{"id":393,"date":"2013-10-31T22:12:08","date_gmt":"2013-11-01T05:12:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/?p=393"},"modified":"2013-11-01T20:03:59","modified_gmt":"2013-11-02T03:03:59","slug":"nothing-and-an-unexpected-lesson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/?p=393","title":{"rendered":"“Nothing!” … and an Unexpected Lesson"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"IMG_2323\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Just over a week ago, immediately prior to my departure for this current sojourn in Dubai, I received a surprise and pretty fantastic gift; unexpected in the context of a conversation with my good friend and former prot\u00e9g\u00e9, Keith.\u00a0
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

As an aside; to call Keith a \u201cformer prot\u00e9g\u00e9 is almost misleading. If anything, he was such for perhaps two months; as I knew when I taught with him at Apple that he was made for this business. A sense borne out when I recruited him as my Production Manager for an event in San Francisco; a business, a way of working, a context to which he took as does the proverbial Duck to Water. He is now, barely a year later, Assistant Director of Entertainment at one of the two highest-ranked water parks in the world.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a natural.<\/p>\n

Anyway, for the past few months he\u2019d been working on the debut of a brand-new, character, diver and acrobat driven water show. It had premiered the day before, and I was excited to learn how it went.<\/p>\n

Thus, to the SKYPE!<\/p>\n

\u201cSo? How\u2019d it go?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u201d he said, \u201c\u2026the show opened yesterday, and guess what I did\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know; tell me! Took notes? What\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked me right in the eye as a big smile grew on his face and he said, \u201cNothing!\u201d<\/p>\n

A huge laugh erupted from me. He was referring to my Assertion – as cited in this space some months ago – that a Good Producer has nothing to do on Show Day. If the Producer is running around, putting out fires and settling last minute issues, s\/he\u2019s hired the wrong people, led the team poorly and isn\u2019t prepared for the job.<\/p>\n

Show Day, for the good producer, should be one of calm; standing and watching the work of the team and the effective results of the meticulous planning leading up to Show Day.<\/p>\n

(Barring \u201cActs of God\u201d emergencies, of course.)<\/p>\n

Keith takes that philosophy to heart and illustrates this philosophy in the most practical of ways. He had nothing to do on Show Day. Fantastic.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m honored and flattered to witness it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So, yes; I\u2019m in Dubai for the foreseeable future on a massive project.<\/p>\n

One of the things I like so much about working in this part of the world is the disparity of nationalities and cultures on pretty much any team of professionals one might encounter. On this team I have joined, already, are English, Dutch, German, Indian, Pakistani, South African, a couple of Americans and myriad more. Together, in a culture alien to us all, as we work to deliver unsurpassable product to this client and culture.<\/p>\n

I appreciate my ability to be sensitive to the disparate cultures around me and keep the faux pas<\/i> at a minimum with positive relationships built and nurtured with relative ease. I say that, as during my most recent departure from SFO, I was brought up short as I realized I\u2019d overlooked something very close to home.<\/p>\n

There is a guy at SFO whom I have not liked for years. He\u2019s always at the entry to the TSA queue and is a stickler for one\u2019s carry-on fitting into that ridiculous metal display that asserts to determine whether or not said carry-on will fit in the overhead compartment. Sometimes, one can slip by him if the bag is carried deceptively or it\u2019s busy. But he will NOT allow the too-large bag to pass.<\/p>\n

I haven\u2019t been liking this guy; not since my first encounter with him, years ago.<\/p>\n

When I interact with him, I keep it sweet, swift and professional; but inside I\u2019ve judged him a jerk. He\u2019s an older gentleman, Chinese, with a thickish accent; which doesn\u2019t make it any easier to communicate when he\u2019s saying \u201cno.\u201d Irascible and, in my opinion and experience, not the most pleasant person.<\/p>\n

However\u2026<\/p>\n

This most recent time I encountered him, I was still out in the queue at the check-in counter, well before Security. Right as I got to the ticket counter, up marched one of The Entitled (you know the type; hotshot guys for whom No Rules Apply\u2026) with this man in tow. Barging up to the Agent adjacent to me, he launched into a diatribe about this man\u2019s incompetence in his refusal to allow Mr. Entitled\u2019s (massive) rolling carry-on past the barrier.<\/p>\n

