10 Interesting People You'd Run into at Work!
Right, so, Monday just snuck up on us like that! Typical.
Anyway, you know how your office is full of a rich assortment of individuals brought together to enhance the organizational goals and objectives of the company? Thanks a lot, Human Resources.
Here are ten interesting people you might run into at work and here's how to make the best of having them around you, instead of avoiding them in the hallway and break room and also in the elevator and the rest room. Can you recognize anyone at work here? Which one of them are you?
1. The Gist Fountain (GF)
This is usually the ‘central node’, the person who knows the gist of everyone and everyone's grandma. GF is a great person to have on your team and maybe even as a friend. She is a great source of information, both relevant and irrelevant; its your task to sift through the data. GF is also great and quick at passing along your information, so, of course, you'd have to be careful about what you tell her. If you choose to be friends with GF, she will come looking for you during the course of the day, for your daily gist, try not to pass any information she has given you and you could also devise an escape technique when she starts with the irrelevant data or zone out and think of bunnies.
2. The Angry Bird
The Angry Bird is usually upset about something; always thinks everything can be done better but never provides any useful, actionable steps of improvement. Every time I meet an Angry Bird, I try to get him to tone down the complaints and instead, focus on solutions. Hmmm, how reasonable, Ike. Well, I'd like to say that they never listen. I'm yet to fully convince an Angry Bird to provide constructive criticism with action points. Lol. They usually just like to vent, if you are willing to listen, then hear them out, otherwise, get them to call a meeting consisting of stakeholders that may influence their concerns...or...when they vent, zone out and think of those bunnies.
3. The Over-Achiever
Work is important to some people...a little more than it is to you(lol). Of course, you're very resourceful and hardworking, but come on, 8 to 5 was what you signed up for. The Over-Achiever(OA) is more of a 7 to 10 kinda-worker. Sometimes, they expect you to do the same. If OA is your boss, hehe, I guess he is for a reason. You will have to put in more effort than you normally would. Two words: Appraisal. Bonus.
It might also be great to have a conversation about the hours that work the best for you, not everyone can give a 100% with long hours. Understand your work habits and ethics and ensure productivity that justify your suggested hours!
4. The Under-Achiever(UA)
This is that person who seems to be done with exceeding expectations, maybe because they weren’t recognized when they worked really hard or are really just done with this whole be-the-best-you-can-be biz. Be a friend to UA, don’t force any unsolicited inspiration on them. If they get inspired by your excellent work, great! If not, relate with them, treat them well and keep your grind on full-steam ahead!
5. The White Rabbit**
We all know this one, that person who is always in a hurry and busy…but in truth isn’t busy and probably just tries to look busy because everyone else genuinely is. All motion, no movement. Lol. From my experience, the White Rabbit may come up with great ideas but isn't much of an executioner. I suppose picking their brains may be great but don't expect much from them with implementation!
6. The Girl/Guy Next Door (or Next Cubicle)
I’m still in touch with several Girls Next Cubicle(GNC) from my very first job! GNC is nice, easy to get along with , usually has zero airs, which works perfectly. It’s a great idea to build a good relationship with this person and maintain it, even after you leave the organization!
7. The Diva
The most popular person at work who everyone runs around to please. For some reason, Divas and I get along, not like best friends, but as in a mutual kind-regards kinda way. First, it’s important to know you aren’t at work to be "the cool-kids". Honestly, it’s just too late for that and prom was like 15 years ago (15! Gosh! ) You are at work to contribute to the organizational goals, improve your career prospects on the long run and make friends (maybe); so if this person fails to contribute to any of the three, maybe the distant mutual kind-regards thing is really all there will ever be.
8. The Boss' Boss
What to do with the Boss’ Boss? Being visible in the organization is probably something we all strive for. Well, a great way to make an impression on Executives and your Boss’ Boss is not to fall asleep during board meetings. Lol! Be active, be productive and let your work have tangible, measurable results. Take on a project that directly puts you in contact with them and then kill it! Also establish a good relationship with your boss. He/she may just put in a good word for you if the need arises!
9. The Confused Intern
Every time I hear intern, I think of copier machines, it’s cliché but it’s where interns find themselves. I think I had a name for the copier machine at my first internship. It was closer than a brother. Interns always need guidance. If you are in the position to mentor (and we all are) please take an intern under your huge, glam wing and mentor away!
10. The Chauffeurs/Cooks/Cleaners (CCC)
No one pays these guys any mind but to be honest, I’ve made a few cafeteria lady and cleaner friends. These people are constantly present on the premises and in all the relaxed places- the corridor, where people chat idly; at the cafeteria, where people talk about their kids and what they did over the weekend; in the car, where people chat loosely on the phone.
