If you want the Fish to Fly, give it Wings

Talent? How do you measure the talent on your team?

For many years I have had the opportunity to share my career with extraordinary, full of talent people that could often not even imagine.

 

Now, I have to say that always found it difficult to measure the talent of my teams and partners, for which, after many years, I came to a Solomonic conclusion is that "You cannot measure the talent of a fish by its ability to fly" .

The above is what it should be and is the minimum that any leader should do for his/her people, I would define it as a fair chance to prove what they're made of, and for that reason I also find it absurd that organizations want to measure everybody using the same rule.

So true is this that I have seen hundreds of talent in an organization were listed as "Poor Performers" or "Below Expectations", these talents of course were expelled by "The System", and then came to another organization in which almost immediately they transformed into "HIPO`s" or high potentials.

One would think, maybe it's a different culture, others almost certainly blame the bosses, both the previous one for the negative and the current one for the positive, and honestly both arguments are very powerful.

However, for me there is a third factor, which is the individual performance evaluation, which becomes your label within the organization, at least for the next 12 months, hoping that the next time the stars are on your side and Your Boss is pleased with your performance, being humans make us really difficult to be objective and impartial, this in various degrees of intensity depending on the type of personality of each one of us.

Ironically, the previous organization would immediately claim the success of this person, with phrases like "Thing is that we are a talent pool" and the best I've heard so far "After we train them they leave to use that somewhere else”, well, at this point I would like to introduce a very personal thought, is that people do not quit organizations, organizations lose their people.

Now, what is the solution to all this?

I would say not a single solution, but a combination of several factors:

1. Have open and clear conversations in which you can put on the table all your cards, for both parties, business and worker expectations, clear rules.

2. Follow up on the performance of your employees, as often as possible, so no surprises at the end of the annual cycle and you may be able to correct 99% of the improvement opportunities.

3. Provide the necessary tools to accomplish the goals, even though it sounds obvious this is something that organizations, through their leaders, always fall short or simply fail, a metaphor would be, if you want the fish to fly, give it wings.

 

 

 



Finally, remember that organizations are composed of human beings and the invisible ties that bind human beings are relationships, that´s why it is so important to look after these ties..

Regards,

Armando.

 

Keep in Touch with Armando:

Twitter: @arramire

Google+: Armando Ramirez

Smart reflexion.

Today I was talking to a very good Indian friend named Sheik Abdul Salam, about many things and everything in general, but right in the middle of our conversation I realized something that I couldn’t understand before, and it is that money can buy everything there is, including what we actually know as Happiness, however the only thing that money cannot buy is spiritual peace.

 

He said to me, Armando never forget the following:

·         1 Cent honestly earned goes much further than 1 Million of the opposite…

·         If you believe in God everything will be ok because he will watch over you.

Never neglect your economic stability but guarantee the quality of your Spirit and tranquility of your conscience, those two treasures will open the gates of Heaven for you.

Regards,
Armando.

Two things that Mike said to me...

Today I got an email from a very good friend who I met several years ago at Heathrow Airport in London, with whom I got the opportunity to talk just two and a half hours, his name Michael Reid.
As usual, I was waiting for my flight and this Rock Star type guy sat next to me, he was wearing jeans and long hair, obviously looked like he had not showered in a while, he politely said good afternoon to all of sitting around and just me answered back, because I was taught to do so.
After a few minutes Mike and I started talking, because I've always thought that musicians, singers and artists in general are extraordinary people and unfortunately I was not blessed with any of these qualities.
Mike told me he was on tour with his band, but I cannot remember the name, and they were on my flight to Frankfurt, so we talked a lot, he gave me a slice of the cake that his wife had baked for him for the tour, very nice cake to tell you the truth.
After a while of talking, laughing, looking at photos and eating cake we had to board and we were in separate seats, that was the last time I saw him.
Far from the first impression, turned out that Mike had a PhD in Experimental Psychology of his beloved University of Oxford, among other accreditations, but one day he decided to pursue his dream / vocation of being a musician, being in a band and doing international tours.
From all this, I remember two things Mike said, first: "Life is too short to waste it suffering and doing something that doesn´t makes you happy", I thought to myself... Obviously this guy is dead serious about this.

