Don’t Skirt the Issue

I was barely 20 and it was my first “real” job. After receiving the letter of appointment, I had to read a set of company rules I had to adhere to, one of which outlined the acceptable dress code for women.

Me: “I have an issue with one of the rules written here. It says here that all women should wear skirts.”
Mr. Manager: “Well, we’ve always had that rule. Just follow it.”

At that point in time, I really, really needed the job, so i didn’t argue. The problem was, I only had two office-worthy skirts then — a poorly-cut tulip skirt that made my bum look big and a frumpy brown pleated one that will make anyone’s bum look big.

I didn’t have enough money to get a new wardrobe, so I worked out a schedule of sorts — I’d only wear skirts on days where I had to go on a meeting with the big bosses.

This went pretty well and the numerous times I got “caught with my pants on” were non-issues with the heads, all of whom were males (well, except for one lady who was rarely in the office) so after awhile, I stopped my skirt timetable altogether. Some of my longer-serving female colleagues initially questioned my brazen non-skirt-wearing attitude but then went into an “I wish I could wear trousers too” mode.

A few months after I started work there, the company appointed a new HR director. One of his first exercises was to talk to each and every employee.

Mr. HR Director: “… anything else you’d like to clarify?”
Me:”Um, there is this small thing… about wearing skirts. I don’t see why I have to conform to it.”
Mr. HR Director: “And I don’t see why you should!”

That dress code was apparently written when the company was formed in the 60s or 70s. And since no one had raised concern over it, it remained on the list 30 years later. Mr. HR Director said he’d see to the abolishment of the dress code (for both men and women) and though I didn’t really believe him then, I was quite happy to finally be able to talk to someone who wasn’t from the Dark Ages.

Weeks after that, one of my female colleagues was seen in a smart pair of slacks excitedly announcing that “it’s okay for women to wear trousers in the office now.” Well, well.

Dream Job Titles

I was watching tv the other day when I came across the words “professional traveller” on the travel channel. What an interesting-sounding occupation! Though the idea of travelling to exotic locations and getting paid for it sounds like the perfect job description, I’ve never thought of travel writing or hosting a travel show as dream jobs. A professional traveller, on the other hand sounds like an enviable job. Wait a minute, a travel writer/host is a professional traveller. Perhaps, the right title that makes a job more desirable?

What I am doing now can sound quite impressive, if correctly worded:

Online Publisher
Freelance Traveler
Master Artist in Training
Junk Food Connoisseur
Home-Based Feline Social Worker
Non-Competitive Part-Time Athlete (this one’s pushing it a little)
Benevolent World Domination Mastermind

What’s your job title?

Hello, Remember Me?

Hello everyone! I’ve not updated this blog for a week. It’s been a long time, eh? A whole week — that’s like 2 months in Internet reckoning?

I had been under the weather for some time and finally succumbed to the flu last Monday. I took a few days off work (and blogging) to rest and recover and got better mid-week. However, I have amassed a 50-layer work-pancake , which I’m still trying to slowly crawl out of today. :O

But…it’s good to be back! Thank you everyone for the get well wishes and for sticking around! :D

You’ve Got To Find What You Love
Steve Jobs on Hindsight, Love, Loss and Death

On June 12, 2005, Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios delivered an uplifting speech about connecting the dots, love, getting fired by the company he created and death at his Stanford University Commencement address [Read more....]

Getting Work Started
A Tip for Procrastinators

Good Monday everyone!

For most of us, it is the start of another week day. The procrastinator in some of us may still cling on the hems of Sunday’s lazy, comfortable sheets but listen, no matter how adept you are at putting off work, you have to do work eventually because that is what you are being paid to do. But a tiny voice in your head says, “but the deadline is still 2 days away!” Listen to this little guy and before you knew it’s Wednesday and you haven’t done a thing.

Yes, there are deadlines for work. But there’s also a deadline for when to start work. The difference is - you get to define it. The problem? Most of us do not clearly define our “start work deadline”.

[Read more....]

NaBloPoMo- The Last List for March

Today is the 31st and final day of NaBloPoMo March 2008. Though I have been blogging here everyday this month, I kinda lost focus in the third week due to my work commitments.

What this experience taught me:

1. It is good to have a plan, but don’t be blue if you can’t follow it through. My daily themed posts worked. For awhile.
2. If you’re in the middle of a project that needs to be completed by mid-April, signing up for NaBloPoMo in March is not the wisest thing to do.
3. Despite the lure of “Letters“, I will not give in to temptation. (see point 2)
4. There are so many of fun, witty blogs just waiting to be discovered.

For those committing to April’s theme — all the best! I will try to find time to check your all blogs out!

Me™
The Most Important Presentation You’ll Ever Make

How you present yourself can directly affect the way people think of you. Here are some of the lessons I learnt over the years.

1. Dress appropriately My first job in the creative industry was with a company that that pitched projects for a lot of big corporations. I had no prior experience yet I find myself constantly being asked to be present at client meetings. The reason given was because I make a very believable designer as apposed to “X, who looks like he got just got out of bed, got ran over by a bus and then rolled himself in dirt” or “Y, who looks like a frazzled soccer mom though she’s only 23″. I assumed this meant that I looked like one of them:

   

   (Stylish Carmen, Edgy Christian, Cool Kit from Project Runway)
   On the other hand, it could also mean that I looked like him:

   

   (Flamboyant, Colourful, Crazeh? By the way, I love Chris, he’s such a great character)

   In any case, it was the way I presented myself that influenced the exec’s decision. I was barely 20 and inexperienced, yet because of the way I dressed, I got the opportunity to network with a lot of people, contacts that proved useful in my career later. Lesson: Don’t come to work looking like you’ve been rolling around in dirt.

