You can learn a lot about how great a leader will be by who they choose to work with. One of the critical ways for a leader to be effective is to surround themselves with the right people who will carry forth the agenda. With a presidential candidate that first crucial and public choice is who they pick as their vice-president. You can learn a lot about a candidate by who they choose as well as how they go about making that choice.

Now I've heard talk on the radio that sometimes a vice-president pick can make all the difference, and sometimes it does not. It all depends on where the campaign is starting from. For example, the first Bush chose a disastrous Quayle and was still elected because he was started out so far ahead. In that instance, the choice didn't really matter to the general populace.

For me, though, I want to look seriously at the candidate's choice to decide what kind of president I think the candidate will be. As someone working in a big corporation I can see how in business having the right people in the right place can make all the difference.  In business, at least there is the option of letting someone go if it doesn't work out. The failed executive can always leave to "spend more time with their family." But government doesn't work that way, and its easier for a vice-president to end up leading the free world than it is for them to be fired. So as an American I'm not willing to take a chance on a candidate who makes a poor choice.

Now both candidates have made their choice and here is what I think about the process they demonstrated.

Of course both candidates chose someone that would get them a cross-section of voters that they perhaps weren't doing well with. Biden brings in the working class dems and Palen brings in some conservatives and women. That is a given, and I wouldn't expect a candidate to make a choice that didn't broaden their appeal.

Here is how Obama chose Biden (at least I like to think this is how it played out):

• Obama has studied constitutional law and wanted someone with experience with that law and how our government works
• He has seen Biden in action in the Senate and a long career as a public servant
• He had the opportunity to watch him and how he conducted himself on the campaign trail as well as debated him on issues
• Obama has said he doesn't want any "yes" men and Biden will tell it like it is
• Biden has the foreign and judiciary background that is appealing
• Hillary just couldn't be a choice--I like her and admire her, but from everything I've read her staff is very dysfunctional, not to mention she comes with that lovable millstone Bill.
• There were many good choices, but Obama took care in making this decision

What scares me most about anything with McCain is how he appears to have chosen Palin:

• At the last minute--rumors are that he been seriously leaning towards Lieberman or others
• This choice came out of left field--was she even on the list the predictor markets were using?
• He has only met with Palin one time before making the decision
• He seems to have yet again bowed down to the conservatives instead of going with his own personal choice
• He picks a person who doesn't even understand the job description for vice-president
• He thinks he can pick up some Hillary supporters even though Palin couldn't be further from Clinton in ideology

In this election, when you have a candidate who has had health issues can we afford a president who would potentially hire the rest of his staff the same exact way? Or do we need a president who will make measured thoughtful decisions about who he surrounds himself with? Note that there are Obama detractors that will say he hasn't always surrounded himself with the right people--but note he takes quick action to repair the situation.

The media is saying that McCain made this choice because he is a maverick. He chose Palin because she too is a maverick. Personally, I'm tired of eight years of cowboys and mavericks at the helm. That has put us in bad standing around the world, shaken our economy and involved us in an unnecessary war. A maverick is someone who goes it alone. A maverick is someone who is unpredictable. The world is too small and we have too many problems to solve to elect another maverick.

With his first choice, Obama has shown the kind leadership we need. I am confident when elected he will build the right cabinet and the right set of advisors. This first choice has proven to me that he knows how to make good decisions. 

PS-Ah, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer apparently agrees with me.

Ever since I saw a link to http://www.lifegem.com on a colleague's Facebook status, I've been trying to come up with a one-liner to say to my husband.

How about this:

"You know how I said I always wanted a bigger diamond? Don't worry I'll wait until after you're gone to get it."

Office Labs has a cool new tool for prioritizing your email in Outlook. The tool also includes a "Do Not Disturb" feature so you can turn your email off for periods of time.

I don't know if I'm tough enough to try the do not disturb feature.

If you missed the Book Publisher webinar with Joe Wikert of Wiley on the Kindle, you can still hear it here

Leveraging the Kindle - How to maximize the Kindle’s benefits to your readers and your business (8/21/08)

As always Joe demonstrates thought leadership in our industry. You can also check out Joe's Kindle blog, Kindleville.

Sometimes I like watching trailers more than I like watching full-length films. I don't have much time to actually go to a theater and see a movie, but I do have time to spend three and a half minutes watching a preview, and especially now that they are available on the Internet at any place and any time. Sometimes the preview is better than the actual film. But there needs to be a mix of making the film story compelling without giving enough of the plot or laughs away. And music. I'm a sucker for the music.

My favorite previews of all time are for Amadeus, Excalibur and Moulin Rouge. The music and art direction of the movies play a role in this. All three are visually stunning movies and you can't beat their soundtracks. Amadeus has Mozart and Excalibur has the Carmina Burana. Shoot, anything with Carmina Burana on an epic and I'm sold. I'd probably go see Showgirls if they set the preview to Carmina Burana. After seeing the Moulin Rouge trailer I waited months to see that film.

This has been a summer of good films and trailers. I'm dying to see Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder, I've watched the trailer numerous times. The first time you see it before you know the plot is just awesome. You hear that Vietnam era hippie music reminiscent of Platoon and then it turns into a comedy.  I also liked Step Brothers--but on that one, all I need is the trailer. I'll wait for DVD. I've also watched the new 007 trailer more than probably healthy and I've passed the link along to many of my girlfriends.

The best one I've seen and I hope the movie lives up to the trailer--the Watchmen. I liked it so much that I did a search for the song (Smashing Pumpkins The End is the Beginning) and then finally got around to reading the graphic novel. Again, I hope they pull this one off. The cast looks great and I liked 300 by the same director. Jackie Earle Haley as Rorschach. I know he is going through a career revival of sorts. I had always wondered what happened to him having grown up on films like Bad News Bears and Breaking Away. If his acting in Little Children is any indication, I hope he has an even longer career.

By the way, if you like literature, even if you never imagined reading a graphic novel, read the Watchmen.