 

Second thing he said was: "Be a good Human Being and an Extraordinary Father because people will only remember you by your actions and for your children, never for the money you had or the positions you held during your career"

Mike is currently playing with his band and is starting again to teach at Oxford, both Psychology and Music.

Regards,

Armando.

"Don't be afraid to give up the good to go for the great" John D. Rockefeller.

Every day while navigating the virtual universe I usually read a zillion phrases, articles, comments, posts, etc.
I cannot deny that almost all of them seem to me extraordinary, inspiring, soulful, but in some cases dangerous and even terrifying ... and now I will explain why!
Never, and I can´t stress enough, NEVER! We should make decisions guided by our emotions, in any level of our lives.
I think it is very easy to give advice to people, but in this regard I have a very strict yet simple rule... listening, analyzing and understanding how far or not my decisions will affect these people who give advice, and assign relevance and credibility in the same level.



Don´t take me wrong, at least in my case I have always been given outstanding advice and mentorship from equally extraordinary and trustworthy people, but still so I´m always careful.
Informed, deeply analyzed and with the least possible emotionality, is the right way to go when decision making is required.
Remember that we will only know if a decision is good or not, by the results we get from them, so it goes without saying how important it is to do your homework before ...
Phrases like "Don't be afraid to give up the good to go for the great…" give you the false impression that it's okay to risk everything you've got to get something supposedly better, when the truth is that every move we make involves a significant level of uncertainty, at the very least 50%, so outcomes are hard to predict.
Beautiful/Awesome phrases look great on walls and presentations, but the real world admits no mistakes and the price for those mistakes is usually very high.
Regards,
Armando.

“No temas renunciar a lo bueno para ir por lo grandioso” John D. Rockefeller.

En mi diario navegar por el universo virtual suelo leer un trillón de frases, artículos, comentarios, posts, etc.
No puedo negar que muchos de ellos me parecen extraordinarios, inspiradores, enternecedores, pero en algunos casos peligrosos y hasta terroríficos… y paso a explicar porque!
Nunca, y recalco NUNCA! Debemos tomar decisiones guiados por las emociones, en ningún plano de nuestras vidas.

Es muy fácil dar consejos, sin embargo tengo por regla escuchar atentamente, analizar y entender hasta donde mis decisiones afectaran o no a estas personas que dan consejos, y en ese mismo grado les asigno importancia y credibilidad.

Y ojo, al menos en mi caso siempre he recibido extraordinarios consejos de gente igualmente extraordinaria y bien intencionada, pero aun así, siempre soy cuidadoso.
Decisiones informadas y con la menor emocionalidad posible, es lo correcto a hacer.
Recordemos que solo sabremos si una decisión es buena o no, por los resultados que obtengamos de ellas, así que no hace falta decir lo importante que es hacer bien la tarea, antes de…
Frases como “No temas renunciar a lo bueno para ir por lo grandioso”, te dan la falsa impresión que esta bien arriesgar todo lo que ya has conseguido para obtener algo que supuestamente será mejor, cuando la verdad es que cada movimiento que hacemos implica un nivel significativo de incertidumbre, al menos 50%, por lo que los resultados son muy difíciles de predecir.
Las frases hermosas se ven muy bien en los muros y presentaciones, pero el mundo real no admite equivocaciones y las cobra muy caro.
Un abrazo,
Armando.

