Hector A. Ruiz

MBA, Project Manager, Tennis Player, Musician, and Author of "How to Destroy a Country"

Category: General Page 5 of 6

The Cell Phone Addiction

By

On July 7, 2016

In General

Over the past weeks, a select group of friends have been complaining about my lateness in answering their calls, texts, WhatsApp messages, IMs, Twitter/Instagram/Facebook updates, and pretty much any online call to action that requires my attention in social media that is controlled by perhaps the most important device in our lives in current times: the cell phone.

This led me to ask an inevitable question: Am I really not answering and responding to my personal messages/calls as fast as I should, or are my friends falling for the ‘Cell Phone Addiction’?

Let’s begin by defining this concept.

The ‘Cell Phone Addiction’ is a phrase I came up with after watching two of my friends conducting several activities over the course of five days, such as: watching movies, playing cards, cooking, taking care of their garden, driving, grocery shopping. During the exercise, at all times my friends would immediately respond to any notification received on their cell phones. Give or take, they would respond in less than ten seconds. When I was at work -meaning, not watching them-, my friends would call me and at times I was not able to take their calls (meetings, driving, jobsite). When I was able to get a hold of my phone, I would notice that I would have five or six missed calls from the same contact. Needless to say, after I called back, the matter needed to be discussed over the call was far from being an emergency, and more like a “What are we doing for dinner tonight?”

When engaged in a chat with someone, (IE: WhatsApp), they would complain about how that person would take several minutes to respond to a chat, having seen the double blue checkmark: “He left me double-blue checked! How dare he?” Other times they would see a notification pop-up on their locked phones, but then they would not unlock it or login to WhatsApp, arguing that: “I can’t login, because if I do, people will see I’m online and I haven’t answered their messages.”

So now that I have given an insight of my friend’s relationship with their phones, I will share mine.

When I open my house’s door, the first thing that I look at is my large beautiful and comfortable couch to my left. When I enter, I normally drop my keys and my cell phone on the table next to my door, then I proceed to wash my hands and my face, take off my shoes, get myself into comfortable clothes, and land on my beautiful and comfortable couch. I do this because I place more importance in taking care of myself, than taking care of my phone’s contact list, which I can do at a later time, preferably, after I have settled myself in my home.

When I’m at work I focus on my work responsibilities, and I rarely check my personal phone. I do this because my job pays my bills; answering personal calls/IMs does not. If I have nothing to do at work, work is slow, or I am on a break, I can borrow a few minutes to check my personal phone, otherwise, I don’t touch it until after work hours. Did you know that 58% of cell phone users cannot go more than an hour without checking their phones? One can only wonder how much work can they get done?

When I’m driving, well… I’d rather pay attention to the road than to my phone. When I play cards with my friends, I pay attention to the game, even when it’s not my turn. I like to win, therefore my phone is a distraction.

I have no blocks or filters on my WhatsApp: anyone can see my last online time, my double blue checks, my icon, and so on. I understand the fact that there are people who deserve or expect an immediate response, but is that percentage really that high?

Finally, when I go out with someone I like to focus on the person I’m with and enjoy spending time with them.

This is why I believe that there is no excuse that can withhold to anyone going five minutes without checking their phones, especially if it is in an environment like the ones I exposed earlier. If you feel you have a few things in common with the friends I just described, perhaps you already share the symptoms of a cell phone addict. If that is the case, then the best thing you can do is admit you have a problem of dependency. You should start working on a solution to get rid of you addiction and enjoy the pleasures of life that do not need you to be hanging on to your phone.

Some tips to start working on losing the dependency to your phone include:

1. Monitor your cell phone usage: it may be shocking at first, but once you find out you have been using your phone for more than five hours a day, reality will hit you hard. Five hours is a lot of time. Also, do a detail search on the usage per app.

2. Create no-phone time zones: give yourself a period of time when you simply do not check your phone. Cook, eat your meal, whatever you do, just put it away and let it ring.

3. Turn off your phone when driving: safety comes first. Whatever is happening to your friends when you are behind the wheel, there is little you can do to change it while you are driving. If you really need to check it because of an urgent matter, then make a stop at a gas station.

4. Find a friend you can talk to who is not a cell phone addict: perhaps that person will have a thing or two to teach you about enjoying things in life that are not cell phone related.

5. Turn off your cell when going to bed: pretty much similar to #3. Of course, some conditions and exceptions apply. Like for instance if you are a parent waiting for your daughter to inform she arrived safely at her date destination, or if you are waiting for them to get home. But if your daughter is in another country, there is not much you can do about her, so let her live. The rest of the world can wait until tomorrow.

6. Think and measure the need to answer: ask yourself questions such as “Do I really need to call/text this person right now?” and “Is this a life-threatening situation or is this a mundane event that can be taken care of later?”

7. Find a hobby: perhaps you are using your phone as a mood thermometer, which means you feel better when you use it and when people respond quickly to your texts, and you get upset when you don’t use it and people do not respond to your online activities.

8. No devices at meals: if you are by yourself, just eat. If you have company, enjoy your company. If you don’t enjoy your company, be polite.

9. Don’t use your phone as an alarm clock: get an actual alarm clock and leave your phone downstairs / outside your room.

I do not have all answers, and as I stated at the beginning, I admit that I may respond to personal messages / calls a bit slower than other people do. However I will say that answering to every single notification in less than ten seconds is not good either. I feel that one must learn how to balance the two extremes, and manage their relationship with their phone. Unless you are an influencer who requires absolute control of their cell phone, ask yourself the question if handling your cell phone is managing your social life.