Mr. Entitled was loud, brash, pushy and dismissive of this man-whom-I\u2019ve-been-judging; and his carry-on was BIG. He was berating the man in the third person, telling the agent of all the times he\u2019s had his bag on board with him\u2026and who does this guy think he is, telling him any different.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t feel like watching, so went on to Security and – about four minutes later – this gentleman walked past us in the queue to his regular place at the head of the rope and stanchion, the physical entry to the TSA queue.<\/p>\n

Slowly, he bent over and picked up his gloves; then stared out at\u2026I don\u2019t know what he saw, actually. He stared in the direction of we in the queue, but sort of through us, over our heads or beyond where we were standing\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2026And, in that moment, what I saw broke my heart. What I now<\/i> saw was a man from another culture, deeply dedicated to his job. Dedicated to\u2026and Proud of it. Suddenly, I re-appreciated his own, inherent, Cultural Roots; he comes from a culture where Rules are almost more than Rules, where Rules and Order are Respected\u2026and they do apply. I saw that all he was doing – all he had ever been doing – had been seeing that the rules are followed.<\/p>\n

He had simply been doing a job he is grateful to have and proud to do.<\/p>\n

I saw him hurt and perhaps shamed to have had his competence questioned. I have no idea the outcome of the altercation at the ticket counter; all I saw was the starkly visual, personal result of the insult.<\/p>\n

The wound I perceived in his eyes made me ashamed of all the times I had thought ill of him.<\/p>\n

He looked out at the airport, turned, picked up his jacket and put it under his arm and left the area. Head down.<\/p>\n

I realized in that moment that I\u2019d short-circuited one of my most valued personal and professional qualities by Assuming and Compartmentalizing.<\/p>\n

Empathy, cross- and inter-cultural sensitivity are of my best qualities. I\u2019m good at making my way in alien cultures; appreciating my own sensitivities, they serve me well in my work\u2026especially here, in Dubai.<\/p>\n

When in Dubai, though, it\u2019s easy to remember to remain culturally sensitive, as one is constantly surrounded with reminders through accents, clothing, skin color and mannerisms. It was right there, at home, that I\u2019d overlooked the very clues I seek when I\u2019m aware.<\/p>\n

We should always strive to be Aware. And beware the pitfalls of familiarity that lead to any assumptions; erroneous or otherwise.<\/p>\n

Exploration of Assumption is the first Tenet of my Big Five for the creation of compelling experience. Exploring – being aware of – one\u2019s own assumptions is a valuable tool in all situations, then, not simply the Important Ones.<\/p>\n

So, here\u2019s the lesson for all of us; certainly for me: practice at home what we practice in the field. Assume nothing; and watch for one\u2019s own assumptions in every aspect of daily life, in personal and professional interactions.<\/p>\n

Be and remain sensitive to others, and guard against judgement on the basis of anything from facial expression to uniform.<\/p>\n

I now believe that that man has never sought to be unpleasant or difficult, he doesn\u2019t even see it that way; he has simply been striving to do his job the best way he understands it as it needs to be done.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not up to me to judge him, nor to like or dislike his style. Rather, I\u2019m offered the opportunity to simply accept that it is what it is. The man\u2019s been there for years; someone<\/i> must appreciate and approve of the way he does his job.<\/p>\n

People around us, throughout our personal and professional lives, all have backstories and histories of which we know nothing. So much we might tend to take personally, or take-onboard in frustration, might very easily spring from reasonable sources or rationale outside our own experience.<\/p>\n

We just never know.<\/p>\n

My suggestion is to accept it and move on, in situations such as this one. In our ongoing professional lives, then; when someone isn\u2019t responding as we might prefer, perhaps it\u2019s a healthy modus operandi<\/i> to call to mind that such lessons, and just work with what we have.<\/p>\n

imho.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Feel free to download the eBook, “imho” for iPad, iPhone, iPod and now iTunes – the book is free, and contains the fundamental, foundational chapters on techniques and methodologies for the creation of compelling experience. Thanks!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Just over a week ago, immediately prior to my departure for this current sojourn in Dubai, I received a surprise and pretty fantastic gift; unexpected in the context of a conversation with my good friend and former prot\u00e9g\u00e9, Keith.\u00a0 As … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-393","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2oSuI-6l","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/393","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=393"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/393\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":397,"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/393\/revisions\/397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=393"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=393"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/imho.kileozier.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=393"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}