yin and yang.

i like working with other people, on a team. i like seeing what each individual brings to the team and how the team needs each person’s assets. it takes different personalities, different talents, different gifts, different perspectives, different styles of management, and different ways of handling situations.
and it takes the difference.

i often describe someone with whom i have worked as walt disney…which seems to fit since he is such a disney fanatic. standing in the center, waving his wand directing the scene as it unfolds. walt as he dreams, as he schemes, as he innovates, as he brings it to life. and then there’s me…

the one behind-the-scenes.
the one holding things together (just call me duct tape or WD40…wouldn’t be the first time).
the one guided by realism…often called the dream killer.
the one trying to make it happen…alongside others.

it takes both…
both the dreamer and the dream killer.
both the director and the one behind-the-scenes.
both walt and his brother, roy
and as said in this article, a yin for one’s yang.

learning.

Personally, I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.
~Winston Churchill, former British prime minister

think i would agree…especially after last week.
as i look forward to learning, i must also look forward to being taught…
both the easy and the hard lessons.
both by those i seek to learn from and those from whom i’d rather be teaching.
both willingly and even when i don’t think i need it.

the A team.

The last thing you want is for your A players — or people in key strategic positions delivering the most value — to leave because you’ve mismanaged your compensation system.
~Mark Huselid, Rutgers University HR professor, in BusinessWeek

i know what it’s like to be on the A team…or at least to be told i’m on the A team. it was this little joke at one of my older jobs, actually. it was more like who was on the B team…and being stuck working with those on the B team.

the A team…
those who do a job well, who excel at their position, and those who have a lot of potential of growth within the company.
those that have the ability to lead the company through the current recession and into a more profitable future.
those you would hate to lose at any time, but during this economic downturn in particular.
those you should let know how valuable and how integral they are to the team.
those who should hang in there, knowing that if they are with the right company they will be taken care of in the long run…right, dad?

first time baking.

first time baking using a ladle as a mixing utensil, a crock pot insert as a mixing bowl, and disposable muffin pans equipped with their own liners…only minor set backs for baking professionals.
first time baking in a non-baking kitchen…no problem.

first time baking (this time with a spatula as a mixing utensil, actual mixing bowls, legit cake pans…only missing a mixer)…ever. baking a chocolate birthday cake (from the new cookbook i purchased for myself as a birthday gift) for a friend.
this time baking with my weak, frail, sickly sous chef (who actually took over frosting the cake).
first time baking ever…no problem.

some people.

are they illiterate, rebellious, or lemmings?

the happiest place on earth.

and you even get in free for your birthday…

shortcomings.

it seems i am well aware of my shortcomings these days…or maybe i should be more aware. just a few days ago it seems i had a problem at work. it is called being a jerk. i am not sure why but i just was. for two days straight, i became frustrated at everything, really. and one person i work with just couldn’t win for losing. call it my nemesis, call it i have issues, call it i need to get a grip on myself. so i spent one whole night crying. crying because of my attitude, my words, my actions, and my jerkiness. and the ironic thing is i realized it that morning and subsequently wrote a blog about seeing what other’s bring to the table…somehow i just couldn’t get over myself and my issues and see it. i cried that morning, seeing my own self as i truly am…and i cried that night for the same reason. for the reason that i still couldn’t get over myself, that i still couldn’t act like a human being, that i still couldn’t put others above myself, that i still couldn’t learn humbly,
that i still could act like such a jerk…

When you own up to your own shortcomings, the fear of whatever you are guarding is released. Apology frees you from the burden of whatever you have in your past.
~David Edmonson, former CEO of RadioShack, in Chief Executive

so maybe i should admit my shortcomings.
maybe i should think about what it is i am hiding, or what fear it is i am masking.
maybe i should let the skeletons out of my closet and get rid of the past…past fears, past experiences, past failures, past dreams, and past hauntings…
and live with my own shortcomings.

let me add to it.

so the first customer i had after i got back from my break, just moments after composing the previous posting, was another one blog worthy. i just should have waited to write my blog so i could include her…but here’s the addendum.

