The form that is chosen can affect the profitability, risk, and value of the firm. The business ownership decision determines how the earnings of a business are distributed among the owners of the business, the degree of liability of each owner, the degree of control that each owner has in running the business, the potential return of the business, and the risk of the business. These types of decisions are necessary for all business. Sole Proprietorship A business owned by a single owner is referred to as a sole proprietorship. The owner of a sole proprietorship is called a sole proprietor. A sole proprietor may obtain loans from creditors to help finance the firms operations, but these loans do not represent ownership. The sole proprietor is obligated to cover any payments resulting from the loans but does not need to share the business profits with creditors. Typical examples of sole proprietorships include a local restaurant, a local construction firm, a barber shop, a laundry service, and a local clothing store. About 70 percent of all firms in the United States are sole proprietorship. But because these firms are relatively small, they generate less than 10 percent of all business revenue. The earnings generated by a sole proprietorship are considered to be personal income received by the proprietor and are subject to personal income taxes collected by the Internal Revenue Service. Characteristics of Sole Proprietors Sole proprietors must be willing to accept full responsibility for the firms performance. The pressure of this responsibility can be must greater than any employees responsibility. Besides of this, Sole proprietors must also be willing to work flexible hours. They are on call at all times and may even have to substitute for a sick employee. Other than that, their responsibility for the success of the business encourages them to continually monitor business operations. They must exhibit strong leadership skills, be well organized, and communicate skill well with employees. Many successful sole proprietors had precious work experience in the market in which they are competing, perhaps as an employee in a competitors firm. For example, restaurant managers commonly establish their own restaurant. Experience is critical to understanding the competition and the behavior of customers in a particular market. Advantages of a Sole Proprietorship Easy Organization Establishing a sole proprietorship is relatively easy. The legal requirements are minimal. A sole proprietorship need not establish a separate legal entity. The owner must register the firm with the state, which can normally be done by mail. The owner may also need to apply for an occupational license to conduct a particular type of business. The specific license requirements vary with the state and even the city where the business is located. Complete control Having only one owner with complete control of the firm eliminates the chance of conflicts during the decision on the menu, the prices, and the salaries paid to employees. Lower Taxes Because the earnings in a proprietorship are considered to be personal income, they may be subject to lower taxes than those imposed on some other forms of business ownership. Total Decision-Making Authority Because the sole proprietor is in total control of the operations, he or she can respond quickly to changes, which is an asset in a rapidly shifting market. The freedom to set the companys course of action is a major motivational force. For those who thrive on the enjoyment of seeking new proprietors thrive on the feeling of control they have over their personal financial futures and the recognition they earn as the owners of their business. Disadvantages of a Sole Proprietorship The Sole Proprietor Incurs All Losses Just as sole proprietors do not have to share the profits, they are unable to share any losses that the firm incurs. For example, assume you invest $10,000 of your funds in a lawn service and borrow an additional $8,000 that you invest in the business. Unfortunately, the revenue is barely sufficient to pay salaries to your employees, and you terminate the firm. You have not only lost all of your $10,000 investment in the firm but also are liable for $8,000 that you borrowed. Since you are the sole proprietor, no other owners are available to help cover the losses. Unlimited Liability A sole proprietor is subject to unlimited liability, which means there is no limit on the debts for which the owner is liable. If a sole proprietors is sued, the sole proprietor is personally liable for an judgment against that firm. Limited Skills A sole proprietor has limited skills and may be unable to control all parts of the business. For example, a sole proprietor may have difficulty running a large medical practice because different types of expertise may be needed. Limited Funds A sole proprietor may have limited funds available to invest in the firm. Thus, sole proprietors have difficulty engaging in airplane manufacturing, shipbuilding, computer manufacturing, and other business that require substantial funds. Sole proprietors have limited funds to support the firms expansion or to absorb temporary losses. A poorly performing firm may improve if given sufficient time. But if this firm cannot obtain additional funds to make up for its losses, it may not be able to continue in business long enough to recover. Partnership A business that is co-owned by two people or more than two people is referred to as a partnership. The co-owners of the business are called partners. The co-owners must register the partnership with the state and may need to apply for an occupation license. About 10 percent of all firms are partnerships. Besides of this, in a general partnership, all partners have unlimited liability. That is, the partners are personally liable for all obligations of the firm. Conversely, in a limited partnership, the firm has some limited partners, or partners whose liability is limited to the cash or property they contributed to the partnerships. Limited partners are only investors in the partnership and do not participate in its management, but because they have invested in the business, they share its profits or losses. A limited partnership has one or more general partners, or partners who manage the business, receive a salary, share the profits or losses of the business, and have unlimited liab ility. The earnings distributed to each partners represent personal income and are subject to personal income taxes collect by the IRS. Disadvantages of Partnerships Lack of Continuity If one partner dies, complications arise. Partnership interest is often nontransferable through inheritance because the remaining partner may not want to be in a partnership with the person who inherits the deceased partners interest. Partners can make provisions in the partnership agreement to avoid dissolution due to death if all parties agree to accept as partners those who inherit the deceaseds interest. Control is shared The decision making in a partnership must be shared. If the partners disagree about how the business should be run, business and personal relationships may be destroyed. Some owners of firms do not have the skills to manage a business. Unlimited Liability General partners in a partnership are subject to unlimited liability, just like sole proprietors. Profits Are Shared Any profits that the partnership generates must be shared among all partners. The more partners there are, the smaller the amount of a given level of profits that will be distributed to any individual partner. Conclusion Of my opinion I would like to choose Sole Proprietors, because it is better than Partnerships. Besides that, it is lower taxes because the earnings in a proprietorship are considered to be personal incomes, they may be subject to lower taxes than those imposed on some other forms of business ownership. Other than that, Sole Proprietors make us easy and quickly do decision and making authority. Because the sole proprietor is in total control of the operations, he or she can respond quickly to changes, which is an asset in a rapidly shifting market. The freedom to set the companys course of action is a major motivational force. For those who thrive on the enjoyment of seeking new proprietors thrive on the feeling of control they have over their personal financial futures and the recognition they earn as the owners of their business. Other than that, Sole proprietors is much more better than Partnerships because of Partnerships much more disadvantages then Sole Proprietors. If one partn er dies, complications arise. Partnership interest is often nontransferable through inheritance because the remaining partner may not want to be in a partnership with the person who inherits the deceased partners interest. Partners can make provisions in the partnership agreement to avoid dissolution due to death if all parties agree to accept as partners those who inherit the deceaseds interest.

