Toronto

So happy to finally add another city to my passport!  Toronto.  Probably would not have picked it, but work picked it for me so here I am.  Got a few chuckles on the airplane when I asked how many people were coming here because of Donald Trump!

First impression is the city is the most integrated city I have been in - including NYC.  The people are from everywhere with languages abound.  The translators at the airport were from India, Korea, China, Brazil and Mexico. Most of the Canadian folks speak or understand French as well.   It is not just that they are here, it is that they are seemingly comfortable here.  I wait in the lines as the border folks decide that I need to have four interviews and three different passport verifications.  This afforded me the opportunity to hear the people from other country's have a translator for their answering the border questions.  I must answer my own questions as the lady speaks perfect English.  My French is not sufficient to try to communicate in a place where they REALLY speak French.  One day.

I finally shake free of the border people and and picked up by my fabulous UBER driver, Tradic.  He is prompt, has a nice clean car and tells me the highlights of my temporary home, Toronto.  He says the walk the edge of the CN Tower is a must for those with a bucket list.  He says it is the scary thrilling sensation of a high roller coaster, with the breathtaking experience of a jump out of one.  Except you don't really jump.  Sounds perfect for my daughter, not I.

We arrive at the AirBnb town-home that I have leased for the week.  It is a two bedroom flat on the fifth floor of a tall building near the Toronto Blue Jays store and the main tourist entertainment district.  The building is full of tourists and the sassy skateboard kids wheel up and down the sidewalk outside.  The day is full of families on the street enjoying the temperate day.  Strollers are everywhere.  There are women in every imaginable garb, covered head to toe or the tight mini skirts of the youth.  There are women of every color and size, dawning the look of their preference, but truly wearing the outfit for the outing.  The views reminded me of a Monet promenade.  They all seem so proud to be walking.

After I am in my building and unpacked, I walk to the grocery.  For my first night, I have decided to cook and stay in.  I have events for the next three nights, so this is my time to adjust.  I find the grocery on the map and head out.  It is only a mile and the walk will be good after all he plane rides and sitting.  Knowing that I am in a country that has green values, I have brought my cool NPR canvas bag for the shopping.  As usual, I am hungry, which means I buy more than I can eat.  I do however, keep it healthy by picking asparagus, fish and garlic.  I also pick yogurt and eggs for the morning.

On my way back, the sun starts to head to another part of the world.  I notice the street traffic turn from families to couples and groups of young people.  I am grateful to be an older person with a place to go.  Interesting aside, I have seen no obvious homeless persons.  At least not in the style of Tallahassee.  I hope that means that they have better options.  There are lots of people who may fit the bill, but no one is holding a sign asking for money.  Back to the streets, older couples walk together.  A few young females saunter alone with their backpacks firmly in place.  People aren't seemingly as concerned as I am, but it could be their city!

 After touring Italy and seeing so many people displaced, I am a tad sensitive to the homeless.  But again, that does not appear to be an issue here.

I open my windows to absorb the cool air and the noise and hustle of the city.  Young people are now moving quickly and yelling in tandem as they move down the street.  The sidewalks are a series of floating tattoos and fun and interest and laughter.  Cars honk as people respond to the noise. Sidewalks seem to shift like the ground covered with ants.  All together in fish school, then scattered as if danger lurked near.

I will probably not sleep well this first night.  But it is terribly exciting to be in a new place adding one more stamp tot my passport.  And I look forward to rising to the occasion of the meeting in Toronto.

Days past, and the conference is behind me.  Great speakers, especially Richard Florida and the CFO of the City of Portland, Ken Rust.  Truly inspiring speakers and leaders of their communities and professions. It was great to be able to walk to the convention center every morning with a Starbucks in hand and a nice breeze in my face.  The weather could not have been more kind. That night, we decided to grocery shop and eat in and rest for the next day.

Finally, it was time to see some of the City of Toronto.  Many attending the conference had come the week prior and had already seen the sights.  They were full of funny tourist stories, so I had a relative understanding of the normal tourist routes.  Thursday morning however, is dedicated to the CN Tower. Second highest tower in the world after Dubai. I was to  see the tower from the inside.  Morgan however, wanted to walk the edge.  And so she did.  Up way above where nose bleeds start, she edged to the edge.

