The Type A Personality: Stress Junkie

My new knowledge is my theory!

This project thus far has allowed me to work efficiently on a team (well.. in my opinion). I realized that I was burdened with a lot and was able to delegate tasks and was even able to appoint myself a co-project manager.

This is a difficult project because my Type A personality has been very present. Especially in the beginning of the project. The past 2 weeks have been a tad bit slow due to a number of reasons at work but I am trying to  catch up right now (literally, right NOW) with school, work, and also the non-profit which is also tied to my Focus on Self. But wants reassuring is that my team believes in me and supports me in this journey.

Supposedly, it has been present my whole life....the whole, Type A thing.  It was my  co-worker who said "you have a VERY dominant Type A personality. VERY dominant." I was offended at first.  But I guess it's something that I have to embrace and nurture.  One of my friends, who knows me very well, confirmed this statement and said that I am Type A when it comes to EVERYTHING in my life. I thought it was only as it pertains to my full-time job.  Am I aggressive, direct, have an urgency for time, impatience, competitive, controlling, a workaholic, ambitious, business-like, have difficulty relaxing, driven by self imposed deadlines, and unhappy about delays? "YES! Oh my God Yes." he said. Okay Okay, I guess I agree, except for the competitive one. I HATE competition. It makes me uneasy and I always feel like I am going to fail. I shy away from ANY type of competition. Even 2 of my teammates verified this ans even called me "crazy :)"

I am learning to effectively communicate with my manager, who happens to be the Director of a major department in the corporation. She commended me as an emerging leader as I have had a few struggles with a corporate team I was leading. But she sees me trying to juggle my projects but also be inclusive and genuine. She sees that my interests lie in activities that are broad and stretching and is giving me the wiggle room to lighten up on departmental activities and focus more on corporate teams.  I am experimenting on ways to influence folks in my department. With one person, I gave insight, gave examples, got the input of others, re-phrased my suggestions.....all of that didn't work, so I took over. And you know what? That one worked. This person seems to learn based on experience. So to see the reaction of the customer, and it was a positive one? It seemed to be: yeah, Bernice knows what she is talking about. So after 3 months of fighting, that's all it took. Type A at it's best.

What's been difficult is getting through to the correct person in these companies. For example, Microsoft has been giving me the run around through to what is now 3 people, but I am still pushing through. What I think that is not on our side is time. I had a similar project for my employer that took us 9 months to complete. I expressed this to my team when we first got our project charge. Here's a thought! What if our Learning Modules were ACTUALLY tied to our project? I guess I just wished we had more time.

My team, as other teams, is at a point where certain members as contemplating the easiest way of getting  the project "done." The other teams have self-selected parts of the charge they plan on delivering, versus what was asked of us by the faculty back in Baltimore. So I am assuming this is okay with the faculty, seeing as though that is supposedly okay with the client. So with less than 2 months left, now the pressure is on for us to the same. But I think that it is very difficult to do this because every part of the charge plays on another part of the charge. What are we going to do?

In other news, taking from what I learned in the beginning of the project, I wrote a proposal contract to a potential mentor for my non-profit, The Berrette Family Foundation, Inc. He complimented me on my professionalism then wrote me this email:

"Ms. Innocent,

I have received your e-mail regarding establishing our mentorship relation and read its contents. I greatly appreciate your assertiveness and professionalism upon the engagement of this mutually beneficial relationship and agree to the terms expressed therein. I look forward to continuing to develop a strong professional relationship as the many days, weeks, months and years come to pass. "

Kudos to me!

www.ediplomat.com

Brazil



The People

Brazilians are friendly and free-spirited, with an incredible zest for life. They are very risk-oriented and very creative. Predominantly Roman Catholic (73%), families are large and often include extended family members. Family, educational and socioeconomic backgrounds are important to Brazilians.

Meeting and Greeting

Take time to greet and say good-bye to each person present.

Women kiss twice -- once on each cheek -- if they are married. Single women add a third kiss.

Body Language

Physical contact is part of simple communication. Touching arms, elbows and backs is very common and acceptable. Brazilians also stand extremely close to one another. Do not back away.

The "O.K." sign is considered very rude and vulgar; the "thumbs up" gesture is used for approval.

Wiping your hands together means "it doesn’t matter."

