Category Archives: Helpful Hints

September 24, 2014 · 12:26 pm

The Walk To The Next Cube

Tonight marks the start of the new year in the Jewish calendar.  I thought, given the occasion, that some of you might have resolutions on your mind so here is a thought and maybe something we can all resolve to do a bit better.

While our world has never been more connected I can’t recall a time when it seems as if people who work together seem very disconnected.  What I mean is that people come in to the office and log on to their computers, put in their earphones, and do their things.  When they need to interact with someone else on their team or elsewhere in the company they send email or instant message.   That often applies even when the person to whom they are “speaking” is on the other side of an office wall or in the next cube.  As a manager, this drove me crazy.

Maybe I’m very old school.  I learned the interpersonal parts of business long before there was IM, email, or even computers on every desk.   The nature of interpersonal communication these days, particularly among younger people is quite different.  I appreciate that having unlimited texting trumps unlimited voice.   However, when you think about it the one skill that many younger workers lack is the ability to read people.  Email and IM are faceless and can’t communicate nuance.  You can’t be sure you’re hearing tone accurately.

That was why I used to tell the folks with whom I worked that my expectation of them was that when they had need to communicate with a co-worker that they would get up and walk to the next cube.  I thought it was important especially if that cube was located on another floor.  Your presence means you are giving the matter a lot of attention and they should too.  If they can’t go in person (it’s not easy to walk to the cube in another building or city), then call.  Hear their voice.  Gauge their tone.  Learn to listen.  If those things fail, then email.

That’s the thing I’m suggesting we resolve to do.  Be more human as the world gets less so.  Walk to the next cube instead of writing yet another email.  I’m going to try.  Will you?

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September 17, 2014 · 10:38 am

Telephone

Everyone has played the game of telephone.  Not telephone tag in which you and someone else keep exchanging voicemails: telephone.  You whisper a sentence to someone next to you who repeats it to the person next to them and so on until the message comes back to you.  Inevitably, what you said is not what someone heard.  In fact, it’s quite possible that the message is completely different when it comes full circle.

You don’t need to be playing that game to have this happen.  What we say isn’t always what people hear. You may not have malice, you might be telling a joke. They might hear it as threatening or as disgust.  When the cook asks you how you liked supper and you smile and say “it was pretty good” they might be hearing “I didn’t like it at all but I want to be polite.”  When you tell a salesperson that you don’t think you need what it is they’re selling, the good ones hear “I can convince you” instead of the firm “no” you were unable to say for some reason.

Listening is a critical business skill.  That said, people are often distracted as we speak to them.  Maybe the phone buzzed; maybe they are thinking about their last email or meeting.  Because of that, making sure that the message we meant to convey to the listener is what they heard is just as critical a skill.  We must think about how what we’re saying or presenting could deliver an unintended message.

For example – Malaysia Airlines recently ran a contest in which they invited travelers from New Zealand and Australia to answer the question, “What and where would you like to tick off on your bucket list, and explain why.” It offered them the chance to win an Apple iPad or return trip to Malaysia.  Message received?  Well, since a “bucket list” is composed of things one wants to do before one dies and the airline has lost two planes recently, any association with death is probably not the message you want people to hear.  You say win something; they hear that you are insensitive.

One trick I’ve learned when I have any doubt about if what I’ve said was heard as meant is to ask someone to repeat it back to me.  Obnoxious?  There is that risk, but in my mind the risk of being misunderstood is far greater since we’ll never know until the message comes back around.  Speaking and writing clearly are table stakes in business.  Getting people to hear you clearly is part of those skills.

Clear?

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September 5, 2014 · 8:50 am

Scallion Pesto

Foodie Friday brings one of summer’s great dishes: pesto.

English: this is a picture of self made pesto ...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When you hear the word you think of a mixture of basil, pine nuts, cheese, and olive oil, and there is no better time of the year than late summer for basil. Of course, what I’ve just described is the traditional pesto alla Genovese, named after Genoa where it originated. The word itself comes from the local dialect’s word for “pound” which is what one must have done to make the sauce before the advent of blenders and food processors.

The term refers to a method, not an ingredient.  The French adopted it, called it pistou, and omitted the nuts since there aren’t a lot of pine trees around.  Cheese is optional as well.  Yet most people think of pesto in just one, very traditional way.  I had my mind semi-blown the other day when I made a batch of scallion pesto.  No basil, just a bunch of scallions thrown in the food processor with the other traditional ingredients.  While I was expecting a sharp hit of flavor, this was a mild, wonderful sauce I smeared on chicken and baked.  Since good scallions are available year round and basil can be expensive outside of summer, it’s a great alternative. Which is, of course, our business point today.

We make too many assumptions and don’t focus on alternatives.  When you shift pesto’s paradigm from specific sauce to method it opens up a world of possibilities.  Different greens, different oils, maybe different cheese.  We tend to get too focused on a specific recipe or outcome and forget that we have options that may produce better results, even if they are unfamiliar.

As business people we need to entertain every ingredient and see what happens.  Not being afraid to fail is a key to success.  I thought scallion pesto was a really weird and potentially bad idea.  It’s now going to be a staple.  What kind of pesto will you make?

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