In the afternoon, we first headed out to walk the area near the University of Toronto, or so I thought.  What we found was Kensington, the Haight Ashbury of Toronto.  Many shops, medicinal and otherwise.  The aura was one of the hippy freaky grad student, with coffee shops and gelato every block.  The people were attentive and their wares were exotic as the people. We particularly enjoyed the Blue Banana, where I ended up buying a special pair of socks for my HR Manager.  The sort of gift only one who tries to please all would appreciate.

We had a heavy lunch of Ontario pork, so we wanted to be a little lighter with the fare of the evening.  It was perfect.  We walked back to our flat and relished the lovely day and time in a new place.  Eight miles said the iPhone.  Not bad for one day!  The evening proved very fruitful with a walk to the restaurant Westlodge.  It is a quaint and funky bar and restaurant.  We opted to sit at the bar and chit chat with the bar tenders who were great.  They recommended a whiskey drink, which was very tasty.  We then ordered ala carte with Brussels' sprouts, beet salad and roasted cauliflower.  We walked back to the flat and went upstairs to look at the pool and look at the lake.  The Toronto Blue Jays stadium is our view and Beyonce concert is in full force.  The people move in big waves, as if the subway openings allowed the flow to happen downstream, which I am sure contributes just a tad.  The ladies are all in finery and the men seem to be far and few between.  The night promises to be late for them and over for me.

The next day,  we were off to explore a new area.  The Saint Lawrence Market promised to be fun with artists of food and of paint.  Almost every trinket or device you might want is here, in addition to rabbit, chicken, cow and pork.  The seafood comes with faces and without.  The building is obviously the old trade building re purposed to a fun inviting new age trade space.  Of course we bought chicken, pork belly, pastry, bread, cheese and sausage.  We also found olives and artichoke and of course the sun dried tomato with mozzarella cheese.  A feast of kings and queens had we.

We take our groceries home and then go out for a cocktail on the lake.  A big lake.  I am guessing it is Lake Ontario.

Once again, we are cooking dinner.  The basted chicken, asparagus and the  okra are divine.  The cheese is great and we have wine and beer.  Tired legs never felt so well fed.

We plan what to do on Friday and after I answer a plethora of work emails,  I wanted to see the distillery district and then find the top of the City at Casa Loma.  But this will wait till tomorrow.

 Au revoir for now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/29/travel/migrant-crisis-lesbos-greece.html?_r=0Next Isle of Lesbos

Rising to the Thrill

Wanted: thrill seekers in the world of work

Last weekend, my children jumped out of an airplane to celebrate one of their birthdays.  Several years ago, two of them went up in a plane and jumped.  This year, they took their younger brother.  All three of my children jumped. The conservative finance major jumped.  Be still my heart.

The last birthday thrill jump was off a bridge in Oregon, with bungee cords tied to their bodies.

These faces look happy right?  They look like they are so glad they paid over $400 to jump off a bridge and plummet to the rocks and river below?  So glad that they would pay more to jump out of a 1959 Cessna aircraft for a parachute experience?  Yes, and yes they did.  Thrill seekers that they are.

Needless to say, I did not go watch this event.  I went the first time and it was all I could take as a mother.  To assuage my concern, I started thinking about thrill seekers and the applicability to work environments.  How would this scenario play out at work?

My environment is a combination of e-commerce, payments and government solutions.  Not the brave new world of Mars or the thrill seeking world of Indiana Jones. Quite the contrary, most of our world is secure, locked down, predictable, controlled.  My environment is full of people who rely on consistency and try to resolve inconsistency.  Problems with the website, problems with the payment, problems with up-time?  Radical change in the website?  New products on the fly?  None of these are good things for our people and they work hard to keep the outside from creeping on the inside.  Consistent, routine flowing processes are what we strive for.  Most of the time.

Challenging though it may be, even the staid, route, IT guy needs a thrill once in a while.  Even our banking and eCommerce, "let nothing happen today" people need a thrill once in a while.  But what does the "thrill" look like for them?  And how is it helpful to the employee and the organization?

