Month: February 2012

No One is Here Except All of Us

Posted on by Seniye Groff

I read a lot of books.  At any given month, I lumber through at least seven books.  With my book reviews for Portland Book Review and Elle, and books that I have read reviews about, I always have a long list of books to read.  Often friends tell me I should blog about all the books I read.  It is a great suggestion, but not one that I find I am able to do consistently.  But today, I found the discipline to write about a book I am currently reading called “No One is Here Except All of Us” by Ramona Ausubel.  She is an accomplished writer, as far as I can tell from the book jacket, but it appears this is her first novel.

I have a particular interest in books centered around WWII, especially the Holocaust.  I think my interest centers around how such a horrific event could happen…how could perfectly normal people become such vicious monsters to their neighbors?  It really is mind-boggling.  Ausubel writes with such beauty.  Some of her passages are just incredible.  Of course, now that I want to share them, I cannot find them in the book.  I need to start marking my books when I find an especially tantalizing group of words!

Ausubel’s story surrounds a Garden of Eden of sorts.  There is a community of about 100 people tucked away by a river.  They are virtually untouched.  They have not been affected by the war at all.  One day a stranger arrives and although she integrates into the community, as the reader, you know this entry will be the catalyst for change in  the peaceful, tranquil community.  The stranger and narrator (a twelve year old girl) reason to the group, that they can start the world over again…and so this book is a bit mystical, too.  Alas, the “real” world does not stop or allow the imagined world to reign, and so the story progresses into the depths of reality during war-driven times.  Read on to find out what happens.

Diversity Training

Posted on by Seniye Groff

Last week I delivered diversity training to Dress for Success.  I have been a volunteer at DFS for 12 years (and that is longer than I have stayed at any paying job).  My interest in diversity training began when I was working on my thesis for my masters.  I realized I had a wealth of experiences that shaped my view of the world.  For example,  when I lived in St. Croix I quickly learned what it was like to be a minority.  At the time, out of 60,000 island residents, only 5,000 were Caucasian.  It was a great lesson for me.  This experience coupled with moving about every 11 months including Central America, the Middle East and throughout the U.S. gives me a broad frame of reference, as well as, lots of stories and experiences to share throughout my training session.

And the session really went great.  The group of new volunteers were engaged, interactive and really interested in the content, activities and stories.  They shared their experiences and overall realized how their lens “cloud” their views of how they perceive others.  The volunteers walked away with a new awareness and a new perspective.  It will go a long way to aid in their interactions with each other, as well as, the clients that DFS serves.

15 Years

Posted on by Seniye Groff

This week is full of milestones and today’s milestone is making it to 15 years of marriage.  I have always believed that getting married was the easy part, staying married a little more difficult.   I never really wanted to “be married” just based on the fact that my parent’s marriage was so troubled.  But, I suppose, if you meet the right person and think that “you can do it differently from your parents”, then why not?  And that is exactly what happened.  I met a person that could be a partner, friend, confidante, explorer and whatever else we discovered along the way.  It did not hurt that his family seemed pretty “normal”.  He had a positive, respectful relationship with his mother.  All signs pointed to a potentially long-lasting relationship. 

I don’t mean for it to sound like a business transaction, but if people thought about marriage a little more thoughtfully past the madness of “being in love”, they might be married after 72 days…I’m just saying…

And our 15 years together has brought several trips oversees, two homes, two kids, two careers that have diverged and plenty of ups and downs.  But , never, any explosive arguments or fights.  I am not saying that fighting could not be part of the equation, especially since I am a triple A personality (and Eric  is triple laid back) but it just never has been.  Could there be an element of compromise in how we approach things?  Maybe. Certainly an element of respect.  But I also believe it is an element of perspective…perspective of what is really important…what really matters.  When your perspective is in the right order, everything else falls into place.

