Life of Robert Burns, Works - Poetry, Critics an Example of the Topic Personal Essays by

Life of Robert Burns, Works - Poetry, Critics Life of Robert Burns Robert Burns was known by the critics in his days as a literary genius, writing over 250 songs and hundreds of poems. Many critics didn't think much of him at the time because he was a heavy drinker and a womanizer. He had fifteen children, 6 of which were out of wedlock. Besides all that he was an excellent author writing such works as "Tam O' Shanter", "Auld Lang Syne", and "Comin' thro' the Rye". Because of a hard youth living in poverty on a farm he died at the young age of 37. Robert Burns was a Romantic poet of the first generation but actually we can say that he did not belong to any other group. He was Scottish and his poems are full of joy. He was also a revolutionary character both in religion and politics and this is reflected in his poems. Unlike the others he used dialogues in his poems and his humor can be observed in his poems, which are full of joy. Need essay sample on "Life of Robert Burns, Works - Poetry, Critics" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed Robert Burns was the oldest of seven siblings and was born in Alloway, Scotland on 25th January, 1759. His father was William Burns and his mother Agnes Burns. William Burns wasn't much of farmer and was poor for a long time. They lived in poverty until 1766 when William rented a farm. The farm was a failure and they just got even worse. Robert got very little education because he spent most of his time working on the farm with his family. When he had the time he would read as much as he could. His father and one of their neighbors scraped together some money to hire a tutor for Robert and his younger brother Gilbert. The tutor taught them history, math, and literature. Undergraduates Often Tell EssayLab specialists: How much do I have to pay someone to write my paper online? Professional writers propose: Let Us Help! The first song Robert ever wrote was "Handsome Nell" for Nellie Kilpatrick. Nellie was a young girl that Robert had met when he went to school for a little while in a nearby town. After he wrote "Handsome Nell" he realized he had an ability to write well and tried again sometime later. The first poem that he wrote was "O Once I Loved" in 1794. After that there was no stopping his writing. In 1777 the familys financial situation got a little better after they moved to a different farm. By this time Robert was able to read and write even better. (Ian, 398) Burns Career In 1781 Robert moved to Irvine to start a business but it was a colossal failure. While Robert lived in Irvine he met up with a sailor named Richard Brown who read some of Robert's work and encouraged him to have it published. Robert agreed hoping that it may pay his way to Jamaica. The Kilmarnock Edition was a huge success and sold every copy in the first month so Burns' decided he would stay where he was at to make his fortune. Robert was known for taking a liking to the women in his time. He tried to marry Jean Armour after she became pregnant with twins. Jeans father was outraged and refused to let them marry. Jean gave in and they parted ways. Robert was angry but soon after he became famous for his poetry and Jean's father pushed for them to marry but Robert triumphantly refused. Soon after, they get married on February 25, 1788. Jean has the twins, one girl named Jean, the other named Robert. Burns moves to Edinburgh to find a better job and finds that all the people there love his work and won't give a job because they didn't want to ruin his image as a rustic poem writer. He soon gets his next book The Edinburgh Edition published with no problem and gets more acclaim. Not long after that he becomes a tax collector. Over the next few years, Robert begins to gather his writings of Scottish songs. He starts to putting his poems to music he composed and to traditional Scottish air. He edited and contributed many songs to several volumes. Around 1790 he finally hits financial security and starts to write his greatest poem "Tam O' Shanter". During this time he also writes "The Lea Ring" and "Red, Red Rose". On July 21, 1796 Robert dies at the age of 37 from heart disease. That same day his last son Maxwell was born. Some doctors believed he died from excessive drinking and others think it was from hard labor as a child. More than 10,000 people attended his burial. His popularity was nothing compared to what it has reached since. Every year on the day of his birth, Scotts celebrate Robert Burns' birth with a supper where they address the haggis, the ladies, and whiskey. During Robert's life he wrote two collections containing 268 songs. Some of his most familiar and best-loved poems in the English language are "Auld Lang Syne" and "Comin' thro' the Rye". Burns wasn't confined to song though. Two of his greatest masterpieces are "Tam O' Shanter" and "The Jolly Beggars" are two narrative poems that he wrote during his lifetime. Burns had a fine sense of humor which is reflected in his satirical, descriptive, and playful verse. He was mostly popular with Scots because of the way he depicts Scottish rural life like in "The Cotter's Saturday Night". Burns frequently liked to satirize the Presbyterian Church because of its doctrine on predestination. He also wrote a poem based from a clergy man that he didn't like that was from the Presbyterian Church. Robert's life went from as bad as it could possibly be to becoming the greatest writer in Scottish history. He saw many hard times through his life and he managed to pull through them and stride and now has a holiday that celebrates the day he was born and to celebrate his achievements. Songs of Robert Robert Burns , the great Scottish poet, was also a collector of his native land's folksongs. Working with somewhat less scholarly rigor than today's enthnomusicologists, but certainly with the heart and poetic ear that have made his verses so well-loved, Burns traveled all over Scotland collecting native musical materials. He did not compose tunes himself, but rather wrote new words for existing tunes or revised existing works to produce better poetry. Many of his efforts were published in the contemporary collection Scots Musical Museum. For this disc the material has been taken from James Dick's 1903 publication of Burns's songs, which includes only tunes and text and no accompaniment. To this material singer Susan Rode Morris and harpsichordist Phebe Craig have brought the spirit of 18th Century improvisation, setting each tune in a spirited manner that might have been heard at hearthside in the Scottish Highlands two centuries ago. (Tytler, 22) Morris and Craig are versatile musicians. Their previous recordings have included a disc of songs by Henry Purcell (Nov/Dec 1993). Morris is well-known for her work with the Ensemble Alcatraz as well. They have studied Scottish music with fiddler Alasdair Fraser and have developed an interpretive style that works beautifully. Morris has a lifting, agile voice and a wide emotional range, from the biting swagger of 'I hae a wife o' my ain' to the bittersweet love song 'Ae fond kiss'. (Veitch, 23) Sheis as natural in her poetry as the nature itself .Her approach to each song is sharp and fresh, falling in a pleasant medium between folk-singing and recital voice. Craig's work is stunning. Few keyboard players could fashion such appropriate accompaniments to these tunes; both musical affect and text have been given ample consideration. A few harpsichord solos are also included, like the wonderfully evocative Peggy's Lament. (Millar, 45-53) Critic of Roberts Work Most of the Burnss work highlights the place of women as external to the people of Scotland but at the same time he presents the holistic nation through his indefinite use of the image of woman. Burns, in fact, reflects working-class and Scottish emotions in his writing, but as a sensitive citizen of the nation, he is still allowed to widely represent the nation. Little's relationship is known as difficult; as a woman, she is by definition expelled from the procedure of imagining the nation. However, Little's poetry foregrounds how reliant the philosophy of the nation is on the construction of a gendered society. During the last quarter of a century Scottish literature has done little to attract the attention of the world of culture. It has certainly failed to appeal to European imagination as the Irish or Norwegian literatures have appealed. (Henry, 171-80) The crass sentimentalities and utter banalities of the Kailyaird School alienated from the first sympathies of critics of taste and insight. Scotsmen of perspicacity and experience could not but feel depressed at the popular vogue of a cult which they were aware frequently afforded only a base caricature of their countrymen, paving the way for the grosser tradition of Lauderism. Nor to Scotsmen of liberal views did the somewhat artless impulse to concentrate the entire literary thought and homage of the nation upon the achievement of Robert Burns, however great, appear as likely to be conducive to the healthy or catholic expansion of Scottish literary life or activity. Those of them, more familiar with the genius and tradition of the older and more courtly Scottish poets, Douglas, Hendryson, Dunbar, and Lyndesay, and with the tradition, magical and intense, of the northern balladeers, recognized in these a spirit as genuinely native and technically more worthy of affection and close study than the mark of their successors. While worshipping, Burns, 'this side idolatry,' they wholeheartedly detested the host of uninspired plagiarists who succeeded him and deplored the descent of Scottish poetry into an abyss of infamous clich and mechanical reiteration. (Henderson, 43-49) It was, indeed, inevitable that the whole race of poetasters should have misconstrued and misapprehended the essentials of the Burnsian composition, confounding as they did an inspired simplicity, a great lyric artlessness, with mere banality. Incapable of discerning the true merits of a tonic gift, the quality of which probably remains unsurpassed, they labored under the delusion that anything couched in Scots must naturally possess an equal excellence with the effortless cadences of a great natural artist, who sang as spontaneously and with all the perfervid enchantment