It’s been a week of varying encounters with the mindsets of Machinegun, Tarzan, Laser and Spouse each of them a challenge to me as in ‘’how do I respond to handle this best?”
Now, I’ve been frequenting this car park for a couple of years, but that day things were going to be different – and how! It was packed because of several meetings in the same building, but the attendant obligingly removed a cone to allow me a parking space because “you’re an old friend” he said. As I finished parking Attendant came up to collect the fees and deliver the bombshell: ever so politely and affably he asked if he might have my phone number. What!!! I thought. “Why?” I asked. Well, he continued in the same affable way “maybe we can become friends because I don’t have a companion” “Uhuhh” I sputtered inwardly, while outwardly I laughingly made light of what was to me a most bewildering turn of events; he’d always been no more than courteous. The next day I had a meeting in that same building, and this time, as Attendant wrote out the receipt said he hoped I was not angry with him for his request his previous day. I said no. So, what does he do? He asks if he can give me his phone number, just in case I’d like to call him. What on earth was he thinking!!!! I’ve since settled on guessing that he hopes that if he tries this ploy often enough, he just might get a positive response from someone. Like spray from a machinegun you know? Actually, I remember a guy saying “A guy tries only because it’s the done thing” Oh guys, guys. That works with low hanging fruit or cheese sitting on a plate. Or is that your point?
With Colleague it was a different story. For weeks since he’d been given new responsibilities he’d been thumping his chest announcing “I’m Tarzan!” by reminding people around us of what they already knew. Then he tried stretching it to test the reach of his actual sphere of influence; or should I say dominance. The crunch came when – full of confidence – he wrote an email stating clearly “Me big Tarzan. You lesser Jane” My response after much thought? “Sorry Tarzan, I’m moving my ops to another part of the jungle." But it’s not going to be quite that simple is it?
Along comes Laser to troubleshoot. What a contrast to the others! Laser calmly lifted layer upon layer of the issues at hand exposing dark areas to his targeted pinpricks of light. He was surgically precise, cautious, exploratory, deliberate in his manner of approach; his message? “Let’s identify and acknowledge the gook, deal with it, and move on to the real business at hand, shall we?” Was he perhaps a surgeon in another life? Surgeons heal; don’t they?
To end this tale, I must tell you about Spouse who is the acknowledged doting brawn while she is the devoted brain in the twosome. They are an amazing couple with an incredibly healthy and loving relationship that seems to draw them even closer together each day (seriously!!), despite the punishing trials they are constantly bombarded with. Or maybe their closeness is because they have embraced their tribulations as 2 halves of a whole? Anyway (as usual) he was eavesdropping as she was telling me that she’d done a quiz which proclaimed that she uses both sides of the brain equally. Sauntering by, Spouse says, “Just because you use both sides equally, it doesn’t mean that you’ve got much of it, dear." I cracked up and quipped about delightfully humorous male minds, and we all broke into peals of laughter together! Ah! There’s a happy ending to the tale after all.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Why he Tattooed His Face
At the doorway, way across the crowded room, a late entrant to the party caught my eye – his face had a tattoo that was a permanent mask across an olive-skinned, well-chiseled face, framed by locks of Grecian cascading curls. Momentarily entranced, I gasped inwardly, captivated by this uniqueness. My first thought was ‘What on earth is his topic?’ While my second one was ‘I must get a photo of him!’
The Speakers’ Welcome Cocktail was abuzz with bonhomie. Old friends greeted each other heartily, new friends made warm, enthusiastic connections – goodwill simply spilled over with rapturous joy! Oh it was such a good feeling to be among international colleagues from 17 different countries across the globe, some of whom I’d only heard about and were ‘Learning & Development’ legends in their own right. And yes, I confess that I was happily enjoying the attention given to my professional niche too. But who was that speaker with the unique personal brand?
Ngahihi O Te Ra Bidois’ topic was ‘Ancient Wisdom Modern Solutions’. Interesting enough, but it did nothing to prepare his audience of 500 regional Human Resource professionals for what he had to say. The ballroom was packed; many were standing, and you could’ve heard a pin drop. No, this was no attempt to capitalize on tribal lore and turn it into Management Theory. The tattoo was barely 5 years old, and was a bold and determined proclamation of his purpose in life!