HR

Three Key Factors in Successful Teams

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On October 3, 2014

In General

Last week I had a full day five-day intensive management workshop where I was tossed in with five other people, four of them I had never seen in my life. It was a rewarding and entertaining experience, as knowledge and lessons came from many perspectives, ways and forms. Our team was one of eight competing for the launch of a major product. We were fortunate to build great success from what we were asked to deliver. We took the lead from day one and never looked back. In today’s entry, I will share the three factors that led us to win.

1. Decisions are a dish best serve cold.

Your daily routine is filled with crossroads and moments where you have to pick a path among various -sometimes a few, sometimes several- choices. While some of these decisions are easy and quite straight forward, others are filled with huge responsibility, implications and a weight that can be compared to a ton of bricks. So how does one make the best out of making a decision? Be Cold.

As unbelievable as it may sound, one of the most interesting things I read as a teenager was the Driver’s License study book. I was particularly impressed of learning that “driving under influence of external factors”, did not necessarily meaning drugs, alcohol or cigars. A simple fight with your boy/girlfriend, a job demotion, or any situation that could affect you emotionally and upset you, can set you in the mood to drive under the influence. The text read:

“When driving, you have to be concentrated. If you have been upset for any reason, DO NOT drive your car. Instead, take a 30 minute walk, preferably by yourself, and let yourself blow the steam away until you feel more calm.“

This piece of advise has stuck with me through the years. Moreover, I have been able to extrapolate it to managerial decisions.

Information to make an educated decision normally arrives after a period of waiting. Before committing to anything, take your time to analyze and interpret the data / factors / variables you have, along with the alternatives and options available to you. Sometimes you have to bring colleagues, or people who report to you, or even your own managers, each one with an opinion of his own that will either enforce or weaken your resources on hand. However, even with all of this information, you still need to make sure that you are making the right call. The bottom line is: if the responsibility of making the decision is yours, then your mind must be clear and able to think straight.

During one of the shifts in my workshop, we found ourselves at a crossroads and were faced with a dilemma: our company had been focusing on an exclusive target market and our products were performing very well and bringing higher revenue than that brought by the other teams’ products. Three of the other teams who were more oriented on mass-production, began running deals between them to try to catch-up to us, so our team decided to develop and launch a new product into the market. At this point we were faced with two choices:

  • Option 1: launch the new product aimed for a large target market with minimal profit betting on mass production (which meant diversifying our business and sailing into new uncharted waters).
  • Option 2: launch the new product aimed for an exclusive target market with huge profit (which meant staying true to our core business).

The team split into both options and the initial healthy discussion was going on fine, until a arguments to reinforce option 1 ensued. After about forty minutes of a heated discussion, I had enough. I got up and did exactly what I remember reading on that driving test book. I told my teammates: “I’m going for a 30-minute walk and you should do the same. Let’s go out and clear our heads. When we get back, we’ll make a decision”.

And so we did. The end result: our revenue increased.

2. Make sure you put the right people on the right seat

I will paraphrase some of the Jim Collins’ Good to Great. A team in a work environment is like people riding on a bus on a very very long trip. You want everyone to be comfortable sitting on their seats. Moreover, you want them sitting in the right seat.

Assuming you already went over the “building the team” stage and you have your players, what comes next is most important part of building your team: placing a player in the position where he will perform at their best, and where they will perform best for the team. This means:

  • The player is good at the job.
  • The player likes his job.
  • The job brings the best out of the player.

I address being past the “building the team” stage first, because it allows me to justify that if you haven’t built a team yet, then you have to remove the stigma that you exclusively need the best player at its position in order to succeed. While it’s definetily a plus to have someone who excells at a specific job, sometimes you’ll won’t be able to find this person as handy as you would like. That is why it’s more important that the player is good at the job, likes his job and performs as well if not better than what is expected from him.

Take a look at your team and ask yourself if your HR, your S&M, your Operations and your Finance VPs are giving it the best they can and with the passion that is comparable to the quality of their work.

This is why there are ocassions in sports in which the so called “underdog” teams are able to win championships:

The 2002 Anaheim Angels (MLB)
The 2004 Detroit Pistons (NBA)
The 2003-04 Porto UEFA Champions League run and eventual championship defeating heavily favorite teams.

Those teams had players who were not on par to some of the top stars of their leagues. but they performed best individually and even performed better within the team. Which brings me to the third crucial key factor.

3. Synergy

The easiest way to explain synergy is the tale of two short guys who wanted to reach an apple, but weren’t tall enough to do it on their own. So they decided to team up: one hopped on the shoulders of the other one, and then they were tall enough to grab it.

I have had the privilege of working with a lot of accomplished people, and one thing that has always struck me is the question of whether there has been an ideal perfect team among the many people I have worked with. Let’s assume the answer is yes. If this is the case you reached a utopia. However, this isn’t always the case.

When you first meet your team, you are facing a bunch of strangers. Therefore the one of your first steps is to determine if they are connecting with each other. This is why one has to work on developing synergy among the group. Finding something to relate to your teammates will break the ice, and start to bring more smile and laughs that are necessary to initially feed the atmosphere with positive attitude, and create that initial synergy. Of course this is only the beginning. Next comes the process of growing synergy and solidifying it.

