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Is it just me, or are good jobs getting harder to come by? I have been in the midst of a job search for the last few months and have grown accustomed to checking job search sites, skimming the classifieds, and working the network. In the last few weeks, however, I have noticed a troubling trend. It could just be my recession-phobic imagination, but it looks like the good jobs are disappearing. Sure, you can always find a job as a customer service rep in some call center or as a security guard scanning irate travelers at the airport. But with food and gas prices skyrocketing, who can live on $10 an hour? What is happening to all the jobs for people who are looking for high salaries and challenging tasks?

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Conflict can be good for an organization, but not when it is as long, drawn-out, overly personal, and in the public spotlight as the Democratic contest between Hillary and Obama has been. No, there comes a point when organizations must say, "Enough is enough, kids. You, put down the fork. You, put down the scissors." Conflict, when taken to excessive levels, can hurt an organization.

Meditate momentarily on the tale of Obama and Clinton. Both have the potential to "make history." Both represent the values of their party (and let us not forget that’s what these primaries are about: picking a candidate that will ensure the party’s interests in the White House and, oh yeah, actually get elected). Coming into the primaries, the Democratic Party had a huge amount of momentum over the Republicans. Now that the applause, the speeches, the rolling victories of January and February have faded, we still find Obama and Clinton grappling doggedly. We also find much of their party’s momentum has been sapped away. It is now very likely that the Democrats will face a fairly even contest versus the GOP come November. Conflict has wasted their advantage.

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Let this serve as an allegory for any company, family, government, or political party. Conflict has to be controlled. You can’t let it go on for long periods of time. You can’t let it become personal. Especially, you must do it in private. No organization benefits from personal, public, and prolonged conflict. If you are in the midst of a spat with a co-worker, work it out quickly and stay away from personal attacks.

Just a month ago, I was griping to my wife about how I hated school. I was tired of homework, grades, exams, blah blah blah blah blah. I swore I would never go back to school. I had said the same things to her probably hundreds of times over the past 17 months I’d been in the MBA program. (She just rolled her eyes and told me to suck it up.)

Then, just a few days ago, as our classes began to wind down and graduation loomed near, an awful, evil thought popped into my head: what if I got a law degree? "Foolishness! Idiocy! Insanity!" my rational mind argued back. I swept the crazy idea back into the recesses of my mind. Nevertheless, the thought kept returning, beckoning for me to throw myself back into the fray. Why? I don’t know. I have a master’s degree now, so it’s not about achievement. I’m going to be making plenty of money so it’s not about my salary. So why?

My best guess is that school has become addictive. Despite all the hardships required, my mind craves the thrill of learning, discovering, and being challenged. I enjoy talking with really smart people and talking about theories and philosophies, the kinds of conversation you won’t find in the workplace. It has become a stimulant to me. It has become addictive.

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People will argue back that they started school, hated it, and left. All I can say is that school is like alcohol. Some people take it once, and it is so disgusting and traumatic to them that they never go back. Other people get through the initial revulsion and grow to love it, even get hooked on it. (IMPORTANT NOTE!!! That’s about where the comparison between school and alcohol ends. School increases your ability to think, create, and contribute. Alcohol, especially taken in excessive quantities, destroys those abilities.)