of a thrush in a morning garden. From the death of Burns to the end of the late War may, perhaps, be regarded as the most jejune and uninspired period in Scottish letters. Not only was it parasitical to a great name in a manner that scarcely any other literature can ever have been, its history was almost utterly devoid of those frequent regroupings and reorientations of the literary elements which are regarded by the superficial as the manifestations of originality; for, though 'originality' is actually incapable of attainment, the surest sign of artistic vitality is its endeavor. This, within the period alluded to, was almost wholly invisible, and old men, and some young ones, and maundered on in the Burns tradition. But 'the War changed all that.' It achieved what nothing else could have achieved, because it removed for a while large numbers of Scots from the Caledonian scene, and permitted them a view of a larger world; and this estrangement had the effect it ever has on the Scottish mind--a marked quickening of the patriotic sense, mingled with a desire for new things. (Magnus, 95-101) It is with these post-War developments--and the way in which what preceded them in regard to Scottish arts and affairs during the past two or three decades appears in the light of these developments. Burns's work draws full attention to the ambiguities and vagueness innate in the imagination of The Britain of eighteen century. In almost all his poems, songs, and letters, he adopts a variety of perspectives, identifying himself at different times as both a Scottish patriot and a British citizen. (Kinsley, 112-19) In works such as "The Cotter's Saturday Night" and "Scotch Drink," Burns speaks of his allegiance to Scotland. Yet in other poems such as "The Author's Earnest Cry and Prayer, to ... the Scotch Representatives in the House of Commons," he harnesses this patriotism to the larger enterprise of representing Britain. (Gregory, 119-26) After visiting Stirling Castle, which occasionally housed the old Scottish Parliament, he was moved to scratch the following poem on the window of his room: HERE Stewarts once in triumph reign'd, And laws for Scotland's weal ordain'd; But now unroof'd their Palace stands, Their sceptre's fall'n to other hands; Fallen indeed, and to the earth, Whence grovelling reptiles take their birth The injur'd STEWART-line are gone, A Race outlandish fill their throne; An idiot race, to honor lost; Who know them best despise them most. Yet he also wrote that he had always been a fervent supporter of the Hanoverian cause and the "sacred KEYSTONE OF OUR ROYAL ARCH CONSTITUTION." He joined the Dumfries Volunteers during the war against France and requested (and obtained) a military funeral. (Williams, 111) Conclusion In conclusion, Robert's life went from as bad as it could possibly be to becoming the greatest writer in Scottish history. He saw many hard times through his life and he managed to pull through them and stride and now has a holiday that celebrates the day he was born and to celebrate his achievements. Scots are evidently not interested sufficient to keep Burns's memory going by paying for entrance to these shrines, so the Scottish Executive has asked the National Trust for Scotland to do something. The trust says taxpayers will have to foot the bill. His poems, in verse, diction and manner, are full of English echoes, and derive from Shenstone, Gray and others of that time. The only distinctive element they have is that now and then the irrepressible genius of the man, his rustic, national individuality, bursts, like a sudden gush of clear water, for a line or two, out of the dull expanse of his imitative verse. He should have done, with all impulses on his own part to write in English, and with all requests from others to do so. Poets should cling to their natural vehicle, to their native song. When Burns put on English dress, his singing robes slipped off him, his genius moved in fetters, he lost his distinction, his wit ran away, his passion was not natural; above all, the lovely charm of his words--their pleasant surprises, their delicate shades of expression, even their subtle melodies like the melodies of Nature herself, of the wind in the trees, of the brook over the pebbles, of the wild whispering of versatile colors and melodies of Nature. Works Cited Gregory Smith G Professor; Scottish Literature (Macmillan, 1919) 119-26 Henderson T. F. Scottish Vernacular Literature, (1898) 43-49 Henry Grey Graham: Scottish Men of Letters in the Eighteenth Century, (Black, 1908) 171-80 Ian McIntyre, Dirt and Deity: A Life of Robert Burns (London: Harper Collins, 1995), p. 398 Kinsley, James (ed.) (2001) The Poems and Songs of Robert Burns Oxford: Clarendon Press. Pp 112-119 Magnus Maclean; The Literature of the Highlands, (Blackie, 1925) 95-101 Millar J. H. A Literary History of Scotland, (Unwin, 1903). 45-53 Tytler, S. and Watson: History and Poetry of the Scottish Border. 2 vols. Vol II Edinburgh, 1999 pp 22 Veitch, John. The Feeling for Nature in Scottish Poetry: 2 vols. Vol. II Edinburgh, 1990 pp 23 Williams, John: History of Robert Burns Revolutionary Poems: Oxford University Press: New York 2002 pp 111

All About Common Chinese Punctuation Marks

All About Common Chinese Punctuation Marks Chinese punctuation marks are used to organize and clarify written Chinese. Chinese punctuation marks are similar in function to English punctuation marks but sometimes differ in the form or look. All Chinese characters are written to a uniform size, and this size also extends to punctuation marks, so Chinese punctuation marks usually take up more space than their English counterparts. Chinese characters can be written either vertically or horizontally, so the Chinese punctuation marks change position depending on the direction of the text. For example, parentheses and quotation marks are rotated 90 degrees when written vertically, and the full stop mark is placed below and to the right of the last character when written vertically. Common Chinese Punctuation Marks Here are the most commonly used Chinese punctuation marks: Full Stop The Chinese full stop is a small circle that takes the space of one Chinese character. The Mandarin name of the full stop is Ã¥  ¥Ã¨â„¢Å¸/Ã¥  ¥Ã¥  · (jà ¹ ho). It is used at the end of a simple or complex sentence, as in these examples: è «â€¹Ã¤ ½  Ã¥ ¹ «Ã¦Ë†â€˜Ã¨ ² ·Ã¤ ¸â‚¬Ã¤ » ½Ã¥   ±Ã§ ´â„¢Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ¨ ¯ ·Ã¤ ½  Ã¥ ¸ ®Ã¦Ë†â€˜Ã¤ ¹ °Ã¤ ¸â‚¬Ã¤ » ½Ã¦Å  ¥Ã§ º ¸Ã£â‚¬â€šQÇ ng nÇ  bÄ ng wÇ’ mÇŽi yÄ « fà ¨n bozhÇ .Please help me buy a newspaper.é ¯ ¨Ã© ­Å¡Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã§  ¸Ã© ¡Å¾Ã¤ ¸ Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã© ­Å¡Ã© ¡Å¾Ã¨ â„¢Ã¨   Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã§  ¸Ã© ¡Å¾Ã¤ ¸ Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã© ³ ¥Ã© ¡Å¾Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ© ² ¸Ã© ± ¼Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã¥â€¦ ½Ã§ ± »Ã¤ ¸ Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã© ± ¼Ã§ ± »Ã¨ â„¢Ã¨   Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã¥â€¦ ½Ã§ ± »Ã¤ ¸ Ã¦Ëœ ¯Ã© ¸Å¸Ã§ ± »Ã£â‚¬â€šJÄ «ngyà º shà ¬ shà ²u là ¨i, bà ºshà ¬ yà º là ¨i; biÄ nfà º shà ¬ shà ²u là ¨i, bà ºshà ¬ niÇŽo là ¨i.Whales are mammals, not fish; bats are mammals, not birds. Comma The Mandarin name of the Chinese comma is é€â€"號/é€â€"Ã¥  · (dà ²u ho). It is the same as the English comma, except it takes the space of one full character and is positioned in the middle of the line. It is used to separate clauses within a sentence, and to indicate pauses. Here are some examples: Ã¥ ¦â€šÃ¦Å¾Å"é ¢ ±Ã© ¢ ¨Ã¤ ¸ Ã¤ ¾â€ Ã¦Ë†â€˜Ã¥â‚¬â€˜Ã¥ ° ±Ã¥â€¡ ºÃ¥Å"‹æâ€"…è ¡Å'。å ¦â€šÃ¦Å¾Å"Ã¥  °Ã© £Å½Ã¤ ¸ Ã¦  ¥Ã¦Ë†â€˜Ã¤ » ¬Ã¥ ° ±Ã¥â€¡ ºÃ¥â€º ½Ã¦â€"…è ¡Å'。Rà ºguÇ’ tifÄ“ng bà ¹ li, wÇ’men jià ¹ chÃ… « guà ³ lÇšxà ­ng.If the typhoon does not come, we will take a trip abroad.ç  ¾Ã¥Å" ¨Ã§Å¡â€žÃ©â€º »Ã¨â€¦ ¦Ã§Å"Ÿæ˜ ¯Ã§â€ž ¡Ã¦â€°â‚¬Ã¤ ¸ Ã¨Æ' ½Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ§Å½ °Ã¥Å" ¨Ã§Å¡â€žÃ§â€ µÃ¨â€žâ€˜Ã§Å"Ÿæ˜ ¯Ã¦â€"  Ã¦â€°â‚¬Ã¤ ¸ Ã¨Æ' ½Ã£â‚¬â€šXinzi de dinnÇŽo, zhÄ“nshà ¬ wà º suÇ’ bà ¹ nà ©ng.Modern computers, they are truly essential. Enumeration Comma The enumeration comma is used to separate list items. It is a short dash going from top left to bottom right. The Mandarin name of the enumeration comma is é  â€œÃ¨â„¢Å¸/é ¡ ¿Ã¥  · (dà ¹n ho). The difference between the enumeration comma and the regular comma can be seen in the following example: Ã¥â€"Å"〠Ã¦â‚¬â€™Ã£â‚¬ Ã¥â€œâ‚¬Ã£â‚¬ Ã¦ ¨â€šÃ£â‚¬ Ã¦â€žâ€ºÃ£â‚¬ Ã¦Æ' ¡Ã£â‚¬ Ã¦ ¬ ²Ã¥  «Ã¥ Å¡Ã¤ ¸Æ'æÆ'…。åâ€"Å"〠Ã¦â‚¬â€™Ã£â‚¬ Ã¥â€œâ‚¬Ã£â‚¬ Ã¤ ¹ Ã£â‚¬ Ã§Ë† ±Ã£â‚¬ Ã¦  ¶Ã£â‚¬ Ã¦ ¬ ²Ã¥  «Ã¥ Å¡Ã¤ ¸Æ'æÆ'…。XÇ , nà ¹, Ä i, là ¨, i, à ¨, yà ¹, jiozuà ² qÄ « qà ­ng.Happiness, anger, sadness, joy, love, hate, and desire are known as the seven passions. Colon, Semicolon, Question Mark, and the Exclamation Mark These four Chinese punctuation marks are the same as their English counterparts and have the same usage as in English. Their names are as follows: Colon冒號/冒å  · (mo ho) - Semicolon - 分號/分å  · (fÄ“nho) - Question Mark - å• Ã¨â„¢Å¸/éâ€" ®Ã¥  · (wà ¨nho) - Exclamation Mark - é ©Å¡Ã¥Ëœâ€ Ã¨â„¢Å¸/æÆ'Šå  ¹Ã¥  · (jÄ «ng tn ho) - Quotation Marks Quotation marks are called Ã¥ ¼â€¢Ã¨â„¢Å¸/Ã¥ ¼â€¢Ã¥  · (yÇ n ho) in Mandarin Chinese. There are both single and double quote marks, with the double quotes used within the single quotes: ã€Å'...『...〠...〠 Western-style quotation marks are used in simplified Chinese, but traditional Chinese uses the symbols as shown above. They are used for quoted speech, emphasis and sometimes for proper nouns and titles. è€ Ã¥ ¸ «Ã¨ ª ªÃ£â‚¬Å'ä ½  Ã¥â‚¬â€˜Ã¨ ¦ Ã¨ ¨ËœÃ¤ ½  Ã¥Å"‹çˆ ¶Ã¨ ª ªÃ§Å¡â€žÃ£â‚¬Å½Ã© â€™Ã¥ ¹ ´Ã¨ ¦ Ã§ «â€¹Ã¥ ¿â€"Ã¥ Å¡Ã¥ ¤ §Ã¤ ºâ€¹Ã¤ ¸ Ã¨ ¦ Ã¥ Å¡Ã¥ ¤ §Ã¥ ®ËœÃ£â‚¬ Ã©â‚¬â„¢Ã¥  ¥Ã¨ © ±Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ£â‚¬ Ã¨â‚¬ Ã¥ ¸Ë†Ã¨ ¯ ´Ã¢â‚¬Å"ä ½  Ã¤ » ¬Ã¨ ¦ Ã¨ ® °Ã¤ ½  å› ½Ã§Ë† ¶Ã¨ ¯ ´Ã§Å¡â€žÃ¢â‚¬ËœÃ© â€™Ã¥ ¹ ´Ã¨ ¦ Ã§ «â€¹Ã¥ ¿â€"Ã¥ Å¡Ã¥ ¤ §Ã¤ ºâ€¹Ã¤ ¸ Ã¨ ¦ Ã¥ Å¡Ã¥ ¤ §Ã¥ ®ËœÃ¢â‚¬â„¢Ã¨ ¿â„¢Ã¥  ¥Ã¨ ¯ Ã£â‚¬â€šÃ¢â‚¬ LÇŽoshÄ « shuÃ… : â€Å"NÇ men yo jà ¬zhu Guà ³fà ¹ shuÃ…  de ‘qÄ «ngnin yo là ¬ zhà ¬ zuà ² dshà ¬, bà ¹yo zuà ² d guÄ n’ zhà ¨ jà ¹ hu.†The teacher said: â€Å"You must remember the words of Sun Yat-sen - ‘Youth should be committed to do big things, not to make big government.’