CCC might actually have more gist than Gist Fountain! Of course, I’m not saying be friends with them for what you can get. Talk to them, they aren’t any less important than the Boss’ Boss, if you ask me. Life is about connecting and impacting and you really never know who you might be of use to or might be willing to assist you and give you a hint about your promotion (which he heard about while cleaning the toilet!)
I hope this helped! Did you recognize anyone at work? Which one of them are you?!
**White Rabbit- Alice in Wonderland reference.
4 Kid-Habits that are secretly Life-Hacks
Little people are synonymous with the word "unjaded". All they care about is...well, nothing. Their carefree attitudes cause them to have a unique perspective on life and to act in certain ways which we as adults sometimes fail to grasp. I mean, yes, they drive us up the wall sometimes but other times, they are completely wise and so worthy of emulation! Here are 4 habits to hack life with; habits that come naturally to children that we simply must adopt:
Laugh
Children laugh. They laugh over 400 times a day. I'm guessing this is because they don't have any worries, no bills, no Instagram like-scarcity, they definitely don't watch the news, just purple suede dinosaurs and talking moon-faced trains. I'm not sure we'd find 400 events to laugh at in a day as adults. We can fake-laugh though; it's something my niece taught me. Laugh for absolutely no reason!
Ask Questions
A typical 4-year old asks about 437 questions in one day. Lol! Mums and dads can probably testify. I'll be sure to introduce my children to Siri as soon as they can speak or redirect the questions to daddy. I'm joking. I think the reason adults get irritable with all those questions is because we've lost the sparkle of wonder and curiosity....and we are tired half of the time.
We have to re-learn curiosity. Ask questions. Note to self.
Develop Offense-Amnesia
Kids are the best. Have you ever been upset with a child, and then they apologize, but you are still a little upset? Or have you ever made a child cry and THEY come to hug you and apologize? In a flash, they've moved on and started playing with their toys or coloring a picture and showing it to you? There's just a purity about their souls that shouldn't be lost in adulthood either.
Make good decisions
Children do the right thing (well, most of the time). According to a study conducted by the Yale Infants Cognitive Centre, it turns out we are born with the innate ability to make the right decisions. In this study, babies as young as 3 months old, observed two puppet bunnies in a puppet show; one dressed in green, one in orange. The bunny dressed in green was seen helping another toy during the puppet show, while the one dressed in orange was mean to the toy. When asked to choose one, the babies chose the bunny dressed in green(the helpful bunny). The babies chose the "good" bunny! Watching the video, is almost unbelievable. There really is an innate ability to tell right from wrong, to make the right decision.
Make good decisions guided by your innate moral convictions!
Do you have little people in your life? What's the best part about hanging with them? Any life lessons?
Blogger Scorned
I recently read a post written by a blogger who was very distressed by the fact that someone had been imitating her blog. I can understand the frustrations of people stealing posts, techniques and pretending like it was their idea without attribution to the creator. It's a good case of plagiarism and even more irritating if they get more comments on "your stuff" than you did. Lol!
However, another way to look at it is this - you have just inspired another artist; original or not.
If there are copyright violations by all means take action but don't let it get to you. No one is quite like you, no one creates like you. God has given everyone the ability to create, Him being the Master Creative Director and all. He created everything, including you. You have the ability to create, so create! No two people can create the same way; find your edge and capitalize.
“An original writer is not one who imitates nobody, but one whom nobody can imitate.”
#NoBlogWars
The Hot Granny Goals
“Respect your body. Eat well. Dance forever.”
I just got in from the grocery store and the cashier who was checking my stuff out kept saying she wished she could eat this healthy. I tried to encourage her to eat healthy but my eyes kept landing on the rapidly increasing total amount on the register. She grabs a sweet potato from my items and nods, saying she will change her diet. Note, by this time, my bill was already sky high and I was cringing with every beep of the scanner. Arrrrgh, eating healthy is so expensive! But I know it pays off eventually. Like when I'm 87, I'll be doing triathlons!
My goals for 87 are reliant on one of my friend's granny. She is the coolest grandma that ever liveth. She's so healthy too! The last time I saw her was in 2007 I think. She was about 87 years old, I remember because she told me how old she was. How rare is that? An 87 year-old who remembers her age. It gets better, she had no dietary restrictions. Amen to that at 87! Oh, it gets better, right after she had a juicy meaty meal, she picks up her glass of the most delicious glass of orange juice with ice-cubes bobbing around in it and she hollers to her daughter, "Bring my ice- cream o. Bring my dessert."
I think I passed out in my head. Lol!
So she had a scoop of vanilla and a scoop of chocolate ice cream. Something tells me this woman made very good lifestyle choices when she was younger. Exercising and eating right so she could eat whatever later! This is my plan. Eat whatever later!
Oh....... then it got better than better.