About the balance between who we are and what we do…

About the balance between who we are and what we do…
I recently got news of a former colleague who had suffered a heart attack at work, among several factors obviously, due to constant pressure, lack of sleep and exercise, poor diet and more importantly, lack of balance .
Immediately I tried to contact him and I could not talk, but I could talk to his wife, who gave me reason about his health and told me that "my bro" was fighting for his life in intensive care, for the second time (2nd. heart attack).
Also talked to another colleague who works with this person and in his own words was "Filling in for him at work"

Immediately my mind started to analyze the situation and very quickly I came to realize three things:

1. Work-Life Balance is a really serious topic!
2. No one is indispensable, there is always someone else who can "Fill in"
3. In the end only your family will be there when you're defenseless against the outcome of your actions and decisions.



 

Being a professional in Operations (Manufacturing, Projects, Logistics, Maintenance, etc.), you quickly realize that it will be very difficult to properly balance your personal time with work time.

Without talking down from the other professional areas, when you are part of an Operational Team, you are demanded to maintain 24/7 surveillance of all areas and/or groups under your supervision, meaning that your job doesn´t end when you go home.

There are many reasons, and based on my own experience those could include:

• Operations are continuous, therefore no weekends and/or holidays exist.
• Operational processes involve a high degree of complexity and cost, so there are many chances that something does not go as planned and that such unexpected thing has an impact on the bottom line.

Anyway, as I said earlier the reasons could be many, however, and contrary to what those of us think being part of this area, the balance between who we are and what we do is very important, so important that one can affect the other positively or in a very negative way.

In recent years I have witnessed, being active part and ignored these effects which lead inadvertently to Divorce, separation, loneliness, sadness and death.

But I have also learned that we can always do something about it and that solutions are simpler and more rewarding than we think:

• Food: I was raised in a culture of "eat quickly... on your desk", however when I arrived to Peru I found the culture of "Food is sacred so enjoy", surprise!, yes you can and must respect your lunch time, at that time you are forced to stand up from your desk and walk somewhere to eat, it is also important because it gives you the opportunity to talk and distract yourself, causing your body to generate endorphins (proteins of Happiness), equally important is the quality of what we eat, watch out for this.

• Physical Activity: critical, because today our lives are designed around sedentarism, creating in us many health problems that are obvious and not so obvious (obesity, sleep apnea, circulatory problems, etc.), I usually run several miles, very early in the morning, every day, but just by walking 20 minutes a day we can achieve extraordinary results for our health.

• Mental Activity: what we do at work DOESN’T COUNT, this refers to having a hobby, learn a language or just learn something new related to your field of expertise (courses, specializations, etc.).

• Spiritual Activity: at least once a month take a moment to thank God, Buddha, Prophet Mohammed, etc., for all we have, when we give thanks we realize how lucky we are and this makes us happy.

• Family: as I mentioned earlier, in the end only your family will be there when you're defenseless against the outcome of your actions and decisions, I enjoy playing with my children, help in the kitchen, I don´t cook but I hand her the salt, I operate the microwave, I try everything she is cooking and give her my opinion, I must admit I'm not very talkative but I am an extraordinary listener, so this helps me.
 



 

In short, I can not emphasize enough how important the balance between who we are and what we do is, I have learned to value it and continue looking for ways to improve it.

Regards,
Armando.

Del Balance entre lo que Somos y lo que Hacemos.

Del Balance entre lo que Somos y lo que Hacemos.

Hace poco me llegaron noticias de un ex colega de trabajo que había sufrido un ataque al corazón en el trabajo, entre varios factores obviamente, debido a la presión constante, falta de descanso y ejercicio físico, mala alimentación y más importante aun, falta de balance.

Inmediatamente trate de contactarlo y no pude hablar con él, sin embargo pude hablar con su esposa, quien me dio razón de su salud y me dijo que “mi compadre” estaba luchando por su vida en una sala de cuidados intensivos, por segunda vez (2do. Ataque al corazón).

También hable con otro colega que trabaja con esta persona y que debido a esto estaba “Cubriéndolo en la chamba”, según sus propias palabras.