Economic Suspense Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Economic Suspense - Essay Example Thus, being occasionally boring makes the audience to anticipate something from you which makes you thrilling. However, the capacity to surprise an audience is a scarce resource because it is impossible to fool many people at all times. In addition to this, it is apparent that surprise happens when a specific outcome is different from your initial thought. Knowing the initial thought of a person is impossible, thus, making surprise a scarce resource (Ely, Frankel & Kamenica, 2015). Movies, as well as games, become interesting because of the unpredictable nature of the unraveled information. In support of this assertion, the article asserts that people are interested mainly in learning the result at a slow pace. Information unraveled in a certain period generates suspense and surprise which are the main contributing factors for entertainment (Ely, Frankel & Kamenica, 2015). According to the article, we can maximize our entertainment by generating the most suspense as well as the most surprise. Achievement of this will involve ensuring that we are occasionally boring in addition to keeping unpredictable plot twists (Ely, Frankel & Kamenica, 2015). Yes, economic approach is a comprehensive as well as an applicable approach to all human behavior. The human behavior introduced by Becker involves participants who not only maximize their utility but also accumulate a significant amount of information in different markets. In addition to this, the approach provides a unified outline for human behavior.

Total quality management (TQM) is a systemic approach to productivity Essay

Total quality management (TQM) is a systemic approach to productivity enhancement - Essay Example Although, above stated definitions with relative explanation satisfy the introduction of TQM; International Standard Organization1 defines it as, "TQM is a management approach for an organization, centered on quality, based on the participation of all its members and aiming at long-term success through customer satisfaction, and benefits to all members of the organization and to society." For an organization to implement TQM, it must maintain above stated quality standard in all aspects of its business. This requires ensuring that things are done right way the first time and that defects and waste are eliminated from operations. Globalization makes quality take place. As the companies get bigger, there is an increasing demand for Just In Time Management. This makes things move faster, while further approaching towards globalization while being responsible for the removal of tailback in manufacture along with resulting in high quality production. Therefore, it can be said that the impact of globalization on quality is positive. On the other hand, globalization has also brought some most important confrontations for quality2. The augmented struggle among organizations across the world is more forceful than before. This leads to the fact the producing the products at the lowest cost may win in the end; which implicates that the marketplace may only be motivated on price factor and not on all other factors which put in value to a product (Layne Gobrogg, journal article). When the marketplace grows to be sensitive to price only, service and quality suffer. Hence, what the world has seen in the recent times is exactly what has been discussed. Quality oriented textile industry in Pakistan has almost completely shifted to China which produces products at the lowest possible cost and minimal quality. This reflects the exact impact of how globalization affects quality, whether it be directly or indirectly. Traditional Management Styles vs. Quality Focused Management Styles: Total quality management has changed the traditional management style forever. Traditional style of management focuses on internal activities while assuming that products or services provided by organization are good in quality. However, total quality management focuses on the customer as the ultimate decider of the quality. Perhaps, the major difference between total quality management and traditional management style is the delegation of the authority with responsibility of the quality to the various levels of management, particularly to the middle level management. For this, TQM requires very high level of teamwork, unlike traditional style of management. Along with above stated differences, the other major difference is that TQM makes decisions on evidences of facts and figures, unlike traditional management style. Perhaps, this is the reason why TQM has been more successful than originally thought. Application of TQM: Before implementing TQM, top level management must have total faith in its implementation process3. TQM can be implemented in an organization through a step wise strategy. My strategy for Starbucks will be as following; 1. Appointment of a representative for coordinating the TQM implementation pr

A Big Responsibility During Our Development Primarily in the Essay

A Big Responsibility During Our Development Primarily in the Intrauterine Life - Essay Example When a woman becomes pregnant it is of normal concern for her if she will become a good mother to her child. It particularly occurs to a woman being pregnant for the first time. There will be some queries of how she will handle her newborn. Stoppard states that â€Å" the most common anxiety is simply fear of parenthood – of whether you will be a good parent and of whether you can cope with bringing up a child, and on top of this will be the worry about your child’s happiness if you don’t make a good job of it† (11). Some men, on the other hand, also admit it is not easy to become a father. Men â€Å"have difficulty bonding with an infant until as late as three months after the birth, when the child can smile or coo and interact more directly with them. Parent’s ability to reach out can be strengthened by allowing them to touch and spend time with the new child in the first few hours of life† (Pillitteri 581). Parenting starts right after the baby is born. They should allocate enough time especially now that they have a new member of the family. Furthermore, there will be a lot of lifestyle changes that will happen in their life. Gone were those expensive holidays and the groovy night-outs and replaced with the time for the baby giving all the necessities needed. â€Å"It will almost be a complete reversal of lifestyle, and at first it may not be easy to accept† (Stoppard 13). Nothing can best describe how parents outlive the hardships they have encountered just to provide enough attention to their child. In other words, being a parent is a sacrificial responsibility not only for the benefit of his/her child but, including the whole family as well.

Review of IT Project Management Practices in the UAE

Review of IT Project Management Practices in the UAE A Study on the UAE IT Industry ABSTRACT I keep six honest serving men, (They taught me all I know); Their names are What and Why and When And How and Where and Who. -Rudyard Kipling This report presents findings of a research project that explored the distinct approaches of UAE-based IT organisations in following different project management practices to deal with their IT projects. Not too much of project management data on UAE IT industry exists today. Therefore it was decided to do a study on it. The research findings are based on a questionnaire survey conducted between July and August 2008 among 200 organisations of UAE. A total of 48 valid responses were received, representing an overall response rate of 24%. The study achieved a primary aim of explanatory and constructivist research, which is to enhance knowledge and understanding of a phenomenon. An emergent-based, general systems approach was adopted for the whole project. General System theory is a holistic and analytical approach to solving complex problems. It recognizes relativity of perception and is a general science of wholeness (Bertalanffy, 1968). The theory was used to break down the whole research technique into various components yet still maintaining the integrity of the research objective. A key finding was the high amount of failure risks that came along with IT projects. In addition, it was found that project management added a lot of value to IT projects and if carried out efficiently it could help avoid the failure risks. A surprise discovery was that although most of the organisations valued project management a lot, they did not have a dedicated Project Management Office (PMO) in place. Further, it was found out that high involvement of external organisations could be one of the factors responsible for the high amount of risks involved with IT projects. It was observed that 25% of the project managers were not aware of the project management maturity levels of their organisations. Project managers seemed to have tough times managing time, cost and risk in IT projects. Also, most of the organisations did not believe in recording the lessons learned and hence knowledge was not transferred to the new projects from the previous ones. Strong indicators probably exist to warrant further research into investigating the basic reasons behind a high percentage of failed IT projects. Further research into the relationship between project management methodology and project success seems warranted on behalf of the indicators provided by the respondents. INTRODUCTION I have not failed. Ive just found 10,000 ways that wont work. -Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931) If your project doesnt work, look for the part that you didnt think was important   Arthur Bloch The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them. -Albert Einstein (1879-1955) The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency. -Bill Gates The Roman bridges of antiquity were very inefficient structures. By modern standards, they used too much stone, and as a result, far too much labor to build. Over the years we have learned to build bridges more efficiently, using fewer materials and less labor to perform the same task. -Tom Clancy (The Sum of All Fears) In 1986, Alfred Spector, president of Transarc Corporation, stated that bridge building could be compared to software development. He added, The premise: Bridges are usually built on-time, on-budget, and do not collapse. On the other hand, software never comes in on-budget or on-time. Also, it always breaks down. One of the biggest reasons why bridges come in on-time, on-budget and do not collapse is because their designs are extremely detailed. Once the designing phase is over, it is then frozen and the contractor has very little flexibility in changing the specifications. However, in todays fast moving business environment, having a frozen design in place means no changes in the business practices. Therefore efforts must be made to use a more flexible model. This could be and has been used as an explanation for development failure. But beside 3,000 years of experience, there is another difference between software failures and bridge collapses. When a bridge collapses, investigation is carried out and a report is written on the cause of the failure. It is not so in the IT industry where failures are covered up, ignored, and/or rationalized. As a result, the same mistakes are repeated over and over again. According to the Standish Group report, more than $250 billion is spent every year on IT application development of approximately 175,000 projects in the United States. The average cost of a development project for a small company is $434,000; for a medium company, it is $1,331,000; and for a large company, it is $2,322,000. A great number of these projects will fail. IT projects have always known to be in chaos. The research showed that a staggering 31.1% of projects got canceled before they ever got completed. Further results indicated that 52.7% of projects had cost 189% of their original estimates. The cost of these failures and overruns were just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. The lost opportunity costs were not measurable, but could easily be in trillions of dollars. The extent of this problem can be realized by looking at example of the City of Denver. The failure to produce reliable software to handle luggage at the new Denver airport was costing the city $1.1 million per day. Based on this research, in 1995 American companies and government agencies spent $81 billion for canceled software projects. These same organisations paid an additional $59 billion for software projects that were completed, but had exceed their original time estimates. Risk is always a factor when pushing the technology envelope, but many of these projects were as ordinary as a driving license database, a new accounting package, or an order entry system. On the success side, the average was only 16.2% for software projects that were completed on-time and on-budget. In the larger companies, the news was even worse: only 9% of their projects came in on-time and on-budget. And, even when these projects were completed, many were no more than a mere shadow of their original specification requirements. Projects completed by the largest American companies had only approximately 42% of the originally-proposed features and functions which goes to show that these projects lacked scope management. Smaller companies fared much better in this aspect. 78.4% of their software projects got deployed with at least 74.2% of their original features and functions. 