This question is something I have pondered for a few weeks.  Ever since I heard that my children were jumping again, I wanted to mitigate my fear.  And they wanted to show off theirs.  In talking to them later, half of the learning was the bright new experience.  The finance major said never again, but check, I have done it.  He also said that he had to be twice as brave as thrill seeking is outside his wheelhouse.

WheelHouse

My point is, when looking at our workforce through this lens, you can see the "thrill seekers" and those who don't normally, but then do.  What does that mean for your organization?

It means you can develop a way to recognize those who make a bold move, but who won't do it again because it wasn't right or who wouldn't normally step out of their comfort zone. Sometimes it is about a supervisor that manages too tightly.  Sometimes it is just a shy person.   BUT, sometimes they make a bold move!  Check out the shy tech guy link to see what this can look like.  We should recognize and reward them.

It also means that we should keep an eye on our thrill seekers, and help them direct that energy in positive ways for the organization.  Could your finance person take a bold move and introduce a new way to show value?  Could your Service Desk Manager introduce a wild idea to integrate all managers into the data base?  Would that be a thrill?  Or a NightMare?

It is hard to allow the thrill seekers to go out on the edge in a work environment.  The dreamers are often confused with thrill seekers.  They are not the same by a long shot.  Even harder, keeping the thrill seeker from thinking this will be everyday. Thrills are not usual by definition.   Managers are responsible for balancing this in themselves and in their subordinates.  Leaders of the organization must learn to inspire thrill seeking in those who might, and to inspire confident idea presentation in those who will. There is a balance and truly healthy growing organizations need that balance.  Challenging the status quo from the inside is far better than challenge from the competition or worse the Board!

I assure you that my children will be doing something other than white water rafting, bungee jumping or skydiving for the next trip.  They are already talking about flyboarding.  I guess thrill seekers will never stop.  Just for the record: my oldest is in IT, middle in PhD pursuit and youngest in Finance.  Their father in law enforcement.  We have no idea where they got this!

Rising of the Occasion of Work or Passion for Work

Today one of my professional peers and a friend resigned.  It was the second one this week.  And there is a void already, though neither has left.  Both of the women are strong and independent, each in their own way.  Both of them people I respect.  I will miss working with them.  I think that they had a passion for what they do, but more importantly a passion for the people for whom they did their jobs.  I started this blog to talk about passion and work vocation.  But now, I am going to talk about passion because you are passionate.  Because you care.

• "Telling someone to follow their passion -- from an entrepreneur's point of view -- is disastrous," says Cal Newport, Georgetown University professor and author of So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Search For Work You Love.
•  "That advice has probably resulted in more failed businesses than all the recessions combined... because that's not how the vast majority of people end up owning successful businesses.”
• "Passion is not something you follow," he adds. "Passion is something that will follow you as you put in the hard work to become valuable to the world."

After I read this post, it gave me pause to think about the people I know who are passionate about what they do and why.  

• Career Passions Are Rare  It's easy to confuse a hobby or interest for a profound passion that will result in career and business fulfillment. The reality is, that type of preexisting passion is rarely valuable.

But then again, I have had the fortune to know many who did have the passion at a very young age.  My father knew he wanted to be an engineer.  He wanted to be good at math and science and blowing things up (not so much the chemistry).  He wanted to be involved in space travel and had a career many would envy.  My father woke up whistling every morning, happy to be up at five to take an hour bus ride to the base to work on guidance systems.  As a bonus, he got to watch things blow up!  My husband is another lucky person who knew that wanted to be in wildlife from the time he was a kid.  He became a game warden and loved his job and was passionate about teaching others the beauty and appreciation of the wilderness.

My mother in law is a pianist. She loves playing for her church and for services (funerals included).  She tries to make each performance unique and special for the person(s) affected.  She grew up at the piano and her father was a minister.  So he may have gently guided her through her years.  So perhaps she is one who loved what they did well after years and years of practice.

• Don't believe me? Think about something you're passionate about. Or something you were passionate about when you were in high school.  Then apply this test: Will people pay you for it? Will people pay you a lot for it?  "Money matters, at least in a relative sense," Newport says. "Money is a neutral indicator of value. Potential customers don't care about your passion. Potential customers care about giving up money." (That same logic, of course, also applies to potential employers.)