Stanley Kubrick: Artist, Explorer and Pioneer Essay -- Stanley Kubrick

Stanley Kubrick: Artist, Explorer and Pioneer Introduction The line between art and entertainment has become malleable in the last century. Critics of fine art define its quality by its message, innovation and complexity. Both are founded on intent to communicate. Art seeks to engage the viewer and generally attempts to tap into more complicated and rarer emotions. (Krush Web Site) Stanley Kubrick uses the medium of film to convey an understanding of the world around him. I see his work as art rather than entertainment and I propose his inclusion in Howard Gardner’s model of Multiple Intelligences. The basis of my argument lies in analysis of his work ethic, complexities, innovations and communication skills. Background Stanley Kubrick was born on July 26th, 1928. The Bronx New York was both his birthplace and childhood home. While there he had a relatively uneventful adolescence. His typical nuclear family was of Jewish faith and consisted of a sister, Barbara, six years his younger, a mother, Gertrude, and a father, Jakob. His father was a doctor and instrumental in building the path Kubrick would later follow. His performance in academics was far from spectacular. Kubrick left high school without graduating at 17. His cumulative average was a 67. While in school, Physics was the only subject in which he excelled (his love of machines and movement are apparent in his later endeavors). But the time he spent in William Howard Taft High School was far from fruitless. On his 13th birthday he received a camera from his father. This led to a love of photography – he was the official photographer for the school and was even exhibited. At an early age Stanley had an eye for composition, subjects and themes. It was o... ... an audience and those luck enough to work with him, is hidden in the complexities of his work. Although he has touched some of the established genres of film, his style is all his own. His movies continually arouse critical analysis and raise questions about the state of humankind. Stanley Kubrick’s gifts to society will be remembered as frighteningly truthful and creative. Works Cited: Ciment, Michel. Kubrick. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York. 1980. DeVries, Daniel. Film of Stanley Kubrick. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids. 1973. Gardner, Howard. Creating Minds. Basic Books: A Division of Harber Collins Publishers, New York. 1993. Nelson, Thomas Allen. Kubrick: Inside a Film ArtistUs Maze. Indiana University Press, Bloomington. 1982. Walker, Alexander. Stanley Kubrick Directs. Harcourt Brace Jovanovick, Inc, New York. 1971.

School or Prison? :: Cause Effect Violence Essays

School or Prison? At Wyoming Valley West there have been too many disruptions that have given our school a negative reputation. Threats of violence were all too common. These threats affected many people involved in theschool district. They also affected the police officers that put their lives on the line to come into a building with a possible bomb inside. My senior year stands out among the rest. Coming into my senior year of high school, I hoped that I would have a nice, quiet, enjoyable, and memorable year. However, it ended up being the worst year ofmy four years in high school. Within the stretch of a week and a half, there were four bomb threats made at our school. On the days of each threat there was a note found in the girls' lavatory. The first note was found on a Friday afternoon after school was dismissed. I did not hear about it untilthe following Monday. On that day, I was sitting in Law class like any other Monday morning. It wasaround 10:30 A.M., when the principal of the school, Mr. DeRemer, spoke over the loud speaker. He announced that the building was being evacuated. Every student had to immediately leave the building in an orderly fashion and report directly to his or her bus. Those students who drove to school were toleave their vehicles behind. At the time, no one was sure what was happening. When I got home that afternoon, I turned on the television to see if there was anything on the newsMany of the local news stations were at the school, and they reported that there had been a bombthreat. This scared me. It had been only a mere ten months since the tragedy in Littleton, Colorado atColumbine High School. Even though I knew that it was most likely somebody just playing games, I stillhad to think of the worst. We were allowed to return to the school that evening to pick up our cars. The next day, the pranksters did not wait too long too strike again. I was sitting in first period,Classical Literature class. My teacher in that class just happened to be the wife of the superintendent ofWyoming Valley West School District.