The Paris Wife

Posted on by Seniye Groff

Just started reading The Paris Wife last night.  I can usually tell immediately if I am going to like a book and this book appears to be a winner!  It reminds me of Loving Frank, which was an excellent book.  McLain’s writing is beautiful…simple yet expressive.  I feel like I am sitting at the table with Ernest and Hadley, his first wife.  I don’t know much about Hemingway so I look forward to being entertained and learning a little, too!

Posted on by Seniye Groff

I always find it very interesting what early adopters latch onto.  And when it comes to technology, I am even more surprised.  Lately, I have read a lot about Pinterest.  I need to play around with it and see what I think but immediately I consider “How can this be used for performance improvement?”  One idea might be to use it to get participants to learn more about each other before an online or face to face session.  Another possibility could be creating a group and have them work in teams to create a pinboard.  The debrief could be an interesting lesson in team dynamics, communication and influence.

What do you think?  Do you think the pinboard could be useful in a training or teaming situation?

Turning 10

Posted on by Seniye Groff

When my daughter was born I was consumed with learning how to change diapers, how to make sure she got enough food and most importantly, how to get more sleep!  The awe that something so small could create so much joy, love and work was befuddling.  And then you figure it out.  You get caught up in the play dates, school assignments, plays…basically the daily minutiae of life.  And suddenly your daughter is asking to stay home alone while you run that 20 minute errand.  She is downloading songs on her iPod that you have NEVER heard of and she has a definite opinion of what real style is and begs you to “Please don’t wear your gym clothes when you pick me up at school!”

So on this day that she is turning 10, I ask myself “Were the diapers, baths and no sleep easier?”  Would I be willing to go back if I had a chance?  Would I enjoy pregnancy the second time around rather than fight it every step of the way if I knew what I know today?”  Oh, how I miss her toddling around unsteadily while she is learning how to walk. 

But I love our thought-provoking conversations.  I love her inquisitiveness.  I love that she has taught me what motherhood is and is not.  Difficult, yes.  Tiring, yes.  Beautiful, yes.  And on this day, I confirm (if only with myself) that I would not trade turning 10 with anything.  But, instead, I must now prepare for what 10, 11 and even beyond will bring, as well as, teach me.Image

Avoid the “Culture Clash”

Posted on by Seniye Groff

In the February issue of Chief Learning Officer, there is a great article titled “Your Brain on Culture“.  Neal Goodman points out that “culture provides us with the guide to survival, we naturally feel protected by our own and threatened by other cultures.”  This “Us versus Them” attitude is a natural result of different cultures clashing.  But let’s face it, global intelligence is critical to surviving in today’s workplace.  Certainly a great place to start is knowing time variances and local holidays so that you are not trying to book a meeting or conference call at a disrespectful time.  Recently, I received a request for a conference call at 11 p.m. my time!  Of course I wanted to demonstrate flexibility but the person in Asia should have consulted a world clock so that they knew what they were requesting from me.

Goodman recommends knowing business customs and practices, too.  He relates an example of PUMA trying to sell a shoe with UAE’s flag colors on one of their shoes.  PUMA did not realize that culturally the foot is looked at negatively so putting the flag colors on a shoe must have seemed incredibly disrespectful!  On the flip side, Hilton Hotels created a program to make Chinese guests feel welcome by greeting them in Mandarin (by Mandarin-speaking staff), offering Chinese tv stations and Chinese breakfast items.  How smart and forward thinking!

It is naive to believe that what companies do domestically can easily be replicated globally.  Instead, Goodman suggests some ideas to help your company build cultural intelligence such as:

  • Offer a course on cultural intelligence to your entire workforce
  • Develop global leaders through training and immersion
  • Build global teams
  • Create a database on cultural intelligence.

Finally, Goodman suggests that  “a heightened awareness of cultural differences will allow employees to build bridges of understanding that promote trust, efficiency and effectiveness and increase an organization’s competitive advantage in the global arena.”

Check out the complete article at Chief Learning Officer.  I always read articles with great insight and tips from this publication!

So tell me:

What examples have you seen where companies have been thoughtful about being more culturally aware and responsive? 

What missteps have you seen?