Building Relationships

Communication is a tool for building a relationship. Some people consider that building a relationship is just to get introduced to someone. I know several people who use their communication skills to meet new people. However, this is just the surface. This relationship is doomed to failure on the first disagreement. My work experience as a teller taught me that every relationship is getting stronger with hard effort. In every contact with someone you have to set boundaries and context. You have to train the other to cope with your requirements and you have to get trained to cope with his/hers. This is not an option. This is obligatory if you want to make this relationship work efficiently. The only tool you 've got in this exchange is communication.

The worst part is that you have to work on building a relationship with EVERYONE. There is no choice. You can't choose which relationships you want to invest in, because inevitably in every day life and work you are related not only to people of your choice. So, since you have a contact, why not build this relationship to work properly, no matter if your are "compatible" with the other or not? It's just simple rules of communication. The only input, though expensive, is positive energy and good will.

Systems Thinking

I 've spend the last couple of hours reading about the learning organization, an idea which seems to be profound to younger people, but it is relatively new. The term belongs to Peter Senge who develops it in his book "the fifth discipline". Mr Senge views an organization as a system able to continuously adaptate and change and bases his theory on Systems Thinking theory. My little research lead me to some videos on YouTube. If you are interested in this field, take the time to watch Dr.Russell Ackoff.

part 1

part 2

part 3

Books or Papers I want to explore

Paul Lawrence and Nitin Nohria, Driven (San Francisco, Jossey-Bass,2001)

Rod White, Barbara Decker Pierce, The evolution of Social Structure: why biology matters, Academy of management review 24,no4, 1999, 843-853

Executive Instict, Nigel NIcholson, New York: Crown business publishers, 2000

Joe Pine and James Gilmore, The Experience Economy, Boston:HB school press, 1999

Schein Edgar, Organizational Culture and Leadership

Something about death

Today a colleague learned about the death of a friend's mother. It was unexpected. On the one hand the woman used to have cancer, but she was supposed to have been cured. She was very well, and suddenly she is dead.
It is a usual phenomenon. Someone is very sick. Everyone believes that death is very close, two days top. Suddenly, the sick man gets back to life. It is a miracle. He is better than ever and he lives a normal life. Unexpectedly, he dies.
How many times you have heard of that story? I bet a lot.
This is my personal feeling about the Greek default. Everyone bets on it, Greece is very sick and there is no hope. I think that during the following months, when some of the measures take place (hopefully), there will be an economic boom, at least as far as Athens Stock Exchange is concerned (unemployment will climb to 18%, this is fate!). I can see people talking about a Greek miracle, about an historical recovery, and Greek people feeling more relaxed about the future. I am looking forward to hearing that the common sense is that Greece will survive once again.
This will be the time when the default takes place.

Greek tax evasion

They say that tax evasion is Greek's national sport. This is not at all true.

A sport is an organized, competitive, entertaining, and skillful activity requiring commitment, strategy, and fair play, in which a winner can be defined by objective means (wikipedia)

Greeks don't have to make an effort to avoid taxes. It comes naturally. It's not even amusing. So, it's not a sport!

HR

It is very important for a company to promote the right people. Unless they do it, during a future crisis, the management team won’t have the quality to overcome their personal fears and problems and lead the company successfully. As a result, a strong HR department is a crucial investment.

A piece of Elvis

Today I have so much to say; but I'm really tired. Gradually, I find myself being more and more tired by people. I lose my patience. So, I will enjoy this beautiful piece of music to relax and go to bed. Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to write about people who cannot change.Thanks for the video. And think a quote by Carl Jung:

"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate"

At the mount Hortiatis

Today I got up early, as usual. Not being in a mood of sitting in front of pc or go running, I decided to ride my motorcycle and visit Hortiatis.
map, mount Hortiatis
I parked my motorcycle at the village and started walking the tracks. I didn't want to be alone. Fortunately, a dog followed me from the village and it was by my side for the whole walk! I was so sad I had nothing with me to treat the dog!

the dog decides to follow me

my companion

I wish I took more photos, but my friend wanted to eat the camera, so I left it in my pocket.
It was very relaxing. I can't understand why most of people don't do that. I'll never understand it.