Marxism Essay -- essays research papers

In this paper, I am going to explore the differences between communism and socialism and how different the thoughts and opinions of these two ways of life are from the current western views on religion and God. To explain about the differences between socialism/communism and western thoughts on religion I will explore the writings of Karl Marx and Frederick Engels. They are founders and writers of a lot of the socialist and communist thoughts on religion and God. In our western society when we discuss God and religion, people for the most part are going to lean one way or another when it comes to their beliefs on religion. If you are from the western part of globe like myself the views and thoughts hinge on the belief of God as a superior being, a perfect one, one who controls everything that happens. The other side of the coin in western culture would be the atheist who does not believe in God at all. There are many other views about God and Religion that differ greatly from the vi ews that are held throughout the western regions of the world. In a lot of the Eastern countries of the world the teaching of the Socialist and Communist parties that rule these areas of the world has influenced the views that have been passed down and taught through out the years. Communism and Socialism do not believe in the theory that there is one perfect God and that you can only receive salvation through him. In the western religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, God is the one and only Supreme Being, the Creator of everything. Nothing exists in the world to these religions unless God had created it. God is the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, all good and eternal to salvation. God created the world and all its components for a purpose. God created human beings to know, to love, to honor, to serve and to obey Him. God is to be thought of in masculine terms, even though God is a pure spirit and has no material or bodily parts. Humans will be judged after death as to how well they have fulfilled God's plan for them. Those who have failed, the sinners, will be punished for eternity. Those who have succeeded will be rewarded for eternity. The exact nature of the reward or punishment is hotly disputed, but all seem to agree that those who are rewarded will be in God's presence and those who are punished will not. There are many arguments from people who do not believe... ...gard to the next world. Religion is the opium of the people, that is, it acts as a kind of painkiller. Religion makes bearable the unbearable, such as: poverty, hunger, inequality and repression that happen in the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Christian religion means salvation to some and to others it is only something that only resides in the thoughts of the people of that society. A Marxist would tell you that true salvation could only be achieved here on earth by working. Salvation is something that all would hope would be in the future for themselves. In this paper we have examined two differing opinions on how salvation can be achieved one was through religion and the other was the socialist way of life. The argument between societies about religion will not be settled here on earth. Who is right and who is wrong in the argument about religion? Is religion just a figment of our imagination, is it something humans made up to make us feel good about the future and our salvation. Or are the Marxists wrong, could religion be everything it is meant to be in the Christian religion. Could religion be the real salvation? These are great questions to ponder and talk about.

Hrm Learning Log Essay

The first lecture that we had was basically explaining the module and gave a brief outline of what we are going to be studying throughout the year. We then went on to discuss this in the seminar. Obviously there was not much work done for this week as we were just taking everything in and coming to grips with what the module entailed. Lecture number two started off with a series of quotes with people defining organisational behaviour. I consider the ‘organisational behaviour is one of the most complex and perhaps least understood academic elements of modern general management but since it concerns the behaviour of people within organisations it is also one of the most central’ as one of the most accurate and appropriate ways to describe organisational behaviour. The other two quotes were by no means inaccurate, but they were a bit brief and wouldn’t really explain much if you were trying to tell somebody what organisational behaviour was. This then brought us to the organisational iceberg, this is an interesting and key point. I have found a diagram from the internet to illustrate the iceberg I found this model very fascinating and the quote about what sinks a ship is very clever, because so much that goes on in an organisation is not seen. It is simply that an informal organisation is a ‘looser’ structured flexible organisation with informal relationships and a formal organisation would be an opposite one with a planned structure with a hierarchy. Hugh put some definitions of organisational behaviour up and I read them and found that they were both fairly strong definitions although one was a lot more detailed than the other. The next lecture was very much defining what an organisation is, different types of organisations and how we define them. This was a fairly big lecture and there was quite a lot to take in I thought. What is an organisation? I agree with the definition of JD Mooney that organisation is the form of every human association for the attainment of a common purpose, as well as Huczynski & Buchanans ‘entity’ view because they are short yet strong and easy to understand and I feel that I would definitely be more likely to remember these definitions than Robbins’ definition for example, which sounds a bit more intricate. The next lecture brought us to something similar, giving us the chance to reflect on the organisational iceberg, and still defining organisational structure. I researched into tall and flat organisational structures this week and found this diagram on the internet which helps demonstrate how different organisations have different structures, and there is no better or worse structure, because each organisation requires a different structure. I found centralisation and decentralisation quite challenging, so I looked up the meanings to begin with on the internet. I found that centralisation is described as the process by which the activities of an organisation, particularly those regarding planning decision-making, become concentrated within a particular location or group. Alternatively, decentralisation was defined as the process of dispersing decision-making governance closer to the people and citizen. It includes the dispersal of administration or governance in sectors or areas like engineering, management science, political science, political economy, sociology and economics. These definitions helped me understand the table in the lecture slides easier. The matrix structure was also covered in this lecture. This seemed a more complex structure where a lot of individuals are mixed together and each person may have to work under several managers at a time. For this week’s lecture we were given a SEMCO case study and some organisational charts to look at. We spoke about trying to define work and then got into small groups and came up with our own definition of work. It was very interesting how everyone’s opinions and definitions of work were so different. Although nearly everyone agreed that we work for money and for example in our group, we said that if you are not paid, for