I heard this on the news yesterday, and then saw Andy Wibbels’ comments this morning. Circuit City’s “wage management initiative” seems designed to make sure customers won’t be able to get any more help buying audio or video packages than they do at Best Buy or Wal-Mart. Good thinking.

The electronics retailer, facing larger competitors and falling sales, said Wednesday that it would lay off about 3,400 store workers—immediately—and replace them with lower-paid new hires as soon as possible. The laid-off workers, about 8 percent of the company’s total work force, would get a severance package and a chance to reapply for their former jobs, at lower pay, after a 10-week delay, the company said.Circuit City Stores Inc., the nation’s No. 2 consumer electronics retailer behind Best Buy Co., says the workers being laid off were earning “well above the market-based salary range for their role.” They will be replaced with employees who will be paid at the current market range, the company said in a news release.”We haven’t done something called (a) wage management initiative before,” said company spokesman Jim Babb. “All companies at one time or another need to go through and make sure their cost structure works with market conditions.”

Drew McLellan, over at The Marketing Minute, asks what we’d tell new college grads about entering the world of work.

Here are my suggestions for “things they never told you but you wish they would have”:

1. Learn the culture of the company where you’re going to work, then do your best to fit in. Even seemingly “loose” companies have a culture—- the non-conformity is the culture. And if the rest of the company wears suits and ties Mon – Thurs, and Dockers and polo shirts on Friday, then get with the program.

2. Sit back and soak up as much as you can for the first 6 months, then step out and DO something. As long as you are bold and insightful (and don’t make the same mistake twice) most bosses would rather that you try and fail than not try at all.

3. Remember that everyone you meet has the potential to help you. This includes admin assistants, the mail room guy, the cleaning crew, your cab driver, your doorman and the check-out clerk at the Stop ‘n Go. Smart people are polite and charming to everyone they meet, not just people they think will do them the most good.

Finally, get out there and have a ball! Work harder than you think you need to and wring the last drop of enjoyment out of every minute.

I haven’t been keeping up on my blog reading lately, so I missed this original post on “The Secret” from Michael Port. Being Michael, he presented both sides of the issue in a clear, non-judgmental manner, and focussed on the extraordinary marketing event that “The Secret” has become.

One of Michael’s adages is “Learning in Action” and I think that applies equally well to the Law of Attraction. I think “The Secret” does the Law of Attraction a disservice by focussing so much on materialism, and summoning up fancy bikes, cars and houses by attracting (read: thinking) about them. Forming an intent isn’t enough—you also need to act in support of your intention.

I’ve been listening to Wayne Dyer’s book “The Power of Intention” on CD and he tells a story of when he was a boy, shuffling in and out of foster homes. He didn’t want to be poor, and he formed the intention that he would always have money in his pocket. He delivered papers, swept sidewalks, shoveled snow, ran errands, mowed grass, etc. He said he always had something to do, and he always had money in his pocket.

I submit that this story is exactly what blogger Andy Wibbels says. First you form the intention, then you work your ass off in support of that intention. Wayne Dyer didn’t sit around waiting for money to show up out of the blue; he went out and found odd-jobs to do. I also submit that those jobs were there because he formed the original intention and because he looked for them. I also think that “work” has gotten a bad rap. “Work” doesn’t have to be something awful, soul-numbing, or hard. It should be something you partake of with joy, passion and verve. And hard work is often good. There’s nothing like the feeling of satisfaction when I’m bone-tired from having worked hard at something and achieved my goal. When my heart, my mind and my soul are all aligned towards a goal, then it isn’t “work”—no matter how hard it is.

Are you part of the more than 50% of Americans who say they hate their job?

Well, why don’t you get out of there and go work somewhere else?

What’s that? You have good reasons to stay where you are, even if you’re miserable?

According to Dave Lorenzo of Career Intensity, you’re just lying to yourself, and believing those lies will keep you stuck in the rut you’ve created for yourself.

Learn the 3 big lies we tell ourselves and how they limit our career satisfaction.

Should you bring your pet to work? I think most managers would give this a big thumb’s down, but research doesn’t support that.

Consider these facts:

An American Pet Products Manufacturers Association survey of businesses allowing pets in the workplace confirmed the benefits:

– 73 percent indicated pets led to a more productive work environment. – 27 percent reported a decrease in employee absenteeism. – 96 percent said pets created positive work relations. – 58 percent of employees stayed late with pets in the office.

In addition:

-Staff morale increased by bringing pets to work.
-There was increased camaraderie among employees.
-Happier employees enhance job performance.
-Storeowners who take their dogs to work have reported increases in sales.

Sources: American Pet Products Manufacturers Assoc.; Pet Sitters International for Take Your Dog to Work Day 2001

I took this little online quiz to tell me what my ideal career is. Looks like I’m in the right place. Check it out and take the quiz yourself.

Your Career Type: Social

You are helpful, friendly, and trustworthy. Your talents lie in teaching, nursing, giving information, and solving social problems. You would make an excellent: Counselor – Dental Hygienist – Librarian Nurse – Parole Officer – Personal Trainer Physical Therapist – Social Worker – Teacher The worst career options for you are realistic careers, like truck driver or farmer.

With all the controversy surrounding The Secret, many more people are learning about the law of attraction. Many of them want to learn how to “use” it, like it’s a socket wrench or a KitchenAid mixer.

The Law of Attraction isn’t something you “use”—it’s a way to live.

Drew Rozell explains it very well in this short video from YouTube.

Great article on Kim Kirmmse Toth’s blog, all about baby boomers and retirement. Since I’m in the Boomer group, and thinking about being in the retirement group, I found that it “spoke” to me. Check it out.

Interesting Washington Post article about the effects of anonymous online comments on a person’s life and reputation. The article specifically cites an online message board called AutoAdmit, which bills itself as “the most prestigious college admissions message board in the world”.

Some of the stuff that was posted about these women is truly raw and sickening. The guys posting the nasty things basically said that if the women didn’t want people talking about them online they shouldn’t have MySpace or FaceBook accounts. That sounds like the old defense for rape—she was “asking for it” by dressing provocatively. And since the Post article, the comments have been racheted up considerably.

It is true that many employers routinely google applicants to see what turns up about them online. In spite of the vile and disgusting things posted online about these women, I find it hard to believe that a reputable law firm would refuse to hire someone solely because some other idiot wrote anonymous derogatory comments on an online message board. At the same time, I seriously do not understand sleezeballs who go to such lengths to denigrate other people online. I guess because it’s anonymous, they feel safe from reprisal. In my book, that just makes them cowards and bullies. And some courts are holding web sites accountable for personal attacks and libelous comments posted on them. Personally, I’d never hire someone who would engage in such sophomoric activities. It’s the cyber equivalent of writing “So-and-So is a poopy-head” on the bathroom wall in grade school. Surely their mammas taught them better manners.

So many people are worried about online content that services now exist to combat it. One such company is ReputationDefender, whose goal is to help you get rid of personal or unwanted information about you or your family on the web.

Read more of the Washington Post article here.

I’m on Day 5 of Andy Wibbels’ “The Secret Challenge” and finally got a chance to listen to the audio from his kick-off call. His guest on the call was Maryam Webster and, among other things, she lead Andy (and the other callers) through a belief-busting exercise that was very interesting. It got my attention and helped me refine my goals.

And if you want to learn how to blog like Andy, check out his various books, classes, and other offerings here.