This June, there were lots of speeches and advice for graduating youth.  I thought it interesting that there was such a dichotomy of views: do what you love or do something well.  Or do something for money and do it well.  I know of more than one woman who has told me that they work to pay for their horses and their hobbies.

 That work, while rewarding, is really to provide a means for them to participate in the competitions across the nation.  Horses are expensive, and working to support them requires well paid skills.  Both of these women have them: one is a nurse practitioner and the other a financial analyst.  But, my point is they work so they can afford their hobby - not work at what they love to do as their hobby.

I suppose that most people view their jobs as what they have to do to support themselves and their families.  There are many jobs that I don't envy, but I am so glad than people do them. 

One of my peers that is leaving is in Human Resources.  She is the rock of the organization.  We don't always agree, but we always agree that she is genuine and forthright.  She gives great advice and is very organized.  She is the one you want in the interview room and the one you want in the disciplinary hearing.  I don't now if she loves all of her job, but she very obviously loves providing services to the people and caring for their well being.

The other person that left held a difficult pressured job and did it well.  Again, I don't know if it is her passion or if her passion was getting it right.  Hard to tell.  She worked hard and made sure that in the end, her boss and her organization held the right information for complex business decisions.  Her tenacity is marvelous.

Neither job is one I wanted.  Plumbers, auto-mechanics, roadway surveyors, airplane pilots, diesel fuel delivery, septic tank cleaners, electrical engineers.  There are people loading cargo and driving the giant cranes that build the skyscrapers.  People doing jobs that you don't ever think about, but you depend on.  I am sure that they see it as a necessity, not the dream of their life. I was recently touring Boston, wandering through the streets and blocks.  I was taken by surprise at the number of employees smoking outside  of their store doors, complaining about their jobs, their bosses and their low wages. Not to mention, they complained about the terrible supervisors and awful managers.  Unhappiness in work abounds.

 It helps to keep in perspective that whatever your chosen career path, you too, will encounter less than fabulous circumstances, people or situations.  Working in every job from clerk to bigwig, there are jerks all along the way.  There are great folks all along the way.  Hope I am one of the great folks!

of traveling and those who don't

Summer makes most people think of travel and vacations.  the beach.  the mountains.  the spa. the golf course.  Of course summer should be of such thoughts.

The idea of traveling for vacation should be appealing.  If you are in the trade show business, or more correctly, the business that requires you to attend a trade show or ten during the summer months, it may not be as fun.

I have to say 10 days straight of work travel is not a kick in the "oh, I have it made now!" department.  I am not saying that the places I stay are not fine.  They are fine.  It's just there is an empty hotel room at the end of the day and long phone conversations don't make you feel close.

They make you feel like you are having long phone conversations.

I remember when we worried about the long conversations because we paid by the minute.  At least that part is over!  Thank you Google plus!

My trip had a nice beginning, flying my mother and daughter to see my brother for two days in Santa Rosa.  Then, I put them on the plane #Deltaairlines (sort of ) and hopped my flight to L.A. #Delta to work.  There, it was all on, with three elected officials and four staff, plus a plethora of experts to listen to and learn from.

I can tell you that eight hours of economics and stocks and bonds, ratings and unemployment numbers, yield curve predictions, emerging market performance, job creation stats and you will be exhausted too!

We did have some time on Saturday which was nice.  I got to visit my old friend (she's not old) from eighth grade.  We went to see her grand daughter and take her to Griffith Park for a ride on the carousel ponies.  A few hours of respite.

The ones with black tails go faster!

Then off to hop a plane and cross the nation to visit another state for work.  Arrive late, lost bags, up early and off to meetings again.  Lots of work drama and then another drive to another airport.

I love to travel, but this kind of travel is not nearly as fun as traveling with your family or friends.

So next time you think, "hey they always get to travel", think of me and my little missive.  Travel for work IS WORK.  Travel for your pleasure with your family or loved one is fun.  And then there is that feeling of your own bed at last....