instance voluntary work, it is simply a hobby. We then went on to organisation theory and classical management. This focuses on then total design of the total organisation. This is different to scientific management because that focuses on the design and management of individual jobs. This was quite a difficult lecture to fully comprehend with again a lot of information to take in. Through research I found that Henri Fayol was the main classical theorist and he proposed the functions such as technical; commercial; financial; accounting; security and managerial. He believed the latter to be slightly different to all the rest. In our lecture it said that management is a process of planning, organisation, command, coordination and control. I found that Fayol was very influential to the modern concepts of management and proposed his own theory, called fayolism. I also discovered that there is a set of 14 principles of management that he devised and I found this quite thought-provoking. The lecture also told us about Taylorism, which is a scientific management theory. We then went on to Hawthorne studies, which I had previously learnt about in sociology at A level so I was fairly familiar with. Then it went on explaining that there is more to the work than just the pay, there needs to be a strong sense of belonging. I agree with this because I feel in today’s society too many people are driven by money and instead of opting for being happy in life, they would rather have more money. I feel that the media makes people feel that they should put money before a sense of belonging and I don’t think that is right. In this week’s seminar we went back to organisational structures and charts. Our group discussed that the needs of all organisations are very different so there will always be different structures suiting different organisations. Bureaucratic structures were brought up and we spoke about how they were suitable for larger organisations rather than smaller ones, also how they tend to stick to a tall rather than flat structure. I found other structures such as a divisional structure, where they group organisational functions into different divisions. I then looked back over earlier lectures about defining work, and the extrinsic purposes which are essential yet do not reap the same intrinsic rewards where workers should have a considerably high level of job satisfaction. The occupational structure- this is shaped by several factors like bureaucracy, technology and the economy. Watson’s patterns are key points for the subject of occupations and the structure of work because he points out the key elements. Mobility is seen as a key part of occupational structure and there are factors which positively and negatively affect mobility. The next lectures brought us to organisational culture; there was a good quote to start the lecture saying that â€Å"The ideologies, beliefs and deep-set values which occur in all firms†¦. and which are the prescriptions for the ways in which people should work in those organisations. † This got me thinking about organisation culture and what it was about. Organisational culture frequently refers to the collective patterns of behaviour, beliefs and values within an organisation. I also found a different definition of organisation culture saying that ‘organisation culture is a set of values, often taken for granted, that help people in an organisation understand which actions are considered acceptable and which actions are considered unacceptable. ’ Often these values are shaped in the course of stories. I feel that culture is significantly hard to define and measure. We covered socialisation in this lecture and it is quoted as ‘getting ones hands dirty’. I found that Socialization is the main way humans start to obtain the skills needed to carry out their task of being a member of society. The largely basic look of culture is set up at the individual level. Through both learning and teaching is the how cultural and social characteristics achieve permanence. I believe that the best quote of this lecture was that ‘to change an organisation in any significant or lasting way you need to change the values and beliefs that lie at the core. ’ This brings us to the iceberg and the onion. The onion illustrates that the core is shielded by many layers, and you have to change everything right down to the bottom to make a significant change for the organisation. Through my research I found some different information as to what was in our lectures on the several different types of culture, such as person cultures and task cultures. Person cultures are basically an organisational structure in a business which is constantly changing and has no permanent foundation, no real formal role and no sole objective. Where all the people involved believe themselves to be superior to the organisation, because of this some of these organisations struggle to cope, but can do because of the certain expertise each different individual possesses. On the other hand, task cultures are often found in a matrix type organisation, where employees tend to have similar roles and responsibilities, they solve problems as and it is often described as a business based around the high skills of an employee. More organisational cultures are power cultures, and role cultures. Power cultures I think are the most interesting because they are more or less based around one ultimate source, which everything revolves around and depends on. These are often found in small organisations and have little bureaucracy and a small number of rules. Role cultures is similar to that of a tall structure that I have spoken about earlier where there is a basic hierarchy of roles and power. In the seminar this week we spoke about different retailers and what kind of organisation structures they had. I found this seminar very enjoyable because we found out from each other in depth about what sort of organisations each company were and decided what frame they would be in and whether we would prefer to be in one or another. The next lecture was mostly on change, I found this fairly weird because there were not many things I could relate to or understand so I just had to try and take as much in as possible. Although it brought us to again this man Charles Handy. He said that â€Å"Less than half the workforce in the industrial world will be holding conventional full-time jobs in organisations by the beginning of the 21st century. Those full-timers, or insiders, will be the new minority. † This has obviously been proved correct to some extent, so Handy was right. Because of technology fewer and fewer people are needed from day to day in the industrial sector, because machines are replacing them. Today we again talked about the paradigm and how organisations all have different values and missions and how they go about them. I think the most powerful part of this lecture is the part where it says the only permanent thing is change. This is such a good quote because no matter change will never ever end, it can’t. Yet everything else can. This is another one of those quotes that gets you thinking. I liked the 7-S framework part because it helps me remember all the very important reasons of change. This week’s lecture was on organisational change. This was different to previous lectures because I didn’t feel there was much we could talk about. I researched more into organisational cultures again and found information on strong cultures and weak cultures. A strong culture is one where staff responds to stimulus because of their position to organisational values. In a strong culture, it is believed that the people do what they are told to do, because they think that is the right way to do things. In