After transmitting that bond to the person who is next to you, make sure that they do the same to the person next to them, so that each member in the team is able to create a bond. Once this goal is met, then comes the icing on the cake, which is that special moment when one team member asks the other one: “How can your performance be enhanced by mine, and more importantly how can his/her (referring to a third team member) performance be improved by ours.”

The best example I can think of perfect synergy applied in practice is Germany’s crushing demolition of Brazil in the 2014 World Cup. If you analyze how each German goal was conceived, you will agree that their team effort they displayed is arguably the one of the top performances seen in soccer history.

A commentator summed it all up in four smart sentences:

“Brazil has Neymar
Argentina has Messi
Germany… has a team.”

That’s where success is. That is how we won our workshop.

HR

Ten key factors to a successful negotiation

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On May 29, 2014

In General

In my professional career, I have had the privilege of being involved in many situations where two or more parties meet and undergo hours of conversation with the objective of seeking an agreement, resolve differences, obtain a mutual benefit or satisfy interests at stake. These situations as you may have inferred, are referred to as Negotiations.

In my career I have been able to successfully reach achievements in negotiations, driven by unexpected results, dealing with conflict and working with unimaginable challenges. I have also had my fair share of failed results. Still in each and every one of those cases, my end goal consists of compiling the lessons I learned and use them to improve my skills as a negotiator, and exceed the expectations my clients and employers place on me. Some have dealt with money, others with contracts, labor, materials, and each one of them has left a valuable experience.

It’s not easy to close a good deal, however I have learned that as long as certain factors are considered, you may have a better chance of being able to achieve it. The more prepared you are on these factors, the easier or harder your negotiation will be.

1. Document yourself.

Countless times I have seen negotiations fail because the people dealing came to the table without being well-documented on the issue they dealing with. On the other hand, I have won dozens of successful negotiations only by having done my homework, and by being informed on all the variables I needed.

A typical deal in the business world is made up of four elements: business, operations, legal and sales / marketing. Any negotiator must document themselves on each one of these elements, due to the possibility of gaining a competitive advantage by properly understanding one or many of them. Compiling as most information as you can, and filtering what is useful is the first step towards a good deal. For instance: if my company is providing a service to a customer, and the customer is looking to take advantage of a specific clause in their contract, but I know service has been provided and my client has delayed payments, right there I have discovered an opening I can use in my favor. Therefore, I must be able to identify any potential weakness on the client’s end, and exploit it. He may do the same on my end, and that is where they key difference is: whoever is better prepared, will be the one determining the outcome of the battle.

2. Be respectful and mark your territory.

Some time ago, I was assigned a very complicated case in my company. It was a client who had two open lawsuits against us, and on paper, it seemed like the client had everything to win. My mission was to convince the client to settle out of court and reach a satisfactory agreement on how to compensate them. Thanks to a little research I conducted and from past history, I learned from my coworkers who had unsuccessfully dealt with them that this client had a very difficult personality and it was very hard to avoid having meetings with them without reaching the personal level of disrespecting and insulting us.

In this case the key element is to mark your territory through respect. First, have a strong and confident handshake: send the message right from the start, and let them know that: 1) There will be differences, however mutual respect must be kept at all times; and 2) Both parties oversee the interest of their respective stakeholders. While this is not a war, it must be treated with the strategic protocol of war.

Even after mediation is done, ugly faces are shown, and a few threats are issued, close your meeting by once again shaking hands with your counterpart. Again, this sends the message that you are leaving the door open for a future opportunity in which both interests may share common ground.

3. Break the ice

This may sound cliché and more geared towards a personal affair -like a date- than an actual professional negotiation, however in my experiences I have observed that breaking the ice carries a significant weight that can make a difference in a negotiation. Only on very punctual occasions (primarily due to time restrictions, or the gravity of the situation), you should not start a negotiation by going straight to the point.

Depending on the case, there are times where the stakes are high. There is tension, expectations and nerves around the table. There may be a key account or a big contract in jeopardy. The important thing here is understanding that outside what is being discussed, there are common interests that the people sitting on the table can share. There even may be a hobby or an outside of work activity we may have in common.

As a tennis player, I can make the analogy of how I play during the warm-up before starting a match. My goal is to keep the ball in play, not hitting it very hard, going as far as to try to read the ball’s label. It’s a relaxation ritual that precedes the real deal of a match. Before beginning your negotiation, take five minutes to talk about other topics with your client, with the sole goal of easing up the atmosphere.

4. Plan, organize, differentiate and lead

You must never get to a meeting without a plan or an order of what is it you are about to negotiate.

Suppose you have a client interested in negotiating financial terms, legal affairs and operational issues. Where do I start and how do I board it? What typically tends to happen is that negotiators mix everything up. For instance: “I won’t pay until you can guarantee this task is done.” If you accept this, you have fallen to a classical error where the client probably does not have any strong arguments, and is using anything as a support for their claims. The correct approach to respond to this is: “As long as we have a service contract, you have to pay for our service, regardless of what is happening from an operational standpoint.” Every item must be dealt with its own separate agenda.

Of course there are ways to avoid this, like starting with negotiating the issue you have a greater probability of winning. Deals that start on the right foot, most likely end-up well, therefore it is good to have a positive feeling from the get-go. In case a compromise is needed, then the correct approach should be: “I guarantee my operational service, and I will make sure you receive it”, and then proceed to the next point in the agenda -for instance, the financial aspect.

