Becoming a Magpie

Inspirations come from the strangest places: signs on the highway, songs on the radio, words spoken on a television program. 

Yesterday while watching Anderson Live, Alan Cumming (one of my fave actors who surprised me by speaking with a strong Scottish accent which just illustrates further how great he is on The Good Wife because you would never, ever know he was Scottish…..annnnnnnyway I am really digressing here). Alan Cumming was asked, “How do you choose the roles you play?” and he replied with, “I am like a Magpie” and he then went on to explain that he liked a variety of different roles. I didn’t even hear the last part of the interview because I was dashing around looking for a pen to write down the word “Magpie” and of course I couldn’t find a pen ANYWHERE so I texted the word to myself (because as a nomophobic I always have my phone within reach).

Why did I like the word so much? Why did the word “Magpie” resonate so deeply with me?

A Magpie is a black and white bird with a really long tail and where I live, they are EVERYWHERE. Not to be confused with a crow, which is all black and likes to tear apart your garbage and strew it all over the yard before the garbage truck arrives. No….a Magpie is different. Don’t get me wrong….no one seems to like the Magpie either. As I was googling the “Magpie” one article started with, “Magpies are the birds everyone loves to hate” and then calls them the “equivalent of a football hooligan”.

Magpies are opportunistic, tenacious: seemingly less comfortable in the air, choosing instead to forage for food while on the ground, scratching with their feet to determine if it is edible. They are smart and have a remarkable memory. Sources site that the European Magpie has a penchant for “shiny things” even jewelry, stealing items and storing them in their nest. The birds mate for life.

Ummm……sooooooo…..why would I want to be like a Magpie? (I actually had to stop and ask myself that, “Judy….why the hell do you want to be a Magpie? They seem like unethical bastards…..maybe you should choose a different bird or maybe even a fish…like a goldfish,  or even a guppy to emulate).

No, believe it or not, I can see some great qualities in the Magpie.

The magpie likes variety. It is adaptable. It is smart. It is fearless. It makes the most of each and every circumstance and situation.

My word for 2013 is VARIETY and learning to embrace my inner Magpie: be fearless; make smart choices and be adaptable when circumstances change.

Last year was horrible. Not only was it filled with sadness, disappointment and personal struggle, I constantly fought against my love of “variety” – feeling that I would have to give up my gypsy-like career path for something more stable. The consideration paralyzed me with fear.

Never again.

I will not apologize for my love of different,

My love of challenges,

My need to learn, 

My love of “try”.

2013 is the year.

That I learn to love myself

and……

embrace my inner Magpie.

Judy

The Accidentally Green Event

On Saturday night I attended the Small Business Christmas Party at a local Event Centre. It was a fun event: great food, great venue, great music and great company. The Small Business Christmas party was designed and planned so that a multiple of small businesses could enjoy a holiday staff party, do it as a group, and thereby create so many more advantages. A wonderful idea! It was also, in many ways, a sustainable event. I think that the organizers might be surprised to learn that by consolidating a number of small business parties into one larger event, they became “green(er) by accident”.

Green meeting and event planners are always looking for ways to tie events together, or combine events to minimize the environmental footprint. The Small Business Christmas Party was a perfect example of this sustainability strategy: a group of individuals choosing to have one larger gathering instead of many, smaller holiday parties. Why is that a better alternative? At a singular event, less fossil fuels are used, less energy is consumed and less waste is generated and placed in the landfills. Here are some examples:

·      Delivery companies make a single trip to one venue which cuts down on the use of fossil fuels

·      Only one venue is used on one night decreasing the amount of energy consumed (light and heat)

·      Food waste is minimized - every event can generate substantial food waste (folks who RSVP positively but then do not attend, incorrectly confirming plate numbers, food scrapings)

·      Paper waste is minimized – one party equals one invitation.

·      Less signage required

·      Floral centerpieces are generated only once, which minimizes waste and the use of fossil fuels to transport to different venues.

Congratulations! Good Job!

