Red Letter Days & Days of Letters in the Red.
Pieter Erasmus Project/Construction/Quality Management Specialist
Masters Degree in Engineering Management, Registered PMP, Certified with Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) and Project Management Institute
This week has been one of truly reflective incidents. The inflood of “Congratulations” for my one year anniversary at the current company took me by surprise. I looked at it in disbelieve as it felt like only a few weeks ago when I was asked to join them for a week for urgent meetings, extended to a month on behest of the Client and eventually a full time job. At the time I was over my initial “time-out” following the abrupt ending of my previous project, sprouting my posting on “The 5 things I learned from Losing my job” (https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/five-things-i-learned-from-losing-my-job-pieter-erasmus/) upskilling, job searching and learning how to make a mean Malva Pudding. (Look it up, it’s the ultimate comfort food). Truth be told, I was rather panicky thinking of the future and my credit score when the call came, exactly one month before Covid, and lockdown, and that is how I became one of the “Lucky ones.” My friend Botes keeps telling me, look at your banking app, if there is any money coming in during the month, you are one of the lucky ones. I concur.
On the other side of the coin is the series of individuals, friends, more like family even, brothers and sisters with whom I have successfully completed many an international Oil & Gas Mega project. Qualified people, good people, and now people looking for work. Many of them entering the first stages of unemployment, others already in a desperate state and a few who have managed to reinvent themselves as salesmen, entrepreneurs and creators. I’m well aware that my time in that situation ranged between blind panic and homely content. On the one hand it was the first time in 10 years that I was home for more than 2 weeks, and on the other the knowledge that the same home could well not be there in weeks ahead.
When I boarded the plane to Nigeria this January, I was hit by the amount of people from my country working expat. I would say 80% of the plane was men and women conducting their business on the international marked driven by demand, politics and the will to give their families the best in life. Some for the first time, it’s quite obvious. Others returning after a yearlong hiatus, excitedly looking forward to start again the job they no doubt complained about in the past. Also a family, 2 small children, leaving their country of birth to look for a better future for Elizabeth and Johnathan, the first oblivious to the fact that she may never see her gran again while arranging her new doll on the seat and the latter exited to see so many planes in one place. I realized that I was immensely blessed, and that my redemption should be to try and help where I can.
So in the last few weeks, I’ve been connecting to influencers on LinkedIn. Thank you to those who accepted. For those of you who didn’t, I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt. I was not looking for a job, well, not for myself anyway, so no need to ignore my connection request. I’ve been “liking” posts where I believe the positions really exist. Linking names to positions advertised via comments. Remembering job posts and forwarding them to people who were in the market. I even cold called two guys who are not in my connection list who had Crawler Crane experience, finding them in the LinkedIn search engine, and connecting them to the Recruiter who contacted me directly. It’s what I have, it’s how I try. Well, that, and the prayers, carefully by name, for all my brothers and sisters. Some have moved off the list in recent days, others have joined.
All are the reason I like, I Post and I spectacularly lose my cool - especially with those idiots who think now is the time to “teach people a lesson” and post rubbish like ”I’m recruiting for Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Iran, comment below and I’ll look at your profile” and then, hidden below the reading pane, the caveat of “Never believe these postings and do not respond” …all for the sake of a selfish trend, on a wave of likes, comments and hopes of desperate people who also just want to have the best for their families. Soon, some of those people will get employed, maybe even as managers, and may they remember your “lesson” when you apply for a job.
Export and Marketing Director |Leaders in Corrosion Prevention|
4 年Excellent piece, Pieter. If you don’t mind, I’m taking inspiration from the pieces you write, which are written from the heart and are there to help others. Hope we can meet up in the not-too-distant future.
Welding Engineer at BYLOR Joint Venture
4 年Another insightful piece of writing Pieter, keep them coming, I really enjoying reading your posts. You strike me as the type of manager / professional that anyone would be lucky to work with.
Director at Isinyithi Companies | CorrISA Gold Medallist | InspiringFiftySA 2019 Winner
4 年Pieter - your writing is insightful, thought-provoking and honest - so different from the run-of-the-mill "I'm fine thanks" complete with fake smile, (all the while hiding the pain within) responses that pervade on social media. There is wisdom learned from appreciating the rough with the smooth, which you freely (and wisely) impart. Gerald's comments about learning to appreciate what we have, even when it comes packaged in an un-anticipated package highlights the value for me of the enforced 'Rona downtime that so many have gone through. Whilst we have lost some more tenuous connections, many of us have had the opportunity to rebuild home relationships with those we profess to love. That love has been tested in many cases, by the circumstance. We are blessed where it has come out changed perhaps but stronger. Thank you for actively helping others by your frequent reposting to broaden the exposure of some post you feel may benefit others. It does not go unnoticed. Thank you
QA/QC Lead at Angola LNG - ALNG
4 年Thanks for a great read Pieter. You yourself know me and the fact that it took many years to change from a half empty cup person to the half full cup person. I owe a lot of that change to you and for that I will be forever great full. There are few things I realised this past year while sitting at home for almost 12 months. At first, I was I was resentful for the fact that I was going to spend all the money I saved up working as an expat the last 8 years. Money that was not meant to be used for day to day living. The resentment was towards a country I love that made me unemployable and that forced me to work away from my family and also giving up precious moments I will never get back. A country that I love that is now trying to take hard earned money by paying more tax, even though I am, according to them, unemployable. But then, I remembered why I am doing this, why we decided to give up so much. We always wanted better lifes for our children and that is exactly what they got. I was blessed enough for them to attend private school, university, travelling the world and a family that got to experience things most families dreams off. I remembered, that even though you don’t get to go home often and you the rotations is short, I still have more annual leave than most people. I remembered that even though the money I saved was to retire comfortably one day, it was also for rainy days (or years). I got to know my family all over again and I cherish the time with them, because tomorrow, they might not be here. It does not help to stress, problems tend to resolve themselves. I appreciate everything so much more I am blessed with, there are people with nothing, people with no hope. I have seen and experienced first hand why you need to be prepared for the rainy days.? I also remembered the most important… it will happen when it happens, the door will be opened at the right time and for me, usually when I least expect it.?
Project Management
4 年Well put Pieter