We were left together by ourselves, me and granny-goals granny. I think everyone went to sleep after the meal and my mum and granny's daughter were talking outside. So there we were lounging in the sitting room and I remember we were watching the news; she turned to me, gave me a very concerned look and said, "Did you hear about what happened to Britney Spears?"
Passed out in my head...again! Lol.
It was one of those moments I know I'll never experience again.
The Nigerian 87 year-old who asked me about Britney Spears.
She proceeded to tell me that Britney Spears had shaved her head for some reason and that people were being judgmental.
You'd agree that this is a pretty rare granny. I should look for her and get her to be PGI's July Girl! Surely she has a greatly compassionate heart, definitely made great nutritional choices earlier on in life, invested in healthy meal choices and was definitely with in tune with pop culture!
So, as I arrange my leaves (aka salads),my low fat dairy, peppers and Salmon into the fridge and pat my wallet, I know one day I'll creep out some teenager when I'm 87 while eating a mean bowl of cookies and cream ice cream and updating her on the Justin Beiber's of the time.
What life changes have you made in preparation for fab 87?
Accountability Post: Garri vs Salad
This is my accountability post. The one where as the writer of a life-hack blog, I give account of the better decisions I have made recently.
First up, The Garri/Salad dilemma.
I never thought i'd say this but last night, I chose a salad over chilled garri. I don't know if it was a mood thing but I think I really might be making better life decisions! *crickets* Ok, so the jury is still out on whether I made the right decision there but still, I was proud of myself.
Better decision in a bowl 💋
Next, The Young&Restless Fix.
Last week, I stilled my tongue and refused to gossip about this amazing Young-and-Restless type intrigue and drama situation, not even with Ed. We have both decided not to gossip about other people with each other. My will-power muscle was stretched on that one. Everytime I felt the urge to say something, I just looked to the side, out the window and minded my own business. Minding my business is so cool though, all the stuff I can achieve in that time..........
Next up, kicking procrastination in the mutz (not a typo and also not a word)
I've been giving procrastination a knee in the mid-area. It deserves it and much more. Now, I'm trying the trick of breaking my tasks in to smaller, more manageable tasks. Also, studies show that if you start a project, your brain will prompt you to finish it, more like nag you, because it needs the closure, it needs to see that the task can be ticked off as resolved. I'm trying it and it's working. The trick is to start and the trick to starting is to break the huge task into teeny bits!
What great decision have you made recently? Nothing is insignificant. Good decisions should be celebrated (hence the garri celebration), whether it's putting the phone down and resisting the urge to flirt with an ex, paying back debt quickly, letting go of grudges, choosing not to be stuck in a random relationship, understanding your place with God, passing on garri, choosing not to complain or remembering to shine your light!
Share with us! What awesome decisions have you been making?
In Pursuit of Happiness' cousin- Joy
I have a problem with Happiness. She is very fickle, temporary and most problematic of all, subject to the environment. Stuff make us happy all the time; the weather, food, friends, Chelsea FC's new humble status(lol), a raise, your new car with 0% APR, that Zara spring jacket, a guy, your child, your pet, your spouse, a rerun of Back to the Future!
These things can make you happy, they truly can. They possess an inherent quality which evokes a feeling of pleasure within us; but watch this, a man can make you happy, friends can make you happy, the same way your child can make you happy and then in the next second can easily tick you off; the same way your perfect-10 jeans can make you happy, when those lunges begin to pay off. You feel great, you look great, everyone on the street thinks you are Joy-Girl(pun unintended); construction workers are falling in gutters, cabbies are gaping, commuters are slowing down, husbands are getting backhand whacks from their wives. It's a great top-of-the-world feeling. Then comes a week long of ice-cream, pizzas, some caramel stuffed nutty chocolate bars; temptation galore which you fell into gladly. Now those same pair of jeans no longer make you happy; the construction workers don't notice you anymore and those that do can't take their eyes off your new tummy ( aka "the flabster.")
The thing about happiness is that it's subject to external forces, THEY own the power.
Joy, on the other hand is your personal decision to be full of delight whether your waist hangs high or low. I once met a homeless guy who honestly might be the most bubbly person I know. Even though he had no shelter and lived off the charity of others, he was such a riot! We might have talked for over an hour and honestly, when we were done I was tired, he was still roaring with energy! I'm like this guy though....even though he's homeless and lonely, he's full of an infectious, albeit exhausting joy.
Here's something even much more stable than happiness; Joy. It resides deep inside us. Situations and issues try to affect it but can't, not unless you give them permission to.
Remember, you are the sole protector of your own joy on earth. God does his bit and then you do yours. Do not let anyone or anything steal your joy. No one; nothing, not your jeans, not the construction workers, not even yourself.
xx
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