The Richly or Poorly Show
Show Transcript
shdawson-20260428.mp3
Episode 04/28/2026
04/28/2026
Hello! Welcome to The Richly or Poorly Show!
My name is Dr. Stephen Dawson, and I am your show host.
Thank you for joining me.
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The show's motto is unmistakable: RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Please consider how you define the term good as we journey through life together in your pursuit of defining the term richly in your life.
The plan for my presentations to you was to first establish a foundation of shared understanding between you, the listener, and me. Then, proceed to build on that foundation with subsequent episodes. I recommend that you review the nine episodes between December 2nd, 2025, through January 27th, 2026, as you see fit to help you remember the foundation of our shared understanding as we proceed through each episode you hear in the coming weeks, months, and years.
Last week, I presented on the topic of scope as the third step to forming a team. I shared the work to Determine Scope is where most projects fail. I went on to say that the act of Determine Scope results in the purpose of the team's existence. If the scope changes, then the team formation process must start again from Determine Duration and then Determine Trust before a new scope can be determined.
Today, I will present on the topic of Determine Team Members. Arguably, selecting people to do work for you is one of the most difficult things to do when either working with friends or parting with money.
I presented last week the example of you remodeling your kitchen to illustrate some project and teaming concepts. Let's continue with this example today for the sake of simplicity, especially since you have been thinking about this topic since the episode of last week.
I presented on December 9th, 2025, the first principle I have found as paramount, undeniable, and non-negotiable to living life more richly:
Understand Your Data Lifecycle
I presented on January 20th, 2026, the first aspect of the Truth:
Arrogance Precedes Anger
AND
Anger Precedes Violence
Today, you will learn the power of knowing these aspects of the Truth as you further your work to remodel your kitchen by your selection of your team members to join your project.
The term skill is a plural term. It is a noun. A noun states an attribute of a person, place, thing, or idea. Skill is the ability, coming from one's knowledge, practice, or aptitude, to do something well.
The term arrogance is a plural term. It is a noun. Arrogance is an offensive display of superiority or self-importance.
The term intoxication is a plural term. It is a noun. Intoxication is the condition of having physical or mental control diminished considerably by the effects of alcohol or drugs.
The term inebriation is a plural term. It is a noun. Inebriation is habitual intoxication. The most common examples of inebriation are alcohol and narcotics. There are either stimulants or depressants used in any form of inebriation. Inebriation can also occur from many other ways, such as either loud music disturbing equilibrium through dizziness, watching too much television, or even eating too much food.
The term addiction is a plural term. It is a noun. Addiction is the state of being committed compulsively to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, to such an extent that its discontinuance causes severe trauma. All addictions are equal. There is no small or large addition. There is no good or bad addiction. All addictions are where a person has lost control of themselves.
It was my experience as a child to choose friends to work with me. This was a huge mistake on my part. The reason it was a mistake is that they were often a poor match for serving as a team member BECAUSE they did not have the skills I needed to do the work I needed to accomplish.
You see, a project team member must already possess the skills they need to do their part of the project work for you. If you ask a potential project team member about doing some specific work and they respond to you with terms of either KINDA, SORTA, MAYBE, PERHAPS, or PROBABLY, then they do not possess a specific skill now. There is no need to pay them to learn the skill as they do the project work. It is best to look for another person to do the specific work you need accomplished by a team member of your project.
This condition is the first principle I have found as paramount, undeniable, and non-negotiable to living life more richly:
Understand Your Data Lifecycle
The good news is you found out they do not have a necessary skill now, before you asked them to join your project as a team member.
There is a saying that I love, as it has helped me avoid many problems. The saying goes ... I'm paying, so I'm saying. Meaning, there is no need for a buyer to pay for something a buyer does not want to buy. So, the buyer has the power to require of the seller what they want, how they want it, where they want it, and when they want it for the sales transaction to occur.
Then, my childhood team selection efforts failed because I did not know the first aspect of the Truth:
Arrogance Precedes Anger
AND
Anger Precedes Violence
Those in my childhood were viewed as some form of a friend, a pal, a neighbor, a schoolmate, or something similar to these surface-level understandings of a meaningful relationship. I attributed these mistakes in my childhood to working with bumblebees that go from one flower to another. The time spent on each flower was not too long in the big picture. The most interesting flower is what draws the bumblebee. The thought of work is not what is considered fun when there are options to play ball, swim, or go for a walk through the woods.