a weak culture things are fairly different. They do it their own way and things would be pretty much the opposite. Research suggests that organisations with a strong culture will achieve the companies’ goals a lot easier than a weak culture; they will also have higher levels of employee satisfaction, motivation and loyalty. We came on to leadership today, and spoke about management. It started with a man I was familiar with Max Weber again because of A level sociology so I was intrigued to how he linked in with this element. We then came on to Fayol’s 14 principles of management. I decided to research into these 14 principles out of curiosity and it is proved that Fayols principles still have a big relevance to contemporary management, so do his 6 functions that I mentioned earlier, however most people these days like to only talk about 4 of the 6 functions that Fayol originally proposed and they have been slightly tweaked into; planning; leading; organising and controlling. Taylorism popped up this week and we discussed the difference between the bosses and the workers, as Taylor says the bosses think as the workers do. Then onto other theorists such as Drucker, he proposed the five basic operations of a manager. I very much agree with these five operations because at my workplace it seems that the managers are trying to set objectives, organise, measure, motivate and develop people. I think that managers are different to leaders. Yes some managers are leaders, but they are two completely different things in my eyes. As it says in the lecture slides managers plan, organise, direct etc, leaders envision, inspire, influence, leaders effect people more emotionally than managers do. We also spoke about how hard it is to describe leadership, who would we call a leader? How do we become a leader? These are all questions that I do not know the answer to. Yukl says that â€Å"Most definitions of leadership reflect the assumption that it involves a process whereby intentional influence is exerted by one person over people†¦.. to guide, structure and facilitate activities and relationships in a group or organisation’ I don’t think that this is as good of a description as â€Å"Leadership is a process of giving purpose (meaningful direction) to collective effort, and causing willing effort to be expended to achieve purpose. By Jacob and Jacques because they seem to hit the nail on the head because I believe leadership is all about giving a meaningful purpose to effort and be willing to do anything to achieve your goal. I still very much agree with Yukls view on leadership because what he says is true but I don’t feel it would give me anythin g that I can learn or think about whereas Jacob and Jacques’ I can. There were a lot of quotes in today’s lecture, some I felt more powerful than others. They have taught me a lot about leadership, one being that it there is not a definition. I even googled it and there wasn’t one. Another being leadership is what you make of it, from what I think will be different to what the next guy thinks, so I can understand why it raises so many controversies and discussions. I can understand why it proved virtually impossible to identify the particular traits that separate leaders from non-leaders. I believe that leadership is based on many things, personality being the main one. Many people would think you have to be at the top of the hierarchy to be branded a leader, for instance they would think of a manager of a leader. But a leader can be anyone, some people just possess a trait that makes them a natural born leader, for example a footballer that steps on the pitch and instantly tells everyone what to do, they all listen to him without question. Even though he may not be captain, he is the leader. In today’s lecture we looked at technology, a new topic. Technology has played a massive part in how businesses operate as of recent years, I didn’t find this as interesting as the previous few weeks but there were still things I wanted to look up on. We also touched on leadership again this week. This week brings us onto personality. This lecture was one of the tougher ones because there was a lot of material I have never heard of before. I agree with everything Robertson and Smith have put forward because for instance if there was no variety in the tasks, or if there was no feedback given or no significance of the tasks, then the employees job satisfaction would surely be lower, and I think it would be a hard job to try and make someone completely satisfied with their job in every aspect because nearly everybody isnt happy with atleast one aspect of their job. Our lecture this week was on motivation, learning about motivation was quite enjoyable. I find the american and chinese needs hierarcies quite interesting and how they differ. The american hierarchy has self-actualisation in individual development at the top whereas the chinese hierarchy has self-actualisation in service to society. This goes back to the collectivist and individualist cultures. I have found a slightly more detailed diagram of a hierarchy here: Another big difference is that the sense of belonging is in the middle of the american hierarchy and it is right at the bottom of the chinese one, maybe because the chinese people see society as a whole more important. I also find Hertzbergs two factor theory quite interesting because of what he thinks motivates and de-motivates intrinsically and extrinsically. Today we looked at perception. I was quite amazed at how the mind perceives things and it sees what it wants to see instead of what it actually might be. The quote â€Å"You see, that’s the problem with you Jerry. You think we’re arguing, I think we’re finally communicating! † defines what perception is really about. You think you are doing one thing, yet you are doing another. Throughout this year my favourite topic has definitely been leadership. I feel genuinely interested in this subject because it is so intriguing and there are so many talking points about it. I think one of the most meaningful and intelligent quotes I have ever heard has come from the leadership topic, managers do things right, leaders do the right thing. It has made believe that being a leader is such a good thing. Most people probably think managers are leaders, but they are really nothing alike what so ever, when you look into it in detail you realise. I particularly like how Bennis describes both Managers and leaders, saying that Managers ask how and when, leaders and what and why. Managers rely on people, leaders inspire trust. Managers focus on systems and structure, leaders focus on people, and so on. It is strange how they seem so true yet every one is the completely different. This proves surely that there is a real big difference between a leader and a manager. I was quite amazed at the perception topic though because it enlightened me slightly on how our minds actually work. Like the non-standard shaped polygon, I would never think it is one of those, yet that is what it is. Also the x’s and o’s in alternating rows is clever. One of the least exciting topics I would say is organisational change. It was challenging yet quite boring and I didn’t really enjoy the content in the lectures or the seminars around this time. One of the more tricky subjects I found was motivation. Although it was more interesting than most of the others, it was one of the hardest to understand and I found it hard to relate to this lecture because it didn’t seem like there was much relevance to business in it. It is definitely an area I will need to revise more for my exam. I have also found writing this learning log challenging as I have never done anything like this before. But it is different I guess.