Rising to the New Year's Resolve

I awoke this morning ever so thankful that I did not have a headache or other ailments related to over imbibing, as many others will do.  I did actually stay up to see New Year's Day this year.  Usually, I am in bed by ten.  But I stayed up to ponder as the entire neighborhood was launching firecrackers small grenades and sleep would not be forthcoming.

I thought about all the things I want to do this year: renovate the house, plant a new garden, finish the cottage at the farm, save more towards retirement, help the kids with college, travel back to Normandy France and maybe Italy.

cottage being moved to the farm

I thought about the personal goals: lose weight, eat fewer processed foods, drink less, exercise more.  Meet Peggy Ball (there is another one).  Learn something new and get involved with a community group.  Probably one my mother in law would not approve of, League of Women Voters and one she would, the Senior Center (gosh they have a lot of classes to choose from!).  I would really like to keep up my French learning as well.

Put work in perspective.  While work is important, it is not the reason I am here.  My work contributes to the work of others and is supportive.  I am not the rocket scientist, doctor or IT person, but I am the one who makes sure the rocket scientist has the tools they need.  Budget, purchasing, contract management, finance, investments, 401k's, credit cards.  Not the stuff of legends, but the grease that makes legends happen.  I want to contribute, but I don't want to be consumed.

Lunch with family

Lunch with co workers

As usual, my Publix Grocery Store provides opportunities to meet friends and old friends.  Ran into a former co-worker the other day and we chatted up retirement, traveling and getting together for lunch.  I want to do that.  I am going to work on not just saying, let's do lunch, but actually doing it.
My friend Caroline is the best at trying, even when she doesn't get accepted.  Go Caroline!

So, my home, my family, my friends, my self, and my community.

what counts

My goals this year are to take better care of me, so that I can take better care of others.  I think that is simple enough to not overwhelm, keep in mind, and with a little perseverance, actually achieve.

Rising to the Return from Vacation

I have not taken a two week vacation in at least 15 years.  It was FABULOUS! The thing about the two weeks is that the first week you still think about work and check your emails, the second week you so don't care!  You stop grinding your teeth and your shoulders relax.  Your hips realign because you are not driving as much as you used to.  I am telling you there is a huge difference between the four day steal that I have done for the last 15 years and the two week vacation.

And then, when I thought I got back into the groove of work,  my daughter calls crying from Switzerland.  The tears were clear in the voice, even with the lag of wi fi conversation.  And I miss her as much as she misses a great plan for mass transit.  She is dreadfully upset with the Euro Rail options for an on the move back packer.

Rick Steves be darned, she is a college grad with a non-plan plan. And Europe is supposed to be aware of her intentions.  Well, not that bad really, but she is very displeased with the limitations of non reserved second class seats.  Though after looking at her pass, she has logged at least 20 rides maybe 30 from one place to another, including Croatia and Hungary as well as France, England and Ireland.  All in all, I think she has gotten her value from the pass and she has gotten value from the experience.  How wonderful she has the opportunity.

So, I miss her when she calls and I want her to be having a great time and enjoying the diversity.  For soon, she will return to Tallahassee, which by comparison, will feel small and not so much like Notre Dame.  But it will feel like home.

Home because her dog is here.  Her kitty is here.  Her horses are here.  And somewhere way down the list are her parents and family members.  And we will embrace her return and wait for the next opportunity to celebrate her announcement.  I for one, am not in any hurry.

But back to my reintegration into the work place...  I have worked now for three full days and I was so tired on Friday!  I went to bed at nine p.m. and slept until five thirty a.m. I got up Saturday morning feeling groggy and hit by a truck.  The fact that my ribs had not healed from the fall in Bordeaux reminded me not to move quickly.

I have to say it felt good to be in my own bed.  And so nice to have my own bathroom back with my things in it and my own towels.  And even nicer to discover that my husband had vacuumed the floor and cleaned the sinks!  lovely homecoming.

I am already plotting my next escape.  I hope before the return to France in 2014 for the World Equestrian Games.  I would love to see Australia or New Zealand or even more of California.  Pennies in a sack, every day, I drop my pennies in a sack....

Glad to be home, so glad to have a home to come home to!

