The Definitive Hodge Podge of One Life - Second Verse

Prologue

You know, I've been around the block once or twice since Martha Jane Cox Hughes put me on this Earth.

It ain't my first rodeo.

What you're about to experience is a compilation of observations, experiences and assorted other other musings I've collected over time and kept in this pea brain of mine.

In absolutely no particular order.

Joined at times by my sidekick and mentor eJ (for el Jefe), I'll do this in pieces so as not to take too much of your time in any one sitting.

Can I have #2 please?

Do Your Homework Please

eJ: Hey bub, I just saw this post from some dood who doesn’t like having to come up with an answer for why he wants to work for the organization that’s interviewing him for some job. I wrote this dork face back that he prolly shouldn’t interview if he doesn’t want to answer questions!

mdh: Ah, eJ, the master of cutting to the chase.

The job search is work. There is no immediate pay. The payoff happens when you put the work in upfront. It’s sorta of like defining a graph in Excel before you actually build the spreadsheet. Success happens when the proper effort up front is given.

I read a post just the other day. In interviews with top hiring decision makers, the singular most important quality that gets their favorable attention in candidate interviews is enthusiasm and excitement about their organization and the work they are hiring to get.

How could one possibly rise to that calling without doing their homework?

If it were me, I’d tell this lazy ass to look up the web site of these hiring folks. Look for something in the site that’s interesting BEFORE the interview. Use that and, BOOM, he’s golden. The work up front will impress the interviewer, I’m thinkin’.

eJ: I like just sayin’ don’t do the dang interview if you ain’t in it to win it.

mdh: Well, water under the bridge at this point.

eJ: Truth

Tech Truths

(Technology ain’t the end all. It's just a tool and is to be used as such. Witness this exchange):

MDH: eJ, what in the world!?!

eJ: Whaaaaaaat now?

MDH: Dood, you’re all fidgety and scrunched up.

eJ: This dang smart watch bracelet thingy doesn’t work worth a crap.

MDH: Amigo, dint you just buy it?

eJ: Yeah, bought two of ‘em now. They both suck. I can’t get Bluetooth to ‘find’ this one. The first just went Kaploowy on me. No screen, no nuthin’. One of em’ had this BlueTooth usb plug-in tab that just broke off. Worthless P.O.S. You can’t read the user guide the print is so small. Whoever wrote the instructions is in serious risk of bad karma .

MDH: eJ! Geez, chill out. Deep breaths are good. Getting all cranked up about this little piece of technology not so much...

(So, there you have it...can’t live with Technology, can’t live without it. Myself? I’ve been consulting organizations nearly my entire career around how to make this tech stuff work to your benefit, not your detriment. This after years of putting in place smart, sensible Tech Solutions addressing myriad organizational challenges. Know what I discovered along the way? Putting all your marbles in the Tech basket is a loss leader. Without deliberate attention to arcane stuff like User Friendly Documentation, thorough UAT, QC (quality control), QA (quality assurance), Training, and everything else SDLC, good luck reaching any measurable level of success.)

Gear Grinding Techniques

MDH: Hey eJ, Wanna know what really grinds my gears?

eJ: Not really, can't you just be happy for once?

MDH: Nah, that'd be waaaaay too easy. I'm talkin' about the #1 thing that gets me riled up when people do it. And bunches of peeps do it all the time. Kinda like it's accepted practice.

eJ: Might as well go for it. You're not gonna stop, I can tell when your face gets all cranked up.

MDH: Right you are Amigo. It's when folks tell you what they're gonna do, don't do it, and blow you off when they don't bother to tell you why they didn't do what they said they would.

eJ: That's it? That's all you got?

MDH: Dood! I mean, it's disrespectful. It's untruthful. It's lying. It's the kind of behavior befitting Ass Clowns. Polar opposite of a commitment to quality service.

Staff Augmentors (read Recruiters) are particularly adept at this deceit.. Not all of them. Just so many of them, the job search becomes an exercise in futility. They assert your potential, say they'll follow up. Then, POOF! The magical disappearing Act. Never to be heard from again.

(Aside: very recently, I interviewed for a hiring recruiter. Did the Homework thing right? First thing I spotted in the recruiter company’s profile is their claim to fame at “employee leasing”!!! Say whaaaat? Don’t know about you all, but I ain’t no Human Tool you can ‘lease’ !)

Anywho, If you say you’re gonna do this or that, do it dang it. OR, if you can’t do it ‘man up’ and let the victim of your irresponsibility know why you couldn’t. It’s called Doing The Right Thing.

eJ: Geez man, you’re tough. OR you live in some alternate universe. Your choice amigo.

More to come...