Can We Talk Essay

Divorce in the United States is very common and excepted. With powerful words like till â€Å"death do us part†, and â€Å"Adultery† being said. Communication is a must to make the marriage work with affective affirmation and self-disclosure making the words can we talk mean more now than ever before. I can relate to the article â€Å"Can We Talk† in my current new marriage for the first 1 year we never argued or had a fight. Most fights were petty and now found out to be lack of affective affirmation meaning behavior that makes your partner feel loved, cared for or special (Schoenberg, N., 2011). Self-Disclosure The act of verbally or nonverbally revealing information about yourself to other people(Sole K.,2011) In my personal relationship has gone both ways for the positive when making her feel she knows that she can trust you as well as getting to know you more and everything about you must want to know. Then the negative side when revealing to much information and then scaring them away like when you make her feel like she is married on the first date or smothering her. I would say Self-Disclosure should be used regularly after the first date and somewhat on the first date to get to know each other. The similarities I have found in my gender communication is that most men and woman complain about similar problems they are having with their gender like most men may say she talks to much or is too affectionate or not affectionate enough. Then most females would say us men are not affectionate, don’t talk, lack of emotions and so on. The times when gender based situations accrue when a man expects the female to make dinner, clean the house, make their lunch and for the men take out the trash, mow the lawn, rake the leaves. All gender specific related similarities that usually result into a situation but not always. I do feel my marriage fits into the gender specific similarities with my wife doing the laundry, dinner, making lunch, etc. I fix what she breaks and paint, maintenance, fix car problems, celling fans, bought and installed the T.V., Laptop all electronics etc. The generalizations regarding gender has caused conflicted but with better communication and me helping out more solved the problem for now. REFERENCES Schoenberg, N. (2011, January 17). Can we talk? Researcher talks about the role of communication in happy marriages, McClatchy-Tribune News Service, ProQuest Newsstand, Document ID: 2240370261, Retrieved from: http://search.proquest.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/docview/840600645/fulltext/13BC619D20D31078D66/1?accountid=32521 Sole K., (2011) Making Connections, Bridgepoint Education, Inc., ch.7.7, retrieved from: https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUCOM200.11.1/sections/sec7.7

The Bible Among Myth

LIBERTY UNIVERSITY A BOOK SUMMARY THE BIBLE AMONG THE MYTHS: BY AUTHOR JOHN N. OSWALT NAME OF STUDENT: FABIOLA REID STUDENT ID: 22379938 CLASS: OBST 590 INSTRUCTOR’S NAME: DR. ALVIN THOMPSON DATE SUBMITTED: 03/03/2013 INTRODUTION The author, John N. Oswalt, begins his introduction, speaking in regards to the differences between the Old Testament, religions and cultures of the people from the Ancient Near East. As The Bible Among the Myths begins it is the assumption that while there has been no change since the 1960’s, there has been a shifted.Before then, Scholars believed that the Old Testament was true and not compared to any other, however, now scholars questioned this belief and have begun to believe that the Old Testament writings are similar to the other religions of its day. [1] Oswalt continues by discussing a most important philosophical difference within the Old Testament and its contemporaries. He states that there is a clear distinction between â€Å"essen ce† and â€Å"accident. † [2] Oswalt states that an accident can be something as similar as hair, while self-consciousness is an essential.To remove an accident will not cause change but to remove an essential, this thing will cease to be itself. [3] ————————————————- The author establishes to the reader the conception of myth also imitating the option that scholars continue to differ greatly on this definition; Oswalt insists that this ought to not dissuade the individual from seeking a good definition of the word. In order for him to define this word, he list four basic characteristics of a myth. 1. John N. Oswalt, The Bible Among the Myths, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009, 11-12 2.Ibid, 13. 3. Ibid. The first characteristic; mankind having little or no intrinsic value and the second characteristic was the relative lack of interest in historical studies. T he third is the practice of magic and involvement with the occult. The fourth is the refusal to accept responsibility for individual actions. [4] Oswalt concludes his introduction with a substantial claim. He emphasizes that theological claims are inseparable from historical claims. [5] Oswalt states that trustworthiness must be contingent upon both the theological and historical claims.If the historical claims are patently false, then no credence ought to be given to the theological decrees, In the end, I am not advocating a â€Å"the Bible says it, and I believe it, and that settles it† point of view, although those who disagree with me may argue that to be the case. What I am advocating is a willingness to allow the Bible to determine the starting place of the investigation. [6] CHAPTER ONE ————————————————- The first chapter discusses the Bible in milieu of its surroundings and contribution to society as a whole.Oswalt mentions that there are many contributions to way the Western world views reality. The Bible, however, is the most important contributor. [7] 4. Ibid, 14. 5. Ibid, 16. 6. Ibid, 17. 