It shouted out his commitment to live out his beliefs: to answer the challenge ‘What do you weep for?’ and to do something about it. They embraced his core Purpose, which had been exposed when he crashed from “winner to loser”. At rock bottom (having plunged from the heights of financial success and social status) a teacher had challenged him to look into his soul and respond to its cry. So he did. His challenge to us was to do the same – search inward and be courageous enough to live out our innermost callings. My soul was moved to tears.
The symmetrical patterns from his ear to his chin declared that he had decided to rise to the challenges of leadership and speak out to direct people and mentor them. He had subjected himself to being tattooed Maori style from 8pm to 4am (!!!!!) to permanently declare that he had decided to courageously pursue his purpose and destiny i.e. to make his people - whose plight made him weep - and not profits, his bottom line. The tattoo was that of a leader of a tribe, signifying Ngahi would henceforth lead his people as his first priority. The profits had followed when he pursued his purpose.
Coincidentally, the day after hearing him I was a studio guest on the television series ‘Be Brave’ and had to respond impromptu to some very uncomfortably pointed questions. No doubt what Ngahi had said had seeped into my candid answers. I had come away from the Conference knowing that attitude triumphs over circumstance. And, I recalled another warrior against circumstances declaring to his world that “Faith and Courage bring Destiny”, with similar conviction. Thank you – both of you, for fortifying my own determination to achieve my core purpose!
The Speakers’ Welcome Cocktail was abuzz with bonhomie. Old friends greeted each other heartily, new friends made warm, enthusiastic connections – goodwill simply spilled over with rapturous joy! Oh it was such a good feeling to be among international colleagues from 17 different countries across the globe, some of whom I’d only heard about and were ‘Learning & Development’ legends in their own right. And yes, I confess that I was happily enjoying the attention given to my professional niche too. But who was that speaker with the unique personal brand?
Ngahihi O Te Ra Bidois’ topic was ‘Ancient Wisdom Modern Solutions’. Interesting enough, but it did nothing to prepare his audience of 500 regional Human Resource professionals for what he had to say. The ballroom was packed; many were standing, and you could’ve heard a pin drop. No, this was no attempt to capitalize on tribal lore and turn it into Management Theory. The tattoo was barely 5 years old, and was a bold and determined proclamation of his purpose in life!
It shouted out his commitment to live out his beliefs: to answer the challenge ‘What do you weep for?’ and to do something about it. They embraced his core Purpose, which had been exposed when he crashed from “winner to loser”. At rock bottom (having plunged from the heights of financial success and social status) a teacher had challenged him to look into his soul and respond to its cry. So he did. His challenge to us was to do the same – search inward and be courageous enough to live out our innermost callings. My soul was moved to tears.
The symmetrical patterns from his ear to his chin declared that he had decided to rise to the challenges of leadership and speak out to direct people and mentor them. He had subjected himself to being tattooed Maori style from 8pm to 4am (!!!!!) to permanently declare that he had decided to courageously pursue his purpose and destiny i.e. to make his people - whose plight made him weep - and not profits, his bottom line. The tattoo was that of a leader of a tribe, signifying Ngahi would henceforth lead his people as his first priority. The profits had followed when he pursued his purpose.
Coincidentally, the day after hearing him I was a studio guest on the television series ‘Be Brave’ and had to respond impromptu to some very uncomfortably pointed questions. No doubt what Ngahi had said had seeped into my candid answers. I had come away from the Conference knowing that attitude triumphs over circumstance. And, I recalled another warrior against circumstances declaring to his world that “Faith and Courage bring Destiny”, with similar conviction. Thank you – both of you, for fortifying my own determination to achieve my core purpose!
Monday, May 18, 2009
The devil is in the details
I’ll have you know that I have had an unblemished, accident-free driving record. And I was sedately stationary behind a string of vehicles that had stopped when I was unceremoniously rear-ended by a chauffer-driven car. The police patrol car cruising behind us saw the whole thing.