It doesn’t make it any less impactful if the sustainability strategies were unintentional. In fact…….many, many folks are sustainability specialists without even knowing it. Labeled as “frugal”, they are conscientious about their use of power and water. They creatively upcycled items before upcycling became trendy. They garden so that they have homegrown food throughout the year.

During the holiday season it can be difficult to be mindful of sustainability. Here are a few tips for a greener Christmas:

Minimize Food Waste: Be mindful when creating meat and cheese or veggie platters for guests because we tend to make them too large and the result is disposing of a lot of it at the end of the evening. Store your prepared meat, cheese and vegetables in zip lock bags in the refrigerator and replenish your “smaller” platters more often.

Locally Made Gifts: Craft sales have a bevy of locally created items to choose from to give as a gift at Christmas.

Support Local Business: By shopping locally we sustain our local businesses.

Recycle your old Christmas Cards: There are many uses for old Christmas cards: cut them down and use them for gift tags, slip them underneath a clear liner to create a pretty tabletop or….the list is endless.

Make a donation: There are many local organizations who rely on donations to operate. Do a little research, find out if they need money or if they have a wish list you can contribute towards.

Wishing you all a very merry, “greener” holiday season!

Clap Your Hands!

My nephew Ben, a wee bit over two years old, toddles along playing with his toys. His days and nights are full of “firsts”. The first time he walked, the first time he talked, the first time he slept through the night. 

These “firsts” become a blur of daily occurrences, and at times, we forget how absolutely remarkable this little human being can be. Never fear! Ben reminds us.  On one particular occasion Little Ben manipulates a transformer toy, and then places it on the table with a flourish, looking at each one of us expectantly……then, bursting into a big smile, he claps and then we clap and pretty soon he is giggling and we are all clapping in unison.

Children are pretty smart. When they do something remarkable, they ask and oftentimes demand acknowledgement.

Why can’t adults do that?

Wouldn’t it be cool to give/get some applause and affirmation from time to time?

Instead…… we hold back our praise because, in our opinion, it wasn’t amazing enough or perhaps we are jealous.

What constitutes “Amazing Enough”? When did we become so under-whelmed with life?

I think that apathy is a habit that we can break. Wouldn’t you rather live in a world filled with positive reinforcement and praise? Wouldn’t it be nicer to live in a world where we look at each day as a “first” and celebrate it and everything that comes with it?

Here is the world that I would love to live in:

·      We say please and thank you ALL THE TIME

·      We recognize small accomplishments with praise (and yes….maybe sometimes applause)

·      We make an effort to attend and support all milestones: birthdays, anniversaries, graduation’s, new jobs, etc.

·      We regularly congratulate our co-workers on a job well done.

·      We aren’t embarrassed when we are happy and excited about something – when we are happy and we know it we wear that happiness with pride

·      We celebrate life’s baby steps

·      We appreciatively and without reservation, sit in silence for a few short moments on November 11^th.

Why the “Deep thoughts by Judy” today? I am not so sure….. It could have come from thinking about Remembrance Day this past Sunday and how important it is to acknowledge folks and what they have accomplished.

I am saddened when I think about the day that Ben turns to someone looking for a pat on the back and none is forthcoming. When he looks around expecting applause and there is silence. Is that something that happens when you grow up?

Wouldn’t it be nice if that didn’t have to happen?

Judy

Facebook Folly

Folly: Lack of good sense or normal prudence and foresight; a foolish act or idea.

I often post articles or blogs about using social media. I advise against posting inappropriate content, using foul language, linking to information or sites which are not a good fit with your brand…..all of the above. I know that social media can be a good thing and a terrible thing and that the user must take responsibility for what he or she posts.

Because…..there are consequences.

One such consequence occurs when a potential employer takes into account what they read and see on facebook. I recently spoke to a gentleman who said that he actually asks his employees for facebook username and information. Now……a little part of me was suspicious when he said that. It was said with an undertone of bravado and I wonder if he was simply telling me this because he knew that it would sound controversial and keep the conversation moving. Regardless of whether his statement was fact or fiction, it raises an interesting point.