5. Keep focused and read the table

There have been several articles written about body language and tells. I have become familiar with a lot of them, and used many of their theories to my benefit.

As soon as the clock starts ticking, your main focuse should be about controlling everything that is happening with everyone involved. The three main aspects you should set your attention to are:

  • Eyes: these are the first reflex humans use to respond to any given situation. Make eye-contact at all times, especially when speaking affirmative sentences. Avoid blinking in excess or looking away in key moments.
  • Head: tilting your head, fixing yourself around, moving in an odd manner, are common evidences of distraction, uncomfortable feelings, anger, and disappointment. Keep a straight pose, but do not tense your muscles.
  • Voice tone and expression: similar to the above. Your voice determines how good or bad the conversation is flowing. Unless you are dealing with a very unique and special situation, there is no need to raise your voice. A confident tone is more than enough.

All these aspects must be managed collectively.

6. Express your ideas in a coherent and logical way. If you need to, amend and make revisions to your statements to be clearer.

Back when I was taking my MBA, on the first day of Mathematical Finance class, a classmate who was sitting next to me kindly asked me: “Hector, where does the number e come from?” She had a degree in psychology, and this was her first time seeing an alphabetical letter used as a symbol to represent a number.“

Since I majored in Math, I thought of hundreds of ways to respond to her. But since she was a psychologist, I needed something quick, concise and precise so that she could understand. My answer was: “It’s the base of the natural logarithm.” I could see the look on her face turning more confused than how it had been moments before she posed the question (notice how I used tip #5 listed above, and I was able to read the situation).

I apologized to her and grabbed pen and a piece of paper. I proceeded to explain the origins of the number using the problem raised by Jakob Bernoulli and compounded interest. At that point her body language completely changed for the better, because while not being able to understand the mathematical implications, she clearly understood the core reasoning behind the foundation of the number. Then I jumped to Euler’s identity, convergence of series, and finally the main reason why e is the base of natural logarithms. At this point her body language showed relief and satisfaction, and she was even able to recite the explanation I just gave her, while at the same time completely understanding it.

While this was not a negotiation per sè, the key element to highlight here was that I was able to immediately recognize that I had made a mistake, and that I was able to reassess and revise myself in order to reach the desired objective.

Sometimes in negotiations, people assume things or take things for granted, believeing that affirmations are implicit or given when in reality they are not. Therefore, being able to express yourself in a coherent way will make you earn several positive points, because this will show that you have deep understanding of what is being discussed.. Being able to rectify, is even better received, because you will be seen as someone open to improve. However do not revise too much, as this will be seen as a sign of weakness or poor preparation on your end.

7. Act when you perceive weakness, listen when you see strength.

It has been said that sharks go for their preys when they smell blood. The same happens in business. If you have followed all of the above steps, eventually you will reach a point where the other person will show a sign of weakness. This is the moment where you have to take the offensive and attack. Everyone has a weakness, you just have to find it. This is because on every negotiation, everyone sits down to win something and to lose something, and you need strengths and weaknesses, otherwise it wouldn’t be a negotiation. Special attention must be given when I mention act. Sometimes negotiators freeze and do not react in time, or react when it’s too late.

When the other party is on the offensive and feels strong, then regroup yourself, let him lead, let him talk and ventilate. Look at them, pay attention to what they say and be aware of any tell or hint they may give away. Normally this tends to allow me to have the opportunity of gaining the initiative. Be an active listener and follow their lead, until you can take it from them

8. Keep an Ace under your sleeve

Another cliché, but it is never bad to refresh it. Personally I like to say “Keep an Ace, or a King, a Queen or a Jack under your sleeve”, as in “keep something”, or “use one, but keep the rest for future occasions.”

A little subtle tip to keep in mind is to keep your best card for the final hand, the hand the client was not expecting to lose. This brings excellent results when everything seems lost, and the other party feels they have won.

On one occasion, I was meeting with a very important client who had all his portfolio serviced by out company. He was extremely upset with our company, with the previous manager who had preceded me, with our workers’ performance, and overall he was a few seconds away from pulling a bat and start swinging it at us. He wanted to cancel our contract and sign a new one with our competitor. I tried everything I could to try to convince him not to do so, but everything seemed to be futile. Then I had an idea. I asked him to give us a last chance with an interesting kicker. I said to him: “Don’t give my company a last chance. Give ME a last chance to prove that our company will serve your needs. Sign all your portfolio to our competitor, except for 10% of the accounts which will remain in contract with our company, under my direct supervision and attention.” The kicker was that the 10% of the accounts I wanted to keep were his VIP Key Accounts. I continued: “We will do a small competition to determine who provides you with a better service: either our competitor with 90% of all your non-VIP portfolio, or us to your VIP clients.” The client did not expect that. After a long pause, he agreed to my proposition. Two years later, he signed the 90% of his accounts back to us and he became one of our best clients, and a very good friend.

9. Only promise something you can fulfill

If you have reached this stage of the negotiation, don’t party just yet. There is still work to be done, and your word is on the line. There are agreements, objectives and goals that must be met. The question is: will you be able to deliver?

Nobody likes being disappointed. This is something that is imbedded in our DNA. No kid like it when Santa Claus forgets their present. False expectations are fatal in negotiations, and no client likes it when their expectations are not fulfilled.

This is why you must have a firm grasp on reality, on the current situation and the desired state, as well as the resources you have available to arrive to the desired state. Your client will value much more your sincerity in being able to tell them that you will not be able to meet their goals, rather than any illusions you paint on their minds.

