Today’s tip: WORK IS A BLESSING, ONLY IF YOU SO DECIDE! One of the many advantages of my job is that I have the privilege to interact with you, international civil servants, at a very personal level. I am always humbled and inspired by your impressive CVs, your movie-like life experiences, and your contributions towards…
FOCUS ON WHAT YOU DO WELL
Today’s tip: FOCUS ON WHAT YOU DO WELL, not what you don’t, JUST DON’T OVERDO IT! The music had started playing a bit earlier, but for once, I had managed to go to bed at a decent time, and it took me a while to wake up, understand what was that ‘noise,’ and realize where…
TOUCH ME, PLEASE!
Today’s tip: TOUCH ME, PLEASE! She is intelligent, witty, sensitive, and cheerful. She is knowledgeable, professional, and successful. She is a caring and loving daughter, and I barely know her. But I was privileged to be the first person, outside of her very immediate family, to hug her after several months of strict self-isolation established to…
FORGET THE PARANOIA, EMBRACE THE PRONOIA!!!
Today’s tip: FORGET THE PARANOIA, EMBRACE THE PRONOIA!!! Not long after arriving in Nigeria, I had the honor of being invited to a wedding. As Nigerian weddings are, this one had all the fanfare, the beautiful matching dresses, and the glamour of a red carpet event. There I was, almost on my way to church,…
FOLLOW THE WATER!
Today’s tip: FOLLOW THE WATER!!!! She was born at a time when women could not vote, study the careers they wanted, or in general, make the life choices they thought to be better for themselves. Some years later, with a revolution in between, laws changed, women vote was allowed, and things -including health for women,…
WALK THE TALK, NOW!!!
Tip of the day: WALK THE TALK, NOW!!! How was your night? How was your weekend? I sincerely hope it was restful, joyful, and recharging. Unfortunately, mine was crap! Well, not really. I am melodramatic, so let’s nuance it and say it was ‘crappy,’ and it could have been ten times worst, so I grateful.…
STOP THE ‘MEETING MADNESS’, START LEADING PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS!
Today’s tip: STOP THE ‘MEETING MADNESS’, START LEADING PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS! One of these days, a good friend of mine was sharing her frustration about the day. She had awakened early that morning with one thing -and only one thing- in mind: finishing a two-page report. It was a task she needed to do; it was part…
I AM SICK AND TIRED OF YOU… DO YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT?
I AM SICK AND TIRED OF YOU… DO YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT? Would you want to talk with anybody who jumpstarts a conversation with such a statement? Most likely not. I wonder, then, how come several of our most essential conversations are either triggered by or follow such feelings, albeit unspoken. It is…
MAKE A STAND, FACE YOUR FEARS
Tip of the week: MAKE A STAND, FACE YOUR FEARS This was a special weekend for some of us. It was Easter weekend, a quintessential Christian event, and it coincided with the official entering of my daughter into adolescence. My ‘little cookie’ turned thirteen, in the middle of a global pandemic, and with her father…
BUILD YOUR RESILIENCE, MANAGE YOUR EMOTIONAL LABOR!
Tip of the week: BUILD YOUR RESILIENCE, MANAGE YOUR EMOTIONAL LABOR! It was Friday afternoon, and I was emotionally tired. I also was hungry, but primarily I was grumpy. I did not know it at the time, but I was not managing my stress too well. I had spent the previous three days in self-isolation,…