My adult years have had way too much interaction with those suffering from either arrogance, inebriation, addiction, or some combination of these terms. It is a frightful experience to witness these behaviors, knowing the damage they will most likely cause in one way or another. I say to you without a doubt that there is no wisdom in asking anyone suffering from either arrogance, inebriation, addiction, or some combination of these terms to be a part of your project as a team member. Again, the good news is you found out they have a weakness now in their abilities that prevent them from being a part of your project before you asked them to join your project as a team member.
So, what I have found as a success pattern is to select team members for my projects who are strangers to me, who have a licensed business, and who have already proven to others that they have a skill that I need performed as part of the work to help me accomplish the scope of my project. This stranger may turn into a friend for you, one day, but for now, they are a stranger. You have the freedom to not be burdened by the weight of their work causing any form of damage to your friendship with them, as they are not your friend as of now. You have the freedom to say goodbye to them without shame after their part of the project work is complete.
Now, family members. I categorize family members as too problematic to be a part of a project as a team member. There is little to no power to force a family member to behave a certain way on your project. This condition leaves you weakened as the project leader to the point where your project scope cannot be accomplished. Restating, I shared the work to Determine Scope is where most projects fail. I reiterate this statement now.
There is a saying that familiarity breeds contempt, as the better we know someone, the more likely we are to notice their faults. Worse, we can assume with ease that the person who knows us and whom we know through familiarity understands what it is we want to accomplish in all aspects of our project. All assumptions are risky. The more assumptions in quantity, the greater the risk in quantity. The better move is to communicate clearly to each project team member exactly what you want accomplished for an outcome by stating the inputs you require to be used, the process you agree for them to follow, and the exact output you require to form the outcome. I explained how inputs, processes, and outputs operate to form outcomes in the episode from last week.
Now, two more BIG points to cover today before we finish. There is the aspect of change arriving and the aspect of dealing with change.
CHANGE ARRIVING:
Humanity is witnessing the most significant event since Jesus of Nazareth walked on Earth 2,000 years ago.
Persia, called the country of Iran today, has hated Israel for the past 6,000 years. Hate, in the form of elimination from existence.
All it takes is a single suitcase of radioactive material with a single stick of dynamite and a burning fuse to explode and spread radiation in an oil field in Saudi Arabia or any other oil field. The result is a countable pile of radioactive rocks transformed into a countless pile of radioactive dust. No fossil fuel, either crude oil or natural gas, containing radioactive material can be processed for refinement. Then, simultaneously, explode a few more oil fields in other countries with radioactive material. Then, less fossil fuel on Earth to use. Then, watch the price of oil increase to $1,000 a drop. The remaining oil in Iran then has increased value.
The number of countries working together in 1991 to remove Iraq from Kuwait was more than the number of countries working together to remove nuclear terrorism from Iran today.
So, it is NOT a matter of twenty cents more for a gallon of gasoline in the tank. It is NOT a matter of a dollar more for a gallon of gasoline in the tank. It is a matter of how much we as humanity do not desire to have radioactive material spread across the planet in hatred from Iran toward Israel, AND...the rest of the world that desires peace.
Replace Israel with a synagogue in Michigan and a university in Virginia to illustrate the reality of anger moving to violence to realize the likelihood of how easily hatred can come into the life of anyone, anywhere, at any time.
Accept the fact that change could come to your project to remodel your kitchen. Understand that there is only a small part of life that can be controlled when considering the probability of change occurring. The rest of life is the part that cannot be controlled.
DEALING WITH CHANGE:
There are three and only three options to deal with change in a project. First, pause the project. Second, merge the project with one or more projects. Finally, cancel the project.
I addressed pursuing wisdom to experience the Truth in the March 3rd, 2026, episode. I suggest you listen to that episode.
I have seen people cry, people scream, people become violent, and people end friendships over the three options to deal with change in a project. It seems fair to say these three options also account for the majority of the part of life that is not formed into a project. This part of life is unstructured, to say the least. It is uncomfortable for me, and for many I know who pursue the Truth by way of wisdom, to experience change in an unstructured part of life. This uncomfortableness is a significant part of why I try to structure as much of my life as possible. I use projects to help me achieve this structure. I choose my project team members as carefully as I know how.
How about you?
Well, that's it for today.
RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The Richly or Poorly Show!
I have enjoyed presenting to you today.
Until the next episode, I hope you will be safe and join me next week.
Until then.
© 2026 SH Dawson. All rights reserved.