I asked why…..”why does he ask for that information and what type of content would he be looking for?” The answer was simple: He wanted to know what type of character his employee demonstrated. A facebook page filled with endless party photos and foul language speaks volumes to their character, and raises a potential red flag. This wasn’t the type of individual he wanted working for him.

This particular person with whom I was speaking was very “anti-facebook” and social media in general. I asked him, “why not simply have a social media policy and have new hires sign off on the policy?”. For someone who felt that strongly, he should have a policy in place so that he had recourse in the event that an employee coloured outside the lines of decorum.

After having the conversation with this Negative Nelly, I realized that he was a bit of a blowhard and not tech savvy enough to seek out the damning information even with the user identification. He didn’t want to entertain the notion that a social media policy would be helpful and frankly, I don’t think he even knew what I was talking about. He shouldn’t be playing in the Social Media Sandbox.

But apparently he was………and his assumption that facebook was the 5^th Horseman of the Apocalypse had made him determined to be the judge and jury of content.

So who is right? Should the employer have the right to check out employees? I don’t know the answer to that and probably the legal system will be tested many, many times in the future as it tries to answer that very question.

I do know that you must be careful and aware of what you post on a social networking site, that it may come back to haunt you. If you are in doubt about whether or not something is appropriate, then do the “would my Grandma like it if she saw this?” test. It works every time!

Judy

Pricing Disappointment

Bigstock Image

Sorry for the “glass half empty” headline…..but it is something that I have been thinking about a lot lately. What prompted it? I guess it began last Sunday as I was starting out on my journey to Las Vegas. I made my way to Grande Prairie to catch my flight to Edmonton so that I could attend IMEX12 in Las Vegas that began the next morning. I checked in early, made my way through security without a hitch and then sat comfortably waiting for my flight to depart. Boarding began promptly on time and the pre-board passengers formed a line out the long glass enclosed walk way, ready to make their way on board the aircraft.

At this point I noticed that no one was moving. Everyone was just standing in the walk way waiting. After a few moments, one of the airline staff ushered everyone back inside with the news that there was a mechanical issue that was going to necessitate a mechanic taking a look, and that he would be there in about 20 minutes. Knowing that I only had 1 hour and 30 minutes between connections, I grew concerned that my time had now been reduced. Of course, I completely understood that safety is paramount and that it was necessary to make certain that the aircraft was repaired, but deep down I felt a little bit of anxiety. Not long after, another announcement was made that it was going to take a wee bit longer. Sadly, at this point I knew that I probably would not make my connection to Las Vegas that night.

I had no control over the situation and I was disappointed.

Thankfully, the aircraft did get repaired and we did depart for Edmonton, however it wasn’t in time to make my Las Vegas connection. Upon arrival in Edmonton, staff provided vouchers for a hotel, taxi shuttles and meal vouchers and we (there were about 7 of us that were en route to Vegas) were booked on the next flight to Las Vegas that was departing the following morning.

I was completely looked after but….I still couldn’t shake my disappointment. I was disappointed that I wasn’t going to be able to meet my friends for dinner that evening; I was disappointed that I was going to lose one entire evening in Vegas; I was disappointed that I was going to miss a whole morning of sessions that I had counted on attending.

It made me realize something: You cannot put a price-tag on disappointment especially if it is a disappointing experience. When emotions and expectations are involved, it can become a customer service nightmare to try to make someone happy.

This revelation is important for those of us in the event or customer service industry. Having empathy for your attendee or customer is paramount in understanding what they are feeling when their expectations are not met. Realizing that even when you have provided everything you can during a negative situation, disappointment is a powerful emotion that will remain.

Some helpful tips for dealing with a customer service crisis:

Have Empathy: Defined as - Understanding and acknowledging feelings and needs.

Engage Empathetic Listening: Listening with your ears and eyes (expressions, body language)

Sincerely respond with empathetic statements: “I would be unhappy too if I missed my connection. I can understand your frustration”.

Giving front line staff the power to be creative with problem solving: When you can enable front line staff with the ability to create unique customer service crisis management strategies, it illustrates that the customer is unique, is special.