10. Show yourself as a confident leader and trust yourself

One of the most interesting anecdotes I read from Steve Jobs’ biography, was when he announced the sales launch of Apple’s first personal computer. He had zero computers manufactured at that point. Steve sold a product he didn’t even have ready in his hands. How did he achieve this? He was confident his team could do it, and he trusted himself that he could lead them to do it.

Steve convinced investors, journalists, and everyone in attendance that Apple’s personal computer was the best invention of the century. Years later, Steve used this exact same approach to launch the iPhone in 2007.

Wrapping it all up:

In short – trust yourself on being a good negotiator. Show what you have learned. Feel that you can achieve anything you set your mind into.

HR

Nine useful tips to follow when you fly

By

On October 19, 2012

In General

I have been travelling a lot recently, which to many is a wonderful experience while to others it is almost painful. During my voyages I see a lot of situations -some usual, some unusual- which brings me to the topic I want to write about today: I wanted to provide some insight about the whole travelling experience of flying.

The first thing I would like to share are the three rules I use when flying:

1. Prepare yourself for anything.

There are dozens of unexpected events that can happen to you when flying: lost luggage, late luggage, being searched by customs, missing items in your bags, broken locks, delayed flights and so on. The list is so big that almost every time I fly I add a new unexpected event. On one of my most recent flights, there was a woman sitting two rows behind me who had probably never flown before. As the plane started to taxi its way to take-off, she had a panic attack: she started yelling, coughing, and eventually threw up in the isle. When assistance came over her, she started asking questions about the noises the plane was making -setting up the flaps, turning up the engines-. In order to calm her, a stewardess had to sit down with her through the rest of the trip.

2. Be patient, extremely patient.

Flying from town to town means going through a lot of experiences, beginning with all the queues. Although some airports are quicker than others, queues can be demanding both physically and mentally. That is why if you breathe and be patient, you can turn them into a relaxing and easy going experience. I believe that with a bit of common sense and travelling education, there would be a lot of improvement in interacting with all these tough assignments.

3. Travel light on carry on, heavy on checked bags.

The more comfortable you are with your carry on, the smoother your day will go. Keep in mind you have to walk long distances in the airport to catch your plane, to go to the bathroom, go eat, catch the new gate of your flight after there was a gate change, and so on. Also, it is quicker to pass the security checkpoints, not only for you but for the people behind you. Place everything you can in the bags you intend to check, and leave only light items on your carry on. By the way, try to have just one carry on.

4. Buy smart bags.

Ahh… the existential question of determining if your bag meets the 50 pound limit. The trick here lies in the bag, not the shopping. Years ago I bought myself one of these extra large tennis bags, which I consider the best investment I have done when we talk about flying. It’s a huge bag that has lots of room, but more importantly the bag itself weighs less than three pounds. The problem with excess weight is that people buy bags that are heavy as a standalone. Any regular sized bag can weigh around ten or fifteen pounds, meaning that it takes close to 30% of the weight limit. So next time you plan to buy something, do yourself a favor and buy a huge and light large bag.

5. Pack wisely.

The #1 mistake people make when travelling is buying (or bringing) inappropriate stuff, not because of their nature but because how dysfunctional their packing is. Try as not to bring heavy items: jeans, lotions, creams, metal objects, books, and overall any combination of high density low volume. Instead, pack more efficient items for your trip.

6. Do not underestimate being organized.

What does that mean? Fold! Don’t just throw in you clothes. Take your time and fold them nicely and properly. The reward will be breathtaking. You will have lots of free space for those extra items you didn’t believe were possible you could fit, and this will enable you to take full advantage of your bag’s size. If you are carrying something delicate, then use your clothes to protect it from the corners and borders.

7. Take your time to exit the plane.

People like to get up, get their carry-on, and push to exit as soon as the plane arrives at its gate. Sometimes they even do it as soon as the plane touches the runway. Unless you are sitting on first class or have some sort of express exiting arrangement, the most likely scenario is that you will leave the plane only to find yourself on a queue to pick up your luggage -which can come randomly-. If you are flying international, you have to go through immigration -another line-. I have lost count how many times I have seen people rush their way out of the plane, with me being one of the last passengers to exit, only to run into them later when I see them waiting for their bags or their clearance or anything. One time, a lady sitting next to me asked if I could help her get her carry on because she was late for an appointment. I helped her, but as I had seen countless times before, she exited the plane first, and left the airport last.

8. Light shoes, sweatpants and sweaters.

Unless you are under a formal protocol, like your company’s VP is picking you up at the airport, or if you yourself are in a position that requires a certain protocol, you should dress in loose, light clothing. Wearing expensive shoes, belts or cufflinks, earrings, can become a hassle during the security checkpoints. Besides, it’s so comfortable to travel in a nice warm sweater that even serves as a pajamas in case you want to take a nap.

