I began my blogging journey with a post entitled, “Why this blog? Why me? Why now?” It was a rambling justification for why I joined the blogosphere. When I wrote that, I had no idea of how important this vehicle would become to me over the years.

Over the years? Yes, five years today, to be exact. Times flies.

Looking back, I believe it was a good decision to become a blogger. I try to capture why I do this in the widget, “Why is Les Potter blogging?” In keeping with that statement of purpose, I have learned  a great deal from this blog and have made many new friends I would not have otherwise. That has proven to be one of the greatest satisfactions from blogging.

Another aspect of my career for which I am eternally grateful is the many invitations I have had to speak at workshops, conferences, meetings, and seminars. I tried to calculate how many people I have spoken to as a conference presenter over the life of my career. I lost count at upwards of 15,000. My blog’s site stats say I have had 113,001 visitors. That proves that blogs can have incredible reach.

But the most important thing about a blog is what you have to say. I am not the most prolific blogger out there, nor do I wish to be. I post when I have something meaningful and heartfelt to say, not to meet some arbitrary quota. I try to concentrate on Strategic Communication/Public Relations and Integrated Marketing Communication. But, I also like to talk about personal and topical issues, so I include the category of Life in General. The human condition is quite compelling, and it deserves comment from time to time.

Thank you for reading More With Les.

I believe that to be a true communication/PR professional, you must have a thorough knowledge of and experience with the printing process. You have to get some printers’ ink into your bloodstream.

I began my career journey in a humble manner. In college, I cleaned the presses for each run of our student newspaper.

In my first job after graduation, I was editor of a U.S. Army publication in Germany while stationed there with the 32d Army Air Defense Command in Kaiserslautern. My newspaper was printed at a German print shop in the small town of Otterbach. I loved spending time there while the newspaper was prepared and printed. It was my first professional opportunity to work with a printer, and I learned so much from the staff there. I even learned all my type fonts and sizes in German to be able to communicate with the staff.

My second job after being discharged from the army was as managing editor of an award-winning weekly newspaper. The newspaper was printed in a print shop 60 miles north of the city it served. I loved going there each week to supervise the press run. I became good friends with the owner of the print shop, and he gave me the run of the place. His name was W. C. (“Dub”) Shoemaker, and he became a dear friend and mentor to me.

There is something magical and fulfilling about watching your hard work come off the press. I was allowed to work with Shoemaker’s staff in every department as my page proofs worked their way through the printing process. Then, standing at the end of the huge offset press, grabbing a finished publication as it came out of the folder, I could, as Robert described it, hold my work in my hands, and in so doing, feel a great sense of pride and accomplishment.

I left the weekly newspaper editor’s job to join my first corporate communication department. Among other duties, I was managing editor of a large monthly publication, that was, fortunately enough for me, printed at Shoemaker’s shop. I usually spent a couple of days there getting that  publication out each month. I did that for years, and I never got tired of it. I leaned so much about the printing process and how to make the most of it. I think every communicator/PR professional should have such knowledge. It adds a wider dimension to your professional skills.

Plus, the printing process is quite interesting if you are a serious communication/PR professional. Every top communicator I ever looked up to had printers’ ink in the bloood. It completes your work and brings a satisfying conclusion to your projects. It is much more satisfying to be part of the printing process, too, in addition to all the development, writing, and design of any given project.

I left that organization, and sadly, Shoemaker’s beloved print shop, and moved on to other corporate communication management positions in different cities. I still dealt with printers on a regular basis, as is necessary to be successful in this business. I was thankful  to have had such a good grounding in the printing process. It helped me tremendously.

Today’s communication/PR students may never need to enter a print shop. For a very long time now, it has been easy to send complete layouts to the print shop online and never set foot in the shop itself. That is remarkable progress and very efficient, but it also lacks soul. Like Robert said, the smell and feel of printers’ ink gets in your nose and on your hands, but it also gets into your heart/blood stream. I miss that experience.

I have spent some serious quality time in bookstores recently. It is one of my great joys. There is nothing like it for an avid reader, row after row of new books just waiting to be read.

Choose a bookstore with a coffee shop, and you have everything you need to be happy. A nerd’s nirvana, a quiet and safe harbor of peace and fulfilment in a troubling sea of noise and crudity.

Since I am on a break between semesters at Towson University, where I teach in the Mass Comm. department, I am free to read for pleasure. And read I am, every waking minute.

True, I order many books online. Being able to order books and have them delivered is a wonderful thing. I grin from ear to ear when the UPS truck stops out front. I know treats are coming. I pant and salivate like a housebound labrador retriever when it’s time for noon walkies.

But I try to enjoy my favorite bookstores while they last. The shift to book readers (or e-readers) proceeds rapidly. I, too, have my eyes on a tablet computer perhaps more for the book reader capability than all the other apps combined. E-reading is the way the world is going, and I must accept it.

Soon, I believe all the textbooks we use at Towson will be offered exclusively for book readers and tablets. The cost of textbooks is astronomical anyway, so book reader versions are the more economical way to go.

However,  I will always love the feel of a good book. Books are one of the few treasures I believe are worth keeping. When other collectibles lose their appeal and become just so much clutter, books will remain worthy of our love and respect. They instruct and entertain. They take us away from the all-too-often grim reality of our day-to-day existence.

Books are the key to a life well lived. And to me, a bookstore will always be a place of reverence.

Riots, all over bloody sneakers!

The frenzy over the $180-plus Air Jordan 11 Retro Concords seems to exemplify so much of what troubles us today. It’s Christmas Eve Eve, and rather  than peace and joy, some people are getting all worked up over a new shoe.