I had seen Dreamer bearing down on me in my rear-view mirror at a rate of knots and the split second I looked ahead to gauge my distance from the lorry in front is when he rammed into my car. Sigh. But the shock I felt was when the impact propelled my car and thrust it firmly into the back of the lorry – that was most unexpected and I was quite, quite, stunned! I could not believe that my car was so crumpled and disheveled – both front and rear, and marched indignantly towards Dreamer who seemed equally stunned. Huh!
His titled passenger and employer was most gracious and civil, and even wrote his mobile number for me on his business card which stated that he was a President and Chairman of an array of companies and associations. He said that I was to call him if any problems arose with claims. We congratulated ourselves for being blessed enough to be unhurt and able to be carrying on a polite conversation. He was almost angelic in his manner and no unpleasantness transpired between us.
Having had absolutely NO experience in such matters I called upon a cousin who arrived immediately and took charge of what needed to be done, and he called his wife too, who received me in their home and comforted me. Without hesitation they lent me one of their cars, without which I would have been well and truly highly inconvenienced, to say the least. What a couple of angels!
A day later there were still no signs of physical injury apart from a mildly sore derriere and shoulder both of which had been rudely thrust against the car seat during the consecutive collisions. Both cars had had to be unceremoniously towed away, so obviously angels had protected us all from physical injuries and a fate that could have been a whole lot worse than merely inconvenient.
When the appropriate number of days had passed I called the police station to find out if their investigative report was ready for collection, and the officer assured me that it was. He also courteously told me that I did not have to trouble myself with collecting it personally, as the workshop could do that for me as part of their process of submitting the insurance claims. What a considerate angel, I happily thought. All in all this nasty experience was turning out to be less of a hassle than it might have been, I thought gratefully. Such smooth sailing amidst ugly wreckage!
When the message from the police was conveyed to the workshop, the administrator laughed knowingly and divulged (among other revelations) that if I collected the documentation personally, the fees I’d be charged were minimal (there’s a sign with all the charges clearly displayed at the police station), but they would be asked to pay RMxxx if they were to go and ask for their release.
Aha! So that’s where that devil was lurking was he?
I had seen Dreamer bearing down on me in my rear-view mirror at a rate of knots and the split second I looked ahead to gauge my distance from the lorry in front is when he rammed into my car. Sigh. But the shock I felt was when the impact propelled my car and thrust it firmly into the back of the lorry – that was most unexpected and I was quite, quite, stunned! I could not believe that my car was so crumpled and disheveled – both front and rear, and marched indignantly towards Dreamer who seemed equally stunned. Huh!
His titled passenger and employer was most gracious and civil, and even wrote his mobile number for me on his business card which stated that he was a President and Chairman of an array of companies and associations. He said that I was to call him if any problems arose with claims. We congratulated ourselves for being blessed enough to be unhurt and able to be carrying on a polite conversation. He was almost angelic in his manner and no unpleasantness transpired between us.
Having had absolutely NO experience in such matters I called upon a cousin who arrived immediately and took charge of what needed to be done, and he called his wife too, who received me in their home and comforted me. Without hesitation they lent me one of their cars, without which I would have been well and truly highly inconvenienced, to say the least. What a couple of angels!
A day later there were still no signs of physical injury apart from a mildly sore derriere and shoulder both of which had been rudely thrust against the car seat during the consecutive collisions. Both cars had had to be unceremoniously towed away, so obviously angels had protected us all from physical injuries and a fate that could have been a whole lot worse than merely inconvenient.
When the appropriate number of days had passed I called the police station to find out if their investigative report was ready for collection, and the officer assured me that it was. He also courteously told me that I did not have to trouble myself with collecting it personally, as the workshop could do that for me as part of their process of submitting the insurance claims. What a considerate angel, I happily thought. All in all this nasty experience was turning out to be less of a hassle than it might have been, I thought gratefully. Such smooth sailing amidst ugly wreckage!
When the message from the police was conveyed to the workshop, the administrator laughed knowingly and divulged (among other revelations) that if I collected the documentation personally, the fees I’d be charged were minimal (there’s a sign with all the charges clearly displayed at the police station), but they would be asked to pay RMxxx if they were to go and ask for their release.
Aha! So that’s where that devil was lurking was he?
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