9.  Be nice and have empathy.

Flying is stressful for a lot of people. Some people enjoy it, some people don’t. Regardless of the background, you don’t normally know what’s in the mind of the person next to you (or behind or in-front of you). I always approach flying with a very relaxed and loose mindset, and I try to make the best out of it on any occasion. Of course as I mentioned earlier, every now and then something unexpected can happen: one time I was making my way towards my seat. I placed my carry on, confirmed it was the right seat, jumped in, and buckled my seat belt. I took off my shoes, I placed my headphones on my ears, turned on my playlist and closed my eyes. I fell asleep for about fifteen minutes when all of a sudden I felt someone grabbing my shoulder. As I opened my eyes, I saw a woman signaling to me if I wanted to switch seats with her because she wanted to sit next to her daughter, who was sitting next to me. Under normal circumstances I would have accepted, but on that particular day I had just came from an 11-hour connecting flight, with no sleep at all. I was exhausted to the point of being unable to summon any energy to move. I politely declined, explaining to her that I was tired. To say that she went berserk and got mad at me would be an understatement. She probably assumed that I was supposed to accept her request with no questions asked. I felt like I was nice to her, but she didn’t have empathy for me. And again, I normally do not mind giving my seat to people who want to sit next to someone, but on that particular occasion my little seat felt like heaven to me and I did not feel like giving it away.

Wrapping it all up!

These useful tips make up for a very pleasant travelling day every time I fly. I hope you liked my suggestions and let me know if you have more to add to my list.

HR

The future of the Euro

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On July 9, 2012

In General

Ever since I was a little kid, currency exchange has always fascinated me. I was lucky enough to work in banking for a while, and despite me leaving the industry, I still maintain that same level of attraction I had as a kid.

Last week was one of those rare occasions in which a lot of eyes in the financial world turned to a specific currency and wondered whether if “This is it”, as in: is this the beginning of the end? The case I am referring to is the Euro, as for the second time in the last couple of years found itself trading at the rate of $1.22, a value that hadn’t been seen since July 2010.

For several years, $1.22 has been a value informally known as the equilibrium point that signals either strength or weakness. Recent trends in European economics are putting a lot of pressure on those who own the currency, given the fact that they have several elements to worry about in their hands: the faulty Greece bailout, the current issue of Spain’s bailout, Ireland’s and Portugal’s not so great macroeconomic situation, all of this reflecting in a lot of skepticism by investors, banks, and even countries who are beginning to lose faith in the Eurozone.

As always, economists are divided between reasons why the Euro will survive, or the imminent failure of the currency. Also as always, the only one who has the answer is our friend time and no one else. While there has been a lot of pressure in the past days to get answers about the future, personally I do not really see this moment as a crucial moment in the Euro’s history.

If you want to know my reasons, all you have to do is buy me dinner… for a whole year 😉

HR

Strengths in the business world and personal life

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On June 21, 2012

In General

I was having a conversation today with three of my former college professors, and the topic on hand was how do each employee’s strengths and weaknesses play into the work environment in an organization. The conversation centered on how to get the best out of your strengths. You may ask: but what about my weaknesses, do I ignore them? Their answer was Yes.

I remembered last month I was watching the Australian Open, and the sixteen Grand Slam title holder Roger Federer -who also happens to be one of the best players in the history of the sport-, was being interviewed by ESPN’s commentators. They asked him about his training methodology and how do his practice sessions look like nowadays to fix his weaknesses, especially since he is perceived as a veteran in the tour, which means that he may not be focused on improving a certain aspect of his game like his backhand, which has always been considered his weakness. Roger’s answer was an eye opener:

“I don’t really focus on my backhand. I don’t practice much of it in my sessions. I kind of concentrate more on my forehand.” -which many consider not only Roger’s greatest strength, but one of the greatest shots in tennis history-. Roger also added: “I want to practice my forehand because it is my strength, so I want to work on it because it is my greatest weapon. The backhand, I just deal with it during a match.” I found interesting that one of the greatest tennis players of all time had such a surprising approach to his training.

I guess it makes sense when thinking you can exploit your talents when you develop them, and dedicate all your efforts to make yourself a better professional and a better person. Whether if it’s that you are a terrific competitor, you are a relator, an analytical, communicative, responsible, or any other characteristic, the bottom line is that you have a talent inside which is your strength. It is a quality that can make you become a difference in your organization, and can make you achieve that progress and professional growth you have always been looking for. Regarding Roger’s answer about his weakness, I am not sure if I completely agree with dealing with your weaknesses, although I can understand his reasoning.

In the meantime, take your time and get yourself an appointment for an assessment test, so you can find out what strengths do you possess and how can you take advantage of them.

HR

How word of mouth helps your business (and you)

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On May 9, 2012

In General

Waking through a mall in the city today had me wondering about the different degrees of success stores have -some of them being empty, some others a bit packed-. The question is: what does it take to attract more customers than your competitor?

In the current era where we live in, where information spreads in a matter of seconds across thousands of people, word of mouth has become a very integral part of the marketing process, and while not recognized as a textbook advertising method, the implications it has carries a great importance when talking about the promotional mix. So how exactly does word of mouth work?

Body Language

Let’s say you own a mini store that cells gadgets for cellular phones. You (or your salesman) are sitting at the store doing whatever activity that comes out, like checking your text messages or your email -even though you had just done it an hour ago-. Clients walk by and they notice your demeanor, and while not everyone is a body language expert, one could say there is a fair chance that a random potential customer may feel discouraged of entering your store. People like to be treated nicely, and customers in particular like it when you show an engagement behavior hinting that they will be helped and treated nicely.

Good morning!

Greet everyone you meet with a kind and sincere smile. You don’t want to sound like an alarm clock, but you definitely want to demonstrate a little bit of proactive attitude. I know this is very hard because it is a task that requires endurance and stamina. Out of a hundred people, perhaps less than 30% will respond positively to your gesture, and let’s say only eight will actually engage in business with you. This means that your focus has to be placed on leaving a great impression on those eight people, but who knows how many turns the roads of the others who didn’t enter your store have. They may not have answered you, but seeing how friendly you were to them, they may come back in the future.