48% of the IT executives in the research sample felt that there were more failures during that period than those five years ago. But it was also observed that over 50% felt that there were fewer or the same number of failures at that point of time than there were five and ten years ago. So the Standish Group reported an improvement in IT project success rates and claimed that it was due to an increased ability to know when to cancel failing projects. Standish Group Chairman Jim Johnson commented: The real improvement that I saw was in our ability to-in the worlds of Thomas Edison-know when to stop beating a dead horseEdisons key to success was that he failed fairly often; but as he said, he could recognize a dead horse before it started to smellIn information technology we ride dead horses-failing projects-a long time before we give up. But what we are seeing now is that we are able to get off them; able to reduce cost overrun and time overrun. Thats where the major impact came on the success rate. (Cabanis, 1998) There is a new or renewed interest in project management today as the number of projects continues to grow and their complexity continues to rise. As already observed, the success rate of IT projects has more than doubled since 1995, but still only about a third are successful in meeting scope, cost, and time goals. More and more projects and organisations can succeed consistently by adopting a more disciplined approach to managing projects. Research Objectives This study provides first-hand information on success and failure rates of IT projects in the UAE and on distinct approaches and methodologies followed by all different kinds of IT organisations in governing IT projects. It also aims to survey attitudes of organisations towards distinct project management processes like cost management, time management, risk management, etc. and establish a future direction for organisations so that they realize the value of the most significant process groups of project management and do not neglect them in the forthcoming projects. It could be useful in the following four areas : (1) it can be helpful for relevant government departments in preparing strategies for project management in the IT industry; (2) it can promote the awareness of commercial benefits of project management among managers in IT companies of UAE and encourage them to seriously consider project management in their businesses; (3) it can increase the competence and confidence in applying project management by local companies by providing management guidance on the selection and development of project management methodologies; and (4) it can be beneficial to the educational institutions of UAE for teaching and conducting further research on information technology project management. According to the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS), the IT industry consists of three primary sub-sectors : firstly, Technology Software Services, including companies that primarily develop software in various fields such as the Internet, applications, systems, databases management and/or home entertainment, and companies that provide information technology consulting and services, as well as data processing and outsourced services; secondly Technology Hardware Equipment, including manufacturers and distributors of communications equipment, computers and peripherals, electronic equipment and related instruments; and thirdly, Semiconductors Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturers. This particular report is confined to the use of project management among the areas of Technology Software Services and Technology Hardware Equipment only. The research was not conducted on the Semiconductors Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturers in UAE. Contents of this Report Chapter Two introduces project management and its significance for any business sector. It then demonstrates the rapid growth in adoption of project management in IT projects. This is followed by a synopsis of the UAE market and the UAE IT industry. The chapter ends signifying the impact of project management on the UAE IT industry. Chapter Three expands on the significance of project management as viewed through academic literature. This outlines how project management is known to add value to IT projects and some characteristics observed by organisations that have gone through the process of formalizing project management (Center for Business Practices). Using past works of the last 20 years, it also highlights the most predominant factors responsible for high failures rates of IT projects. This is followed by views of authors on various project management process groups and methodologies. Having discussed not only the pros of project management but also the problems faced during the entire process, Chapter Four is concerned with the research methodology and detailed analysis of the survey conducted. Chapter Five brings out the key survey findings in detail and compares these with the literature surveyed in Chapter Two indicating the extent to which the survey findings break new ground. Chapter Six builds up on the key findings outlined here, their practical implications, and a look towards how this research could be developed. This includes a brief description of limitations of this study and of recommendations on how these limitations could be overcome in subsequent studies. BACKGROUND Project management is the most critical business skill and competency of today that forms the basic building block of a knowledge based company for businesses and professions in oil and gas, petroleum, petrochemicals, chemicals, metal and mining, infrastructures, buildings, IT, Healthcare, Finance, Telecoms, Manufacturing, and many more services and banking industries. Project management was declared to be the best career on earth by the Fortune magazine. Recently, PMI reported that nowadays more and more organisations and government agencies are adopting and making project management a strategic competency. Information systems (IS) and information technologies (IT) are the fastest growing industries in developed and most of the developing countries. Huge amounts of money are still being invested in these industries (Abdel-Hamid Madnick, 1990). Every organisation wants to gain a competitive advantage, maintain it and lead from the front. Hence, there is a corresponding pressure to increase productivity. To maintain a competitive edge in todays fast-changing world, the success of an organisation depends on effectively developing and adopting information systems. According to Zells (1994) and other studies, approximately 85% of IT projects under-taken in the western countries are at the lowest level of capability maturity model (CMM). The challenges at this level are to have project planning, project management, configuration management, and quality assurance in place and have them working effectively. To improve project delivery performance, a number of organisations are adopting project management approaches and setting up project management offices (Barnes, 1991; Butterfield Edwards, 1994; King, 1995; Munns Bjeirmi, 1996; Raz, 1993; Redmond, 1991). Current literature on IT projects shows that most of the IT problems are not technical, they are of management, organisational or behavioral nature. (Johnston, 1995; Martin, 1994; Whitten, 1995). Fishers (1991) survey of technology firms showed that if project management improved, time and cost could be reduced by more than 25% and profits would increase by more than 5%. This has since been validated by using different project management methodologies and analyzing the extent to which these practices can be adopted, based on internal benchmarking by the companies involved in the field trials. The UAE Market the UAE IT Industry UAE has realised the significance of project management in the IT due to its rapid growth in the IT industry. As expected by Business Monitor International (BMI), the total size of the UAE IT market is to increase from around US$3.4bn in 2007 to close to US$4bn in 2012. With IT a key element of the Emirates development, a number of major local and federal government initiatives together with a strong and diversifying economy should ensure continued growth over the forecast period. Meanwhile, the oil-led boom across the Middle East will continue to be a boost to IT and infrastructure spending in the UAE. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) As per the BMI report, the federal government is also encouraging the development of smart cities, another regional trend. In 2007 the government announced that its target of getting 90% of businesses online by the end of the year was likely to be met. Services are becoming an increasingly significant component of many deployment contracts, as evidenced by recent projects by leading UAE corporations such as Emirates Airlines and the local telecom provider Etisalat. Investment is expected to be strongest in the government, financial, and oil and gas verticals. Other key non-oil sectors driving the economy include banking and finance, which are likely to be the single largest industry vertical in terms of IT investments over the forecast period. Real estate has also experienced a massive investment boom in the past five years, and this is expected to continue and grow, with the National Bank of Dubai projecting at least US$50bn in outlays in property development in the emirate by 2010. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) Industry Developments The BMI report states that the UAE federal governments recently announced UAE Strategic Plan calls for a strengthening of e-government programmes. The focus of the programme is to support implementation of programmes at federal government level. The federal government ministries have often lagged behind progress by the leading local governments, particularly Dubai. As such, Dubai government, which has had many of its departments and services online for some time, will lend expertise to the project. However, local government continues to dominate and accounts for around 20% of total IT Services spending. Dubai Municipality announced that it expects to spend anything between US$1.6mn and US$2.2mn per year over the next few years implementing its plan of getting 90% of government services online. It is likely the organisation will spend at least US$2.8mn annually on e-government initiatives. Abu Dhabi is accelerating its efforts to emulate Dubai, led by the Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Committee (ADSEIC), a body created in 2005 to develop and drive initiatives to transform government services in the Emirate. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) From the above trend, it can be observed that the number of IT jobs in UAE has gone up by 5000 percent since 2005. This goes to show how rapidly the UAE IT Industry has grown in the past three years and that it is still going strong. Competitive Landscape According to BMI, with government accounting for as much as 40% of IT spending, and e-government programmes alone around half that, vendors are continuing to find opportunities. Recently the Ministry of Development for the Government sector signed a strategic agreement with Microsoft Gulf whereby Microsoft will support federal e-government programmes with training and technical support. Under the agreement Ministries will also use legal Microsoft software. Meanwhile, the leading body for Abu Dhabis e-government programme, the Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Committee (ADSIC) signed an Enterprise Licence Agreement with Oracle. The agreement establishes Oracle as a key technology partner and provides for the Abu Dhabi Government to buy Oracle software solutions and support and maintenance services. The continuing growth in PC sales in 2007 in the UAE did not significantly alter the competitive landscape of a market which accounts for approximately 40% of the overall regional PC sales. Today the market remains dominated by international players such as Acer, Dell and HP with the top five brands accounting for more than 50% of the market. Meanwhile, the share held by local assemblers continues to dwindle, due in part to their relative weakness in the growth area of notebooks. However, local assemblers hope that their future will be brighter since UAE-based firms such as Sky Electronics have already been fighting back. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) Hardware The UAE hardware market is estimated at about US$1.4bn in 2007, which shows a 12% growth from US$1.2bn in 2006, and is one of the largest in the region. Much of the growth is due to small and medium enterprise spending, particular on mobile computers, which are expected to account for around 60% of sales over the forecast period. Notebooks are also proving to be popular with the consumer segment, particularly with the introduction of features such as integrated wi-fi, webcam and entertainment features such as HD DVD. Sales of PC notebooks and accessories have been expected to reach more than US$1bn by the end of 2008, while the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the 2007 to 2012 period as a whole is expected to be in the region of 8%. Current and future investments in education and e-government, fuelled by new oil revenues, will lead to desktop rollouts in schools, colleges and government offices across the Emirates. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) Software BMI estimates that the UAEs software spending will pass US$400mn in 2008, representing around 17% of the IT expenditure. CAGR for spending on packaged software is put at 10% over the 2007 to 2012 period, with the UAE being of the regions fastest-growing ERP markets, as more businesses realise the benefits of efficient management of resources within their internal processes. The UAE also has one of the regions lowest software piracy rates at just 35% according to the Business Software Association (BSA), which has praised the UAE government and Ministry of Economy for its efforts in promoting anti-piracy initiatives. The government has combated illegal software in a number of ways, both through anti-piracy legislation and enforcement measures. Customer relationship management (CRM) will be one of the growth areas with fewer than 2% of small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Middle East region having a specialised CRM application in place. BMI predicts plenty of room for growth in the forecast period as numerous untapped sub-sectors still exist. Key verticals include process manufacturing (mainly oil and gas), followed by the financial services industry. Two other key segments are the telecom and the public sectors. During the next five years high-growth categories are set to include CRM, enterprise resource planning (ERP) business intelligence, s torage and security products. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) IT Services BMI expects that the IT Services market will reach a value of more than US$1,003mn by 2012, with outsourcing accounting for an increasingly large portion of up to 25%. IT services revenues compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the 2006 to 2012 period is expected to be 10%, encouraging vendors to shift their focus away from simply shifting boxes. Services are becoming an increasingly significant component of many deployment contracts, as evidenced by recent projects by leading UAE corporations such as Emirates Airlines and Etisalat. Outsourcing is also predicted to be a growing trend, with recent landmark outsourcing deals awarded by entities such as the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA)and civil service departments. Global vendors such as IBM Global Services are competing for its business with local companies such as Injazat Data Systems, which with its good government connections has grown to be a major force in the market, reporting BPO deals with 13 leading priva te and public organisations. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) E-Readiness The recent Global Information Technology report sponsored by Cisco noted the UAEs success in creating a good ICT environment by placing it top of the rankings for 122 countries. The survey, which looks at the preference of countries to leverage the opportunities offered by ICT for development and increased competitiveness, praised the UAEs good regulatory environment, and clear government leadership in leveraging IT and promoting its use. According to the report, ICT has empowered individuals and revolutionised the business and economic landscape while fostering social networks and companies. Overall internet penetration in the UAE was estimated at close to 40% by the end of 2006, far above the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) average, reflecting the UAEs status as one of the most advanced IT countries in the middle-east. Broadband penetration is around 10% and is expected to rise 60% over the forecast period. In terms of e-government development, additional new phases to be introduced in the project last year (as mentioned in the Industry Developments section) include e-portal, e-project, the HR Management System (HRMS) and the Financial Management Integration System (FMIS) projects. The e-government High Committee has expressed satisfaction with the progress made on implementation of the e-government initiative to date. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) Impact of Project Management on the UAE IT Industry Project management has already had a significant impact on IT organisations in UAE and much more dramatic effects are anticipated for the years to come. Greater attention needs to be paid to the interaction of information technology with business methods, work patterns, employees and organisational culture. It was observed that not too much of research work has been carried out on project management in the IT industry of UAE and this is the precise reason why this study was conducted on the UAE market. LITERATURE REVIEW If we built houses the way we build software, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization. John J. Hamre, U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Phillips (2004) states that IT project management could be as as exciting as a white water rafting excursion or as painful as a root canal. In addition, Anthes (2008) points out that IT project management has always earned a high ranking on the annual list of IT managers worries, but in the first-half of the 2008 Vital Signs survey, it took the No. 1 spot. In other words, the process is all about efficiently handling the complexities that come along with IT projects, right from the word go. The study aims to investigate on how difficult it is for organisations to manage IT projects efficiently. Richardson et al. (2006) claims that project failure is based not only on economic criteria but also on requirements, cost and time parameters. He builds up his reasoning by citing examples of the following project surveys : The Robbins-Gioia Survey (2001) The Conference Board Survey (2001) The KPMG Canada Survey (1997) The Chaos Report (1995) According to IT Cortex (2004), the results of these surveys showed that most of the organisations suffered from high project failure rates and that they heavily exceeded the time and budget constraints. Similarly, Schwalbe (2007) reports that IT projects come along with high failure risks. He defends his thoughts with a study which was conducted by the Standish Group (CHAOS) in 1995. In the survey it was found that only 16.2% of IT projects were successful and over 31% were cancelled before completion, costing over US$81 billion in the US alone. However, when the CHAOS study was conducted again in 2001, the results showed improvements in all areas but still only 28% of IT projects succeeded. The 2001 Standish Group report findings as compared to those of the 1995 report were as follows : Time overruns significantly decreased from 222% to 163% Cost overruns were down from 189% to 145% Required features and functions were up from 61% to 67% Successful IT projects rose from to 16% to 28% One of the objectives of this report is to carry out similar work on finding the failure rates of IT projects but on the UAE market, one on which not much research has been carried out till date. In many previous studies, project failures due to time delay, cost overrun, and abandonment of IT projects have been widely reported (Bailey, 1996; Gibbs, 1994; Lucas, 1995; Martin, 1994; Ward, 1994). In other industries, causes of project failures are investigated and reports written, but in the IT industry their causes are either covered up or ignored. As a consequence, the IT industry keeps repeating the same mistakes over and over again (Johnston, 1995). This report takes this a step further by observing what percentage of IT organisations in UAE believe in maintaining project reports and lessons learned logs for their subsequent projects. In many previous studies, the most commonly reported causes of IT project failure were traced out. They were as follows (based on a content analysis of the cited literature): Misunderstood requirements (business, technical, and social) (King, 1995; Lane, Palko, Cronan, 1994; Lavence, 1996); Optimistic schedules and budgets (Martin, 1994); Inadequate risk assessment and management (Johnston, 1995); Inconsistent standards and lack of training in project management (Jones, 1994; OConner Reinsborough, 1992; Phan, Vogel, Nunamaker, 1995); Management of resources (people more than hardware and technology) (Johnston, 1995; Martin, 1994; Ward, 1994); Unclear charter for a project (Lavence, 1996); Lack of communication (Demery, 1995; Gioia, 1996; Hartman, 2000; Walsh Kanter, 1988). On the other hand, Karten studies reasons for failure by compiling a list of ten ways that can guarantee project failure : Abbreviate the planning process Dont ask what if? Minimize customer involvement Select team members by seeing who is available regardless of skill Work people long and hard Dont inform management of problems Allow changes at any point Discourage questions from team members Dont give customers progress reports Dont compare project progress with project estimates However, this survey goes a bit deeper and also explores the role of project management methodologies and process groups in helping deliver successful projects. The project management frameworks which are rapidly gaining recognition are ITIL, PMBOK and PRINCE2 (Phillips, 2004). Although Leuenberger (2007) considers ITIL to be one of the worlds best ways to align IT with business objectives, he also claims that his research conducted through IDC shows points out that 60% of mid-sized businesses in Australia either are unaware of, or have no plans to implement ITIL and also that on a global scale, only 20% of the mid-market companies are currently using ITIL. In contrast to ITIL, PMI claims that it has grown to become the most widely recognized and the only global certification for the project management profession with more than 260,000 members in over 171 countries. The survey aims to study the UAE IT industry and clarify such claims made by authors and institutes so that the growth of IT project governance methodologies can in an IT industry of a booming economy can be analyzed. Bainey (2004) states that so many IT projects tend to go over budget, run behind schedule, and deliver products or services poor in quality due to the negligence of integration, consistency and standardization. The report builds up on this by going ahead and investigating the significance of integration management for project managers. Harris (2005) asserts that it is high time that the PMO function is placed in its proper organisational alignment. He believes that not only can it combine the corporate planning process with effective delivery of products and services but also provide external clients with traditional client services for the enterprise as a whole or for respective enterprise business unit Review of IT Project Management Practices in the UAE Review of IT Project Management Practices in the UAE A Study on the UAE IT Industry ABSTRACT I keep six honest serving men, (They taught me all I know); Their names are What and Why and When And How and Where and Who. -Rudyard Kipling This report presents findings of a research project that explored the distinct approaches of UAE-based IT organisations in following different project management practices to deal with their IT projects. Not too much of project management data on UAE IT industry exists today. Therefore it was decided to do a study on it. The research findings are based on a questionnaire survey conducted between July and August 2008 among 200 organisations of UAE. A total of 48 valid responses were received, representing an overall response rate of 24%. The study achieved a primary aim of explanatory and constructivist research, which is to enhance knowledge and understanding of a phenomenon. An emergent-based, general systems approach was adopted for the whole project. General System theory is a holistic and analytical approach to solving complex problems. It recognizes relativity of perception and is a general science of wholeness (Bertalanffy, 1968). The theory was used to break down the whole research technique into various components yet still maintaining the integrity of the research objective. A key finding was the high amount of failure risks that came along with IT projects. In addition, it was found that project management added a lot of value to IT projects and if carried out efficiently it could help avoid the failure risks. A surprise discovery was that although most of the organisations valued project management a lot, they did not have a dedicated Project Management Office (PMO) in place. Further, it was found out that high involvement of external organisations could be one of the factors responsible for the high amount of risks involved with IT projects. It was observed that 25% of the project managers were not aware of the project management maturity levels of their organisations. Project managers seemed to have tough times managing time, cost and risk in IT projects. Also, most of the organisations did not believe in recording the lessons learned and hence knowledge was not transferred to the new projects from the previous ones. Strong indicators probably exist to warrant further research into investigating the basic reasons behind a high percentage of failed IT projects. Further research into the relationship between project management methodology and project success seems warranted on behalf of the indicators provided by the respondents. INTRODUCTION I have not failed. Ive just found 10,000 ways that wont work. -Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931) If your project doesnt work, look for the part that you didnt think was important   Arthur Bloch The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them. -Albert Einstein (1879-1955) The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency. -Bill Gates The Roman bridges of antiquity were very inefficient structures. By modern standards, they used too much stone, and as a result, far too much labor to build. Over the years we have learned to build bridges more efficiently, using fewer materials and less labor to perform the same task. -Tom Clancy (The Sum of All Fears) In 1986, Alfred Spector, president of Transarc Corporation, stated that bridge