a lady with her old non-stick fry pan that had been burned. the non-stick that had been burned beyond recognition onto her pan. i explained countless times that it was not a defect in the product, simply that it was a result of the way it had been cared for…to no avail. this lady was convinced she was trading in her pan for a new one…since she clearly needed a new one. my opinion was that it was just time for her to invest in a new pan. louis took a look at it and had my back, even though i didn’t need his opinion since i wasn’t budging. he walked away content to let her do the same. as my final verdict, i offered her a $49.99 credit for her old pan towards the one she wanted. she couldn’t get past the fact that the pan she owned would now cost her 3 times as much as the credit i was so graciously offering…even after my argument that it didn’t cost that much when she originally purchased it 10+years ago–or whenever she had made her fry pan purchase. still unsatisfied, she stormed out, threatening to go to beverly hills where they simply give her new pans (obviously she’s done this before). i told her that was fine…and i would call them and let them know she was on her way.

events of the day…

work has been a little eventful today…
the toothless, sagging, older woman who came in talking about the cooking show she was about to start filming. the cooking class she was hoping would be filmed at our store. as she was telling cindi about her new show, her son was talking to me about it. he approached me with, “i think you are going to be one of our partners.” “really…” i responded. he went on to tell me his mom was incognito today…his mom who lives in maryland. so i am not really sure how she expects to film her show in santa monica while living in maryland, but i didn’t inquire. she walked out of the store with the corporate number in hand, ready to sell herself to potential business partners. just let me know how that works out for you…

and there was the lady who came in yelling at me after i told her the garlic genius was now only 99cents. i conceded and offered her half of the original value for credit towards something else. meanwhile, another customer spoke up and said i had just made him a long-term customer by the way i handled the lady who was still standing in front of me. as i thanked him, he continued, saying how i had gone over and beyond in my customer service. as i stood smiling, my customer turned towards this man and snapped at him. wow…

so now i am headed back to work from my break, we’ll see what the next 3.5 hours hold.

here’s hoping it will change…

A goal without a plan is just a wish.
~Antoine de Saint Exupéry, French writer and aviator

i came across this quote about an hour ago and decided i might want to use it in a future blog…unknowing it to be of immediate use. initially, it made me think of new year’s resolutions that so quickly go by the wayside…because no plan exists. these resolutions that simply become wishes and hopes of some day to come when no action plan is set forth, when we are unsure how we will get there, or how these goals will be achieved. there must be an action that follows. it also recalled to mind a friend who knows what he wants to be when he grows up, but has not yet achieved this goal. action steps are there, and a plan i am sure…now it’s just the waiting, and the unknown.

fast forward 15 minutes as i was catching up on reading some emails i have neglected. i came across this youtube clip that i had seen numerous times on facebook, but could not access it. so i tried again. and you should…i guarantee you will not be disappointed.

“what’s the dream?”
“i am trying to be a professional singer.”
“and why hasn’t it worked out so far, susan?”
“i have never been given the chance before but here’s hoping it will change.”
“and who would you like to be as successful as?”
“elaine paige.”
~conversation between simon and susan boyle before her performance on britains got talent…before shocking the crowd, both online and in person.

making no bones about it, boyle’s goal is to be a professional singer. and it seems that she has been trying since she was 12 years old–for a mere 35 years. and at 47, she hasn’t given up on the dream…despite judgements, despite scoffers, despite unbelievers, despite sneers, despite laughs.

and what did these people get? maybe tears flowing down their cheeks, maybe a jaw-dropping performance right in front of their eyes, maybe a lesson in not being so quick to make judgements, maybe…

and what did boyle get?
a chance to prove herself, a chance to prove others wrong, a plan to reach the goal, perseverance to continue pursuing her goal, and a chance…a big one at that.

so personally, it caused me to think about those with whom i work and who work for me…to think about what they bring to the table. their gifts, their talents, their uniqueness, their goal waiting to be reached, their passion waiting to be unleashed. and when given the chance–just any chance–can dispel my own judgements, my own hard heart, my own limitations, my own weaknesses, my own lack of passion, my own untapped resources, my own dream deferred, my own inability to appreciate difference, my own scoffing, my own laughs, my own hidden fears.

By recognizing and encouraging the particular gifts of their employees, great managers increase the chance that those employees will be willing to stand there, exposed and authentic, while their audience rolls their eyes and sneers, expecting failure.
~Peter Bregman, CEO of Bregman Partners, on his How We Work blog

bring it, i say…
may i learn to appreciate and celebrate differences.
may i learn to refrain from making judgements.
may i learn to learn from others, having a humble and open mind.
may i learn to value what role others play and how each role is needed to form the whole.
may i learn to be a better employee, manager, co-worker, neighbor, friend, girlfriend, daughter, sister, granddaughter, great niece, family member in general, encourager, motivator, challenger, and learner.