Active listening

Now let’s say that someone dropped by your store, responded positively to your greeting and is requesting either information about a product/service or shows interest to buy something. What is taking place at that moment is the beauty of the “Decision Making Process applied to Purchases.” The customer has an unfulfilled need and they are scanning the available options. It can be something as simple as a pin, a new cell phone, a brand new dress, or even professional services. If they do not like what they see on you (or your store), they will walk away. Regardless of whether if you can help them or not, you want them to leave with a positive impression, because eventually they may have the need to come back to you, and after having scanned you before, they will know whether if you are a possible option or not in the near by future.

Be nice, look nice

Another important ingredient is the visual aspect. You want to look good, which means dress nicely, wash your face, smell good, comb your hair, and do everything necessary so that the people you interact with see in you an image or professionalism. People always take kindly to appeal and there is greater chance of attracting customers if you are visually appealing. You don’t have to be Brad Pitt or Salma Hayek; just make sure look nice and bring in that “wow factor.” Combine that with a friendly attitude and a positive body language, and you have a very good combination!

Closing Thoughts

These little details will add up for a positive reaction from your leads, customers an clients. Sooner than later, you will see how more people will want to do business with you. And remember: the more satisfied your customers are with your attention, the more likely they will return the favor with positive recommendations. Word of mouth at work.

Treat your customers just as you would like to be treated.

HR

Are you a workaholic?

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On April 23, 2012

In General

I was driving from work to home yesterday with the radio on. A couple of hosts were discussing that they had just did in some serious overtime at the station and that led them to think they were becoming “workaholics”, so I wanted to blog a little about this interesting subject.

A workaholic by definition, is someone who is “addicted to work”, in a similar way an alcoholic is addicted to drinking. It is a mental state in which the individual feels he or she must be doing something work related, regardless of the surrounding circumstances or people that are in his or her environment. Now, here I want to state something that is very key, which is: there are people who like their work, but are able to differenciate themselves from workaholics. There is a difference between loving what you do for living, and living your life for what you do. The latter is a typical behavior of a workaholic.

In order to figure out whether if you’re a workaholic or not, you should ask yourself the following questions:

Do you find yourself working over the weekend… every weekend?

It is ok to put in some extra hours every now and then, just to impress your boss and/or colleagues, or just because you may want to have a head start in your upcoming week. However if you are doing this every Saturday and Sunday, then something is definitely wrong. Either you are running short on your week day hours or your workload is not being properly managed, which leads you to become a workaholic.

To solve this you have to do two things: first, ask yourself what does your day work look like. If you are working for 8 hours, then you should be fine with the amount of tasks you have to do. Next, find out what tasks are you doing on the weekend. Checking email? Reviewing briefs? Preparing budgets? Is it something that is absolutely necessary, or is it something that can perfectly be done on Monday?

Do you pass on family and/or social invitations because you have to work?

Life has to have a certain balance and ventilating through other activities helps you clean your mind from the day to day work responsibilities. What good is it to live in an luxury apartment with swimming pool if you use it twice a year -on Christmas and on Independence Day, and only because everything else in town is closed.

The more you begin to get involved in non-work related activities, such as interacting with your social circle, the more you will appreciate the value of your spare time and the value of doing something different other than work.

Do you find yourself finishing your work and immediately going to bed and waking up and going straight to work?

Sleeping is one of the greatest pleasures in life, so why deprive yourself from it? Research has determined that over a third of the Earth’s population does not have a healthy sleep routine, for a variety of reasons -one of them being stress from work-. The human brain works exactly like any engine: after running at cruise control for most part of the day, you should cool it down before switching it off, just like in the mornings you should to warm it up before going at full speed.

The healthier your sleep is, the more efficient you will become in your work, which will likely lead to better management of hours and increased productivity during those hours. Also, make a note of how many times have you fallen asleep with nothing in your mind, and compare those times to the occasions you fell into bed thinking about tomorrow’s meeting.

Do you keep in touch with your co-workers after work hours?

It’s ok to have co-workers friends, but chances are that if you hang out too much with your co-workers, you will inevitably find yourself talking about work. You must be able to draw the line and separate your spaces. If you like your coworkers and want to become friends with them, then do something where there is little to zero chance of you having any work related interaction. This will develop a friendship between you and them, and you will be able to add them to your social circle without affecting your work relationship.

Another option you may have is to hang out with your friends or family. Having a nice night out with someone who you like to be with only to enjoy the pleasure of their company is a wonderful feeling. Next time someone from work calls or emails you after work hours or the weekend, just be polite and say “I’m currently with my family (or friends), I’ll talk to you on Monday at the office.”

————-

This is of course a very brief discussion about an interesting topic. In the end, some people just like to work and do nothing else. If you are one of those, then simply enjoy what you are doing, but keep in mind there is a universe of fun things available to do out there. If you are one of those who feel they are putting too many hours in to the job, try to follow a few of my ideas, give them a try and hopefully you will feel a lot better in no time.

HR

Marketing a Viral Video

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On March 25, 2012

In General

Browsing YouTube these days is a fascinating experience. You can find anything you can imagine: funny, unfunny, terrible, excellent, helpful, bogus, cooking recipes, music lessons… its universe is so big, today I was wondering if there is a way to quantify all the total views of all videos in youtube. I am sure the number would be so huge I don’t think there are enough servers to compute it (well, maybe yes).

