Personal – Road to improvement

Choose your own adventure

6 marzo, 2022Publicado en attitude, communication, decision makingEtiquetado como change, life, PersonalDeja un comentario

During the 80’s and 90’s existed a serial of books that allowed the reader to choose how to live the adventure, by deciding what path to take. Each of them had around 30 possible different endings.

Before the pandemic, we knew how to handle our day to day, and from time to time we could pick up something different, just to give it a try, living a secure experience.

But, COVID, turned upside down our life, transforming it into kind of a “choose your own adventure”. The difference here, is that there were no written possibilities, no written rules. No one told us the way we should deal with the lockdown, how to handle our social relationships also when back to normality and for sure, no one was able to give a guideline on how to go back to ”I know what comes next”.

Any tiny reminder of our previous us, is fine, why not watch again that movie? Change or repeat the small things that are under our control. Build our new, owned ”normal”.

Around the corner

7 diciembre, 2019Publicado en leadershipEtiquetado como challenge, future, life, PersonalDeja un comentario

We don’t know what we will find, what is awaiting for us just around the corner.

We just know how we did react to the last bump, or success, or challenge,. We just know how faced life yesterday.

We, simply do not know. We just can expect to be prepared to respond, we have the right support with us. We will overcome whatever is waiting for us.

We must be positive, make sure we are ready, think that it will be nothing else but good stuff. Do not be scared. Just be prepared.

Ideas and facts

14 octubre, 201914 octubre, 2019Publicado en attitude, decision makingEtiquetado como data, decision, ideas, Personal, professionalDeja un comentario

When we are spending times with friends, we can spend hours discussing about almost any topic. It is not mandatory to have data, only respectful arguments that can support our opinion. The opinion can be based on your personal experience or in someone elses that you try.

But when you try to change things, when at work you want someone’s help, it is not enough with a belief, a feeling, an idea. You need to bring facts. As many as you can. This is not working, this can be done in a better/Different way, here I have the data to support my words. We need to do this change, we need to have this tool. This are the data we have to support our statements. Or, if we had the data we would be able to act over this different issues, but we are not able to obtain the data, that is why we need to build a reporting tool.

The difference between an opinion/idea and a fact is data. It will help you to sustain your requests, your arguments and get the help you need (or at least try to) or prove yourself you were wrong when you first brought to the table that idea that felt soooo real.

Data can be useful, it can bring light to foogy zones.

Can our soul vanish?

9 julio, 20192 agosto, 2019Publicado en leadership, organizational cultureEtiquetado como development, organizations, PersonalDeja un comentario

You fell in love with that brand, product, service, project, team.

You would not buy anything else even if it was cheaper, told it was better, ensured to have a shorter answering time, offered a more attractive one, promised to get a salary increase. You would not do it because of that je ne sais quoi, that intangible thing that kept you attached, let’s call it «soul».

Soul is the essence, the why, of a company, of its members, the who, the sum of each individual believe, effort, success and failure.

If we lose sight of what we want, why and how we act, our soul slowly, very slowly starts to vanish, until one day we do not recognize the person looking at us in the mirror.

When companies start looking for a different what, no understandable motives behind, without adapting/revisiting their why or adjusting teams to the new reality, their soul starts softly to disappear.

And one day, you do not know why, but «love» is no longer there. That brand used to be, that product was good, the service is not bad, the project is no longer thrilling and we could use some fresh air on a new team.

We are not the same we used to be years ago, neither do companies. Life is change and evolution. Awareness and consistency are two elements to keep the essence, our soul with us.

A new playlist: bottling pieces of life

25 junio, 20192 agosto, 2019Publicado en attitudeEtiquetado como enjoy, magic, PersonalDeja un comentario

Spotify is one of those magic apps that allow you to «bottle» thousands of songs, and label them so they can be easy to identify when ready for consumption.

My reason for creating new ones is mainly getting tired of listening to the same songs (use almost the same type of music regardless of the activity I am doing: Sport, waitings, isolating from noise..). So, you can find quite interesting mix of songs in these playlists, as they can bring many different memories or just be a cool song your friend recommended. Anyway… a present for you (and why I have listed them!):

Don’t you know anyone who thinks that everything is about him/herself? That talk, that meeting, that.. you’re so vain (also, it transports me several years back)
The ones I learned about from a friend years ago. Saudade. this is the last time
Reminder of those who never ever, surrender as well an eternal energy boost no surrender
When we miss being back «home». Castle on the hill
The new family member, hey Marc! (not yet, but close) can you feel the love tonight
And a beautiful duet.. Don’t let the sun go down…
He left us this year, powerful, back to university days, good for when I can not run that last mile… Shut’Em Up
Super good vibes, nice time, better people, awesome company, new experiences. Take it easy
Work hard, play hard. Sunflower
Silly traffic jam time, seen someone singing in the car next to yours? Come on, join the there is nothing I can do club! What makes you beautiful
When it’s time to go, no turning back. Si un dia he de tornar
I wrote about when magic happens. It did in their concert. Lucky me to have been able to share it with a good friend. I don’t want a lover
What was your last one of … Bad decisions
Those short but intense visits to Madrid. Pride. All the lovers
Yep, why to suffer? ok, I won’t stop running until this one ends.Self esteem

Yes, this could be my next (varied) playlist. It’s only missing the label. Summer recap could work.