Clicking the tongue and shaking the head indicates disagreement or disapproval.

Corporate Culture

Your personality and ability to establish strong personal and business relationships is important to the success of your business endeavor.

Brazilians will do anything for friends, hence the expression: "For friends, everything. For enemies, the law." Relationships are more important than a legal document in business.

Meetings are conducted at a casual, unhurried pace. Don’t get right down to business. Engage in conversation first.

**Doing business with Brazilians requires face to face communication. You will be able to do only limited business by phone, fax or e-mail**

Some facts may not be completely accurate during the early stages of business negotiations. Brazilians expect some initial hype and will passionately argue their points, slowly and grudgingly making concessions. Try to maintain consistency in your negotiating team.

Always get a written agreement with starting date, time of delivery, payment details, etc. Bill in advance.

Presentations should be expressive and have some flair.

Stay at a first-class hotel. Appearances count.

Hire a Brazilian contact (a despachante) from your industry to introduce you to the right people. He or she will be invaluable to your success.

Hire a local accountant and a lawyer to help you with contract issues. Brazilians may resent an outside legal representative.

Make appointments two weeks in advance. Don’t "drop in" on business or government offices without an appointment.

Do not plan to make a business visit or schedule any appointments during holidays or festivals.

Dining and Entertainment

Always entertain in a prestigious restaurant.

Be prepared for lengthy meals (two hours or more for lunch). Do not discuss business during meals unless your host brings it up. Business may occasionally be discussed at dinner in São Paulo or Rio.

Brazilians always wash their hands before eating and rarely touch food with their hands. Use a knife and fork for everything, even fruit. Always use a napkin while eating or drinking.

Using toothpicks in public is not acceptable unless you cover your mouth with your other hand.

When inviting Brazilians to dinner or a party, do not suggest that your guests bring food or drink. Do not expect them to arrive on time, and never indicate a time that the party will "end."

To beckon a waiter, hold up the index finger of your right hand and quietly say "Garçon." To request the check, say "A conta, por favor." Waiters generally don’t bring checks until they are requested.

Dress

Appearance counts. Your clothing will reflect upon you and your company.

Brazilian women dress "sexy" in all situations, whether business, formal or casual. Foreign women who want to blend in should avoid wearing overly formal, conservative attire.

Shoes should be stylish, polished and well-kept. Nails should be manicured.

In business situations, men should wear conservative dark suits, shirts and ties. Three piece suits indicate executives; two piece suits indicate office workers. Women should wear feminine dresses, suits and pantsuits and avoid "dressing like a man."

Gifts

Gifts are not important in establishing a business relationship, and people won’t expect gifts in the first few contacts. A very expensive gift may be viewed as a bribe.

Present a gift at a social meeting, not during a formal business meeting.

Give good quality whiskey, wine, coffee table books and name brand pens. Gifts for your counterpart’s children will be appreciated.

Send flowers before or after visiting someone’s home for dinner.

Helpful Hints

Don’t assume that the "self-made" businessperson is admired in Brazil. Inherited wealth and a good family background are much more desirable.

Brazilians are extremely casual about time. Being ten to fifteen minutes late in business is normal, and twenty to thirty minutes late is not unusual. Be on time for a formal meeting, but prepare to wait for your Brazilian colleagues.

Soccer (football), family, Brazil’s beautiful beaches and the country’s rapid growth are all appropriate conversation topics. Politics, poverty, religion, Argentina (considered a rival) and the deforestation of Brazil are not. Personal topics such as age, salary and marital or job status are also unacceptable.

Brazilians are expressive and passionate conversationalists. Be prepared to be interrupted.

Don’t smoke in public. Federal law bans smoking in public places.

Don’t refer to Brazilians as Latins.

Especially for Women

• As women increasingly join the workforce, machismo has become less common. Younger, better-educated women have values that correspond closely to those of North American women. Women are well-accepted and are prominent in education, medicine and journalism and as small business owners.

• Brazilian women are very aggressive, in both their business and personal lives.

• Foreign women will usually have no problem doing business in Brazil. However, some people are still conservative in this regard.

• Be very careful not to ruin a business deal by being cool and too professional.

• It is traditional to invite someone for a drink after work. This is not a come-on.

