There is a lot of talk in the workplace about two words. Then again, there is a lot of talk about a lot of special words in the workplace. Some words you can say without a problem. Some words are sensitive. Of course, some are offensive. However, these two words are not offensive or sensitive to me but to someone else, the ideas of Emotional Intelligence could trigger a workplace dispute over whether terms like this should be used or not.

To be clear, we live in interesting times. I have sat in meetings that discussed empowerment topics. The main objective was based on wellness and well being proposals to create workshops in the workplace. The intention is to promote personal satisfaction, growth, clarity, interpersonal improvement, as well as to overcome obstacles and above all, to support transformational, personal and professional changes.

As a kid, I remember being told the story about the tortoise and the hare. I remember hearing slow and steady wins the race. Then again, as I grew older there was another saying. “Nice guys finish last,” which sounds a little conflicting if we think about it. As a matter of fact, I have seen production lines. I have been a part of crews that built machines. Come to think of it, there was a year in my young adulthood where I spent my time on a farm and at no point in any of these equations did anyone tell me “Slow and steady wins the race.” I was told to move faster. I was told “Hurry up,” but to be clear, the only time I was ever told to slow down is when I was firing off in too many directions. I was wasting energy and trying too hard. (Enter contradiction here.) Then I was told to slow down. This is when I learned about the rules of efficiency and the benefits of energy conservation.

I have said this before but this is a good time to say this again. I am a real person. I have faults and flaws but also, I have chemistry. You have chemistry. And sometimes, our chemistry doesn’t mix, which is fine. I cannot say whether I am the most liked or the most hated. Neither can you. But I can say that some people are often an acquired taste. In which case this could be me or you. Or better yet, maybe this is all of us.
I have always been amazed by the person who walks in the room and somehow, everyone seems to notice them. I have always wondered why some people have social talents that exceed the norm. There are people who can literally take over a room. They can walk into the office or the boardroom and somehow, the room becomes about them. They have a natural presence. People listen. This is amazing to me.

So, what’s the point of all this?
The reason behind my journal entries and why I share them with you is because first, I am documenting my efforts to grow as a person. I want to note my changes and openly discuss what works and what hasn’t. But more, I want to write about life in a relatable way with hopes that my brand of information is helpful to others. Even in spite of all our differences; there is a commonality we share. We are all here, living, learning and we are all moving along this great big conveyor belt, which I choose to call Project Earth.

I suppose this entry is written for the person who is starting in a new position. Or, maybe this is for the young person who is just starting out. This is for the young entrepreneur who wants to make a dent in the business world. Then again, I suppose this fits anyone in life. Or, perhaps this is an entry from the old me to the new me. Better yet, this is for anyone in need of clarity. This is to define some of the important behaviors that help create our personal success.

Now that I’ve taken a moment to talk about communication, I think it is important to recognize a few lessons and exercises that I have seen throughout the years. The first lesson came to me at a very rough time. This was years ago in the month of December 1989 to be exact. I was a young man on the verge of losing my Father. At the time, my Father (The Old Man) was in a coronary care unit after a series of heart attacks. By the way, this was the strongest man that I ever knew. Of course, my Dad could beat up your Dad. He was smarter too. He could fix anything (So there!) but above all, The Old Man was my very first hero.

The Old Man lay in his bed, almost gray, and weak as ever. I never saw him this way before. I never saw him as anything other than strong and capable. However, life is life, which means life is both eventual and inevitable. Age takes place and although my memories of The Old Man are of him and his strength, at his end, The Old Man was weak and humbled.

Question: How many times have you been at work and learned that you had to communicate with someone you don’t like? How many times has a name come to mind and you sort of roll your eyes? You think to yourself, “Oh, great! I have to deal with this one now!” How many times have you lost your patience when trying to explain yourself at work to someone who claims to know your job; yet, they truly have no idea what they are doing. Sound familiar?

They say good things come to those who wait. They also say patience is a virtue, which is another one of those sayings that used to drive me crazy. The dictionary says a virtue is a moral excellence or goodness; as if to say that if we wait patiently, then we are good. So, what do we do? We wait . . .

They call it work. Isn’t that right?
In a previous entry, I explained how a person told me, “If work was fun then they would call it something else.”
I discussed the personal mindset and the way our thinking affects our behavior.
This entry will not be much different. However, I will relate this more as a personal exercise in which I will expose the quitter’s mindset and offer my personal history. My aim is to detail how my thoughts impacted my behavior. As I mentioned in previous entries and as I plan to repeat; I am a real person. I have thoughts and feelings. I have a history. I have biases that range from memory bias to personal, to decision biases, thinking errors and fears, concerns and worries. Again, I am a real person.

I am thinking about taking a break from the norm. What I mean is I have an idea to break away from my regular routine with hopes to save my sanity and restore my soul. So, what exactly does this mean? This means that I need a vacation. Perhaps someplace warm. Yes, I think that would be nice. I could go to a place where the water is the color turquoise, the beach is filled with white sand and half bent palm trees swaying in the wind and the breeze blows by me like a dream. I am thinking of island drinks with tiny umbrellas that perch at the rim of a coconut cup with a triangle of pineapple that has been skewered and can be dunked in the white frothiness of the drink. I am thinking about the kind of time where I wouldn’t have to even wear shoes.