7. Ibid, 21. Greek Thought: The Greek philosophers of the early centuries brought in this way of thinking that was to have a profound effect on the western world. The belief, in a â€Å"universe† instead of a â€Å"polyverse,† adding, simple cause and effect, as well as non-contradiction were three of their most significant contributions. [8] Hebrew Thought:While the Greek philosophers were struggling to express their point of view, the Hebrews were also articulating their beliefs by way of the prophets. Their beliefs were as follows: There is only one God, God is the sole Creator of all that is, God exist apart from creation, God has made himself known to his people, God has made his will known to his people, and God rewards and pun ishes people for following or disobeying his will. [9] Combing Greek and Hebrew Thought: ————————————————-Oswalt states; when the Gospel of Jesus presupposed the Israelite worldview, penetrated into the Greco-Roman world, this set the stage for the combination of the Greek and the Hebrew worldviews in the distinctively Christian way. The Greeks’ rational thought combined with Hebrew people’s belief in monotheism. [10] 8. Ibid, 22. 9. Ibid, 23. 10. Ibid, 25 Oswalt argues that logic was not completely developed until after people realized that God not only was the sole creator of the universe, but was also completely separate from the creation.What is most important is that science and logic cannot stand on their own and if they attempt to then this will lead to self-destruction. Oswalt gives an example; Hiroshima and the Buchenwald concentration camp and human ity’s achievements when it is devoid of God’s influence. [11] CHAPTER TWO In this second chapter, Oswalt discusses his definition of myth. However before Oswalt begins this definition he begins to argue the very question with regard to the myth and why it is questioned at this time. Oswalt mentions that fifty years ago there would not be such a question.However by the 1960’s and as more scholars begin to research the Bible, more questions aroused. [12] ————————————————- Oswalt wishes to apply the appropriate classification to the Bible. Unequivocally, he describes whether or not the Bible should be considered a myth or not. In order to properly answer the question, Oswalt list several definitions posed by scholars today. As Oswalt listed these definitions, he also explains why he feels that they are inadequate. 11. Ibid, 27. 12. Ibid, 29-30. The catego ry of definitions falls under one group known ashistorical-Philosophical and they are as follows; 1.Etymological – based on a false and fictitious deity or event. 2. Sociological-Theological – the truth is seen as relative and something is seen as true if it is seen by others. 3. Literary – the events are not seen as right or wrong. Instead, the narrative employs heavy use of symbolism to express its meaning. [13] ————————————————- These definitions all have one thing in common which is at their core; they all believe in the philosophy of continuity. Oswalt states that continuity is a philosophical principle that asserts that all things are continuous with each other.Oswalt uses an example of a person being â€Å"one with the tree. † Not merely symbolically or spiritually, but actually. The tree is me; I am the tree. [14] 13. Ibid, 33, 36, 38. 1 4. Ibid, 43. CHAPTER THREE Chapter three discusses Continuity as the center of topic. Carrying over from chapter two the one thing that myths have in common at their core is the presence of continuity. This way of thinking is viewed as all things are viewed as related in some form or fashion. There are three major forces (humanity, nature, and the divine) this is where everything exists within the circle. 15] The effects of continuity are numerous and varied in accordance. One of these effects is looking at signs in nature. The effects are attempted to be explained by weather patterns, floods, fire, plagues and the celestial beings. Other examples are the effects of fertility and potency and the preoccupation of the people thereof. Oswalt uses the example of how sexuality is so central to people’s lives today is a reason for this effect of continuity. [16] ———————————————à ¢â‚¬â€- Finally, Oswalt deals straightforwardly with what he feels are the common features of myth.Excluding a few exceptions, myths all share the belief that their existence is based on Polytheism. Which is the belief of more than one god or and many gods. The second is these gods in the form of images. The use of symbols and icons are believed strongly in order to interact with nature and the divine. The gods themselves are not view highly in fact view lowly, they are not seen as actual beings. Confliction is what is needed in order for the universe to evolve and myths have a low view of mankind. [17] 15. Ibid, 48. 16. Ibid, 50-56. 17. Ibid, 57-59.CHAPTER FOUR In chapter four Oswalt reverts back to characteristics of the Bible. Here he argues with the topic of transcendence, where God (who has been in existence before the universe) interacts with all things thereof. In this Biblical thought process there is uniqueness with regard to the modern-day belief systems in many ways. How ever one must bear in mind that the Old Testament is remarkably self-consistent regarding the things it maintains about the nature of reality. [18] Oswalt provides the reader with a broaden list of some common characteristics.Monotheism, of course one of the most obvious characteristics of the Bible that stands out among other religions. With the exception of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam which are all directly correlated from the Bible. Most other religions are polytheistic. The existence of Yahweh being the only God was a defining characteristic for the Old Testament and the Bible as a whole. [19] ————————————————- Another characteristic of the Old Testament theory is that God was in existence prior to the all creation. All that exist is after God and God created it.Oswalt states that if the world is full of chaos that it is not due to God but the spirits of this worl d. Oswalt mentions that the Bible is a position to insist that the problem of humanity is not a tragic fatedness to evil, but a spirit that prefers evil to good. [20] 18. Ibid, 63. 19. Ibid, 64-65. 