building could be compared to software development. He added, The premise: Bridges are usually built on-time, on-budget, and do not collapse. On the other hand, software never comes in on-budget or on-time. Also, it always breaks down. One of the biggest reasons why bridges come in on-time, on-budget and do not collapse is because their designs are extremely detailed. Once the designing phase is over, it is then frozen and the contractor has very little flexibility in changing the specifications. However, in todays fast moving business environment, having a frozen design in place means no changes in the business practices. Therefore efforts must be made to use a more flexible model. This could be and has been used as an explanation for development failure. But beside 3,000 years of experience, there is another difference between software failures and bridge collapses. When a bridge collapses, investigation is carried out and a report is written on the cause of the failure. It is not so in the IT industry where failures are covered up, ignored, and/or rationalized. As a result, the same mistakes are repeated over and over again. According to the Standish Group report, more than $250 billion is spent every year on IT application development of approximately 175,000 projects in the United States. The average cost of a development project for a small company is $434,000; for a medium company, it is $1,331,000; and for a large company, it is $2,322,000. A great number of these projects will fail. IT projects have always known to be in chaos. The research showed that a staggering 31.1% of projects got canceled before they ever got completed. Further results indicated that 52.7% of projects had cost 189% of their original estimates. The cost of these failures and overruns were just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. The lost opportunity costs were not measurable, but could easily be in trillions of dollars. The extent of this problem can be realized by looking at example of the City of Denver. The failure to produce reliable software to handle luggage at the new Denver airport was costing the city $1.1 million per day. Based on this research, in 1995 American companies and government agencies spent $81 billion for canceled software projects. These same organisations paid an additional $59 billion for software projects that were completed, but had exceed their original time estimates. Risk is always a factor when pushing the technology envelope, but many of these projects were as ordinary as a driving license database, a new accounting package, or an order entry system. On the success side, the average was only 16.2% for software projects that were completed on-time and on-budget. In the larger companies, the news was even worse: only 9% of their projects came in on-time and on-budget. And, even when these projects were completed, many were no more than a mere shadow of their original specification requirements. Projects completed by the largest American companies had only approximately 42% of the originally-proposed features and functions which goes to show that these projects lacked scope management. Smaller companies fared much better in this aspect. 78.4% of their software projects got deployed with at least 74.2% of their original features and functions. 48% of the IT executives in the research sample felt that there were more failures during that period than those five years ago. But it was also observed that over 50% felt that there were fewer or the same number of failures at that point of time than there were five and ten years ago. So the Standish Group reported an improvement in IT project success rates and claimed that it was due to an increased ability to know when to cancel failing projects. Standish Group Chairman Jim Johnson commented: The real improvement that I saw was in our ability to-in the worlds of Thomas Edison-know when to stop beating a dead horseEdisons key to success was that he failed fairly often; but as he said, he could recognize a dead horse before it started to smellIn information technology we ride dead horses-failing projects-a long time before we give up. But what we are seeing now is that we are able to get off them; able to reduce cost overrun and time overrun. Thats where the major impact came on the success rate. (Cabanis, 1998) There is a new or renewed interest in project management today as the number of projects continues to grow and their complexity continues to rise. As already observed, the success rate of IT projects has more than doubled since 1995, but still only about a third are successful in meeting scope, cost, and time goals. More and more projects and organisations can succeed consistently by adopting a more disciplined approach to managing projects. Research Objectives This study provides first-hand information on success and failure rates of IT projects in the UAE and on distinct approaches and methodologies followed by all different kinds of IT organisations in governing IT projects. It also aims to survey attitudes of organisations towards distinct project management processes like cost management, time management, risk management, etc. and establish a future direction for organisations so that they realize the value of the most significant process groups of project management and do not neglect them in the forthcoming projects. It could be useful in the following four areas : (1) it can be helpful for relevant government departments in preparing strategies for project management in the IT industry; (2) it can promote the awareness of commercial benefits of project management among managers in IT companies of UAE and encourage them to seriously consider project management in their businesses; (3) it can increase the competence and confidence in applying project management by local companies by providing management guidance on the selection and development of project management methodologies; and (4) it can be beneficial to the educational institutions of UAE for teaching and conducting further research on information technology project management. According to the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS), the IT industry consists of three primary sub-sectors : firstly, Technology Software Services, including companies that primarily develop software in various fields such as the Internet, applications, systems, databases management and/or home entertainment, and companies that provide information technology consulting and services, as well as data processing and outsourced services; secondly Technology Hardware Equipment, including manufacturers and distributors of communications equipment, computers and peripherals, electronic equipment and related instruments; and thirdly, Semiconductors Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturers. This particular report is confined to the use of project management among the areas of Technology Software Services and Technology Hardware Equipment only. The research was not conducted on the Semiconductors Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturers in UAE. Contents of this Report Chapter Two introduces project management and its significance for any business sector. It then demonstrates the rapid growth in adoption of project management in IT projects. This is followed by a synopsis of the UAE market and the UAE IT industry. The chapter ends signifying the impact of project management on the UAE IT industry. Chapter Three expands on the significance of project management as viewed through academic literature. This outlines how project management is known to add value to IT projects and some characteristics observed by organisations that have gone through the process of formalizing project management (Center for Business Practices). Using past works of the last 20 years, it also highlights the most predominant factors responsible for high failures rates of IT projects. This is followed by views of authors on various project management process groups and methodologies. Having discussed not only the pros of project management but also the problems faced during the entire process, Chapter Four is concerned with the research methodology and detailed analysis of the survey conducted. Chapter Five brings out the key survey findings in detail and compares these with the literature surveyed in Chapter Two indicating the extent to which the survey findings break new ground. Chapter Six builds up on the key findings outlined here, their practical implications, and a look towards how this research could be developed. This includes a brief description of limitations of this study and of recommendations on how these limitations could be overcome in subsequent studies. BACKGROUND Project management is the most critical business skill and competency of today that forms the basic building block of a knowledge based company for businesses and professions in oil and gas, petroleum, petrochemicals, chemicals, metal and mining, infrastructures, buildings, IT, Healthcare, Finance, Telecoms, Manufacturing, and many more services and banking industries. Project management was declared to be the best career on earth by the Fortune magazine. Recently, PMI reported that nowadays more and more organisations and government agencies are adopting and making project management a strategic competency. Information systems (IS) and information technologies (IT) are the fastest growing industries in developed and most of the developing countries. Huge amounts of money are still being invested in these industries (Abdel-Hamid Madnick, 1990). Every organisation wants to gain a competitive advantage, maintain it and lead from the front. Hence, there is a corresponding pressure to increase productivity. To maintain a competitive edge in todays fast-changing world, the success of an organisation depends on effectively developing and adopting information systems. According to Zells (1994) and other studies, approximately 85% of IT projects under-taken in the western countries are at the lowest level of capability maturity model (CMM). The challenges at this level are to have project planning, project management, configuration management, and quality assurance in place and have them working effectively. To improve project delivery performance, a number of organisations are adopting project management approaches and setting up project management offices (Barnes, 1991; Butterfield Edwards, 1994; King, 1995; Munns Bjeirmi, 1996; Raz, 1993; Redmond, 1991). Current literature on IT projects shows that most of the IT problems are not technical, they are of management, organisational or behavioral nature. (Johnston, 1995; Martin, 1994; Whitten, 1995). Fishers (1991) survey of technology firms showed that if project management improved, time and cost could be reduced by more than 25% and profits would increase by more than 5%. This has since been validated by using different project management methodologies and analyzing the extent to which these practices can be adopted, based on internal benchmarking by the companies involved in the field trials. The UAE Market the UAE IT Industry UAE has realised the significance of project management in the IT due to its rapid growth in the IT industry. As expected by Business Monitor International (BMI), the total size of the UAE IT market is to increase from around US$3.4bn in 2007 to close to US$4bn in 2012. With IT a key element of the Emirates development, a number of major local and federal government initiatives together with a strong and diversifying economy should ensure continued growth over the forecast period. Meanwhile, the oil-led boom across the Middle East will continue to be a boost to IT and infrastructure spending in the UAE. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) As per the BMI report, the federal government is also encouraging the development of smart cities, another regional trend. In 2007 the government announced that its target of getting 90% of businesses online by the end of the year was likely to be met. Services are becoming an increasingly significant component of many deployment contracts, as evidenced by recent projects by leading UAE corporations such as Emirates Airlines and the local telecom provider Etisalat. Investment is expected to be strongest in the government, financial, and oil and gas verticals. Other key non-oil sectors driving the economy include banking and finance, which are likely to be the single largest industry vertical in terms of IT investments over the forecast period. Real estate has also experienced a massive investment boom in the past five years, and this is expected to continue and grow, with the National Bank of Dubai projecting at least US$50bn in outlays in property development in the emirate by 2010. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) Industry Developments The BMI report states that the UAE federal governments recently announced UAE Strategic Plan calls for a strengthening of e-government programmes. The focus of the programme is to support implementation of programmes at federal government level. The federal government ministries have often lagged behind progress by the leading local governments, particularly Dubai. As such, Dubai government, which has had many of its departments and services online for some time, will lend expertise to the project. However, local government continues to dominate and accounts for around 20% of total IT Services spending. Dubai Municipality announced that it expects to spend anything between US$1.6mn and US$2.2mn per year over the next few years implementing its plan of getting 90% of government services online. It is likely the organisation will spend at least US$2.8mn annually on e-government initiatives. Abu Dhabi is accelerating its efforts to emulate Dubai, led by the Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Committee (ADSEIC), a body created in 2005 to develop and drive initiatives to transform government services in the Emirate. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) From the above trend, it can be observed that the number of IT jobs in UAE has gone up by 5000 percent since 2005. This goes to show how rapidly the UAE IT Industry has grown in the past three years and that it is still going strong. Competitive Landscape According to BMI, with government accounting for as much as 40% of IT spending, and e-government programmes alone around half that, vendors are continuing to find opportunities. Recently the Ministry of Development for the Government sector signed a strategic agreement with Microsoft Gulf whereby Microsoft will support federal e-government programmes with training and technical support. Under the agreement Ministries will also use legal Microsoft software. Meanwhile, the leading body for Abu Dhabis e-government programme, the Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Committee (ADSIC) signed an Enterprise Licence Agreement with Oracle. The agreement establishes Oracle as a key technology partner and provides for the Abu Dhabi Government to buy Oracle software solutions and support and maintenance services. The continuing growth in PC sales in 2007 in the UAE did not significantly alter the competitive landscape of a market which accounts for approximately 40% of the overall regional PC sales. Today the market remains dominated by international players such as Acer, Dell and HP with the top five brands accounting for more than 50% of the market. Meanwhile, the share held by local assemblers continues to dwindle, due in part to their relative weakness in the growth area of notebooks. However, local assemblers hope that their future will be brighter since UAE-based firms such as Sky Electronics have already been fighting back. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) Hardware The UAE hardware market is estimated at about US$1.4bn in 2007, which shows a 12% growth from US$1.2bn in 2006, and is one of the largest in the region. Much of the growth is due to small and medium enterprise spending, particular on mobile computers, which are expected to account for around 60% of sales over the forecast period. Notebooks are also proving to be popular with the consumer segment, particularly with the introduction of features such as integrated wi-fi, webcam and entertainment features such as HD DVD. Sales of PC notebooks and accessories have been expected to reach more than US$1bn by the end of 2008, while the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the 2007 to 2012 period as a whole is expected to be in the region of 8%. Current and future investments in education and e-government, fuelled by new oil revenues, will lead to desktop rollouts in schools, colleges and government offices across the Emirates. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) Software BMI estimates that the UAEs software spending will pass US$400mn in 2008, representing around 17% of the IT expenditure. CAGR for spending on packaged software is put at 10% over the 2007 to 2012 period, with the UAE being of the regions fastest-growing ERP markets, as more businesses realise the benefits of efficient management of resources within their internal processes. The UAE also has one of the regions lowest software piracy rates at just 35% according to the Business Software Association (BSA), which has praised the UAE government and Ministry of Economy for its efforts in promoting anti-piracy initiatives. The government has combated illegal software in a number of ways, both through anti-piracy legislation and enforcement measures. Customer relationship management (CRM) will be one of the growth areas with fewer than 2% of small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Middle East region having a specialised CRM application in place. BMI predicts plenty of room for growth in the forecast period as numerous untapped sub-sectors still exist. Key verticals include process manufacturing (mainly oil and gas), followed by the financial services industry. Two other key segments are the telecom and the public sectors. During the next five years high-growth categories are set to include CRM, enterprise resource planning (ERP) business intelligence, s torage and security products. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) IT Services BMI expects that the IT Services market will reach a value of more than US$1,003mn by 2012, with outsourcing accounting for an increasingly large portion of up to 25%. IT services revenues compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the 2006 to 2012 period is expected to be 10%, encouraging vendors to shift their focus away from simply shifting boxes. Services are becoming an increasingly significant component of many deployment contracts, as evidenced by recent projects by leading UAE corporations such as Emirates Airlines and Etisalat. Outsourcing is also predicted to be a growing trend, with recent landmark outsourcing deals awarded by entities such as the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA)and civil service departments. Global vendors such as IBM Global Services are competing for its business with local companies such as Injazat Data Systems, which with its good government connections has grown to be a major force in the market, reporting BPO deals with 13 leading priva te and public organisations. (Marketresearch.com, 2007) E-Readiness The recent Global Information Technology report sponsored by Cisco noted the UAEs success in creating a good ICT environment by placing it top of the rankings for 122 countries. The survey, which looks at the preference of countries to leverage the opportunities offered by ICT for development and increased competitiveness, praised the UAEs good regulatory environment, and clear government leadership in leveraging IT and promoting its use. According to the report, ICT has empowered individuals and revolutionised the business and economic landscape while fostering social networks and companies. Overall internet penetration in the UAE was estimated at close to 40% by the end of 2006, far above the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) average, reflecting the UAEs status as one of the most advanced IT countries in the middle-east. Broadband penetration is around 10% and is expected to rise 60% over the forecast period. In terms of e-government development, additional new phases to be introduced in the project last year (as mentioned in the Industry Developments section) include e-portal, e-project, the HR Management System (HRMS) and the Financial Management Integration System (FMIS) projects. The e-government High Committee has expressed satisfaction with the progress made on implementation of the e-government initiative to date. (Mindbranch.com, 2007) Impact of Project Management on the UAE IT Industry Project management has already had a significant impact on IT organisations in UAE and much more dramatic effects are anticipated for the years to come. Greater attention needs to be paid to the interaction of information technology with business methods, work patterns, employees and organisational culture. It was observed that not too much of research work has been carried out on project management in the IT industry of UAE and this is the precise reason why this study was conducted on the UAE market. LITERATURE REVIEW If we built houses the way we build software, the first woodpecker to come along would destroy civilization. John J. Hamre, U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Phillips (2004) states that IT project management could be as as exciting as a white water rafting excursion or as painful as a root canal. In addition, Anthes (2008) points out that IT project management has always earned a high ranking on the annual list of IT managers worries, but in the first-half of the 2008 Vital Signs survey, it took the No. 1 spot. In other words, the process is all about efficiently handling the complexities that come along with IT projects, right from the word go. The study aims to investigate on how difficult it is for organisations to manage IT projects efficiently. Richardson et al. (2006) claims that project failure is based not only on economic criteria but also on requirements, cost and time parameters. He builds up his reasoning by citing examples of the following project surveys : The Robbins-Gioia Survey (2001) The Conference Board Survey (2001) The KPMG Canada Survey (1997) The Chaos Report (1995) According to IT Cortex (2004), the results of these surveys showed that most of the organisations suffered from high project failure rates and that they heavily exceeded the time and budget constraints. Similarly, Schwalbe (2007) reports that IT projects come along with high failure risks. He defends his thoughts with a study which was conducted by the Standish Group (CHAOS) in 1995. In the survey it was found that only 16.2% of IT projects were successful and over 31% were cancelled before completion, costing over US$81 billion in the US alone. However, when the CHAOS study was conducted again in 2001, the results showed improvements in all areas but still only 28% of IT projects succeeded. The 2001 Standish Group report findings as compared to those of the 1995 report were as follows : Time overruns significantly decreased from 222% to 163% Cost overruns were down from 189% to 145% Required features and functions were up from 61% to 67% Successful IT projects rose from to 16% to 28% One of the objectives of this report is to carry out similar work on finding the failure rates of IT projects but on the UAE market, one on which not much research has been carried out till date. In many previous studies, project failures due to time delay, cost overrun, and abandonment of IT projects have been widely reported (Bailey, 1996; Gibbs, 1994; Lucas, 1995; Martin, 1994; Ward, 1994). In other industries, causes of project failures are investigated and reports written, but in the IT industry their causes are either covered up or ignored. As a consequence, the IT industry keeps repeating the same mistakes over and over again (Johnston, 1995). This report takes this a step further by observing what percentage of IT organisations in UAE believe in maintaining project reports and lessons learned logs for their subsequent projects. In many previous studies, the most commonly reported causes of IT project failure were traced out. They were as follows (based on a content analysis of the cited literature): Misunderstood requirements (business, technical, and social) (King, 1995; Lane, Palko, Cronan, 1994; Lavence, 1996); Optimistic schedules and budgets (Martin, 1994); Inadequate risk assessment and management (Johnston, 1995); Inconsistent standards and lack of training in project management (Jones, 1994; OConner Reinsborough, 1992; Phan, Vogel, Nunamaker, 1995); Management of resources (people more than hardware and technology) (Johnston, 1995; Martin, 1994; Ward, 1994); Unclear charter for a project (Lavence, 1996); Lack of communication (Demery, 1995; Gioia, 1996; Hartman, 2000; Walsh Kanter, 1988). On the other hand, Karten studies reasons for failure by compiling a list of ten ways that can guarantee project failure : Abbreviate the planning process Dont ask what if? Minimize customer involvement Select team members by seeing who is available regardless of skill Work people long and hard Dont inform management of problems Allow changes at any point Discourage questions from team members Dont give customers progress reports Dont compare project progress with project estimates However, this survey goes a bit deeper and also explores the role of project management methodologies and process groups in helping deliver successful projects. The project management frameworks which are rapidly gaining recognition are ITIL, PMBOK and PRINCE2 (Phillips, 2004). Although Leuenberger (2007) considers ITIL to be one of the worlds best ways to align IT with business objectives, he also claims that his research conducted through IDC shows points out that 60% of mid-sized businesses in Australia either are unaware of, or have no plans to implement ITIL and also that on a global scale, only 20% of the mid-market companies are currently using ITIL. In contrast to ITIL, PMI claims that it has grown to become the most widely recognized and the only global certification for the project management profession with more than 260,000 members in over 171 countries. The survey aims to study the UAE IT industry and clarify such claims made by authors and institutes so that the growth of IT project governance methodologies can in an IT industry of a booming economy can be analyzed. Bainey (2004) states that so many IT projects tend to go over budget, run behind schedule, and deliver products or services poor in quality due to the negligence of integration, consistency and standardization. The report builds up on this by going ahead and investigating the significance of integration management for project managers. Harris (2005) asserts that it is high time that the PMO function is placed in its proper organisational alignment. He believes that not only can it combine the corporate planning process with effective delivery of products and services but also provide external clients with traditional client services for the enterprise as a whole or for respective enterprise business unit

Letters to a Young Poet