Enjoy friends, family and life. Don’t take things too serious. Build your own works for «almost» any occasion playlist. It cheers you up.

The shiny object

3 noviembre, 20183 noviembre, 2018Publicado en organizational culture, teamEtiquetado como life, Personal, shiny, whatyouareDeja un comentario

Magpies are known for their «thievery», collecting shiny objects to adorn their nests. That fact is not 100% true. The reality is that they are inquisitive, interested in any object but show no preference for shininess. (BBC Article).

How many times have you seen someone going after a project, information, topic, … just because it’s bright? Once collected, once they put their nest’s name on it, they just forget about it and go to find the next one? They transmit a false sense of urgency just to get the team to work and to obtain wow! results. Also, they have a false sense of property, if it glitters it has to be theirs.

How may people do you know like the real bird, who are inquisitive? Who want to understand, investigate, keep and share knowledge? Sense of urgency when needed, a team working towards a common goal, results to be trusted. No sense of individual property, just the need to know more. The name onto something would be a reward.

When we behave as the expected magpie, there is no us, no team, 1+1<2. Only me, I, no one else… noise, fights, agitation and anger. There is always someone faster than you. There is the fear of not being able to collect any more shiny objects.

I am not buying it, I prefer the real magpie. That allows the us, 1+1>2. But this, requires patience, generosity and time. There is less fear to failure, there is more place for success.

Maybe it’s been a weird mix of birds and human behavior but I have seen a few with too many useless bright objects in their nest.

What we are, who we are

20 octubre, 201820 octubre, 2018Publicado en attitude, leadershipEtiquetado como defineyourself, importance, PersonalDeja un comentario

There is the story of that guy who was a Top Manager at a very important company. When he had to give a speech, he traveled business-class, stayed at the best hotels and didn’t pay for a single meal. The time for him to step down, finally arrived. But he still was giving some speeches. But, instead of business trips, high standard hotels, expensive gifts… he had to travel tourist-class, … and what he got after the speech was a mug.

There is also the story of that other one, whose phone never stop ringing, first raw in the important events, all doors opened, all favours asked where done. When he stepped down his phone stop ringin, and when he made the call, there was no answer, no favors done.

Well, teaching here! what you are, goes away, usually with the job and most important the title you holded. Once you are no longer the person who represented a company, you get a mug.

When it comes to the who, it is about how you treated the people that surrounded you, where you nice with them? Did you help when being asked? Teached them? Learned from any of them? The things you take and you leave behind are the important ones, they build the «who». What are you made of. What got you there. And, regardless if you quit, retire, or whatever happens to you that is who you truely are. You will adapt to tourist-class, there will be no issue in paying your own meals…

When you call for help you have more probabilities to get an answer because of WHO you are rather than for WHAT you were.

Never lose sight of what is behind that fancy job name you hold.

Bumps, reactions and responses

15 junio, 201815 junio, 2018Publicado en attitude, leadershipEtiquetado como development, PersonalDeja un comentario

When we face bumps in the road, we have different reactions (was it my fault?, why the h*** did he/she do this? and we chose responses (what is the constructive way to solve this?).

Our success will depend on the «magnitude» of our reaction and the time until response:

(1) Something negative happened to us. It feels good to stay in this mode for a short time. But the more time we spend wondering, regreting about what? and Why? the less we will be able to figure out how to move on. Allow yourself for a very short time complaining. Then, stop moaning, plan, act: solve it and get going. Leave negativity behind.

(2) Someone acted in a way (made, said, wrote….) we didn’t like. The less time between reaction and response, the lower the probability of success. So, wait, do not send that email yet, do not make that phone call inmediately or do not explode during the meeting. Calm down, act being constructive and get going. Leave the negative feelings behind.

(3) We were requested to deliver something but we have no clue what is the approach or we have not come up with any brilliant idea yet. Well, here procrastination might help (if we are not under a tight schedule). When we stop worrying, focusing too much and direct our effort and attention to different topics, all in the sudden THAT brilliant idea emerges from «nowhere». This is when it’s time to use all that «finally-I-came-up-with-something» positive energy in responding by creating something amazing.

We do not control everything that occurs to us, but (as we have said many times before) we are responsible for the way we respond.

Would you be able to translate these 3 modes into a formula?