20. Ibid, 66. CHAPTER FIVE In chapter five Oswalt argues that the Bible is totally different from other religious writings and is unique in its self. Oswalt further discusses the issues of ethics, In the Ancient Near East; the non-biblical worldviews held two sets of ethics.One set is related to how people interacted with each other. The other set of ethics is related to how people acted upon the deities. In Bible ethics behavior was defined by God and God alone and not subject to the social changes in society, they obey God. [21] Oswalt discusses some of the similarities between Israelites and non-Israelites. Some of the practices were quite similar. The sacrificial ceremonial, the manner of their offerings, the layout of the tabernacle and temple and also the decoration of the temple al l seem similar to those of the Israelite and non-Israelite people.Their practices of expression and thought pattern were similar to where Oswalt indorses his belief that these areas are incidental and not essential to the basic identities of the people. [22] CHAPTER SIX ————————————————- Chapter six introduces the Bible and History, Oswalt points out the there is a distinction, between myths and the Bible, whereas the myths are based on many gods, the Bible is based on one God. History and the Bible run parallel to each other. Oswalt argues the idea that to state the Bible is not â€Å"historical â€Å"is something of an oxymoron. 23] 21. Ibid, 85-87. 22. Ibid, 91-97. 23. Ibid, 112. Oswalt uses Webster’s New World Dictionary of the American Language to describe the definition that he feels would best fit history. History functions on different levels. Its connecti ons could be to someone or something or both. Yet the Bible is its own form of history correlated with mankind and their surroundings. [24] CHAPTER SEVEN AND EIGHT Oswalt attempts to address some of the issues that were used against the Bible concerning its historical stance.Oswalt does mentions some gaps, progress and lack of progress, whether the Bible is â€Å"history-like† or â€Å"historical fiction† as well as how it relates to revelation and supernatural events and whether Israel is unique in these areas. [25] Oswalt makes the case in the eight chapter that the Bible is historical and completely accurate. Oswalt states this matter is of the utmost importance. While one would state that there are sections of the Bible that are not historical for example; poetic and wisdom, these too are historical because they describe people, relationships weaknesses and failures.The entire Bible is historical especially when it pertains to the history of the Jesus Christ. †”———————————————- The author states that one could argue German distinction between Historie (defining what happen) and Geschichte (telling what is going on) as being valid. [26] 24. Ibid, 112-115. 25. Ibid, 138-141. 26. Ibid, 157-168. The conclusion of this section determines that history is inseparable from theology in the Bible. Theology is in relation to the historical events. The author uses an exceptional example with regard to the resurrection to support this conclusion.He directs the reader to one of the epistles written by the Apostle Paul to the church of Corinth. The Apostle Paul states that one’s faith cannot exist without a historical belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. [27] If Christ was not raised then your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. (1 Cor. 15:17) CHAPTER NINE AND TEN ———————â⠂¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- In chapter nine the author discusses alternative views pertaining to the biblical narrative as it is known today. He began with the arguments of John Van Seters.Professor Van Seters emphasizes that the Bible had to have been altered by Jewish priest after Babylonian exile. [28] Oswalt mentions that the second is Frank Cross who assumes that the Bible used to be an epic poem, however was changed into the Old Testament’s current state at some point. [29] The third is William Dever who believes that Israel’s belief systems were identical to Canaanite beliefs and the Christian scholars have overlooked certain facts throughout history to portray an inaccurate account of ancient Israel. 30] Then, finally, Oswalt discusses Mark Smith and his opinion of Israel’s belief system. Mark Smith argues that Israel’s beliefs are directly originated from the Canaanite’s polytheistic beliefs. [31] 27. Ibid, 170. 28. Ibid, 173. 29. Ibid, 175. 30. Ibid, 177-180. 31. Ibid, 181-184. The author concludes this book in chapter ten where he reiterates his main points taken from previous chapters. He stresses the major theme is that contrast between biblical and non-biblical views of reality. The biblical view is deep-seated in transcendence and the non-biblical view is deep-seated in continuity. 31] In the end, we may differ on the biblical worldview and theology, given to them, but what matters in the end is how we answer the following questions: Is there a God? Does he have a will for our lives? Has he made known that will to us in intelligible actions and speech in time and space? If we answer â€Å"no† then the entire enterprise is bootless. However, if our answer is â€Å"yes† the question of what God’s will is and how he has chosen to reveal it becomes one of absolutely ultimate significance. [32] ———————â⠂¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- 31. Ibid, 185. 32. Ibid, 194.REFERENCES 1. Oswalt, John, N. , The Bible Among the Myths Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009, 11-12 2. Ibid, 13. 3. Ibid. 4. Ibid, 14. 5. Ibid, 16. 6. Ibid, 17. 7. Ibid, 21. 8. Ibid, 22. 9. Ibid, 23. 10. Ibid, 25. 11. Ibid, 27. 12. Ibid, 29-30. 13. Ibid, 33, 36, 38. 14. Ibid, 43. 15. Ibid, 48. 16. Ibid, 50-56. 17. Ibid, 57-59. 18. Ibid, 63. 19. Ibid, 64-65. 20. Ibid, 66. 21. Ibid, 85-87. 22. Ibid, 91-97. 23. Ibid, 112. 24. Ibid, 112-115. 25. Ibid, 138-141. 26. Ibid, 157-168. 27. Ibid, 170. 28. Ibid, 172. 29. Ibid, 175. 30. Ibid, 177-180. 31. Ibid, 181-184. 32. Ibid, 185 33. Ibid, 194