Rising to the Occasion of the Not Fun Job

Today, I was reading my daughter's blog about her journey through Europe on a site called Tumblr.com   Her blog is: http://somewherebynow.tumblr.com/.

The site is full of bloggers, people who just post photos and businesses that showcase books, etc.  After reading her blog, I transitioned to look at other blogs and I was surprised to find a site called, please fire me

The site is a whole list of people writing about their job and how someone or something is making it so miserable that they want to be fired.  An example of the postings:

Please fire me. I was told that I couldn’t have the promotion I was after because I am not “mean enough.”

Please fire me. My manager is 18 weeks pregnant and still follows me outside on my smoke breaks to steal drags off my cigarette.

Please fire me. I’m a teacher at school and our librarian says “Arthur” instead of “author” as well as “lie-berry” for “library”.

Please Fire Me

My first emotional response was to say to myself, "then why don't you quit?"  Why so complacent?  Just risk it and walk out!!!

Because.  I remembered my friend who was fired and looked for employment for two months.  And I remembered my friend who is looking for a new job, but after six months, still hasn't found one.

I believe that the Please Fire Me is sort of a cross between Dear Abby and a HR complaint blog.  It is  definitely a place for people to vent.  It is absolutely an HR Lawyer's dream come true of workplace violations.  But, it is also a place to feel better by feeling bad.  The new world of sharing your feelings and then feeling relieved? Or the world of sharing your feelings and feeling like now, you should share all the time?  The world of sharing your feelings but not doing anything about it?  Notice the last two aren't "new".

So, let us see where the unhappy at work person is.  Stuck for a paycheck. Stuck for another (have to pay for Mom, Dad, Kid). Stuck because change is scary.  Stuck because no one wants me.

Stuck. Please Fire Me.

The friend of mine who was fired certainly didn't like it.  He took it personal and thought of it as a failure. And I am pretty sure he never said, please fire me with any conviction. Wanting to get fired and getting fired are different.  Very different.

I was fired.  Twice.  Once, I was a maid at the age of 16 in Clearwater, Florida. I was a terrible maid.  I was fired for not vacuuming the vents in the Holiday Inn.  But, I was a terrible maid.

And the other time, I was "redirected"  for a political appointment reason, when the boss said, "We are going in a different direction, and so are you", he added, "you can resign or you can be redirected". It was not wholly unexpected, but it was not warranted nor, in my opinion, deserved.  My boss at that time was later fired for harassment, sexual and otherwise.  So, while I was devastated, I also felt vindicated.

Back to the Please Fire Me.  Who are you really?  A young person, going to "stick it to the man" as my daughter says. (For the record, she stole that from my generation.) An unhappy worker who wishes they were somewhere else or just in a bad situation? Someone who just believes that their worth and talent aren't recognized nor rewarded?

I can tell you after 43 years of working (oh my, McDonald's was my first job in 1973), there will always be a day or two or ten, when you say, fire me please.  People are emotional, not very professional, way too professional, controlled, uncontrolled, wild, crazy, boring, extreme, loved, unloved, even at work.

People do not stop being people when they are at work. If the job is just a means to an end, then your profile probably projects that.  If the job is a passion, then you probably hope that you are a part of undercover boss and winning some giant reward.

But for most of us, we must weigh the stress of  an organization and those who are in it, and the angst of quitting.  Like Dear Abby said so long ago, "are you better off with em or without em?" So the Please Fire Me  is a way to bridge the gap of contemplation.  But what is it saying to us?

If you are an employer, it should tell you that your employees, contractors or others are not happy.  If you are an employer, you should listen.  It may not affect you today, but it will affect you eventually. Look at the research by Association Leaders.  It will tell you that leadership is the biggest key in the direction of the workplace.  Leadership sets the mood, the goals, the opportunities and the limitations.  If they are not set with the workforce in mind, then the workforce will slowly turn to the Please Fire Me people.  The problem is, they will be yours and affect your organization's future - online for all to see.

 "Entropy is a measure of the number of specific ways in which a system may be arranged, often taken to be a measure of disorder....." says wiki. 

 And Please Fire Me is definitely one measure of entropy disorder.