Differences in Leadership

Snow was expected in our region last Wednesday. The day before the head of my company sent an e-mail to remind all employees that due to the nature of our business, our company doesn't close. He advised employees they needed to make plans to arrive on time, for example, leaving our homes earlier than usual. He also informed employees if they didn't come in they would need to use vacation time.

We ended up getting some snow, but it's wasn't too bad. Roads were decent as long as you drove slowly enough. However, the CEO of a family member's company, who lives 2 miles from work, never made it to work all day. He is employed by a healthcare business, which is also a 24/7 operation that doesn't close. There's a slight difference in leadership mentality between my CEO and my relative's.

Do you see the irony here?

During time between interviews Tuesday, the members of the interview team were chatting among ourselves. We were discussing dealing with difficult people, and I mentioned my oft-expressed observation that some people have never learned that you get better results by being nice to people than by being rude. When the hiring manager of the position for which we were interviewing strongly agreed with me, it was all I could do not to roll my eyes. She is extremely difficult, and there is no love lost between my team and hers. One of the reasons she has 3 openings on her team right now according to my boss is "people are trying to get away from her." Yes, there's definitely some irony there. As my parents told us "we don't always see ourselves as others see us."

2015- the year in review

The beginning of a new year often leads to reflection on the preceding one, and that occurred with me the past few days. Here's how I would summarize 2015:

It was the year of job change

I started two new jobs in less than 3 months. Each was a huge improvement over the job before it, and I have no regrets about the path I took. I'm finally in a position that I feel will challenge me and allow me to learn for the long term. Making significantly more money doesn't hurt either.

It was the year of renewed friendships

I reconnected with several friends this year. That has been really nice.

It was a good year for travel

I was able to take 5 trips this year, and they were all great. I got to see two new places, D.C. and Mackinac Island, and revisit 3 others that I've enjoyed before. Travel is a huge passion of mine, so this was very rewarding.

As with every year, 2015 did bring some bad moments. Overall, though, it was a good one.

Best wishes for a happy, safe, prosperous 2016 to everyone.