Especially for Men

• Brazilian women can be very aggressive romantically and forward to the point of harassment. Don’t be surprised if you are in a restaurant or nightclub and a woman sends you a note asking for your phone number — even if you are with your wife or girlfriend. Foreign men traveling to Brazil should be very cautious when dealing with Brazilian women. If you don’t want the attention, be cordial but keep your distance. Don’t be overly friendly.

Shopping is a girls' bestfriend

I went shopping this week. Shopping for a mentor. But like when a girl is in the mall, you go in for one thing, and come out with more than expected. I went shopping for a mentor last week (re: the non-profit), and ended up coming up with a few people that I thought were great candidates. I narrowed down my search and put in the request. I was taken back, when I was asked for Terms of Engagement, but that should have been expected; I have had to do them in the past. But I remember thinking to myself: "Hey, I JUST had to do this for class." I was able to jot my ideas down but stared at the computer screen for hours. But after sleeping on it, I was able to produce, what I believe is a decent Terms of Engagement document.

The mentor that I chose is a very successful academic and is destined for greatness, and I am excited to see if they are willing to accept my proposal.

Uncertain, Anxious, Concerned, Overwhelmed.... by Challenge in regards to Capabilities and Commitment

I am so invested.

My work ethic at work and school aren't parallel. My work ethic has always been a bit erratic, which has never veered its ugly head in Cohort 4, 'til now.  It has always been hard to balance my erratic habits at Lockheed Martin and be in this program, so I have been merely doing what I needed to get my pieces done.

I am currently the Project Manager and the SME. But I question myself whenever I am questioned on what I know and why we need to take into consideration things that "aren't HR" and having to convince my team "yes! this is still within the scope of the project." I sometimes feel like I am fighting to convey that HR is a part of the business.

I now feel like I am investing hours upon hours on this project; becoming fully vested, trying to set goals and objectives for my team, and make sure that they understand HR. My challenges have been: How do I get folks to actively participate? How do I get folks to provide feedback? Respond to emails? How do I stop myself from not just doing the project myself? How do I hold folks responsible and get them to meet deadlines? How do I not overstep my boundaries? How do I not come off pushy? Because I get excited and filled with ideas and then I need to pour it out....somewhere, and it seems to be in emails.

Another challenge: A team member of mine went M.I.A. for about 4 days. A member of the team that had a charge to do something. With my past experience, I didn't jump to conclusions and figured, something wasn't right but I didn't know what to do. I emailed my teammate, called my teammate and called another teammate to see if they have heard from this person and if not, could they try their had at contacting this team member.  Luckily, the team member appeared and explained why he when missing and I was able to talk to him on the phone, bring him up to speed and talked about next steps.

It's been quite difficult to balance the Project Manager Role and the SME role. Typically, these aren't the same person. Matter of fact they aren't supposed to be the same person. But for some reason, I wanted to make it work. I have already endured sleepless nights and we are only in the 3rd week of the project. I have taken it upon myself to make sure that everyone has the tools and resources that they need.  I am treating this project like projects from work, that's the only way I know to be a Project Manager. Lot's of work in the Front-load to set-up and strategize, and periodic check-ups throughout the project to make sure we are on track, and overseeing the final products (recommendation(s), presentations, papers, etc). One of my teammates sent me an email the other day saying "I have never had an official PM before, but I feel like you are doing A LOT and that's not fair to you, I think that the team may get comfortable with that and take advantage of that." Any concern of a team member is a concern of the Team, so I addressed it at a team meeting and I came up with a solution as to having a Co-Project Manager. We plan on addressing the concern of people being active team members on Sunday's call.

http://www.johnny5ived.com/

http://www.johnny5ived.com/

Numerous Emails, Late Nights, No Sleep = Project Management?

The title says it all. After being named the Project Manager for my team's project, I have this odd drive to get things done, and make sure that my team stays on track. I want to do everything. The wheels are constantly turning in my head. I have all of these ideas, because the project is something that I understand and care about. I guess I can understand now, how certain people in the cohort could push so hard. I don't want to come of pushy towards my teammates, but I don't want to except the minimal either. I will continue to shoot out information, sent out emails, etc.  I don't want, what happened last project, to happen this project. I have a project plan in my back pocket to make sure that we are on track. Especially with my name being associated as "Project Manager." When I was first approached, I thought it was a set-up. None-the-less, I press on.