En este punto mi mente empezó a analizar esta situación y tres cosas me saltaron a la vista:

1. Esto del Balance Vida –Trabajo es un tema en realidad muy serio!
2. Nadie es indispensable, siempre habrá alguien más que pueda “Cubrirte”
3. Al final solo tu Familia estará allí cuando estés indefenso frente al resultado de tus acciones y decisiones.

Siendo un profesional de Operaciones (Manufactura, Proyectos, Logística, Mantenimiento, etc.), rápidamente te das cuenta que será muy difícil balancear adecuadamente tu tiempo personal con el tiempo del trabajo.

Sin desmerecer las otras áreas profesionales, cuando eres parte de un Equipo Operacional, eres demandado a mantener vigilancia 24/7 de todas las áreas o grupos bajo tu responsabilidad, es decir tu trabajo no termina cuando te vas a casa.

Las razones son muchísimas, entre las cuales de mi experiencia podría mencionar:

• Las Operaciones son continuas, por lo tanto no conocen de fines de semana o días de fiesta,
  solo existen y no se detienen.
• Los procesos operacionales involucran un alto grado de complejidad y costos, por lo tanto existen muchísimas probabilidades que algo no salga según lo planeado y que esto a su vez tenga un impacto en los números.

En fin, como lo dije anteriormente las razones podrían ser muchísimas, sin embargo y contrario a lo que pensamos los que tenemos la fortuna de ser parte de esta área, el balance entre lo que somos y lo que hacemos es muy importante, tan importante que uno que puede afectar al otro de manera positiva o muy negativamente.

Durante los últimos años he sido testigo, parte activa y he ignorado estos efectos que llevan sin darnos cuenta a Divorcios, separaciones, soledad, tristeza y hasta la muerte.

Sin embargo también he aprendido que siempre podemos hacer algo al respecto y que las soluciones son más simples y gratificantes de lo que pensamos:

• Alimentación: yo fui criado en la cultura de “Come rápido… en el escritorio”, sin embargo a mi llegada al Perú me encontré con la cultura de “La comida es sagrada así que disfrútala”, sorpresa!, si se puede y se debe respetar la comida, en ese periodo de tiempo se activa la circulación de tu cuerpo porque debes levantarte de tu sitio y caminar a algún sitio a comer, también es importante porque te da la oportunidad de conversar y distraerte, lo cual hace tu cuerpo genere endorfinas (Proteínas de la Felicidad), no menos importante es la calidad de lo que comemos, ojo con esto.
• Actividad Física: punto crítico, ya que hoy en día nuestras vidas están diseñadas en torno al sedentarismo, creando en nosotros infinidad de problemas que están a la vista y también ocultos (obesidad, problemas circulatorios, apnea del sueño, etc.), yo acostumbro correr varios kilómetros, muy temprano en la mañana, cada día, pero con tan solo caminar 20 minutos al día podemos obtener extraordinarios resultados para nuestra salud.
• Actividad Mental: lo que hacemos en el trabajo NO CUENTA, esto se refiere a tener un hobby, aprender un idioma o simplemente aprender algo nuevo relacionado a nuestro trabajo (Cursos, especializaciones, etc.).
• Actividad Espiritual: al menos una vez al mes dedicar unos minutos a agradecer a Dios, Buda, Mahoma, etc., por todo lo que tenemos, cuando agradecemos nos damos cuenta de lo afortunados que somos y esto nos hace felices.
• Familia: como lo mencione anteriormente, al final solo tu Familia estará allí cuando estés indefenso frente al resultado de tus acciones y decisiones, yo disfruto mucho de jugar con mis hijos, ayudar en la cocina, no cocino pero le alcanzo la sal, programo el microondas, pruebo todo lo que está haciendo y le doy mi opinión, debo admitir que no soy conversador pero si soy extraordinario oyente, así que esto me ayuda.

En resumen, no puedo recalcar suficientemente, cuán importante es el Balance entre lo que Somos y lo que Hacemos, yo he aprendido a valorarlo y sigo buscando maneras de mejorarlo.

Un abrazo,

Armando.