Late in his life, the Czech great poet Rainer Maria Rilke maintained a correspondence with a young poet, Franz Xaver Krappus through his well-known ten letters.   While in military academy, Young Franz full of passion and deep-seated appreciation for good poetry, on reading a collection of Rilke's poetry, decided to send Rilke some of his poetry for Rilke to read and offer some advice in form of commendations and criticisms. The correspondence was thoughtful and filled within insight in various life themes, with profound messages for every one. It began in lasted from 1902 to 1908 and in June, 1929 three years after Rilke’s death, Franz gathered and published the letters in Berlin. Frank’ introduction of the letters detailed his encounter with the writings of Rilke while he was in the Military Academy, Vienna. He interacted with Professor Horacek who talked to him about the life of Rilke as a gifted serious gentle calm and introverted fellow while in the same academy who was dedicated to his training; Rilke continued his education at home in Prague when he could not cope in his new school away from the military academy. Through this correspondence, one understands the life of Rilke within the sentences he sent to this young poet. There is a hint to the transformation that he undergoes the principles that guide his life and how these changes influence his writing. The progression in the life of Rilke is visible in the letters sent to this 19-year old poet: his life is based on the finding of the direction of the inner pursuit; answering the basic question of life and then wait until the inner voice speaks with a bold answer. This is his opinion of the foundation of a viable career. He believes in the power of reading to build a strong writing career: good writers read and good readers write. To approach productive reading, it is important to come with an open mind and be ready to love the work. This is how best to understand writings and be in the best position to criticize them if need be. The central theme is love. He understands the difficulty associated with loving. He tells the young poet about the travail of learning how to love. He leaves him with the advice: keep learning. Sadness, aloneness also show in his write-up. This conflict with love may reflect the hitches he experiences in his family life, and why he seldom mentions his family. As an introvert, this is allowed. Rilke’s search for solitude is important in discovering the pace and direction of the inner man: this is a major theme of his life. This also keeps him away from the pressures of the outside world and its attendant conflicts. Let’s take a look at the letters: Letter One: ‘There is only one way: Go within. Search for the cause, find the impetus that bids you write.’ He writes this to advice Franz about life career starting with an introspective search for discovery of the true reason for essence in life. This letter shows the basis for his life pursuit and advice for the young poet on career choice. Letter Two: Live awhile within these books.   Learn of them, whatever seems worth the learning, but above all,  love them.   To live within the books is to be able learn, and to love them is the way to be open to its lessons and make appropriate life changes as required. Letter Three: Let me ask you right here to read as little as possible of aesthetic critiques.   It shows his distaste for criticisms that are not appreciative of the exclusive work of arts. Love is a prerequisite for true criticism. Letter Four: Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language.   Do not now look for the answers.    They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them.   The questions that arise in life do not come with answers by merely asking but until the questions are incorporated into daily living; that’s where they get answered. Letter Five: There is much beauty here because there is much beauty everywhere. Life is beauty, it al depends on what you see not where you are. Letter Six: Why don't you think of him as the coming one, who has been at hand since eternity, the future one, the final fruit of a tree, with us as its leaves? Live your life knowing there would be pain, but you still joy. Letter Seven: To love is also good, for love is difficult. For one human being to love another is perhaps the must difficult task of all, the epitome, the ultimate test. This letter was explicit on love, and detailed the enigmatic way he sees and experienced love. Letter Eight: And this is the reason the sadness passes: the something new within us, the thing that has joined us, has entered our heart, has gone into its innermost chamber and is no longer there either– it is already in the blood. Letter Nine: Your doubt can become a good attribute if you discipline it. It must become a knowing; it must become the critic. This gives advice on how to turn doubt to a useful tool in life and career. Letter Ten: Art also is only a way of life, and we can, no matter how we live, and without knowing it, prepare ourselves for it. He admonishes the Young Franz about the existence of art; he asserts that that art is part of us and our lives whether we accept the fact or not. REFERENCE Rainer Maria Rilke. Letters to a young poet Letters to a young poet. Accessed from www.sfgoth.com/~immanis/rilke/letter1.html Letters to a young poet. Accessed from www.carrothers.com/rilke_main.htm Rilke’s writing. www.floozy.com/allison/rilke/r.index.html    Letters to a Young Poet Brenda Benson Letters to a Young poet by Rainer Maria Rilke Letters 1-5 Letters to a Young Poet, letter 1: â€Å"No one can advise or help you- no one. There is only one thing you should do. Go into yourself. † I believe this advice goes for anyone, but I can identify with this. The reason is that you really can’t depend on anyone, because the other person will not care for the situation or whatever the way you do. Many of times, where I thought I could seek for other for help, they hadn’t come through for me.Even though, it is something disappointing, but it is life, we must deal with disappointment constantly. In the end, what doesn’t kill will only make you stronger, how true those words are. For when you are at your lowest point, that is when your strength shines through. Letter to a Young Poet, Letter 2:† Learn from what you feel is worth learning† Learning is not just learning from a book, it can also be about life, the experiences that a person has gone through.People have often advised me what I should do with my life and how I should live about it. It’s always difficult because we all are manipulated by society, and the slightest difference in personality makes for the biggest commotion. Well anyways, you can be told so many things, what is right and what is wrong. Sure, you listen to them, some of the advice you’ll take in and others just let it drift away. All in all, it doesn’t matter what people may say, it’s what you feel what is right.Letter to a Young Poet, Letter 3: â€Å"Always trust yourself and your own feeling, as opposed to argumentations, discussions, or introductions of that sort† This I believe is the hardest situation, which is being able to trust yourself. We always have doubts if we’re ever good enough, and always making things into a competition. Where we should make things into a learning experience, and appreciate others wisdom. When I began this sch ool I would say that I was intimidated by the students the class, they were so talented.I doubted if I could really accomplish my goals that I had here in New York and in Parsons. Later that day, I spoke to special people; they lend me their ear and some advice. All I needed to do, all I still need to do is believe in myself, trust myself, know that my abilities are exceptional, and keep moving forward. Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 4:†Don’t hate anything† Hating is a very strong emotion, hating consumes the heart and you don’t feel much. Your mind when preoccupied by hate has nothing much to offer. It’s an emotion that tiring, and hard to let go.When you learn you stop hating, your feel so relieved, and is at peace with the world. As a young girl, I hated many things, and I had let it consumed my heart. When you hate you feel very alone, and you feel that no one is there for you, nor do you believe they will understand you. When I grew older I rea lize how much energy it took, how much it keeps you in the past. To move forward you must forgive, and relinquish your hatred towards things. If I hadn’t my situation would be a lot different where life would probably be miserably for me.Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 5:† But there is much beauty here, because everywhere there is much beauty† In all the chaos of the world, in all the imperfections in the world, there is still beauty. I feel that people have to go through some tragic situation; for once they encounter something different, they can find and appreciate the beauty that is presented to them. At least that’s how I look at it, life is full of different shapes and colors, it’s very much easy to miss, but when I slow down time, I’m able to see things that I couldn’t see before.

The Movie: Flicka

Flicka Flicka is a heart wrenching movie about the love of family, nature, and horses. This movie shows you the summer of a ranchers daughter. Katy McLauglin (Alison Lohman) is the teenage daughter of a horse rancher who is looking to hand over the reins of the family business. While her family is on the ranch, Katy is studing at a private school feeling like her own kind of misfit. One day, while out riding, Katy finds a beautiful black mustang and instantly feels an emotional connection with the wild horse.Katy begs her father, Rob McLaughlin (Tim McGraw), to let her keep the animal but he is convinced that the mustang would be bad for both his thoroughbred horses and his daughter. But Katy is certain she can break the strong-willed mustang and make her a champion. Katy then names her Flicka, a name meaning † beautiful, young girl†. As she struggles to tame the headstrong Flicka, she also tries to prove to her father that she knows horses as well as he does and that she 's every bit as capable of running the ranch as her brother. The fight for respect and the love of an animal will make you want a ranchers life.And a beautiful horse named Flicka. Flicka shows you the journey that a young teenage girl takes to earn the respect that she rightfully deserves. Katys story is like many stories of women over the years. The fight to be seen as an equal and not as a servent. As we all may know in the United States men had the right to vote long before women did. Women fought for the chance to vote for years. Some, like Susan B. Anthony, were put in jail or shunned for fighting for this right. It took tell World War I for women to recieve this right, but with a couple restrictions.Susan B. Anthony was born February 15, 1820 in Adams, Massachusetts. She was brought up in a Quaker family with long activist traditions. Early in her life she developed a sense of justice. After teaching for fifteen years, she became active in temperance. Because she was a woman, she was not allowed to speak at temperance meetings. This experience led her to join the women's rights movement in 1852. Soon after, she dedicated her life to woman suffrage. Ignoring the cruel works and abuse, Anthony traveled and lectured across the nation for the vote.She also campaigned for the abolition of slavery, the right for women to own their own property and keep their earnings, and she advocated for women's labor organizations. In 1900, Anthony persuaded the University of Rochester to admit women. Anthony, who never married, was aggressive and compassionate by nature. She had a strong mind and a great ability to fight for what she believed in. She remained active until her death on March 13, 1906. In the movie, Flicka, the McLaughlin family fights to keep their beloved ranch.With the trouble to pay the bills, big time bankers have come to the ranch hoping to talk the family into selling the ranch and all the land with it. With the knowledge that selling means the destur ction of their lovely home and the land surrounding it, they fight to make all the money they can. Needing the cash, Rob McLaughlin sees the perfect chance to earn money and get his daughter away from the parasite that she calls Flicka. Rob calls up the head chairman for the local rodeo and makes the deal to sell off the beautiful mustang. When Katy finds out that her horse was sold she's heartbroken and furious.But she's not about to give up. With the hope to get her horse back Katy enters the Bucking Broncos contest in the rodeo in hope to win and use the money to buy back her horse. After realizing that it wasn't going to be as simple as she thought she takes her horse and rides her into the woods. With night coming and a serious storm, Katy and Flicka are in trouble. After finally getting onto some of their land Katy feels safe. Just as she was about to ride herself and Ficka the rest of the way home they are attacked by a mountain lion. Flicka is able to scare away the cat but sustains major injuries in the process.Once found Katy is brought home but has fallen sick. While Katy fights for her life, Flicka fights for hers. Then Rob decides that it isn't fair for an animal to suffer. Then Katy speaks the most heartbreaking line in the story saying â€Å"it's ok daddy, you can kill us†. The next morning Katys temperature has broken and Flicka is safe and healing. The two found each other at the moment of need and have beaten all the odds. This beautiful movie distributed by 20th Century Fox, shows viewers what it takes for a woman to fight for her right and what she loves.