Obviously, I do not get it.

To be fair, I realize that to some people, a new fashion statement like this shoe may be really important. I think that is so sad.

The reason for the season is love, peace, and joy, a renewal of hope for a troubled world.

This is a time for fellowship and good will toward all people. Who cares how cool your shoes are.

After six and a half years of work, I defended successfully November 10, 2011. I am now officially “ABD” — all but dissertation — on my long journey to a doctorate in Instructional Technology at Towson.

Cheers! Now, back to Follett’s wonderful Fall of Giants.

The term comes from Greek mythology. A friend of Odysseus, Mentor, was trusted with the education of Odysseus’ son Telemachus. Mentor’s name echos through history as an affirmation of the experienced person helping the less experienced to learn and grow.

There is a Zen saying that applies here: “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” Be open to those who would mentor you, for they will come to you, perhaps when you need them the most.

David was an extremely talented communicator, proficient as a writer, editor, photographer, designer, and manager. He spoke fluent German. He was well-read and had traveled extensively. He was a connoisseur of fine wines, gourmet food, and classical music. He was intelligent, erudite, accomplished, and personable.

In short, David Wesley was everything I was not. I was an immature and undisciplined young writer/editor trying to become a successful communication professional. David taught me how to do it, and in the process, showed me how to become a better man.

I will never forget one simple piece of advice he gave me early on. I asked him, as student to Zen master, “David, oh wise one, how can I become a better writer?”

He looked haughtily down his nose at me, took another puff of one of the ever-present cigarettes that would eventually kill him, and said: “Well, for starters, you can stop reading only those car magazines and start reading some good literature.” I took this advice. Now, thousands of books later, I see so clearly how right he was.

In addition to helping me with career skills, David also introduced me to the music of Beethoven, his favorite, a gift made more memorable because of Beethoven’s German roots. I was blessed to be able to live and travel in Europe to places where so much of my favorite music was written, all the while under the mentorship of a knowledgeable person like David. I treasure this period of my life, for I was introduced through David to so much that was enriching and beautiful and lasting.

David also gave me my first (and to date, my only) birthday party. Since I share Beethoven’s birthday, December 16, David and his wife Reggie, hosted what they billed as a “Beethoven Birthday Party”, but in truth, it was for me. Good German wine flowed freely, and we laughed and talked away the night listening to the beautiful and powerful music of Beethoven.

I learned so much from David that my writing skill could never do his memory justice. I have not yet mastered writing well enough to be able to do that. From editing my copy, to introducing me to fine dining from Bonn to Bavaria, to taking me to my first German wine tasting, I learned so much from this talented and generous mentor.

David Wesley gave the term “mentor” a greater dimension of substance and value, for he epitomized what the term stands for in its highest sense. I am eternally in his debt for taking a crude young communicator and trying to work some magic. I fear the magic was all mine, for I could never give to him equally what he gave to me.

Since I last posted here, I have been through an earthquake, a hurricane, and the death of Steve Jobs. Or, a moving experience, a wet experience, and a sad experience.  Life again. Comes at you hard when you least expect it.

Right  now, my focus is squarely on the November 10, 2011, defense of my comprehensive exams for my doctorate. I worked on the six comp exams since January 2011, completing them in September 2011. Now, I must defend them before my Doctoral Committee and some other deities.

And miles to go before I sleep…miles to go before I sleep.

Yes, that is the Road Les Traveled.

It is quite a journey, and I am comforted you have come along for the ride. I will be more loquacious when the comps are done. That is a big deal and requires much preparation.

So, more later, my friends. I’ll be back to share some thoughts with you as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, USA Today reports that scores from the Programme for International Student Assessment show 15-year-old students in the U.S. performing about average in reading and science, and below average in math. Out of 34 countries, the U.S. ranked 14th in reading, 17th in science and 25th in math.

To me, being able to read and comprehend complex material is essential. That is why the Arizona ruling is so troubling. According to USA Today, the top performers in reading were South Korea, Finland, Hong Kong and Shanghai in China, Singapore, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and Australia.

Considering the Arizona ruling, is it any wonder why the U.S. is lagging? We spend more on education than virtually any country, yet we lag behind so many. It is a national disgrace.

Money is not the answer. We have thrown so much money at education that it is sickening. To me, the answer lies in teaching students necessary skills for successful living, fundamental knowledge like reading, writing, science, and math. Forget the esteem-building and political correctness that pervades education today. Stop the BS and teach students things they can use.

Self-esteem comes from real accomplishment, from facing difficulty, working through it, and prevailing. Self-esteem comes from a job well done. True self-esteem is a solo act. Without proper educational preparation in fundamental knowledge, students will not be able to think their way through difficult situations and complex problems.

Not teaching students to read, write, use science, and do math, or in short, to think, is a disservice to them of the highest order. They will fail in life, and America will continue its slow but steady slide into mediocrity.

Though sophisticated technology users, when measured by traditional developmental milestones, some view Millennials as less mature than
previous generations. According to research by Pardue and Morgan in 2008, Millennials often have difficulty communicating through traditional channels and do not like to read or write, all elements that will be required in a workplace that has four generational cohorts toiling away side by side.

My major research interest focuses on that aspect of Millennials and their relationship with Web 2.0 technologies – I seek to learn what exactly is the influence of Web 2.0 technologies on Millennials’ interpersonal communication skills and abilities?

If educators in communication/public relations are to effectively prepare Millennial undergraduates for successful careers, then Millennials’ interpersonal skills and abilities need attention, too.