2. Dress for success. A year later, in my second job, I decided that I’m ready for bigger things and want to be taken more seriously. I switched to aspiring creative director mode and dressed the part. I got promoted twice in the space of 14 months, one of the reasons being, “You look like someone I can trust to lead a project.” Was I more competent than my fellow colleague who had 2 years more experience? Maybe, but my boss also let on, “He doesn’t look like he’s up for it. I don’t have the confidence in sending someone looking like that to the world. He doesn’t look like a leader.” Being an introvert, I didn’t think of myself as a natural leader. I just dressed like one. Interestingly, when I dressed like winner, I felt like one too.
3. Say it like you mean it. A lot of inexperienced designers(this applies to other jobs too) tend to share the problem I too had when I was starting out. We may have the talent to create but we don’t have the skill to sell. One of the main problems lies in not sounding confident enough. There are a two things you can do to instantly improve this. Speak up. You need to get yourself heard. Clearly. Do not rush or mumble your sentences - you’d either be constantly asked to repeat yourself, or your points would be lost. Don’t end sentences with a rising inflection. Some people have the habit of ending statements with a rising tone? Like this? I’m trying to tell you something but I sound like I’m asking a question? This gives the impression that the speaker is unsure of him/herself. Or you might sound like a teenager?
4. Stop over-qualifying your statements and accept credit when it’s due.
   A talented designer I know likes to qualify every statement she makes with “But that’s just my opinion” or “It’s okay, it’s only my opinion” instead of simply saying “In my opinion”. Do not devalue your own opinion. If you don’t take your own opinions seriously, chances are no one else will.What’s even more annoying is the fact that she finds the need to qualify her “thank you’s” too. Instead of just saying “thanks” when complimented, she’d be saying things like “Oh, this crap? It’s not that great actually” or “It was nothing. I didn’t do much”. It doesn’t always come across as being modest. Too much self-depreciation also shows that you don’t value your own contribution.
5. Smile.
   As simple as it sounds, it took me a long time to realise that a smile can indeed go a mile. I spent years trying to find out why a friend of mine, J, is so magnetic. Strangers come up to talk to her and she always get served first. At first, I didn’t even know why I love hanging out with her so much. Then I realised that she smiles. A lot. It’s nice to be around someone who is the picture of positivity. I smile a lot now and it’s true, I do get served faster and people tend to open up to me more.

Desktop Cleanup 3

My desk cleanup is a success. Although I initially planned to do just the bottom left quarter, I unintentionally cleaned the top-left section too. There’s now just one folder for everything, a mug, a pencil case and a cat. I didn’t do the area behind the monitor but for now (forever?)… out of sight, out of mind.

My pencil case is doubling as a comfy pillow for the cat(why is he still here? God knows!), who, in the absence of clutter, decided he didn’t like my pen holder much (he pushed it off the desk twice, how annoying).

I declare this project complete and a success.

Now where can I put my pen holder?

Desktop Cleanup Part 2

So I got to cleaning the bottom right quarter of my desk. All pens and pencils in this quarter are now in the pen holder. All empty wrappers are gone. Papers are now kept neatly in a folder. I found 3 CDs, 2 pen caps and $2.20 under the mess. The cat? He got back on the desk after the cleanup, so my phone is still on the floor (he pushed it off again, the little brat).

I’m working on the bottom left quarter now. My cat doesn’t look too happy with the ruckus.

Micromovements
1) Remove one of the mugs (I think I only need one)
2) Put markers into pencil case
3) Throw away empty snack wrappers.
4) Remove all but one folder.
5) Put all loose papers and clipping into one folder.

Related posts
Desktop Cleanup
Inspiration: SARK

Desktop Cleanup

MicroMOVEMent is a term coined by SARK for the method of dividing a main task into a number of tiny tasks(in chunks of about 5 minutes or less) in order to accomplish a goal. Instead of looking at the big picture, you break down the process into very small, very manageable steps. This way you’ll feel a sense of achievement for every little accomplishment, which in turn, will motivate you to move closer towards achieving your goal.

I am running out of space to work so today I want to clean my desk. My working space is 1.5m by 1.5m ….hang on a minute, let me confirm that. Nope, it’s 78cm by 60cm. No wait, that’s still not right.. I’ve included the area under immovables such as the monitor.

Ok, my effective workable working space is 35cm by 78cm, that’s less than 15in by 30in, which is small, but it’s something I can live with provided things remain in their respective places as shown above. Pens and pencils in holder, Copic markers in pencil case, pieces of papers and news clippings kept neatly in folders.

But no. In reality, my desk is an untidy mess of loose papers, uncapped pens and markers, empty snack wrappers, receipts from 2006 and 2 mugs(one for coffee, one for “other”). My Wacom tablet, something that came to my possession less than two weeks ago, is now buried somewhere underneath this behemoth pile of junk. And on top of it all there’s a CAT.

Why do I even need a cat on my desk? It doesn’t even remotely qualify as office equipment. It just sits there purring and blocking my screen. The worst part, it never fails to push my phone off the desk. Every single time. On purpose. I’m not talking about the phone accidentally falling as the kitty shifted its huge, lazy bum around. No, it literally uses its paw to push the phone down thinking, “Oh look, a phone, let’s push it off the desk.”

What I’ve drawn above is in fact a less-cluttered representation of the actual state of my desk. The pile (sans cat) is about 4 inches thick. I feel thoroughly overwhelmed each time I tried to bring myself to tidy up the mess. So I am giving micromovement a try.

Today, I’ll concentrate on the bottom right quarter of my desk.

Micromovements
1) Remove sleeping kitty.
2) Put pens into pen holder.
3) Throw away empty snack wrappers.
4) Neatly stack loose papers on top of tablet.

We’ll see how it goes.

Related post
Inspiration: SARK