Having a bit of experience in Marketing, people always ask me about Viral Videos. Much has been said about the “key tips” or “how to” produce a good viral videos, with most available online articles pointing the obvious facts: “keep it simple”, “be natural”, “use SEM” and “play with fantasy and reality.” I believe there is more to this art.

The first thing that I believe a YouTuber has to ask himself is “Am I interested in having this video become viral?” If the answer is “Yes”, then person has to create a plan of action that will implement several steps to improve the probability of having the video reach tons of hits in a decent time frame. Let’s keep in mind that it’s very hard to see a video go viral in less than a year. Sure there are “accidental successes”, but generally speaking, it’s a hard milestone.

About five years ago I came across a video called “Castlevania II Angry Nintendo Nerd Review” (or something like that, the name has changed now ever since). The video was a satiric review of all the odd situations and challenges the game Castlevania II had compared to other videogames of the same genre. The YouTuber who produced it -known as the Angry Nintendo Nerd- has now become a famous name, posting more of these rants against both videogames and movies. His first videos had a decent to minimal production value. They were done in a way that the message intended to be transmitted was delivered efficiently. Questions like “Am I saying the right thing“, or “Am I showing the right angle“, didn’t seem to be part of the production equation. That is why his videos felt like a genuine natural expression of his feelings. I believe this is one key element that will allow you to win followers: be genuine.

Instructional videos are another way to generate a viral video, and it’s actually one of my favorites. It is tough though because of two factors: a) you have to be very good in the area you are providing instruction (and compete against existing ones), and b) you have to have decent production values. Depending on the instruction, higher production values may have an edge, though it’s not quite mandatory: there’s a user called patrickJMT who explains math in videos where all he does is film his hand writing on a piece of paper. His drawings aren’t exactly artful, but they aren’t sloppy either, they’re decent/good. His lighting is good and his voice’s tone is good too. More importantly, the examples he uses are perfect, which makes up for a wonderful product. One of his videos has 140,000 views: it is a simple math video of derivatives.

The other group of viral videos is the actual segment of people who upload their videos with the goal of becoming viral. These are the videos I believe follow to the tip each one of the basic recommendations everyone share: “Be yourself”, “Don’t try to force being funny”, “SEO, SEM.” These clips require a lot of effort and dedication, as well as practice and perseverance.

In all, the marketing of a viral video cannot be summarized into a list of tips where the YouTuber must be able to identify the core competencies of their product. Once this is done, then the path will be clear to let things flow naturally, and see the results happen as time goes by.

HR

Seven key factors a great leader should have

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On March 10, 2012

In General

Throughout contemporary history, there have been thousands of great articles discussing leadership and organizational behavior. In today’s entry, I will add from my experience what are some of the most important factors one must pay attention to when considering executives for leadership positions.

1. Intelligence: A smart person may likely make smart decisions and come up with smart ideas. They don’t have to be a genius. They have to be someone who reunites multiple abilities that allow them to understand situations and all their implications. Warren Buffett is a clear example of an intelligent man who clearly thinks of all possible scenarios and visualizes the future of his investments.

2. Communication: while not a great spokesperson, a good leader has to be able to effectively practice the process of sending and receiving messages between them and the group of people they is working with. The leader has to be an active listener; speak hard when needed and sincerely when required. The leader must manage the different communication levels that exist. Five time World Series Champion New York Yankee’s Joe Torre, and two time UEFA Champions League Champion FC Barcelona’s coach Josep Guardiola always say the right thing at the right time. They also encourage the team to give suggestions and to speak openly and freely at all times.

3. Authority: by this I do not mean either a loud voice or a commanding tone. It’s as simple as being able to make yourself clear to your group, and delivering punctual instructions that are well stated and impeccably transmitted. Bill Gates does not have either a loud or commanding voice, yet everytime I see him I am impressed, as each word that comes out from his mouth is the product of a rationality that commands authority by knowledge.

4. Efficiency: resources won’t be handed easily all the time, nor there will be full availability of them. Some times leaders will have to deal with shortages and/or incomplete tangibles. Those are the occasions when he or she must step in and use the best of anything and everything that is around him or her to reach the desired objectives. Soft-spoken Darwin Smith was able to turn Kimberly Clark into the giant that we know today by using a completely new business model that required to use tools he didn’t have at the time it was developed. I recommend you to dig into his story, and marvel at how efficient the company became under Smith’s tenure.

5. Fairness: never overestimate the people you work with, nor you should ever underestimate them either. Call-out when needed and reward when deserved. Proper management of balance in a team is critical to accomplish goals. Jack Welch has been known to be a prime example of justice and proper leadership. Bottom line is: be fair.

6. Confidence: if there is one aspect that is a powerful force that can drive you to new levels, it’s the trust and belief that you have in yourself. It comes with a combination of skills that include knowledge, logic and rationale, with what perhaps is the most important ingredient, which is self-esteem. Watch Band of Brothers and see how Richard Winters carried himself and his men through the toughest of situations by simply having the confidence of applying what he knew.

7. Innovation: out of the box thinking and developing strategies to implement the dreams you pursue is essential to set a new standard for your group. Don’t be a conformist; instead settle for new challenges every day. That’s what Steve Jobs did.

HR

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