I'm Only Human Podcast

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

Someone knocked on your door asking if you have heard about the glory that is Mace Windu.

In the Star Wars universe, one thing pre-dominates above all others, the Force. However, the order of religious knights that practice the Force can be a sanctimonious bunch of ineffective windbags. Moreover, they really have a ridiculous prejudice against another religious sect, the Sith. While the Sith seem- well they seem like real jerks- the Jedi's prejudice seems a bit ridiculous.

During this episode, we examine the extremes of the Jedi faith in order explore the parameters of prohibited religious discrimination and ways that you can create a workplace that balances your values and your faith with the values and faith of those that view the world and the world beyond ours differently than you.

During these week's episode we spend a little time talking about Hobbits, Dwarves, Elves, and Humans as we critique the Fellowship of the Ring. When you consider that this is the group tasked with saving all of Middle Earth from complete domination, it is a bit surprising that this is the team they came up with. Half of the members hate each other and at least one member is not on board with the mission at all. We explore this slightly dysfunctional to help you learn how best to build and maintain a group that can get the job done.

One of the great challenges of professional life is striking a "balance" between professional and personal life. Many employers now know that finding a way to strike this balance is essential to recruiting, retaining, and developing the best workers. This week, we look at the flock of idiots better known and the "Friends" in order to look at some mistakes that people often make when trying to get the most out of both work and life. PS- Be not mistaken, we love the show Friends, but if we ever met Ross, Rachael, Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, or Joey in real life, we would avoid them at all costs.

There is a very good reason that most Superheroes are either trust fund babies or have ridiculous side gigs, being a Superhero is a hard way to make a living. But if we imagine for a moment that the Avengers, Justice League, and Suicide Squad have payrolls; how exactly are their members paid? Do they clock in? Are they independent contractors? Do they get travel expenses? How about paid lunches? Time off? Are they paid overtime? Do they have pagers? These are important questions people; but worry not, we think we have your answers?

In the world of animated families, the Simpsons reign supreme. However; the Belchers of Bob's Burgers are strong up and comers. This hard scrapple clan spend their days running the eponymous burger restaurant for which the show is named. In spite of Bob's delicious and brilliantly name specials, the restaurant struggles, day in and day out. However, one way that they save on expenses is in free juvenile labor, as the Belcher children spend most of their days working for their father. Doing menial tasks. For no wages. In less than ideal working conditions... Yeah, it's a lot more like a Burmese Nike soccerball factory, than most sitcoms.

The recent Ghostbusters features a female cast, and to that we say, "You go girls!" However, one of the film's running gags features a hunky secretary named Kevin played by Chris Hemsworth and Kristin Wiig's character, Erin's inability to stop objectifying him. We get the joke and appreciate the point the film-makers were trying to make, but it got us wondering, is Erin guilty of actionable sexual harassment? Is Kevin one EEOC charge away from owning a boat load of proton packs? This week we examine the elements of a sexual harassment claim and offer some tips on how employer's can protect themselves from being held liable for their employee's bad actions. Oh yeah, and we also talk about how sexist the original Ghostbusters movie was.

John Hughes made movies that shaped the adolescence of most American 40 years olds. He brought awkward outsiders onto center stage and allowed them to shine. But he also perpetuated many mis-leading conception about how love is formed and grows. He was captivated by the fantasy of two unlikely people finding love in spite of all of their differences, a notion that science tells us rarely ends in long term romantic bliss. In the same way, often employers seek out the most attractive candidate, without paying due regard to how that candidate will fit within their workplace. This episode, we talk about what that is a mistake, and how you take steps to hire employees that will be productive, happy, and loyal.

There is no doubt that the human drama that personifies The Walking Dead, makes for good television. However, if you looks closely at the character at the show's center, Rick Grimes, you see a deeply flawed man and a horribly inept leader. Inconsistent, authoritarian, unable to learn from his past mistakes, Rick is not role model. During this episode we break down Rick's leadership failures and point you to example of corporate leadership that works.